The Platinum Egg 2019: Magnus Jakobsson.
Magnus Jakobsson was born in 1972 and grew up in a household of outspoken academics in Gothenburg. Secretly, Magnus pursued a cultural studies course at university, earning a bachelor’s degree in literature. Secretly, because in Magnus’ circle of dropouts and as yet undiscovered musicians, “doing nothing” was the very air that they breathed. One late night playing pinball in Majorna, however, Magnus decided he had had enough, and moved to Stockholm to study copywriting at Berghs.... After a stint as a music editor at Swedish Vice, it seemed possible that a more well-adapted life might be available. But Magnus has both been influenced by and defended his outsider role and outspokenness through a career full of brilliant successes and pioneering work. At agencies including St Luke’s, Starring, Saatchi & Saatchi, DDB Stockholm and Åkestam Holst, working as both a copywriter and creative director, Magnus has shown that “good advertising is good in itself, not just good compared with other advertising”. McDonald’s, the Swedish Armed Forces, Papercut, SAS and IKEA are just a few of the brands that have been lifted up from the trivial to the engaging with the help of Magnus’ distinctive pen and creative leadership. Two Golden Writing awards and enough Golden Eggs to start his own hatchery prove that the rest of the world agrees.