Hasta La Creative!

Go Ninja Go!

Who says Vanilla Ice never had any street cred? Everyone, I guess. And when it comes to hip-hop, they're right. But … who cares? The rapper (term used loosely) is prop-ah as hell in this self-deprecating Kraft Macaroni & Cheese commercial from Crispin Porter + Bogusky, skewering his goofy persona and, against all odds, stretching his 15 minutes of fame into a fourth decade.

Ice rocks the mic like a vandal, or something, lookin' fly in a green baseball cap and apron as he stocks shelves in a grocery store to help introduce Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-shaped Mac & Cheese. He sings "Ninja Rap," the brilliantly asinine tune he performed in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze in 1991. Naturally, a mom shopping the aisle starts busting furious moves. Check out her son's befuddled/horrified stare around the 10-second mark. That look could wax a chump like a candle! Ultimately, Ice puts it all in perspective, with a knowing grin and his trademark line: "Word to your mother!"

As great as it is, the behind-the-scenes video is even more of a tongue-in-cheek riot. "I've always had a love for the Turtles," Ice explains, "and when I did Secret of the Ooze, it was the highlight of my life—ever!" He lunges forward, like a snapping turtle, for emphasis. "I'll never top it, no matter what I do."

Showing off a Turtles leg tattoo, he adds, "When I first heard Mac & Cheese was creating Ninja Turtles shapes, I was like, genius! This is the frickin' most awesome thing ever!"

Yo, you're awesome, Ice. Word to mothers everywhere!

Here's a fun bit of false advertising from Crispin Porter + Bogusky for Kraft Mac & Cheese.

After 75 years, the brand is adding four new flavors: Garlic & Herb Alfredo, Buffalo Cheddar, Three Cheese Jalapeño and Cheesy Southwest Chipotle. They flavors were just invented, but Kraft wants them to feel like they've been around forever—as rich in history and nostalgic in feel as the original. So, it has invented a whole imagined history around them—one that never existed. "Even though it's new, it's nostalgic. It's new-stalgic," the agency explains.

Over at new-stalgic.com, you can scroll through a whole historical timeline of vintage photos, videos and ads dating back to 1938, showing milestones in the history of the four flavors. Seems they've been a fond part of everyone's life for decades, despite not actually being in anyone's life ever. As they say, never forget the times you can't remember.

The campaign extends to Pandora, where a radio station, New-stalgic Tunes, will play new covers of old hits, and of course to Facebook, where the brand is having fun updating past decades of its timeline.

1954

1975

1983

1987

2003

2013