Ad Rock
Some of you may have heard "Young Folks" if you watched the first five minutes (and only the first five minutes) of Gossip Girl, as we did (way to stay current, Alexandra!). Anyway, it can be disorienting (or even disarming) to hear familiar songs pop up in unfamiliar spaces, no? For instance, let's talk ad rock. No, not the Le Tigre-lovin' Beastie -- the sorta Wal-Mart placement thingy that got folks pissed at Band Of Horses recently. Right, what we tend to dub Commercial Appeal. But, more specifically, we've noticed songs we like popping up in commercials we don't.
A ten-year-old Hum song (their only major college radio hit) soundtracks a recent Cadillac commercial (thanks, Andrew) and there's this ridiculous commercial for YAZ, a new type of birth control, that uses the St. Germain song "Sure Thing," which we once owned because it was on a CMJ New Music Monthly CD. (Um, why not just use a YAZ song?) Listen to the way they talk!
Fine 'n' dandy, but how about more current cuts? There's Regina Spektor's "Music Box" in a JC Penney commercial? (Still trying to find video for that one...) Or, last, and definitely least, Matthew Dear's "Don And Sherri" in a Hummer advert.
Wow, owning an earth-destroying hummer looks like fun. Take that Band Of horses!
So, what have you heard in prime time lately? Excuse us while we go buy something.
Posted at 4:13 PM in Commercial Appeal
Tags: Matthew Dear | Regina Spektor | St. Germain
I really like the VW commercials with the Wilco songs. I saw an article on yahoo today talking about the spikes in searches for feist and 1234 because of the ipod commercials.
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How about The W.A.N.D. for Dell?
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Mojave 3 sold a song to Hummer as well...
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Caddy also used a nearly 15-year old Lilys song, "Ginger" recently.
I personally wish that I could track down the mp3 of Cat Power's cover of "Hangin' on the Telephone" from that At&T spot.
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Ad Rock isn't the buddhist beastie, MCA is. duh.
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> Ad Rock isn't the buddhist beastie, MCA is. duh.
We had "Free Tibet" on the brain. Le fixed!
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Camera Obscura's Country Mile' was used in an insurance ad here in England. It was pretty random.
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@ esskay
You could rip the audio from this:
http://www.sambisbee.com/reel/mov/cingular_alone_60.mov
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BTW, just for the record, that Hum song in the Cadillac ad is "Stars" and it came out in 1995 (not ten years ago). The album Hum released ten years ago (Downward Is Heavenward) is HIGHLY underrated, one of the most ignored classic records of the '90s.
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@ chucko
Right, right, sorry for the fuzzy math.
Loved Downward Is Heavenward. "Coming Home," "Apollo" ... I gotta rip that.
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There's a series of Nike ads for the US women's soccer team that uses MAN MAN's moustache song from their 2nd to last album
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clap your hands say yeah was used on a honda civic ad here in australia. it was neat.
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i hate it when songs i like turn up in adverts. a recent low point was hearing i'm from barcelona on a t-mobile ad (in the uk). i'm always torn between being disappointed a band has "sold out" and understanding the need to get paid...
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do you people not get it? all of these good bands are popping up in commercials because you fucks aren't buying their records. one song in one commercial will get a band more money than all of the blog coverage in the world.
if you like a band's music, dont you want them to make money so they can, you know, keep making music. record sales simply don't cut it anymore.
can we also mention the fact that labels get a cut of this commercial money too? again, don't you want money going into your favorite labels so they can keep releasing albums you like?
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how about of montreal's selling of wrath pinned to the mist to outback steakhouse?
it's too funny to get upset at the fact that such a great song is getting used to sell a few bloomin' onions.
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blog wank
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actually, nick, songs by good bands make it in to commercials because people who make commercials sometimes listen to good music. and you're wrong about the money on both ends. blogs can make bands loads of money... commercials, unfortunately not so much. unless it gets blogged about.
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But LISTEN TO THE WAY THEY TALK!
(She didn't go to medical school for nothing!)
Ladies can you tell us if this is how you talk when we're not around?
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justin...
"songs by good bands make it in to commercials because people who make commercials sometimes listen to good music."
um, duh? when did i say otherwise?
"and you're wrong about the money on both ends."
labels receive money for the licensing of master rights for a recording.. so you're just wrong here. the only case in which i could see this differing would be a) if the song is re-recorded (ala of montreal/outback) or b) if the song is written for the commercial (ala stephen merrit/volvo)
"blogs can make bands loads of money"
just ask the dudes in oh no! oh my!..im sure they're swimming in cash right now.
"commercials, unfortunately not so much. unless it gets blogged about."
again, you're wrong. cat power made over 100k from the "hangin' on the telephone" at&t ad.
so, according to you, she has made more than 100k from subsequent blog postings about that at&t spot than from the spot itself? back that up, please.
this all reminds me of that story from earlier in the week about that blogger that was crying because he couldn't get into a show for free. publicists have stopped caring about bloggers because over the last few years, they (and everyone else) have realized how LITTLE blogs do for bands..and that's because if you're "savvy" enough to read a blog, you're probably "savvy" enough to know how to get the music from those blogs for free..
and that's the other reason why bands opt to have their songs in commercials, to reach the larger public in hopes of catching the attention of people who actually spend money on records.
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I've been seeing a lot of commercials for a hotel chain lately featuring butchered versions of Andrew Bird's material.
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Cat Power? Really? The internationally charting, festival headlining, tour-sell-outing Cat Power was your frame of reference on this? Toss out one extraordinary example and present it the norm? Maybe we can cite Bob Dylan licensing his song to that energy company next.
as an art director at an ad agency i see how much most bands get paid for commercial use of their material. unless they've got really good lawyers and nothing to lose in the first place they're gonna take the few grand they are offered and be happy about it. but don't think that most bands are rolling around in cash when a commercial has their music in it. that sort of money paid for music in commercials is incredibly rare. most of the time they are paid less than the talent they hire to star in it.
and as far as who sees the money, its all totally dependent on the individual contract that is signed for the recording. lots of times the artists don't end up with any money, and don't share in the decision on whether it is appropriate to license a song for a commercial at all. for sourcing, since we're hip on this, check out the recent Tullycraft/Weinerschnizel incident.
http://www.youaintnopicasso.com/2007/06/25/tullycraft-accidently-license-song-for-commercial/
Further, as a member of a band who's seen the monetary value of good press, yes even from internet blogs, I'd say the odds of making money off the internet far outweigh the flash of cash you'll get up front for commercializing a song.
Not that I wouldn't do it in a heartbeat, mind you.
To steer back to the subject at hand, my favorite recent musical findings in commercials have to be the several times I've heard Viva Voce in spots the past year or so. Love love love that band.
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As justin said, the money isn't that great. The reason that Cat Power is not a good reference point for payment, being a multi-national, widely-recognized act, is that the company is trying to make their product more enticing by associating it with something that you already like. Most of these bands that you're referring to here are not widely known, and thus their music is used simply because some music is needed. If you don't believe me, ask several people on the street, even if they look like they should be up on the music scene.
Companies are using these particular bands for two reasons: the music is good; it isn't expensive to license. It is a win-win situation, as the company gets cheaper soundtracking and the band gets greater exposure. Granted, some do win more than others, and there is the risk of the "selling out" image.
But, until the band gets well known enough to not have to make money by licensing its music to commercials, it will not make much money licensing its music to commercials.
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Well, Target uses Beulah's "Silver Lining" in one of their commercials and I think that it's Levi's that uses "Up Against the Wall" by Peter Bjorn and John. Marriott is the hotel chain that uses Andrew Bird music in their commercials.
I watch a lot of TV.
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To Justin-
I think it was Donovan (Catch the wind) in that energy commercial (GE, I think?) but it does sound a lot like Bob Dylan.
I think it has to do with more of the people working on commercials/tv/film having an influence on the music direction, ie. The Zach Braff affect....
I saw this article then I heard the Junior Boys (In the Mourning) in some commercial and I thought that was kinda funny...
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Hilton Hotels used Paulo Nutini's "New Shoes" in an ad I saw a couple months ago. I'm not sure why in a hotel ad but I love that song and I work at shoe store, I think it's a no brainer to use it on of our ads. But I doubt our marketing dept. would cough up the money for real music.
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uuuuuuum Oasis -> Att. Can't believe someone hasn't mentioned it yet.
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These are the ones my wife, my 12 yr old and I are able to recall as we sit here in the living room:
Modest Mouse Gravity Rides Everything - selling a minivan if I'm correct.
The Walkmen - Mazda or Nissan - can't remember. It's the one where they show the car being driven through a neighborhood, everyone's outside, blah blah.
Postal Service - USPS.
Such Great Heights via Iron and Wine - M&Ms.
Mooney Suzuki - Beer, Nike, is that at them on the Mitchum's men's deo commercials or not?
The French Kicks - Trial of the Century is on a TLC promo montage.
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How about the Andrew Bird tracks that have been recently used for marriot hotel's ads?
or AIH in that sprint ad?
Also, is it just me or are outback's of montreal covers getting better?... i mean... lyrically
not to mention the bass section is actually audible now.
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I heard Les Savy Fav's "Hold on to Your Genre" in a commercial for a baseball video game.
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to rusty: ow, my pride! thanks for the correction, i'd seen the spot once and i think we're remembering the same one. interesting theory on movie soundtrack mentality... if music can turn a bad movie good (braff), can it do the same for commercials? probably.
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There's "Object of My Affection" from Peter Bjorn and John on a car commercial
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Devendra Banhart in a cheese ad, Jim O'rourke's cover of Burt Bucharach's in a water ad, Cocorosie in Gin ad, Vashti Bunyan in a telephone company ad, and so on
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I was kinda depressed to hear 'Music Box' in that JC Penny commercial, if for no other reason than I hate JC Penny. It's okay, no amount of commercialization could make me dislike Regina Spektor, so I guess I'll stop complaining and go listen to her CDs that I BOUGHT with MONEY thank you very much.
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I JUST heard one of my favorite folkies/troubadour on a JEEP commercial. I was heartbroken! Because I thought, “he’s gotta eat.” And now I read this.
One key to this discussion is property rights.
Another is audience.
(There’s also the matter of label size/involvement but my comment is already too long.)
I’m going to start with audience.
Almost no one is going to buy music they haven’t heard. I’ve heard musicians who knowingly sell songs to advertising say, "well, the radio won't play my music. And the commercial will be heard," and that is the VERY SAD truth. This is how they’re forced to find an audience. (Generally speaking) Radio is all f-ed up. The Public Air Waves hardly care about the public anymore. (If you don’t know what payola is and how disgustingly prevalent it is you can’t call yourself a music fan. And I’m talking real public air waves. Sirius and XM aren’t at the disposable of most people.) Someone already said this, sales spike after commercial use of a song. I REALLY don’t like this, but it’s just the truth of the business right now.
We, as a culture, take a good deal of the blame. Americans like art, but never want to pay for it. I wish that weren’t true, but it is. We put almost NO funding into arts. Music is the most popular art and yet … we’d rather buy a single on iTunes than get off our asses to buy the actual album. (As an American, I can’t speak to European or Asian or etc. markets.) (Another parenthetical thought – I’ll never understand the digital appeal and why you wouldn’t want the tangible album. But I do blame the current intangible digital craze for the lack of respect shown to musicianship and work.)
OK, rights:
There are two separate rights to a song, the recording (masters) and the publishing rights (think ASCAP or BMI).
There are a lot of times when the labels who have masters rights and sell songs (recorded) w/o musicians' permission. This is almost exclusively a major label thing. And is going away--artists are getting smarter and demanding their own masters.
Some people can only sell publishing rights. IE: you hear Beatles COVERS--never the recordings. This is because the publishing rights (catalog) aren't in full control of Paul, Ringo, Yoko, and Olivia. When I hear George's White Album track of "Piggies" on a bacon ad ... I'm gonna cry like a colicky baby for a month straight.
When it comes to the money question:
Someone already said it: who gets direct pay from the advertisers is all dependent on the individual contracts. BUT generally speaking if the song you WROTE is used you get paid… but you may not necessarily have say over its use. I think the main reason for the artist to licence their work to ads is for the above mentioned exposure, not the direct pay.
I think the sad truth is this: Business comes before Music and Product comes before Art. And I’d like to think that ultimately the consumer (us) makes that decision with their wallet and attention. The more you do to support art, the more business MUST adapt.
Ok, my sermon is over.
Go back to discussing who heard "skin is, my" on a hotel ad.
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so where does this leave a band like the 88, who seem to make music simply for licensing purposes (seriously.. check the 'trivia' section of their wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_88)... is their music any less "credible" than any of these other artists mentioned? if so...why?
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I agree. Kill Digital, buy a turntable
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...and then there's Violent Femmes flipping burgers for Wendy's
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sainsbury's (an upscale british grocer) uses the polyphonic spree all the time, and beck's has "it overtakes me" by the flaming lips for their new ad campaign.
as for what bri said about digital music - you're absolutely right. the smartest labels are issuing all of their releases on vinyl now, and i don't doubt that we will see a vinyl rebellion very soon. radio is a little trickier. npr is VERY good to independent music, whether you podcast all songs considered or catch a snippet of a familiar song between live programming. satellite radio isn't universal and clear channel owns everything anyway, so who actually listens to radio anymore? net radio is getting its ass kicked all over the map...
i think the important question about licensing songs to advertisers is WHO you're advertising for. pat at pop tarts suck toasted posted on this last week (http://poptartssucktoasted.blogspot.com/2007/09/dollars-and-sense.html), and the point sticks - if you're selling out to wal-mart or hummer, it's much worse than selling out to apple. at least apple allows unionization.
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i dont mind the act of a band letting a company use their music in an ad. what i do mind is the following wall post from facebook.com
"I like this song...Commercials make me broaden my taste in Music...I like that 1 2 3 4 song too, by Fiest...."
"This is that other song from a Commercial that I like....good lyrics".
Now, if this were a decent guy who now likes music i like, this would be a great thing. this guy is a douche bag, however and now i have to listen to him talk about how he loves fiest and has forever. ugh!
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www.diehipster.com
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Here's a recent blog post with a bit of a different opinion on the topic: http://colourmeimpressed.blogspot.com/2007/09/why-im-watching-more-tv-than-usual.html
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Oh, and I just read this Sam Beam quote on largehearted boy:
“I eat M&Ms,” Beam said from his rural Texas home. “There’s no reason to be hoity-toity about it if you eat them. I’ve got four kids and four educations to pay for. There’s a reality to making a living in the music industry. With radio dying and MTV dead, (an ad) is now the most effective way to get music out there.”
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For whoever pointed out the postal service use in the usps commercials, they were actually required to do that because they supposedly infringed on the usps rights. So, so that they didn't get sued for major bucks, the usps has rights to use all of their songs in usps commercials, and i thought i heard talk that they had to do a private concert for usps employees. but that's just hearsay.
my friend also pointed out two that haven't been mentioned. mates of state in an sprint commercial, and the new pornographers in a university of phoenix commercial.
we've also decided that some commercials don't suck that bad, and some are actually really good, ie such great heights in m&m and feist in ipod. But i have a feeling many won't agree with that.
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The worst is still The Shins shilling for McDonald's French fries during the winter Olympics a few years back.
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all the recent jaguar spots have had excellent music
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seriously, amanda? pay closer attention to those Postal Service/"USPS" commercials. see the brown truck? brown uniform? packages? now try taking an "S" out of "USPS"...
the amount of false information spread like manure throughout these comment threads (and in the posts — really, TWO corrections on this one story?) is unbelievable.
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