This is some...
I oughta...
Motherf-f-f....
I can't do this alone.
Millie Jackson, can you NSFW me please...
Ah, Such eloquence.
But seriously this is just co-opted blackface. I could go on for days, months, 400 years even, about why this is wrong. Simply stated; it is the minstrelization of caricatures that wrongly represent African Americans. A less than flattering imitation of an already too often accepted demoralized view of Black people in America. And that is just where the problem begins.
As for the creative merits of this campaign (this site is about advertising and creativity after all); There is none. This is the quintessential lazy day at the office. This is when dumb jokes go wild. Or when under-active imaginations fixate on poorly developed ideas (I'm using the word "idea" very lightly here), these ideas give you an insight of prejudiced tenants we all harbor. That is something we humans still deal with, so it is to be expected, but then we must rise above the mire. We all must employ our "better angels" or at the very least a smidge of common sense and reject these mutterings. Instead the agency decided to share their basest impulses with the world at large. Well, this is what you get when that happens.
(in)cred(ulous):
24 comments:
What.in.the.
awww d@mmit!
First it was Save The Last Dance and them wack Step Up movies and now this...from Minneapolis???
Minneapolis!
Man, they might as well call all us a pack of ignant a$$ coons. I don't believe this!
Nice segue into Millie Jackson. We need all the help we can get with this one. Do you mind if I use it?
T. Troy, it takes a nation of millions...
Max, by all means, brah... please do.
o.m.g.
what the hell??
don't you just love our new-aged blackface?
ugh.
also, the Millie Jackson clip says it all...
FG, new aged black-face indeed! Does that make rappers the new minstrel show? I'm just asking.
Craig--
that's a good question, but i don't think i'm the person to answer it (considering that i'm white and members of my own family would find this shit hilarious).
oh yeah, would you mind if i linked this page on my site?
Filthy G, please do... my brutha! Quite honestly I go between laughter and outrage, so I aint mad at your family. The agency on the other hand...
TTS, don't shoot nobody, this is bad but we are better than this and we still rise.
What the effin' EFF! Ugh.
ATL P, you were warned.
linked:
http://filthygrandeur.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-face-of-blackface.html
$19.99 jamo....lemme get 5 of those and then we can start out march on washington!
but seriously...minneapolis. chicago doesnt even know what a black person is....so this is just stupid. the midwest is NOT all that integrated and they dont really want to be (on both sides). dont pay it any mind. the agency will take the wrap. the sad prt would be if this thing got some type of praise.
THAT would be sad.
*i do agree that that black person in the spot should feel ashamed of himself.
These ads are poking fun at whiteys, being posers, trying act cool like the people in the neighborhood. Being like the brothers is an aspiration. I think the black guy in the spot got the joke.
This is just an adult-version of all the white suburban kids who buy hip hop music and pose.
Anon, I see your point and appreciate your comment. I think what people find most disturbing is the association of people of color with 'bad' parts of town, cheap alcohol and all the other seedy implications in this campaign. In this spot being like the 'brothers' isn't an aspiration, it's a derisive parody assumed to facilitate cheap alcohol induced highs. The same way some people come into black neighborhoods spewing slang asking any and everyone if they know where they can get illegal drugs. And the black guy in the spot (who the heck are we kidding) is a paid ACTOR. Meaning he gets paid to ACT like he gets the joke wether he gets it or not. Plus the image of the black guy on the phone was in no way aspirational to black people, honestly it was quite the contrary. This is just an adult version of an idea bankrupt agency relying on a rather tasteless form of prejudice to make a commercial they hoped would appeal to what they obviously consider a dumb target market. I hope they are wrong.
Craig, thanks for drawing attention to these amazing ads, which are just . . . wow.
Did you make the graphic at the beginning? I hope those aren't part of the campaign too?! If you made them, they're AWESOME; if the ad agency made them, they're just . . . wow.
macon, I wish that I had made those and the living, breathing, thinking public never had to see these. But, someone made them with serious intent to distribute... I think there's a law against that somewhere.
Sorry, I like the Chigago-Lake Liquor campaign. But not because it's brilliant or I-wish-I-done-that clever or award-winning. But because they make a point that despite America having a president of black heritage, racism and bigotry is still a major part of the nation's fabric. And these ads do a brilliant job of not underestimating the problem.
Creds, please, Craig, so we can congratulate them on not wearing rose-coloured specs and seeing America as it really is.
Damn, the liquor factor does it for me. It's an ad to sell, selling what, cheap liquor.
America is weird like that. Minorities are in a 'well-meant' pigeon-hole when it comes to pop-culture (which is also everyday culture now) Like Italian peasants stomping grapes for an Olive Garden ad, or something.
Obama was onto something when he gave that speech during the campaign: if you keep obsessing on the effect, you'll never understand the cause. See if we can't effect that!
IbnHajar, WHAT UP son!
Glad to see you here!
We can only hope this pap sells liquor, I'd like to see some proof of that. I'd like to see some of that 90 proof also. Like you, I enjoy a drink myself from time to time.
Minorities are only 'pigeon-holed' by small minded people in America. If 'minorities' create a lot of what is pop culture today as you stated yourself, then just how pigeon-holed are minorities? From captives & slaves to President... That's not a pigeon-hole, that's Big n' Whole! I'll take that any day.
Obama is right and we completely understand the cause(s). Its ignorance as displayed in these ads. One has to see the symptoms to address the cause. We (you & I) are living proof of the eradication of the causes everyday.
Although I don't completely agree with your message. I assume you are intending to help. So for that I thank you. Thank you for your concern and also for being an agent of change. You keep working your angle to help the 'cause' and I'll work mine. As Malcolm X said, "By any means necessary."
Haha... maybe I was speaking more from personal experience. My family is Palestinian and, hell-and-high-water, yes, we are 'pigeon-holed'.
I just have to laugh at it sometimes.
Okay, when you put this one out I reserved comment. But, now that the dialogue is open, I will say some things.
The inserted video clip begins with a Black man, and ends with a Hispanic. Being that this blog has the very punny title of "Kiss My Black Ads," I naturally expect you to speak on the Black aspects of a given ad.
One of those aspects has been neglected. The absolute cooperation of Black people in the production of the campaign. Why have you not addressed this issue in this article? When will the Black voice cry out to the Black population to stop? When will blaming the White man stop?
Now, you say this is "co-opted blackface," and "minstrelization." First of all, you diminish what blackface is when you say such things. It is like when people compare fatsuits to blackface; or straights playing gay roles. You diminish any arguement you have against actual blackface when you waste the label on this non-blackface. Read my shit called "Blackface is the New Blackface."
Lastly, the Hispanic imagery. I know you are not obligated to address it. But, shouldn't you speak out against this so-called stereotyping as well? Isn't the stereotyping of people your real issue? And what about White stereotyping? Perhaps this campaign is an attempt to be humorous. Perhaps these Black, White, and (1) Hispanic people, are all working together to make something entertaining.
You can keep crying out over non-issues like this, and keep having a racially-singular perspective.
However, when the majority of people in America (which are White) keep hearing the Black voice using the concept of "equality" for the "advancedment of [only] colored people," they will tire.
Once again, my advice would be to get a sense of humor; stop blaming the White man for things Black people participated in producing without first giving equal blame to your brothers and sisters; and, remember, call only actual blackface, blackface. Other things are called darky iconography and stereotyping. Otherwise when you argue against the usage of real blackface, folks will go off-topic (like your have done), and bring up the usage of fatsuits, drag, and many other tools of the acting trade.
Blackface is sometimes dictated not by the style of the makeup, but by the dialogue. Maybe someone gets a little soot on their face, and someone else mistakes Player 1 for being Black. Or maybe, as in "Dukes of Hazzard" someone mistakes one of the boys ofr wearing blackface - not being Black. Until that moment, it is just soot.
Like you say, I "troll" the Internet for blackface, so I have been well aware of you. Since the Roosevelts thing, I feel like I had to say something.
Thank you,
Todd Gwynn
Post Script:
I remembered that in my "lost comment" - which I assure you I did write - I explained that I have not meant any personal insult to you, or anyone. I am just very blunt.
I think the question here becomes: where do we draw the line for comedic expression?
As an Italian American, I can't tell you how many stupid ass stereotypical commercials/TV shows I see in a given day pigeon-holing Italians as Bertolli pasta chefs saying "Mamma Mia!" or Soprano style mobsters who's vocabulary doesn't extend beyond "Forgeddaboutit". The reality is, every race and nationality has their caricatures. Right or wrong, comedic expression is based on these caricatures. It's the same constant struggle for the flamboyant portrayal of gays or the goofy, helpless portrayal of mentally handicapped people on television.
Yes it is offensive, but that's the beauty of this country. We all have the right to say what we please, and vice versa, the right to protest this business if we are offended by their advertising message.
this blows my mind.
makes you wonder, this isnt just the product of one persons idea.. these commercials had to go thru a series of folks before they even got actualized. i wonder if there was ever a moment of question?
hennessey? they had to go there, why didnt they throw in a pac of newports while theyre at it.
i dont see the humor at all anywhere in these commercials, theyre totally out of line and well offensive. but ya know, id have to say im not surprised.
Post a Comment