what is it with companies these days luring artists into selling out to be in their commercials? whatever happened to those cheesy little jingles that would stick in your head for hours and days on end like the freecreditreport.com ones ("f-r-e-e that spells free." thanks alot, bastards).
apple and mitsubishi, i believe, are the original perpetrators of this movement. apple secured foreigner yael naim and her poor "new soul" to hock their wares, while mitsubishi has run the gamut with their selection of sell outs; from fat boy slim to the french version of elastica, the prototypes. now TIAA-CREF has gotten in on the act, kidnapping one of college rock's pioneers, bob mould, formerly of husker du and sugar, using his "see a little light" song to tell everyone about their financial services for the greater good (i had to look that up. the hallmark of bad and ineffective advertising).
when did it become acceptable and chic for artists to sell out like this? i hate that it has, but i really can see both sides to it. on one hand, the artists do need to make some scratch and the advertisers do need something catchy to make their ad stand out. but on the other, i think it sucks that artist and advertiser alike have no problem assailing the integrity, modesty and artistry of the original work.
i guess if i had my way, companies would commission artists to score original music for their ads; to create something that actually and directly relates to what's being sold. this way everyone wins: artists get paid, advertisers get customized music to fit their products and services, and the rest of us get to continue enjoying the music the way it was intended....for our entertainment.
(btw, if you haven't yet heard "see a little light," i recommend it with a 'b' grade for its 80s off-key pop value.)
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