In 2007, TRES released Lifestyle Marketing, the instrumental project by Thes One (of People Under the Stairs). The project began when Thes discovered albums composed of obscure TV and radio commercial background music written by Herb Pilhofer in the 1960s and 70s. Thes transformed these corporate-era jingles into soulful, dusty, head-nod instrumental beats.
At the time, Chikaramanga (of Giant Panda) was directly involved in that release as a label manager. He witnessed firsthand the creativity and playfulness behind the concept — the boldness of flipping advertising music into beats. The project embodied the founding spirit of TRES: creativity beyond the obvious and a sense of playfulness. It left a lasting impression.
For years, Chikaramanga carried the idea of creating something in that spirit — not as imitation, but as continuation.
Then the moment arrived.
When his father-in-law handed him a 10-inch record filled with Japanese TV and radio commercials from the 1960s and 70s, he immediately recognized the parallels. The melodies were nostalgic. The arrangements were lush. The optimism was unmistakable. It felt like opening a time capsule of Japan’s postwar consumer imagination.
He knew the time had come.
Marketing the Lifestyle is both homage and evolution.
Where Lifestyle Marketing explored American commercial sound design, Marketing the Lifestyle revisits Japan’s golden era of CM culture. Afternoon snack jingles. Coffee breaks. Shampoo themes. Pharmaceutical ads. These fragments of broadcast history are reshaped into five beats by Chikaramanga through crisp drums, intentional restraint, and a mature sense of space.
This is not parody.
This is reinterpretation through lived experience.
3 O’Clock Delight captures the warmth and energy of after-school television with children’s vocals and a funky bassline.
Choc-o-Late swings with jazzy female vocals layered over a dusty groove.
The Essentials distills the core elements — raw loop and drums.
Lulu rides on heavy drums, driven by a synth bassline and a catchy vocal sample.
The(s) One closes the circle with an elegant vocal loop and slow-tempo grit. The title also signals Chikaramanga’s respect for Thes One and his creative, innovative mindset.
Nearly twenty years after helping bring Lifestyle Marketing into the world, Chikaramanga offers his own chapter. This release is available as a free download album.
Not selling a lifestyle.
Living one.
TRES
2026