A Super tune-out
More celebs, fewer songs in ad spots
Super Bowl advertisers spent big on well-known tunes last year, but turned a deaf ear this year as celebrities appear to be getting the cash instead.
Advertisers have splurged on celebrities with ad spots featuring the likes of Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake, Melissa McCarthy, Peter Fonda, Snoop and Martha Stewart to name a few while skimping on what they pay for songs.
Last year, Audi paid as much as $2 million to use the rights to David Bowie’s “Starman,” in a commercial about a frustrated retired astronaut. The singer’s recent death then prompted a flurry of interest in Bowie tracks.
Audi this year went with a spot featuring a girl in a go-kart with classical music in the background.
Queen’s legendary, “Somebody to Love,” ran in Honda’s Super Bowl L commercial in 2016. This time around, Honda is airing an ad featuring the voices of Amy Adams and Robert Redford speaking from their yearbook photos.
Marketers seem to have steered clear of big expensive songs. Another reason they may have cut music budgets is Fox is charging a record $5 million for a 30second spot.
Brian Monaco, president of music publisher Sony/ ATV, confirmed after a bonanza 2016, fewer marketers were using wellknown tracks. This year, the firm will have around nine songs in commercials; last year it had 12.
There will be some notable pop hits during the Fox broadcast on Sunday.
Sony/ATV has licensed several songs for the New England Patriots versus the Atlanta Falcons game.
They include Sia’s “Move Your Body,” for the Lexus “Man and Machine” commercial.
Monaco commented: “The trend is there are a lot of celebrities in the commercials. It may be that they are moving to celebrities from music.”
Even so, he added: “The Super Bowl platform is a chance for us to get our catalogue in front of 100 million people, which helps show the power of Sony/ATV.”