News
McDonald's searching for next music stars
June 9, 2010
McDonald's is offering up-and-coming music artists an opportunity to launch their careers by starring in an upcoming McDonald's commercial. The program is in conjunction with Artists & Brands, a company created in partnership with Grammy Award-winning producer Rodney Jerkins.
"Music has always been an integral element to McDonald's brand and our marketing," said Marlena Peleo-Lazar, vice president and chief creative officer, McDonald's USA. "Through our new relationship with Artists & Brands, we are energizing our musical heritage by creating unique opportunities for bright new artists to showcase their talents in our brand communication."
McDonald's has long relied on popular recording artists, including Justin Timberlake's rendition of 'I'm lovin' it' to launch the tagline in 2003.
A golden opportunity
Undiscovered artists can upload their original music to the Artists & Brands website,where McDonald's marketing executives and the Artists & Brands team – helmed by Jerkins, music and marketing executive Ira Antelis and music attorney Daryl Jones – will review and select artists that truly shine for McDonald's. Once an artist is selected, Artists & Brands will produce a track for a McDonald's database of commercial-ready songs, as well as two additional singles that will be available for $.99 onwww.artistsandbrands.com.
The site also serves as the hub for new and emerging artist bios, video profiles and "behind-the-scenes" footage from recording sessions, including I.B. Fokuz, a Chicago native who was the first artist selected by the Artists & Brands team. His original song, "Got It In the Bag," is featured in "Woofer," a McDonald's commercial.
Beginning in June, Rodney Jerkins will select an "Artist of the Month," who will be featured onwww.artistsandbrands.comand receive industry counsel directly from Jerkins.
"As a music producer, I'm always interested in innovative ways to introduce new artists and their music. McDonald's has an enormous and instant reach and I'm excited to work with them as they continue to bring their brand to life through music," Jerkins said.
Offering undiscovered artists to promote a brand is a growing trend, with multiple brands, including Taco Bell with its annual Feed the Beat new music artist contest and beverage leaders Coca-Cola and Pepsi, joining in.
The new model of music sponsorship allows brands to have a new jingle created without having to pay the expensive rates of popular artists, according to Advertising Age. At the same time, "marketers save on fees and get cool points for introducing people to new music."
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