Apple's latest ad hits in two parts during MTV awards show
If you watched MTV’s Video Music Awards show on Sunday, Aug. 30, you might have noticed the latest in Cupertino’s worldwide advertising blitz for Apple Music. This time, the commercial was a two-part job starring music star The Weeknd, one of the most played artists on Beats 1 since the station went live. Other frequently played artists include Drake, Fetty Wap, Disclosure, Kendrick Lamar, and others.
In the first segment, you get to see The Weeknd walking backstage after performing at the awards show, then getting into a limousine driven by actor John Travolta. During the drive, The Weeknd listens to Beats 1 Radio while scrolling through his artist page on Apple Music Connect. See the first one-minute ad below, or click here if the video fails to load.
In the second half of the spot, The Weeknd arrives at an after-party for the VMAs, and is playing his single “The Hills” while he shuffles through additional songs from an Apple Music playlist. A new tagline for Cupertino’s music streaming surface appears: “It’s all in your head. Create your own party. Unlimited music for $9.99.” See that spot below, or click here if it doesn’t show up.
The videos do a great job of highlighting the features of Apple Music, but there’s one thing that bothers me about it. Those who aren’t familiar with The Weeknd (I wasn’t) will wonder why on earth there’s a car burning when the artist walks to the limousine, and why neither men call the fire department about it. It turns out the burning car is from The Weeknd’s music video, “The Hills.”
