Hasta La Creative!

W+K Portland’s new spot for Powerade, entitled “Rose from Concrete,” stars Derrick Rose and features narration by Tupac Shakur.

For the voiceover, W+K took audio from the song “Mamas Just A Little Girl,” released posthumously on the 2002 album Better Dayz. Tupac’s spoken word lyrics form the emotional basis for the 60-second spot, which finds an appropriate subject in the injury-plagued Bulls star. Set in the streets of Englewood, Chicago, it shows (presumably) a young Rose as he rides his bike to the United Center. He stares at it longingly and then, in the next shot, an adult Rose sips a Powerade while taking in the sights from inside, ending with the message, “We’re all just a kid from somewhere.”

The words present a powerful message of overcoming adversity, and W+K does an admirable job of matching them to footage of Chicago, filmed last December. “Rose from Concrete” risks alienating some, however, who might take objection to Powerade’s use of Tupac’s sentiment for commercial means (even if they have the blessing of his estate).

“Tupac Shakur serves as the ultimate example of someone who couldn’t be limited by the environment in which he was raised,” Guy Duncan, group director, integrated marketing content, Powerade, said in a statement. “We are honored the Tupac Shakur estate has allowed us to use his inspiring message to tell our story to a generation that didn’t get the chance to experience his larger-than-life presence.”

How excited Skullcandy must have been.

In the battle of headphone brands, competing with the insanely popular Beats By Dre product line must have seemed like an impossible task. Marketshare was decreasing rapidly. What they needed was a miracle, the kind of great idea that can rocket their brand back into the competition. What they needed was a celebrity endorser big enough to compete with Dr. Dre but cheap enough that it didn’t totally break the bank. But who could that be? How can you get someone who’s universally respect and beloved at a reasonable price tag?

And then, it became clear. Derrick Rose, Bulls star point guard and Chicago’s most cherished native son, was on his way back from an entire year spent cheering from courtside after sustaining a devastating knee injury. The narrative was already being written by Adidas: Rose was back, and better than ever. The story was one of redemption; an opportunity to tell off the critics who felt he was sitting on the bench when he was well enough to be back on the court. “The Return” is what Adidas called it. Rose had the charisma, the talent, the credibility and, much to Skullcandy’s delight, a relatively reasonable price tag due to his year spent in street clothes. It must have sounded almost too perfect to Skullcandy’s marketing team. As preseason rumors spread this fall about Rose adding four inches to his vertical jump, fives must have been highed, glasses must have been clinked, and the familiar feeling of optimism must have crept its way back inside the Skullcandy offices.

I wonder who was watching the game, a late November Friday night as the Bulls faced the Portland Trailblazers. Who saw Rose pivot awkwardly on his knee while fighting for the ball, and limp gingerly toward the sidelines? Who had to make the mournful phone call when it was reported the star needed emergency knee surgery? Who first gasped when news broke on Twitter that, oh God, not again. Who remembers the studio, Gentleman Scholar, who wanted to use the above spot as their showpiece? Who can see a billboard on the Kennedy Expressway and thinks “Skullcandy!” instead of feeling a toxic mixture or sadness and frustration brought the reminder that another cold winter in Chicago would go bye without seeing #1 on the court?

Man, sucks to be them, huh? By the way, the song that plays in the background is “Back to Ballin’” by Wale. HA!  Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

NBA stars are a festive bunch, with great timing to boot. They need both in the league's holiday campaigns. Last year, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Russell Westbrook and Joe Johnson impressively played the popular Christmas song "Carol of the Bells" just by bouncing basketballs (in a spot that soared to more than 8 million views). Now, here's the sequel—also from GS&P.

It stars Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose, James Harden, Steve Nash and Stephen Curry shooting three-pointers at nets outfitted with Christmas bells—producing an even more impressive musical performance, this time of "Jingle Bells." LeBron James punctuates the song with a dunk at the end, then asks, "Please tell me the camera was on." It's a perfect spot.

Like last year's spot, this one promotes special-edition uniforms, available for sale, that 10 teams will wear on their Christmas Day games this year.

See a making-of video, plus credits, below.

CREDITS
Client: NBA
Spot: "Jingle Hoops"

Agency: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners
Executive Creative Director: Jeff Goodby
Creative Directors: Nick Klinkert, Adam Reeves
Associate Creative Director, Copywriter: Rus Chao
Associate Creative Director, Art Director: Kevin Koller
Producer: Benton Roman
Executive Producer: Tod Puckett
Director of Broadcast Production: Cindy Fluitt
Account Directors: Jason Bedecarre, Janice McManemy
Account Manager: Heather Morba
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Julie Petruzzo

Production Company: O Positive
Director: Jonathan Klein
Executive Producer: Ralph Laucella
Line Producer: Angie Revell
Director of Photography: Eric Steelberg

Editing: Final Cut
Editor: Matt Murphy
Assistant Editors: Tara Wall, Nate Connella
Producer: Suzy Ramirez
Executive Producer: Saima Awan

Visual Effects: Moving Picture Company
Visual Effects Supervisor, 2-D Lead: Jake Montgomery
Nuke: Brendan Smith, Will Voss
Shoot Supervisor: Eric Pascarelli
Design, Animation: Casey McIntyre
Senior Producer: Juliet Tierney
Executive Producer: Asher Edwards

Title Graphics: eLevel
Creative Director: Brady Baltezore
2-D Artist: Chris Carmichael

Sound Design: Barking Owl
Creative Director: Kelly Bayett
Sound Designer: Michael Anastasi
Producer: Whitney Fromholtz

Mix: Barking Owl
Audio Engineer: Brock Babcock

And here is last year's spot:

Adidas nous présente « Basketball is everything », un magnifique spot réalisé afin de promouvoir la paire de baskets DRose 4 en l’honneur du joueur des Chicago Bulls. Avec en guest Big Sean, Common et 2 Chainz, cette publicité nous propose de découvrir l’essence du basketball, le tout sur la musique Sarabande d’Haendel.

Après la pub Adidas Is All in, la marque réutilise ses égéries, à savoir David Beckham, Lionel Messi ou encore Katy Perry pour un spot publicitaire nous rappelant que nous avons tous une raison de courir. Bien réalisé, la vidéo est à découvrir dans la suite de l’article.

Previously on Fubiz

• Greenpeace – Adidas vs Nike
• The Chase
• M.I.A. – Bad Girls

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