Ford taps James Brown’s ‘soul’ and ‘swagger’ to launch first all-electric SUV

Ford is to launch its first all-electric SUV, the Mustang Mach-E, with a multichannel campaign, "Watch me", created by BBDO Germany.

For 2021, Ford has committed 70% of its 2021 passenger vehicle marketing spend to three brands; the Mustang Mach-E, the Kuga range and the Puma EcoBoost hybrid.

'Watch me' which will be released in the UK from 14 May, features a young woman driving while lip-syncing to James Brown’s 1970 track Call Me Super Bad. As she passes bystanders including shoppers, street musicians, joggers and a dog walker, they all seem to react and join in with the track, which includes the campaign title, "watch me", in its lyrics.

The 90-second spot, along with edits from six to 60 seconds, will launch on TV and video-on-demand channels, along with social, digital, print, OOH and radio ads.

The campaign was created by Till Diestel, Wolfgang Warzilek, Erick Barrios Hernández, Erin Conboy, Florestan Roesemann, Deepanjali Singh and Dara Kleyer, and directed through Iconoclast by We are from LA, the duo behind music videos such as Happy by Pharrell Williams and Dua Lipa’s Fever. Media buying ishandled by Mindshare and activation by GTB.

The print and OOH imagery is by British fashion photographer Tom Craig, who has worked with celebrities such as Jodie Comer and Michaela Coel, and whose work has featured in publications including Vogue and The Sunday Times, and in campaigns for Louis Vuitton, Alice Temperley, and Mr Porter. It’s the first time Ford has enlisted the skills of a fashion photographer for an ad campaign.

Diestel, chief creative officer at BBDO Germany, explained: "At present all advertising channels are being flooded with electric vehicle campaigns and this intensity will increase even more during 2021.

"We are seeing a large number of similar visuals and campaign mechanics. So we considered it important to adopt a special and innovative approach to the market launch – something worthy of that description. Something that deeply reflects the DNA of the legendary Mustang brand."

Zillig said the work was a positive departure for the electric vehicle sector.

“Customers have been inundated with advertising that all looks and feels the same,” he said. “This insight, combined with the unique soul and ‘swagger’ that the all-electric Mustang Mach-E brings to the category, led us to create this spirited campaign.”

Ford is introducing 17 electrified vehicles in Europe by the end of 2021. By mid-2026, 100% of Ford’s passenger vehicle range in Europe will be zero-emissions capable, all-electric, or plug-in hybrid, moving to all-electric by 2030.

In April, Ford released an ad featuring a virtual cityscape to promote the brand's new Kuga model. This followed "Heartbeat", a campaign for Ford’s vehicle maintenance service, FordLiive, which was released in March by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, and depicted Ford’s vans as the red blood cells of the economy.