H2O Audio: Snoop Dog, Madonna

cred:
LOWE Egypt, Cairo, Egypt
Creative Director: Hisham Kharma
Art Directors: Montasser Khalil, Hisham Kharma
Copywriters: Hisham Kharma, Montasser Khalil
illustrator: Mohamed Algendy

Sport Illustrated: Civil rights, Conscription, Supremacy

There's more to the story than just the game.

Thanks for the hip Ill Mami



cred:
Saatchi&Saatchi, Cape Town, South Africa
Creative Director: Anton Crone
Art Directors: Gareth Cohen, Michele Muller
Copywriter: Gavin Whitfield
Photographer: Ian Anderson

Mr. Spriggs BBQ (falls off the bone)

That must be some sexy ass BBQ he's serenading.

3sixteen Fall 2009 Photoshoot Video

3sixteen Fall 2009 Photoshoot from 3sixteen on Vimeo.

This is a lovely video of 3sixteens photoshoot. The production values are rich.


www.3sixteen.com

Design Inspiration: Antonio Salzano

One concept, one face, one supermodel. A no-nonsense message for a brand whose strong point is its identity. Alek Wek, Sudanese by birth but a Londoner by adoption, is the face of the new fall/winter 08/09 Reca Group advertising campaign.


See his portfolio here.

W+K Radio to Air Dan Wieden's Speech on Diversity in Advertising

Tune in on Thursday at 9:30am PST to W+K Radio and hear Dan Wieden’s 4As speech. Later, W+K staffers will discuss diversity in the advertising business and beyond. Is the turtle supposed to symbolize the industry’s movement on the issue?

Dan's a sharp dude and I will be all ears. Note: the turtle & the carrot is in no way intended to be construed as a metaphor for the advertising industries response to diversity issues. But then again Dan is a pretty sharp dude, one never knows... do one?


Listen in Hear. (12:30 EST)


Aired out over @ the breath of fresh air that is MultiCultClassics

Gillette: Shaving for men (just watch)

The one below is the I'm telling you to watch.

Vendor/Client relations in the real world

If you ever deal directly with advertising clients you know this really happens.

Forget that Noise, I want to see her in a commercial!!!

I mentioned a while back that it would be great to hear music from the Noisettes in a commercial. But this time instead of just listening to the music, this time I actually took a good look at the sister heading up the band. Dag Gummit, she wouldn't be bad in a print or TV beauty campaign. She's got that classic black girl beauty, the kind you really didn't appreciate until you realized how much Naomi Campbell looks like Keisha from fifth grade or Chanel Iman reminds you of someone in your own family. Shoniwa has gorgeous brown skin and a striking features not easily forgotten. She brings a presence (the single most important quality any model can possess) that could become a hallmark of a brand for a year or two at least.

She can really thump that bass and modulate her energy enunciations from subtle pop to racy rock. Modeling is all about displaying extremities in your subtleness & expressing the subtleties in any extreme, for me on the set. Anyone who's ever been on a photo shoot knows that natural energy and a certain inner beauty can't be faked. Either you can deliver it or you can't. Damn I hate it when a model can't put it all out there or I can't manage to extract it with my bare teeth. Well, the Noisettes lead singer Shingai Shoniwa gots it in droves! Just look at those bushy-bushy bush locks. Are they natural or texturized? Would she let you perm, ah, I mean relax them beyond recognition? Or maybe just flat-iron them, you know we like to straighten everyones hair before we put them in an ad. I'd like to see Shingai's best show-fro unshorn and shocking in full cacophony coif in an ad. But alas, she'll probably end up in some general market spot for insurance or beer commercial...

...sigh.

Thandie Newton to front new martini ads

Desperate to bring back the glamour once associated with the brand, Martini has signed on class act Thandie Newton to be the spokeswoman for their new “stay beautiful” campaign. The actress will be featured in adverts styled by fashion guru Bay Garnett and photographed by A-list photographer Anders Overgaard in an exclusive London members club. A spokesperson for Martini said that "She [Newton] was a natural choice to be our ambassador for 2009 due to her cutting edge style and passion for fashion and beauty.
Martini is banking heavily on Newton's ability to influence women in the all important 25-34 year old age brackett into giving the beverage a shot. In fact, Bacardi Brown-Forman (the peeps that own Martini) plan to invest £5.6 million in marketing Martini this year with an integrated trade and consumer campaign. They are also focused on leveraging a number of Martini assets across fashion, film and Formula One motor racing to help promote the brand."

Sonntags Zeitung: US Election Campaign, Obama

cred:
Advico Young & Rubicam, Zürich, Switzerland
Creative Directors: Christian Bobst, ECD: Philipp Skrabal, Markus Gut
Art Directors: Lukas Wietlisbach, Christian Bobst
Copywriter: Martin Stulz
Photographer: Scheffold.Vizner

GlobalHue regains account for the Bermuda Department of Tourism as agency of record

(May 22, 2009) GlobalHue, the nation's largest minority-owned multicultural advertising agency, announced that the Bermuda Department of Tourism will continue its relationship with the agency as its official advertising agency of record. This no-bid contract extension was the result of GlobalHue's outstanding business performance over the past three years.

Recent published data shows that visitor arrivals to Bermuda increased after GlobalHue became the island's agency of record in 2006. Prior to GlobalHue, the average number of visitors per year from 1990 to 2005 was 531,988. For the last three years that the agency has been managing Bermuda Tourism's marketing efforts, the number of visitors averaged 620,215, representing a 16.6% increase over the 15 years prior. In addition, on-island expenditures have increased by $48.9 million in 2006 and another $53.8 million in 2007. In 2008, despite the economic downturn, the island has exceeded the average visitor numbers in the 15 years prior to GlobalHue by 4.3%.


Target Market News

Sanders\Wingo recognized as Advertising Agency of the Year by Black Enterprise

(May 22, 2009) Sanders\Wingo has been selected by Black Enterprise Magazine as 2009 Advertising Agency of the Year. Agency CEO Bob Wingo accepted the prestigious award at last week's Black Enterprise Entrepreneur's Conference and Expo. The award had not been given to an agency since 2005.

"We are honored to be recognized for our achievements and growth," said Wingo. "Sanders\Wingo works every day to offer clients in many different industries a new perspective on how to achieve business goals. We are grateful for the acknowledgment and the client partnerships that have helped us get to this point."

Wingo credits the organization's and staff's interest in findings creative alternatives to conventional thinking as a key to success. "We are in a very competitive marketplace meaning everything we do has to be a step ahead. We consider ourselves students and teachers of culture. All our team members -- whether they work in planning, creative, media or account management -- share this philosophy and push each other to break past standard or traditional thought."



Target Market News

This approach to more effective marketing directions has delivered significant year-over-year growth. The agency's billings have grown from $37 million in 2004 to more than $111 million in 2008.

With clients such as AT&T, Chevrolet and State Farm, Sanders\Wingo is one of the nation's fastest growing urban advertising agencies. The agency currently has offices in Austin and El Paso, Texas and satellite offices in Detroit, Oakland, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. For more information visit www.sanderswingo.com.

Blend Images: Blend Stock Photography campaign

Blend Images repositions their brand with portraits of strong people & the help of Spil. Yummy fresh and new multicultural stock photography.

”We are very excited about the changes to our branding and our campaign,” said Sarah Fix, Creative Director at Blend Images. “Our new logo, website, and our brand identity is bold -- stylistically conveying commercial polish with an editorial edge. Our new ads are provocative – challenging stereotypes editorially, while holding creatives’ attention visually, with fresh imagery and contemporary design.”

With those miniscule budgets we multicultural creatives get this site may come in handy.

Take stock here.



cred:
Spil Creative NY
Damian Dominguez
Jieun Lee

Photographer(s):
FAMILY BLEND : Patterson Graham
SPIRITUAL BLEND : Plush Studios
STRONG BLEND: Karin Dreyer

State Farm: "I'll Be There"

Why did DDB Chicago just kill it with this spot!? Why did someone else not do this first!? Ah, music and commercials, I still maintain, it's a match made in heaven. The music in this commercial is just endlessly emotional. The visuals get a little sappy. But they music bolsters the imagery in a way that makes you over look any deficiencies there-in. A prepubescent Michael breaks in the opening and your first impulse is to call your momma into the room. Then Jermain takes the mic and pulls your heart out through your ear! The thing about this track is, it is so good you could have had puppies mindlessly running in slow motion for :30 seconds and super it with a pet food logo or :60 seconds of a little league baseball montage and posted up a 'Big Brothers' logo and it will still make a lumberjack T-9000 cyborg teary-eyed. Not sayin' that I almost cried or nothing, I'm just saying. Once again a general market agency has dug deep into the record crates of our collective cultures and conscious and sampled the very soundtrack of the African American soul and served it up for mass consumption. : ( Frankly, I think they got a lot of things right.


cred:
DDB Chi


It may not be the first time this song was used in a commercial (and I'm OK with that.)

Fox: Cleveland Show

Fox's new Cleveland Show is a spin-off from its hit show Family Guy. This is going to be interesting to see how long this is on the air. It's a modern equivalent of black-face. An animated show about a black family. But all of Cleveland's family voice-overs are by a white guy. It seems like it will have all the humor of Family Guy, just done by a lead characters who are Black.

Fox has a new TV show called 'Brothers'

Fox has a new TV show called 'Brothers'. I honestly hope it's as good for people as 'Cosby' runs longer than 'The Simpsons' makes money like 'Sienfeld' as involving as 'Girlfriends'. But with the guy in the wheelchair cracking fat jokes in rapid succession... I don't see it lasting too long. But I really wish them all the best.

Is this the same Fox that owns the "News" network really doesn't care all that much for African Americans? Oh, I get it, make the black dollars on one network while getting the not-so black money on the other network. Oooooh, I get it!

Maxwell's Album Art

Return of ultra-cool.


I think this is going to be what I call a slow-banga...

Nike: MVP (Most Valuable Muppet) Pt. III

cred:
W+K

Chris Rock: Good Hair vs. Bad Hair

When Chris Rock’s daughter, Lola, came up to him crying and asked, “Daddy, how come I don’t have good hair?” the bewildered comic committed himself to search the ends of the earth and the depths of black culture to find out who had put that question into his little girl’s head! Director Jeff Stilson’s camera followed the funnyman, and the result is Good Hair, a wonderfully insightful and entertaining, yet remarkably serious, documentary about African American hair culture.

Agency CEOs Reveal Racial Angst in "Rebrand America" Efforts; Does the Flag Need Changing?

By Jim Edwards | May 21st, 2009
A design competition staged by Paper magazine reveals that the inner psyches of America’s ad agency CEOs are anxious, guilty places obsessed with race. George Lois, Alex Bogusky, Dan Wieden, Kevin Roberts and Andy Spade were among the dozen or so creative types who took up Paper’s challenge: How would you rebrand America? (Click on images to enlarge.)



The most disturbing response came from Saatchi & Saatchi CEO Roberts, whose ad shows a crouched Lady Liberty, legs apart, blood on the floor, and a fetal, naked Barack Obama on the ground in front of her. Issues!

Roberts’ work — like many of his colleagues — shows a strange ambivalence about America, as if it’s not quite good enough for him (he’s from New Zealand). Another of his ads replaces the eagle on the dollar bill with a dove. A third just states, “No More US & Them,” a slogan which would doubtless infuriate anyone west of the Hudson River. Here’s Roberts’ explanation:

“My dream is for all Americans to reach out to the world and inspire everyone they touch to come together and rebuild a new world of optimism, joy and shared responsibility. Actions speak louder than ads.”





Wieden of Wieden & Kennedy and Bogusky of Crispin Porter + Bogusky both submitted work riven with racial issues. The Wieden team produced three cans of red, white and blue pain, labelled “Courage,” “Purity,” and “Freedom.” But the “Purity” can is white. That’s a controversy that Al Sharpton could drive a Mack Truck through. Strategy, Dan, strategy!

A Bogusky ad shows the wall separating the U.S. and Mexico, with a sign on it that reads: “Pardon our dust; a newer more tolerant USA coming soon!” But the wall isn’t actually being torn down. So why show it, as opposed to a generic (re)construction site, which would have touched on America’s penchant for building new things?

And Lois, an ad legend formerly of DDB and Papert Koenig Lois, puts in a strangely weak effort. It shows Obama dressed as Uncle Sam, along with the type: “the Rebranding of America: from arrogant and nasty … … to open and inspirational.” If you have to explain the rebranding in the rebranding, George, then it’s not really working.




The best two both came from Bogusky. One features a hand shaking a map of the States with the slogan, “Nice to meet you again.” Another shows Obama wearing a Che T-shirt that shows Che wearing an Obama T-shirt. (Clever, but lacks appeal in the flyover states. Run in WIlliamsburg, N.Y., only.)

Check out the rest of them here. And note how many seem dependent on the idea that the American flag needs changing …


Jim Edwards, a former managing editor of Adweek, has covered drug marketing at Brandweek for four years, and is a former Knight-Bagehot fellow at Columbia University's business and journalism schools.


Jim says I stole his article from BNet.com and would like you to see the full article here, ummmm, instead of here.

Adidas: Dwight Howard & Derrick Rose

So how do you congratulate two of the best players in the league? You don’t. Rather you join them and celebrate on their tremendous seasons with the help of some heavy hitters within the world of hoops and hip-hop.

180LA reached out to FreeDarko, a leading blog voice within the world of hoops and author of The Macrophenomenal Pro Basketball Almanac, and the result is two fully animated videos highlighting the inner-workings of Dwight and Derrick. Their uniquely stylistic approach to analyzing both players’ game and strengths comes to life through the deep telling voice of Chali 2Na from Jurassic 5.






cred (creative reasoning encapsulation & design):

William Gelner, Executive Creative Director, 180LA: "What if you could see the inner workings of an NBA superstar? What if you could make all the heart, drive, soul and other intangibles, tangible? That was the idea behind our adidas basketball campaign congratulating Derrick Rose and Dwight Howard for becoming rookie of the year and defensive player of the year, respectively."

Amir Farhang, Copywriter, 180LA: "Playing at this level requires athletic abilities so fantastical, they border on the super human. Animation seemed like a logical way to bring these things to life."

Joel Rodriguez, Art Director, 180LA: "We see everything from the physical to the metaphysical including their spirit animals like the ibex."

The result is an uncanny analysis of both Dwight and Derrick spotlighting their roles as the ultimate Commander and Creator, leading their teams and the performance revolution of the game. TECHFIT PowerWeb and Padded, the official compression gear of the league, is featured in both player spots along with Team Signature footwear. The films accredit adidas gear with bolstering both athletes to the super-human levels we have all come to know and expect from Dwight and Derrick.

Props to Michelle M. of 180LA!!

RETHINK: Fight The Power

There is a great article over at ebony/jet.com about rethinking the pioneering Johnson Publishing's early ad campaign. Matt Burnett, of Super Genius in Chcago writes; The creative strength of these ads, despite how old-fashioned and downright clumsy they seem today, is in the humor and the audacity of the communication. The message is basically, “you’re not going to believe this, but Black people actually have money to spend!” What gets lost in the vintage art direction is the fearlessness of these ads. They look right into the face of racial stereotypes and just blast away... But what’s amazing is that we would never even think to show that now. It's politically impossible in 2009. And by not being able to talk about it, we've lost the power of that conversation... What makes the ads even more remarkable is that they're laughing at the concept of racism, which is a radical idea, and it has been lost in the struggle since...



Read the entire article here.

Thanks Eric Easter @ Ebony/Jet.com

Advertising Trend: Nudity a.k.a. Nakedity™

It's that time again when you see so many general market ads follow the same trend. Every so often as if on cue they all just sorta fall in line. Perhaps not intentionally or it could be joke du jour, but its worthy of noting. They begin to resemble the march of the advertising penguins. We've seen gnomes along with various lawn animals, bears and even penguin. The latest trend to be unwrapped is "Bare-assedness." You have the perennial parade of some pretty, some pale and some pasty parts to preview every where you turn.


Dorito's dude dippers.



Airline airbrushed asses.



Tabasco tidbit tacklers.



The Nike no-show niblets.


The funny thing is I've been pitching a nakedity™ campaign to a client myself. (You know who you are) They aren't having any of it.
I'm not mad at the gen market agencies, if sex sells it -- nakedity nails it. Beside a lot of African American shops (I'm guilty as hell) have been steadily pumping jazz bands, poetry slams, family reunions & cookouts for years. Oh and I can't leave out what is known as the B.A.H. (Big Ass Head) ad in the ethnic hair car industry.

$100 Banana Republic Giftcard Give-Away Winner

Congratulations to My Brown Baby editor Denene Millner!

Your $100 gift card is ready to roll.

Nike: Run Super Natural

Just watch it. KSFW (Kinda Safe For Work)

design Inspiration: Paul Lee

Paul Lee uses biblical quotes to drive me crazy & conjure up butt loads of gorgeous for these posters.


See more here.

Working on the road, making fast money, blogging slow

I'm working while on the road, making my money. The internet has been choppy so I'm posting a little slowly while... making my money! So in that vain of making money, here is a design project about remaking (redesigning) money.





You know all though these are interesting to look at, I don't care what it looks like. As long as it comes... in truck loads.

See other cash creations here.

Lee Daniels' "Precious" Triumphs at Cannes

The Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey associated film is the winner of three awards at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, including the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, Lee Daniel's "Precious" won a standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday where it played to an enthusiastic crowd. Screening in the festival's Un Certain Regard sidebar, Daniels is in the running for the Un Certain Regard prize for new film talent.

See, Tyler Perry is a very smart brother who knows how to widen his appeal. I know some have differences with TP's movies and subject matter but the dude is making sh*t happen.

Esthe WAM Hair Removal Course: Beauty Bowling

cred:
Ogilvy & Mather, Japan, Tokyo
Creative Director: Takuya Matsuo
Art Director: Masahide Yoshimi
Director: Yoshinari Kamiya
Production Company: Pyramid Film, Tokyo
Copywriter: Hono Nakano, Wataru Sato
Producer: Koichi Hara

GlobalHue landed it!!

GlobalHue to lead Navy African-American, Asian marketing and advertising efforts

(May 14, 2009) GlobalHue, the nation's largest minority-owned multicultural advertising agency, was again selected by the U.S. Navy as part of a three-agency team to manage the organization's multicultural marketing and advertising campaign initiatives across the African-American and Asian consumer markets. The contract awarded to agency team leader Campbell-Ewald that was announced this week includes strategic planning, creative services and marketing communication efforts.

"GlobalHue is excited to use our unique strategic business model to strengthen and direct Navy's African-American and Asian outreach initiatives," said Allen Pugh, Vice Chairman of GlobalHue. "As an agency, GlobalHue continues to think out of the box to demonstrate the depth of our expertise and creativity in reaching multicultural segments."

GlobalHue has worked with Navy since 2000 and is responsible for some of the organization's most successful and award-winning African-American targeted campaigns including "Person in Me" and "Anchor." Recently, the agency conceived and launched mynavymyfuture.com, an interactive micro-site targeted toward college students and focused on Navy collegiate programs and careers.

Watch out General Market... you're next! Go get'em GH!

Congrats GH!!!

Disney's Princess & the Frog Poster

Disney gives little black girls something they've been wanting forever; a story starring a little girl princess made in their own likeness. This will be a great addition to the Disney vaults and make a lot of ebullient brown babies. It would have been interesting to see Kasi Lemmons, Suzanne DePasse, Tyler Perry or Spike Lee fill this void first. But I guess they were busy and it's not really their magical dancing cup of tea. So I guess it was really up to me to get my version out first.



My little black princess animated story involves an overgrown boy dressed like a girl. Her name is Princess Mabea. (S)He's a foul-mouthed, gun-totting, lovable little trouble-maker. Mabea always shows up at family reunions, cook-outs & funerals. There she finds a veritable buffet of stereotypical characters which he/she inevitably finds alt with and from there mad-capped hilarity ensues. Our lovable little pig-tail tressed Mabea is incorrigible and can't seem to stop her little ten year old self from getting in everyone's business and "bussin' caps" in asses and running from the "po-po!"

Ribbitted from Prostituted Thoughts.

'Precious' Movie Teaser Poster

Once again a movie teaser poster associated with a Tyler Perry associated film makes me smile. There is a lot of great thinking going on the design of these posters. But actually when I think about it and really break down the imagery it's powerfully moving. The over all visage of the young woman is cracked, damaged and torn. As if it were made of something hard but brittle and almost perfectly & purposely shattered to satisfy some other hurt. Note the figure ground reversal that the crack emanates from, it forms a hand as if to say someone's touch was the epicenter of all this damage. It's so simple and so profound all at once. The poster makes such a massive statement about so many lives in Black America and as well as the entire world. Deep... now I done gone and made tears fall in my keyboard.


The Director Lee Daniels, cast and crew rip it. See the keyboard damaging movie trailer here.




The poster looks to be very much inspired by this Saul Bass classic design for the 'Anatomy of a Murder,' the Otto Preminger film. Which also in turn inspired the Spike Lee movie 'Clockers' poster? For which the famed designer threatened to sue.

Toby Ng Design: Info Graphics

cred:
Toby Ng

Dixie: Talking Food

Funny? Nutty? Spicey? Sassy? Saucey? Mammy?

I chuckled. But I laugh at my own pain, so maybe I shouldn't judge.


cred:
Howard, Merrell & Partners

$100 Banana Republic Giftcard Give-Away

To Celebrate the release of City Sounds Digital Album!!!



This summer Banana Republic celebrates the inspiration of urban life with the release of City Sounds, a new digital album featuring never-before-heard tracks from the nine music artists appearing in the City Stories national ad campaign, including exclusive first tracks from OK Go and Liz Phair’s highly-anticipated new albums, as well as songs by Esperanza Spalding, Sara Bareilles, Ayo, Dashboard Confessional’s Chris Carrabba, Tommy Torres and more.

The limited edition digital album, available as a gift-with-purchase only in Banana Republic stores starting May 13, reflects the diversity of these artists, ranging from acoustic soul to introspective pop, modern jazz to indie rock.

Paris-based R&B songstress Ayo sings of her travels through European metropolises, while Sara Bareilles and Dashboard Confessional search for love amid the bars and streets of their adopted cities. Both acclaimed violinist David Garrett and Grammy-winning saxophonist David Sánchez find solace at dawn in the canyons of Manhattan, and Latin pop star Tommy Torres and emerging jazz bassist/vocalist Esperanza Spalding celebrate their beloved hometowns (San Juan and Portland, respectively) across the continent from each other. Among the tantalizing selections are brand new songs from Liz Phair and OK Go’s highly anticipated new albums due later in 2009, only available to customers who make a purchase in Banana Republic stores during the campaign.

To enter the $100 Banana Republic Giftcard Give-Away by leaving a comment about what you'd like to see here on Kiss My Black Ads.

Be sure to leave a contact (or email) info!!!

The prize will be drawn randomly from commenters. The contest will run through Friday of this week. Drawing will be held Monday. Gift card will be mailed out within two weeks of drawing.

***For extra points add yourself to KMBA followers (1 extra point) or do a blog post (2 extra points) about the contest. Please leave an extra comment letting me know that you did! ***

Graphic Designer: Tasheka Arceneaux

I chanced upon this wonderfully expressive artiste de graphique a while back and was blown away by the vivacious energy she manages to put onto a page. Her images are strong and deliberate with a intentional lack of cliches. You can almost feel the explorative psychic energy push aside convention and usher in freshness. This is where more African American advertising and design should go.






It is my sincere attempt to showcase as many artist and designers out there doing it and doing it well. I think sometimes I don't feature enough of the Female talents. As you can see from the explosive designs in this post, we miss the best of us we exclude the gifts of black women. I'll do my best to preview and highlight more women of color art directors, designers, fine artist, planners, etc. If you know any please don't hesitate to hip me to them.

See more here.

Nike: MVP's Kobe & LeBron

Every few years somebody rehashes the tried and true puppet in a commercial idea. Maybe it's the realization of Americans' collective prepubescent tutelage before the constant glow of cathode ray tubes deeply implanting muppet mouthed messages & letter sponsored learnings into our psyche. It's how we were raised for the most part. And years later like so many Manchurian mind-mines when triggered by the right stimuli... I explode into gushers of pre-programmed toddler bliss. By Grover, I love this kinda spot! When the writing and the voice-overs are so well crafted the Master Puppeteers almost never fail to capture the perfect gesticulation that convey any nuance of emotion needed to sketch a great story.

Well did.

PSFK Conference NYC: Celestine Arnold and Digital Multiculture

Seen @ psfk, what up Piers


At PSFK Conference NYC, Celestine Arnold gave an eye-opening talk on the “Ghost in the Machine: Digital Multiculture.” Celestine discussed the role of race and culture in video games - and the gaming industry’s failure to address (and successfully market towards) it. While minorities make up a disproportionately large percentage of the gaming community, most games cater to an assumed mainstream (white, male) player. Many of the same inequities, stereotypes, and social/class relations that exist in the real world, Celestine demonstrated, carry over into the gameworlds as well. And as fantastical and hyperreal as games can be, the very real effects of racism are pervasive within games and the gaming community as a whole.

Celestine argued that a huge opportunity lies in creating games geared towards their multicultured players. Game developers that think beyond the dominant culture and it’s paradigms of Good v. Evil and try to understand the cultures of their diverse players may, as Celestine demonstrated, win out in the end.




I'm late to my own post. But let me just say Celestine you killed it! The talk was smart and timely minus the blame and guilt. You simply presented the dollars and 'sense' of advancing the gaming industry! Bravo!

p.s. ya got one of these for the ad agency guys??



Thanks MHB
desdo.com

Solve Sundsbo: Gisele Bundchen photo

Here are some great photos by Solve Sundsbo. Black men as well chiseled props. This is no attempt at deriding the photographer, his skills are undeniably sure. It's just a too common occurrence, African American accoutrements.

Blame it on the Economy

I'm dancing at the desk! I'm rocking (read straining) the computer speakers on ten.



cred:
Totally Sketch

The new Chrisette Michele 'Epiphany' album artwork.

Have a listen here.

Thanks Black-Ad Fairy

It seems I missed out on just where to find the Dwele and McCafé extended remix version featuring Conya Doss. Well, it's right here! I mentioned the 365Black McDonald's site last week but apparently forgot to check it for relevant material. So while I was talking all that yang about what they coulda-shoulda had did. Well, they "had" did it already. Yep, did it and did it well. It comes complete with background footage of the recording session with ubiquitous cups of McCafé in camera shot. They also drop in the wonderful singer Conya Doss to spice things up just a bit more through expressing her love for vanilla. Calm down black ad-radicals she means the flavoring. They even give you the extended 90 second spot where Dwele actually gets to sell you a song, I mean sing you a sip, I mean croon you a cup of liquid love. We still get the tongue twisting M.C. brewing up his bubbly brotherly banter (I'm one to talk) at the top of the spot but hey, it works.




Thanks Black-Ad Fairy!


cred:
Burrell

Pine-Sol Parody

Pine-Sol does Tom Ford?


Spotted and the cleaned from the always fresh smelling Multi-Cult Classics

McDonald's McCafe: Dwele

Here is the McCafe commercial that features Dwele. I think it's a pretty good R&B track on it's own. Dwele's always creamy smooth flow works wonders for the brand. This makes for such great blend of marketing, smooth quasi-neo soul and syrupy sweet coffee concoction. I'd really like to see more of the performance that's what is really telling the story and wonderfully i might add. The music is an audio personification of this product! Personally I could go for a lot less of the 1970's DJ-speak & hard sell in the beginning. The agency did a good job, but all the voice-over sounds like the marketers were afraid to let the spot be what it was intended to be. I assume that it was a smart musical introduction and an ongoing brand support piece for the "new" drinks. We get about 6 seconds of the real commercial. That is Dwele singing an incredibly un-commercial sounding ode to a cup of coffee and dude nails it. That's what everyone is talking about on the wonder-tubes aka the inter-blogs. Man, give us a uninterrupted (not stepped on, no V.O. perhaps viral ) long version of the video and a leaked track, you know like the record industry would do.

Weekend Link-In

Obamitas, a little brown faced cookie with a smile, are they racist or just plain cute? Isn't it ugly when you just can't tell. A racist cookie? For the record; I don't think these are racist. I do think these are kinda cute. But hey, I think white people doing the robot is merely a caricature of a stereotypical prejudicial schism... really, I do.

See the site here.

Thanks to the irrepressible Kwesi!

Yo next range should be a Gen'l 'lectric

Photographer: Timothy Rosado

Here is the new vision. Timothy Rosado, this kid in good.



See viewfinder here.

Bontrust Finance: Increase In Currency (Money love)

This is funny. **WARNING** this green gets a little blue. But I guess it's KNSFW, Kinda not safe for work.

cred:
GRABARZ + PARTNER
Creative Director: Andreas Pohl
Optix

Lifestyles: Condom fairy

Is it just me or has anybody else noticed the influx of African American characters in advertising? Is this Madison Avenue version of inclusiveness and diversity? I'm glad Black actors are getting work.
I'm just asking.



cred:
AMP, Boston, USA
Production Company: BEST* Company Ever, El Segundo
Directors / Producers: Laura Murphy, Eileen Doherty
DP: Christophe Lanzenberg

Mocha choca-latté-ya-ya

Above is the general market version of the McCafe commercial, which I really dig. It's a smart usage of the brand nomenclature with a smart and catchy repetition.

There is a 'smooved' out McD's McCafe commercial featuring Dwele out there on them there nets 'sunwhere'. I can't find it. So here is a bootleg youtube homemade jigga-rig version of it.



I have notice that McD's is ready to kill Starbucks in this whole "War on Flavor™" thing they got going. Ronald McDonald and friends see S-Bux on the ropes and they are going in for the knock-out! They've done a complete site take-over at BET.com. Looks like somebody knows where their coffee gets creamed or vice versa, if you know what I'm sayin' here.



Meanwhile, back at the Pike Place MarketPlace original Starbucks HQ. A crack savvy team of slightly pissed but, strangely still kinda polite baristas, not to be undone by the newly caffeinated red and yellow clad clown, have thrown a few baby-punches at the competition. The campaign in a nutshell implies that McDonald's coffee better watch it.

Yeah, it's about five bucks less

than ours, but... but nevertheless a price!

Ughn! In your clown paint!

~or~

"nanny-nanny boo-boo, you muffin-head"

Take that, take that!

"Ummm... we're rubber, you're glue?"

I thought I told ya that we won't stop!

The word on the nets is this is a One Hundred Million Dollar take-down. Does Starbuck even have an African American Agency of record? Word to Howard Schultz, Black people like coffee too and we over index on just about everything we buy (see wikipedia under gold dookie rope chains in the 80's). If I were them I'd be trying to sell Lattés to the mocha choca-latté-ya-ya set stat. Black people could actually make Starbucks cool again. You know yall would. We'd be drinking Grandés all pretentiously with gang signs wrapped around the cup. Then there would be slow trickle of other folk watching but not commenting and then mysteriously doing the same thing. We see you lookin'.

Design Inspiration: Jan Feliks Kallwejt

Jan Feliks Kallwejt is freelance graphic designer and illustrator currently based in Malaga and Warsaw.
Simple yet sophisticated forms are the essence of his work. He juxtaposes and multiplies them bringing to life the complex and tricky compositions, spiced up with attention to detail. He usually limits color palette, operating within two or three tones. To render the reality he employs multilayered symbolism, occasionally dropping in a dose of perversion where not expected.

Stylish surgical masks by Yoriko Yoshida

Very often when something once deemed important wanes and lose it's intrinsic value, pop culture artist of transform them into objet d'art. This is not say that surgical mask have gone the way of the Yugo, but while may as well have a little fun with what has quickly become the dodged bullet of the day.

Illustrator Yoriko Yoshida has dreamed up dozens of colorful face mask designs that are sure to keep you looking cool and feeling safe as fears of swine flu spread across the globe.

I had seent it at Pink Tenticle

Honda: Rhymes & Reason (Repost)

**(I'm reposting this because the comment are getting interesting)**

Honda Motors is rapping a "new" tune on the internets these days to pump up sales. They've launched a micro site called Rhymes & Reason to tell you why you should be driving a Honda. Here's a quote from the site;

"Cash is King!
I'm tired of hearing that times are hard. Cause if you think something is hard then that's what it'll be - hard. I know it sounds a little too positive for some people, but focusing on what's wrong is not going to get you anywhere promising. So why not try something new? I'm going to start..."

It seems that advertising and Hip Hop have once again found a multitude of reasons to continue to rhyme. The site features an unknown rapper by the name of Mickey Factz along with a blog, videos, music downloads, photos & all the standard fair of of promotional sites these days.

Scott Yeti, operator of the influential hip-hop marketing blog WoooHa.com and a consultant for music labels and film studios, is skeptical about the overall impact of the push but thinks using Mr. Factz was a great choice.

I hope it works. But the creative guy in me says how could they push this idea even further. Maybe something like this. I'm such an armchair-backseat creative director. Yeah cause its real easy that way, all the hard works been done already.

Micro site here.

cred:
Muse Communications

365 Black.

Shaun over at Prostituted Thoughts says...

"Have you guys heard about 365 Black? McDonald new attempt to celebrate the being of African Americans. I am just discovering it with through the help of SteelCloset. Cas, one of there writers there talks about a "lack of tact." Well...to put it simply, I'm offended. I am well aware that McDonalds has a minority agency (if not multiple) that does some hardcore minority focused work. I gave them a pass for the ridiculousness that was the R&B Themed 10 Piece Nugget spot. I actually laughed with them. I looked the other way for the double fist pump. I said to myself, "If they think this is the way to Market to Minorities...good luck to them." But this 365 Black initiative rocks the boat a little too much in my opinion. Is that really Keith Sweat talking about sharing his love of Chicken McNuggets? Is the love of Chicken McNuggets what you mean when you say, We Are Deeply Rooted In the Community? Who cares if Laurie Anne Gibson, a dancer from a reality know best for sayin "BOOM-BOOM-CAT" and being fired by Diddy worked at McDonalds?"

"WHAT IS 365BLACK?

At McDonald's®, we believe that African-American culture and achievement should be celebrated 365 days a year — not just during Black History Month. That's the idea behind 365Black.com. It's a place where you can learn more about education, employment, career advancement and entrepreneurship opportunities, and meet real people whose lives have been touched by McDonald's. Plus, you can also have a chance to win exciting once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. So make sure you visit often — you just might get inspired."

The ad above is a spoof. But this idea in general is a gross idea and it upsets all of my sensibilities. And I have alot of those things. And no, my sensibilities are not rooted deeply in the community of Chicken McNugget lovin.

Black-jacked entirely from Prostituted Thoughts

Now personally, I'm not offended by 365Black and when I first saw it years ago I thought it was a good concept. Let's hope they keep pushing it to be better and better.

Lust Erotic Boutique: Birds & Bees

These are just funny. The illustration are totally unexpected and smartly rendered. The logo is beautifully designed and looks great in the illustrative styling.


cred:
Uncle Grey, Denmark
Creative Director: Per Pedersen
Art Director: Mikkel Krøijer
Copywriter: Moritz Grub
Illustrator: Martin Nielsen

Swine Flu PSA (from 1976!)

The SWINE FLU aint new. Niether is the hype. Here is a scare your socks off version from way back in the day.

F is for Fail

The creative process can be unpredictable. Brent Barson’s short film F is for Fail is the story of one person’s creative roller coaster, told through type in an evocative A to Z. See the short here.



cred:
Brent Barson

Illustrator: Theodoros Archontis

cred:
Theodoros Archontis

I've been missing in action

I not have been able to post due to a service outage... due to lack of bill payage. What, like you've never missed paying a bill. Hey shinola happens right?

Illustrator: Gabriel Moreno

cred:
Gabriel Moreno
gabrielmorenogallery.com

Diesel: Only The Brave Fragrance

The word on (in) the street(s) was that this cologne was by Diesel for the rapper Common. Wrong. Oh, well, nice photography of Common and others. Anyone know who shot these?

Photographs by Platon: http://models.com/work/diesel-only-the-brave-fragrance-ss-09
Thanks E.T.!




Director: Paul Gore






cred:
Fred & Farid, Paris, France
Creative Directors: Fred & Farid
Copywriters: Fred & Farid
Art Directors: Alphee Ballester,
Laurent Leccia, Thomas Raillard,
Alexandra Reghioua

Looking at this hurts my blood.

I don't know why. It just does.