Hip-hop has long existed as one of the most influential cultural forces in America, shaping language, fashion and the way generations talk to one another. For decades, Sprite has cultivated a unique relationship with the culture through some of advertising’s most iconic creative moments featuring legends such as Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Missy Elliott, Nas and A Tribe Called Quest. Now, Sprite is paying homage to the hip-hop canon through The Living Tracklist, a campaign launching this month in partnership with the lyrics and music-knowledge platform Genius.Rather than fix the genre into a single ranking, the project treats 50 signature songs as material still open to argument, the company said. It spans collectible cans and bottles, original video and a Genius-run microsite that fans reach by scanning a code on the package; once there, they can dig into annotated lyrics, panel commentary and a sweepstakes.To anchor the effort, Sprite and Genius assembled a seven-member Cultural Authority Panel made up of beloved figures who come largely from hip-hop media and broadcasting — including Angie Martinez, Speedy Morman, Scottie Beam, Nyla Symone, Genius’ own Rob Markman, Josh Peas and Frazier Tharpe. The group aims to provide context and a starting point for fan debate, captured in a full-length social episode timed to the launch, the company said.On shelves, the list takes the form of 26 collectible package designs from six illustrators who each pulled from the cover art and visual signatures of a particular decade. The run covers roughly six decades of music and appears on regular Sprite and Sprite Zero Sugar in both cans and bottles, landing in stores across the country in July and staying through September. The packaging features tracks including “Rapper’s Delight,” “C.R.E.A.M.,” “U.N.I.T.Y.,” “California Love,” “Country Grammar,” “Bodak Yellow” and “Magnolia.”Sprite positioned the work as the latest chapter in a hip-hop association it traces back more than 40 years, from the 1990s “Obey Your Thirst” platform to 2015’s “Obey Your Verse.”“Sprite has never been a brand that just shows up when hip-hop is trending,” said A.P. Chaney, head of creative for Sprite North America, in a statement. Chaney described how the teams built the campaign in collaboration with the voices closest to the music rather than inside a boardroom.Jackie Vignone, chief revenue officer at Genius, added: “Through our collaboration with Sprite, we’re inviting fans to revisit these iconic tracks, explore the stories behind them and join the conversation around the music that continues to inspire and drive culture today.” Beyond Genius, which produced the panel content and hosts the digital experience, the campaign enlists Complex for co-branded social content and extends across out-of-home, audio, retail, digital and social media.