????這一周是黑莓（BlackBerry）周。新的操作系統，新的手機，黑莓甚至可能借此機會扭轉局面。然而，公司最令人驚訝的怪誕之舉則是周三盛大的發布會上艾麗西亞?凱斯的亮相。這位曾獲得過格萊美獎（Grammy）的流行歌手前來的目的并不只是為了給新設備的潮流因素站臺。如今，她在這家深陷困境的公司擔任著全球創意總監的職務。

????常人的反應大多可能是“搞什么名堂？”實際上，這類結合跟Lady Gaga加盟寶麗萊（Polaroid）或杰西卡?阿爾巴入主Windows Phone手機有著異曲同工之妙。這里并沒有冒犯凱斯的意思，她顯然是一個非常有才華的人。但是，由于這一具有腐蝕性的趨勢會讓公司分心，因此技術公司必須叫停。

????“深受技術吸引”的凱斯表示，她將與應用開發人員、內容創建人員和公司其他領域的人員進行合作。她也將在巡演中帶上她那全新的全觸屏黑莓Z10手機——這是一個大的逆轉，因為她在去年曾公開表達過對蘋果（Apple）iPhone手機的鐘愛。

????不過她也有可能為黑莓公司貢獻一些新的理念。然而，就像《財富》雜志（Fortune）最近采訪的首席執行官托斯滕?海因斯所認為的那樣，這種合作會為這家搖搖欲墜的公司帶來可信度，而就在該公司發布所有新聞的同一天，它的股價下跌了12%。（具有諷刺意味的是，就在6、7年前，黑莓在spades中也有過同樣的遭遇。）凱斯也認為，她的參與將在某種程度上吸引更多的女性用戶。凱斯向《今日美國》（USA Today）透露：“每當我想到黑莓手機，我就會聯想到一個以男性為主的用戶群。但是在意識到（女性）人口結構的增長和變化之后，我們有必要對這一領域給予關注。”

????技術公司聘請明星擔任創意總監并不是什么新鮮事。理論上，這些明星比代言人更為賣力。因為代言人貌似只是走上臺，推出一款他們可能從未用過的產品，然后走下臺（懷里可能揣著一張支票）。2010年，寶麗萊聘請Lady Gaga來為自己產品線造勢。當時那次合作的第一款產品是一款怪異的、帶有兩個液晶顯示屏的太陽鏡相機。《財富》今年早些時候介紹過的歌手Will.i.am與芯片制造商英特爾（Intel）結成了類似的聯盟。英特爾聘請這位饒舌歌手來預測消費者在未來幾十年中的消費趨勢。

????The week belonged to BlackBerry. New operating system, new phones, maybe even a shot at turning things around. But perhaps the most surprising twist at the company's big Wednesday launch was the appearance by Alicia Keys. The Grammy award-winning pop star wasn't there to simply vouch for the trendiness of the new devices. She is now the struggling company's global creative director.

????The appropriate response is probably 'WTF.' Actually, it's a match that makes about as much sense as, say, Lady Gaga teaming up with Polaroid or Jessica Alba hawking Windows Phone. With no offense to Keys, who is clearly an incredibly talented person, this corrosive trend is a distraction that technology companies have to put a stop to.

????Keys, who is "fascinated by technology," said she'll work with app developers, content creators, and other areas of the company. She's also taking her new keyboard-free BlackBerry Z10 on tour—a big reversal, given her professed love for Apple (AAPL) iPhone last year.

????It's possible she will drum up some refreshing ideas for BlackBerry. But its much more likely CEO Thorsten Heins, who Fortune recently spoke to, sees the partnership as a way to lend credibility to the flailing company, which saw its stock drop 12% the same day it unleashed all its news. (Ironic, given that just six or seven years ago, Blackberry had that in spades.) Keys also sees her presence as a way to pull in more women. "When I think of BlackBerry I think of a more male-dominated space. But knowing how much the (female) demographic is growing and moving, there needs to be that attention there," Keys told USAToday.

????A tech company hiring a celebrity as their creative director is nothing new. In theory, they're more involved than spokespeople, who seem to stroll onstage to plug a product they've probably never used and walk off (possibly with a check). Polaroid hired Lady Gaga to spice up its line in 2010. The first product from the collaboration was an outré pair of camera sunglasses with two built-in LCD displays. Will.i.am, profiled by Fortune earlier this year, performs a similar role for chipmaker Intel (INTC). The rapper is tasked with thinking about how consumers will spend their dollars in the decades to come.