Oasis Contracts Street Musicians to 'Leak' Album in Subway Stations

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For its album Dig Out Your Soul, which debuts October 7, Oasis gathered 15 street bands and taught them the lyrics and sheet music for four of its new songs.

Lat week, the bands were then deployed all over the city -- mostly to subways -- to perform the music with their own flavor. Each performance featured a little sign that said, "You are the first to hear this new Oasis song" -- bringing a little bit of magic to busy commuters, and some eclectic street charm to Oasis's new oeuvre.

Nice to see the high-profile artists disseminate their music with such an open-arms, interpretive approach. Feels so human. And dare I say it? -- social. Watch video here. See more at Creativity. Execution by BBH/NY. The Malloys of HSI helped direct.

by Angela Natividad    Sep-17-08    
Topic: Campaigns, Good, Guerilla, Promotions



Wakamaru Robot to Shill Layered Tees at UNIQLO SoHo

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You remember UNIQLO, the Japanese retailer whose quirky UNIQLOCK campaign won raves -- and shelf candy -- at One Show, the Clios and Cannes.

As of this week, UNIQLO's SoHo location will be home to a marketing gimmick that utterly outpaces UNIQLOCK in terms of ambition: Mitsubishi's Wakamaru robot. Originally built as a household helper, Wakamaru can look people in the eye and engage in basic communication. (Kinda reminds me of R2D2, except less willful and more coherent. See it meet and greet.)

In addition to wracking up the oohs and aahs, Tokyo Mango says Wakamaru will also help UNIQLO SoHo shoppers locate products around the store. No word on if Mitsubishi hopes to win business -- or at least interest -- through the collabo.

by Angela Natividad    Sep-11-08    
Topic: Events, Guerilla, Product Placement, Sponsorship



Because Being Uninsured is Almost (?) Like Being Naked

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To draw eyes to the 6.7 million uninsured residents living in California, Blue Shield erected 40 naked statues at a Los Angeles-based event for universal healthcare coverage. Each statue is frozen in a vulnerable position, which reflects the state of people living without healthcare coverage.

I like the effort. It brings a bit of provocation to a public landscape without making it seem cluttered with advertising. See more photos.

by Angela Natividad    Sep-10-08    
Topic: Cause, Events, Good, Guerilla



Now You, Too, Can Play Doctor.

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To promote his circumcision business on a shoestring budget, Ismet Dural of Istanbul, Turkey prepared the tear sheets at left. More photos here.

It's so deliciously creepy. Not only do you get to casually circumcise, you can carry the fruit of that labor in your pocket all afternoon long.

by Angela Natividad    Sep- 9-08    
Topic: Good, Guerilla, Outdoor, Strange



Thirsty African Kid Invades TV Studios for Water

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To promote "Music for Life," whose theme this year was the dearth of drinkable water in some countries, the Red Cross and Studio Brussels let loose a thirsty black kid, who invaded TV studios and stole sips out of TV personalities' glasses.

It's hilarious. He just races onstage, gulps water down, and races off again without a word. Nobody can keep a straight face, and one chick just looks totally lost.

A video montage of the effort was put together and disseminated under the catchy name "Black boy wants water." As the Guerrilla Communications blog points out, it kept people awake -- and better still, got its point across.

The effort purportedly raised 3.3 million euros for drinkable water. It also won two golds, a silver and a titanium award at Cannes this year.

by Angela Natividad    Sep- 3-08    
Topic: Campaigns, Cause, Good, Guerilla



For Mere Pocket Change, 'East Touch Magazine' Lets You Into Its Pants

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From September to October, Levi's "Live Unbuttoned" campaign invades newsstands and 7-Elevens in Hong Kong.

Agency TBWA\TEQUILA partnered with East Touch Magazine to outfit its next issue in miniature 501s. Mag-lurkers will literally have to unbutton the jeans just to finger a copy. Bonus points if you can fit in them!

There'll also be a guerrilla effort in Causeway Bay, where customers can experience the "Live Unbuttoned" campaign live and, uh, unbuttoned, which I think just means they'll be able to try jeans on in a tent. (I'm hoping there'll also be a lively music component. Chinese gen-yers love free music -- who doesn't? -- so it would make sense if Levi's also promoted its free music downloads there, too.)

by Angela Natividad    Sep- 2-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Events, Good, Guerilla, Magazine, Newspaper



Cops Tweet, SBUX Seduces, Pets Prattle, GOOG Cozies Up to Agencies

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- Cops in Scottsdale, Arizona use Twitter to keep the community abreast of what's happening in the city: closed roads, active crime scenes and the like.

- Google cozies up to agencies with evangelism missions and SWAG. Don't be fooled by all those friendly faces! John Battelle isn't.

- Ramadan's got brands in a tizzy. Coke released special packaging; Starbucks is showcasing Arabian blends and Ramadan-inspired pastries at its stores in the Middle East. Observers of Ramadan, which fast! until! sunset!, will undoubtedly be thrilled. (I love SBUX, but after a food-free day it's the last place I'd go. Who says "I'm starving! A tart and some coffee would do me good"?!)

more »



Fetch the Suspenders! It's Obama Buttons on Parade

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The tireless MoveOn.org is giving free Obama buttons away to anybody willing to part with their email, mobile number and address data. (What a tradeoff!) Packages include:

o One free Obama button.

o Three Obama buttons for a $2 donation. Just think how spiffy your tatty old backpack will look this September.

o 45 BUTTONS for a $20 donation, which, stylewise, would put you in direct in competition with this here little lady.

A moving ticker on MoveOn's site reports over 1,776,804 buttons have been ordered so far. I smell a trend afoot. Don't get left behind!

by Angela Natividad    Sep- 1-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Cause, Guerilla, Online, Political, Promotions



Hot Blogger Calendar, 90210 Strip-Searched, Buffy Increases Church Abandonment

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- Because what the world needs now is a hot blogger calendar.

- The CW's decided to let advertisers see snippets of 90210's content after all. I guess this means the PTC will be throwing itself a self-congratulatory cocktail party.

- OMG, OMG, a Facebook movie? ...by the co-creator of West Wing? Does that mean there's a parity of significance between Mark Zuckerberg and the ruler of the free world?

- MySpace was the top display ad publisher in June; Microsoft the top display advertiser. Most of its ads were for Live Search.

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Best Buy Holograph Stalks Mall of America Shoppers

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Walking through the Mall of America, there are, no doubt, plenty of distractions. Sound good. Some bad. This new ad technology from Modernistic used by Best Buy to promote their new store in the mall falls into both categories. It's bad because who wants a holographic projection talking to you and youu walk through the mall. It's good becasue al you have to do is walk to the side of it and it disappears. Something for everyone. What's not to like?

by Steve Hall    Aug-28-08    
Topic: Good, Guerilla, Outdoor