Girl you know it's true

Three lessons on creating the perfect product that the story of Milli Vanilli teaches us

The popular 80s R&B music act "Milli Vanilli" represented the perfect "product": the ultimate blend of music, look, and performance. Their success - until the scam was discovered - was legendary: their single "Girl You Know It's True" spent weeks at the top of the international charts and even won a Grammy for "Best New Artist". The label sold millions of discs, incl. 3 #1 hits in the U.S. Milli Vanilli also had an outstanding fan base.

Not everyone knows that this "product" was not the result of chance, but was deliberately planned and prepared in every detail. As product managers, we can learn from the backstory on how to craft the ultimate product and also what to avoid.

Frank Farian - in the role of the product manager

Frank Farian (born Franz Reuther) the music producer of several top pop acts like Boney M, FAR Corporation, Meat Loaf, La Bouche, and other well-known artists knew what resonated with his audience. Based on that insight he created music experiences that hit the nerves of millions of people. He was obsessed with the idea of creating the perfect sound and spent countless hours in his studio behind the mixing desk.

But he also knew that producing great songs was not enough to be successful in the music business. For the ultimate success, he wanted to create the perfect experience, an act that consisted of earworm-quality songs, stunning-looking artists, and a carefully choreographed performance.

In addition, he had a clear goal in mind: He wanted a number one hit in the U.S., so he executed his plan...

Frank Farian - Wikipedia

Understanding what customers want

The foundation of his success was knowing the taste of his audience. By having an exact understanding of what his audience wanted, he was able to anticipate what would later be a hit. But how did he become a "hit man"?

Frank Farian owned the discotheque Rendevouz in his hometown where was able to test his productions. So he could experience firsthand what his audience wanted and what got them excited. However, with his increasing success he felt that he needed the right performers to match his music to perfect the experience. He concluded that the audience did not want dancers or singers. What they wanted were stars.

Creating the perfect "product"

Frank Farian was obsessed with creating the perfect result. He knew that the musicians he was working with were outstanding but they were not "presentable". At this time, MTV appeared and that phenomenon emphasized the importance of an entertaining performance and the appearance of the performers.

Although the Milli Vanilli members Robert (Rob) Pilatus and Fabrice (Fab) Morvan desperately wanted to sing their songs, Farian concluded that their voices were not nearly good enough. In fact, he had their song "Girl you know it's true" produced with studio musicians even before recruiting them.

The song

The perfect product must literally move people. It must get them off their seats and dance. Farian found the perfect song: Girl you know it's true by the band Numarx. The song had potential but was not nearly as good as needed. So he created a cover version that was a bit faster and much more sophisticated. He put his stamp on the song with his signature sound. The song sold over 7 million copies and was a no. 1 hit in the U.S. for weeks.

The look

For his act to become idols, Farian knew that he needed to recruit performers with stunning looks. He found two attractive-looking and successful dancers who performed in Munich clubs. They were eager to start a real band. They also knew that their appearance was crucial to being successful. So they grew their hair which later made their signature look and brought their bodies into an athletic shape.

The performance

They trained hard to perform outstandingly. They perfected their playback. Later on, after they moved to LA they even took a singing coach to prepare them for a live performance but still, they weren't good enough. They even took an accent coach to make them less "foreign" to American audiences when appearing on shows. This was also to cover up their scam and make it appear more plausible that they were the real singers. The audience didn't notice. Even when there were rumors that they were only lip-synching their fans wanted to believe they were real performers of the songs.

The perfect illusion

Farian had created the perfect musical duo that won the hearts of their fans. He understood the components that make up a perfect "offer": perfect songs, a perfect look, and a perfect performance. He created the perfect illusion as some would say. As Farian says in the movie: "People listen with their eyes." People believe what they see or better what they want to see.

The collapse of the Milli Vanilli construct

Like with many scams, in the end, the truth came out and the Milli Vanilli "project" collapsed. On July 21, 1989 at the Club MTV Live: The Tour, the playback hung during their performance of Girl you know it's true and it became clear to everyone that they did not perform their songs. A year later, Frank Farian confessed that they had not sung on the records, and the scandal became public. Milli Vanilli's fans were deeply disappointed and they had to return their 1990 Grammy. Fab Morvan moved on with his life. Rob Pilatus sadly did not. This story has many facets and we can learn from its success and failure.

The Learnings

1. Be 100% customer-focused. Find out what touches people emotionally. Figure out how you can make them feel good about themselves. Farian did that by extensively testing his "products" and figuring out his audience's taste.
2. Give your customers what they want. Develop a vision of an irresistible product and set an ambitious goal. Envision what you want to accomplish and try to make it specific. Have a clear picture of all the elements that need to be in place to create the "perfect" solution. Farian had a clear picture of the outcome of the "Milli Vanilli project" in his mind. He also had an ambitious goal, to land a #1 hit in the U.S.
3. Sustainability is king. Honesty lasts the longest. Develop the best product you can. Deliver the best experience possible. But never lie to your audiences/customers/fans and never promise something you cannot deliver. Would the band have had any chance of success without the lie? Nobody knows. But for sure there would have been a chance to be transparent about who the real performers were early on.

This article was brought to you without the help of #GenAI.