It’s official – HBO has the best promotional strategy. Not that the fourth season of Game of Thrones needed any more hype, but it’s getting heaps of it with a new hip hop mixtape. Dragons, kings, ice creature zombie... things – hip hop should fit right in there, right? The new mixtape is intended to help fans catch up on the fantasy series ahead of Season 4 and is called Catch the Throne, because... well, you know.

Common
Turns out, Common is big on hip hop.

But wait, there’s more! Because HBO wouldn’t just bank on some third rate rappers to get the job done, the mixtape features the likes of Common, Wale, Big Boi and DADDY YANKEE (always pegged him for a GoT fan). It also shines the spotlight on some fresh talent like Bodega Bamz and Show Tha Product. Each rapper had a chance to spit fire (pun intended) about the show’s big theme – the struggle for power. It makes perfect sense, according to Common.

"Game of Thrones centers around battles for power and rap is definitely a battle for power," the rapper said for Vibe.

So it’s really not that surprising when you… no, wait, it’s still very, very weird. Still, that mixtape is definitely worth looking into - for Game of Thrones and niche hip hop fans alike. Oh, and let’s not forget the hipsters, of course. This is exactly what HBO are banking on – crossover appeal.

Wale, Lovefest Concert
With rappers like Wale, HBO is banking on crossover appeal.

"Helping people catch up was the genesis of the idea," Lucinda Martinez, the SVP of Multicultural Marketing at HBO told VIBE. "We know that hip-hop impacts all audiences and realized there were a lot of artists who were fans of the show. We thought this could be a great opportunity to have them sing or rap or whatever their artistic interpretation of the show was to help us create stunts that we could share through music."

Expect Catch The Throne to drop on Soundcloud this month right before the show kicks off season 4 on April 6 on HBO. And then there’s the Special Screening at New York's Barclays Center on March 20.

If, for some reason, you haven't seen the Season 4 trailer yet... why?