Donald Glover wrote and directed this Bose headphones spot, dropping Childish Gambino hints along the way

Bose’s latest generation of QuietComfort headphones and earbuds are “taking audio performance to an entirely new level,” per the company, thanks to recently debuted Bose Immersive Audio technology. And what better way to showcase it than following artist and actor Donald Glover through the chaotic blueprint-unfurling, smoothie-sipping, power-sawing, cow-mooing world that is a farm under construction? Marrying crisp audio with lengthy tracking shots, the new work, dubbed “Sound Is Power,” was developed by Gilga, a relatively young, multifaceted creative shop founded by Glover that GQ called a “production company/incubator/cultural library.” Both Gilga and Glover—who, when making music, assumes the stage name Childish Gambino—are intimately tied into “Sound Is Power,” with the campaign’s 60-second hero spot being filmed at the actor’s under-renovation ranch in Ojai, California, which will serve as Gilga’s headquarters when complete. (Keen-eyed viewers may also spot a subtle nod to the agency in the video: two workers carrying a large “Gilga” sign through the frame around the halfway mark.) Watch the full spot below: Glover is credited as the ad’s writer and director under the banner of production company Doomsday Entertainment, as well as its executive producer. “When we look for a brand ambassador … they have to share some of our common DNA,” Jim Mollica, chief marketing officer for Bose, told Ad Age. “We chose Donald Glover for this campaign because he may be one of the most innovative and iconic creator talents out there. He authentically uses our products in his creative process.” “And it was a really opportunistic moment for us with his return to music,” Mollica said, alluding to the artist’s return to hip-hop and the revival of his alter ego Childish Gambino, whose musical next steps will be “clear sooner rather than later,” Glover recently told Complex. (A one-off line in the “Sound Is Power” spot, in which an assistant says “Tyler wants the recording studio on Wednesday,” also has some social media commenters speculating that Childish Gambino’s next release may include a collaboration with Tyler, the Creator.) The campaign debuted earlier this week and will run across digital, social and broadcast TV in both the U.S. and U.K. through the holiday season, though it likely won’t be the last time you see the Massachusetts-based audio company working with Glover. “It made all the sense in the world to let [Glover] tell that story in that manner,” Mollica said. “We will continue to partner with Donald on all sorts of interesting, creative pursuits in the future.”

Donald Glover wrote and directed this Bose headphones spot, dropping Childish Gambino hints along the way

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