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The Twitter rumour mill of chartered jet from NJ to Hastings, photoshoot, filming, commercial, Superbowl, Nebraska boxset.......
whatever, let's all be thankful that we wake every morning in this wonderful world and have our freedom.
I heard the Box Set will be electrifying.
WILL BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN BE IN JEEP’S SUPER BOWL AD?
Bruce Springsteen—notorious for avoiding ad appearances—might finally be in a big one: The Boss appears poised to star in Jeep’s Super Bowl ad.
Local media reports out of Nebraska documented his travels in the state in recent days that appear to be related to shooting a Big Game ad for the car brand. NTV, an ABC affiliate in the state, on Wednesday cited a now-deleted tweet from an airport in Hastings, Nebraska that stated “Bruce ‘The Boss’ Springsteen lands in Hastings to film a Jeep commercial in Blue Hill for the Super Bowl,” referring to a small town south of the city.
Also on Wednesday, an Associated Press report picked up by the Lincoln Journal Star speculated about a chartered jet landing at the Hastings airport early Sunday, after a three-hour trip from New Jersey. The report also cited social media posts from area residents who were “quick to identify the mystery visitor.” The AP also stated that a local sheriff confirmed that “a film crew shot something on the Republican River bridge south of Red Cloud and had hired a couple of off-duty deputies for security.”
A spokeswoman for Jeep-owner Stellantis told Ad Age that “we don’t comment on speculation.” The company, formerly called Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, on Wednesday confirmed that Jeep would run an ad in the second half of Sunday’s game, but did not provide details.
Stellantis Chief Marketing Officer Oliver Francois—known for luring big-name stars for Super Bowl ads—has been chasing Springsteen to appear in an ad for years. He discussed his desire to lure the Boss in a 2018 interview with Ad Age. "He's not for sale," he conceded back then. "He's not for rent. And there's nothing you have that he wants."
But the circumstances the nation is in this year—battered by political strife and the pandemic—could possibly have changed things, making an appearance by a star who is known for his social activism more palatable.
Still, it would be quite a coup for Jeep if the brand gets the Boss on board. Springsteen has famously resisted appearing in ads for commercial products, notes Jeremy Mullman, a partner at marketing agency ICF Next. “I am unaware of anything. He’s always been pretty resistant to that,” says Mullman, a Springsteen super fan who runs the Twitter account @SpringsteenSays, which regularly posts Springsteen lyrics and has drawn nearly 50,000 followers.
He points to reports that Springsteen in the 1980s turned down an approach by former Chrysler Chairman Lee Iacocca, who was rumored to offer Springsteen several million dollars to use “Born in the USA” for a commercial.
Still, Mullman notes that “it would make sense that if he was ever to do something that an American auto brand would be the right place to show up given his history with cars and the iconography of the automobile in general.”
And Francois has a way of seizing on the moment in the Super Bowl. Last year he lured Bill Murray to appear in a Big Game ad that reprised his role from the movie “Groundhog Day,” taking advantage of the fact that the holiday fell on Super Bowl Sunday. In 2011, Francois got Eminem to appear in the award-winning “Imported from Detroit” ad that was credited with burnishing the image of Chrysler and the Motor City. And in 2012, he got Clint Eastwood to star in the “Halftime in America” ad that drew parallels between the fall and rise of the U.S. auto industry and the fortitude of the American people
https://apple.news/A5v7O-FIhTNK0yyfugkV8qQ
....and here it is....
Jeep Super Bowl ad: Bruce Springsteen encourages Americans to meet 'in the middle'
Bruce Springsteen is encouraging Americans to meet "in the middle" during a Super Bowl LV ad for Jeep.
The iconic musician, known as "The Boss," stars in and narrates the scenic two-minute ad, which features far more Americana and landscape than any Jeep vehicles.
The ad is reminiscent of past Super Bowl commercials from Olivier Francois, chief marketing officer of Jeep's parent company, Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler).
Bruce Springsteen is encouraging Americans to meet "in the middle" during a Super Bowl LV ad for Jeep – his first-ever appearance in a commercial.
The iconic musician, known as "The Boss," stars in and narrates the scenic two-minute ad, which features far more Americana and landscape than Jeeps. The only vehicles in the ad are a 1980 Jeep CJ-5 and a 1965 Willys Jeep CJ-5. Both models are predecessors to the brand's current Wrangler SUV.
During "The Middle," Springsteen talks about a chapel located in the center of the country called U.S. Center Chapel in Lebanon, Kansas. He uses the extremely small chapel as the basis to talk about the country needing to "meet here, in the middle" before the ad ends with "To the ReUnited States of America." That's followed by a website and logos for Jeep, which is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2021.
"It's no secret … The middle has been a hard place to get to lately. Between red and blue. Between servant and citizen. Between our freedom and our fear," Springsteen says. "Now, fear has never been the best of who we are. And as for freedom, it's not the property of just the fortunate few; it belongs to us all."
The ad is reminiscent of past Super Bowl ads from Olivier Francois, chief marketing officer of Jeep's parent company, Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler). Specifically, a 2013 Super Bowl commercial called "Farmer" that featured the voice of iconic radio broadcaster Paul Harvey and another semi-political ad starring Clint Eastwood called "It's Halftime in America" in 2012. Both were scenic, pro-country ads featuring few actual vehicles.
"It is absolutely meant to be a successor," Francois told CNBC. "This is our style. This is our language. This is our approach to Super Bowl. We really were trying to achieve a little bit of what we achieved in these other commercials, which is really relevance and meaning and something that will really tap into the moment."
Timeliness and relevance are pillars to Francois' advertising style. He's also well-known for casting A-list celebrities that aren't usually associated with advertising in unconventional commercials. Past Super Bowl ads have included Detroit rapper Eminem, musician Bob Dylan as well as a voiceover by Oprah Winfrey. Last year, Francois convinced elusive actor Bill Murray to reprise his role from the 1993 film "Groundhog Day" for a Super Bowl ad.
A company spokeswoman declined to say how much the ad cost, including the fee for Springsteen, who is not known for appearing in ads but did lend his voice to a campaign commercial last year for Joe Biden.
Francois said Springsteen was intimately involved in creating the ad, and worked closely with director Thom Zimny. He wrote and produced the original score for the commercial with another one of his frequent collaborators, Ron Aniello.
"Olivier Francois and I have been discussing ideas for the last 10 years and when he showed us the outline for 'The Middle,' our immediate reaction was, 'Let's do it,'" Springsteen's manager, Jon Landau, said in a statement. "Our goal was to do something surprising, relevant, immediate and artful. I believe that's just what Bruce has done with 'The Middle'."
The ad was created in partnership with Michigan-based agency Doner. The spot was filmed over five days in late January in Kansas, Colorado and Nebraska.
Wow...even though we knew it was coming. His first commercial ... Who'd a thunk it? It is for a good cause... getting to the middle. I certainly agree with that. Let's hope a lot of folks on both sides also agree with the message.
technically his second, didn't he do the harmonica on beechnut chewing gum?
I love the message but hate the use of Religion as a tool here. Without getting too deep into it, I wish we didn't equate any sort of moral goodness in religion.
I agree with DenverBrian. With the media attention to Bruce doing an ad and the nature of the ad itself, Bruce will get more national publicity for these two minutes than anything he's released musically in the last 35 years. It's essentially an attack on the state of America during the Trump administration. This will cause an interesting and probably divided response in the national media.
Maybe he has finally traded in his Land Rover?
@wildinnocentshuf posted:Maybe he has finally traded in his Land Rover?
Yeah... for an old Jeep.
He's a fuckin' genius. He took some outtake footage from Western Stars, did a trivial and banal voiceover, and he got paid for that shit!