Del Taco CMO Tim Hackbardt On The Success Of CRYS P, His Musical Roots, Steel Panther & More
As an avid viewer of both television and streaming-based entertainment, I am conditioned to skip past commercials. But every now and then there is a commercial campaign that grabs your eye and actually makes you want to watch. The latest one of those for me is Del Taco, which has found success with its music-centric CRYS P character. Viewers have watched CRYS P — as portrayed by prolific character actor, comedian and singer John Gearries — be interviewed by Headbanger’s Ball host Riki Rachtman, perform alongside Steel Panther (known as CRYS//P TYGER for the campaign) and release the new single “Bang, Bang, Bango” (full music video embedded below) with the CRYS*P BOYZ.
Del Taco’s Chief Marketing Officer Tim Hackbardt re-joined the Del Taco team last February after successfully growing operations for BrandTrip Partners, Pieology Pizzeria, BJ’s Restaurants and The Johnny Rockets Restaurant Group. As the CMO of Del Taco, he is responsible for brand leadership of 600+ Del Taco locations, as spread across 16 states. Serving more than 3 million guests each week, the Lake Forest, California-based Del Taco was founded almost 60 years ago in 1964, and there is no doubt in my mind that CRYS P is helping keep people all over the States loyal to the Del Taco brand.
On January 15, 2021, I had the pleasure of speaking with Tim Hackbardt via Zoom, as embedded below. We spoke about the roots of CRYS P, some of the top musicians and performers behind the music credited to CRYS P, Hackbardt’s musical roots, and even how Hackbardt finds time to be an Ironman Triathlete when not busy with Del Taco. More on CRYS P and Del Taco is available online at www.instagram.com/crysp_dt/, www.deltaco.com and www.instagram.com/deltaco.
Tim Hackbardt himself can be followed via oldguywhotris.com and facebook.com/oldguywhotris.
About the Author
Darren Paltrowitz Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."
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