Jeep Brings Sides Together in Ad Airing During First Presidential Debate

Cat Stevens' 'If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out' Backs Spot That Brings Sides Together

Published On
Sep 26, 2016

Editor's Pick

Just about the time Republicans and Democrats will likely be yelling over who won tonight's presidential debate, Jeep will run an ad that, perhaps impossibly, seeks to unite the country.

The ad, called "Free to Be," spotlights people with different political persuasions and lifestyles -- such as meat-eaters and vegetarians -- before ending with the message "what unites us is stronger than what divides us." The soundtrack is "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out," by the former Cat Stevens, who now goes by the name Yusuf.

The ad -- which spotlights the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit and Trailhawk models -- is by Dentsu-owned McGarryBowen. The agency is a roster shop for Jeep-owner Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, but has mostly worked on the smaller Maserati brand. So the Jeep spot represents a significant new assignment for the agency and is expected to be followed by similarly themed ads. Jeep's lead agency is DDB, Chicago. The Omnicom shop's status has not changed, according to a Fiat Chrysler spokeswoman.

The ad will debut during tonight's episode of "The Big Bang Theory" on CBS. But it will run again during post-debate coverage on networks including Fox News and MSNBC.

"We envisioned one singular, yet fully cohesive campaign instead of two for our new 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit and Trailhawk models," Olivier Francois, global chief marketing officer for FCA, said in a statement. "The Summit model represents the hallmark of 'beautiful luxury' while the Trailhawk's interpretation is rooted in 'beautiful capability'. This story speaks to the freedom of choice that we offer to consumers."

He added: "Our 'Free to Be' message embraces two important core tenants of the brand, freedom and adventure, that any Jeep brand marketing campaign is intended to deliver. 'What unites us is stronger than what divides us' is the human-centric message that ties the vehicles and our story together. What better platform to premiere this message of unity than during a moment of such cultural significance?"

Jeep joins brands including Tecate and Audi that are debuting politically themed spots tonight in hopes of seizing on a debate audience that experts project could draw 80 million viewers or more. As opposed to Jeep's unity ad, Audi's spot uses a conflict tone, featuring two hotel valets dueling to get behind the wheel of an Audi RS 7. Tecate, meanwhile, took on the controversial issue of Donald Trump's proposal to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

Credits

Date
Sep 26, 2016
Brand :
Jeep
Client :
Jeep
Agency :
McGarryBowen-New York
Chief Creative Officer :
Matthew Bull
Executive Creative Director :
James Cheung
Executive Creative Director :
Cliff Skeete
Copywriter :
Annie Egan
Copywriter :
Kent Koren
Copywriter :
Peter Min
Copywriter :
Jesse Custodio
Art Director :
Luke Patridge
Art Director :
Chris Park
Executive Producer :
Dan Fried
Managing Director, Integrated Production and Design :
Dante Piacenza
Director, Music Production :
Jerry Krenach
Music Producer :
Stephen Stallings
Music Licensing Supervisor :
Jonathan Hecht
Director, Talent Services :
Sue Ayson
Business Manager :
Barbara Silverstein
Managing Director :
Lindsey Schmidt
Account Director :
Lauren Bronchtein
Account Executive :
Christina Harman
Production Company :
Superprime
Managing Director :
Rebecca Skinner
Managing Director :
Michelle Ross
Executive Producer :
Colleen O'Donnell
Director :
Sam Bayer
Editorial Company :
Whitehouse Editorial
Editor :
Josh Bodnar
Assistant Editor :
Alejandro Villagran
Producer :
Nick Crane
Visual Effects Company :
Framestore
Executive Producer :
Dez (Derek) Macleod Veilleux
Senior Producer :
Maura Hurley
Visual Effects Supervisor :
Kathy Siegel
Visual Effects Supervisor/Lead Compositor :
Raul Ortego
Matte Painting :
Quimet Delgado
Compositing Team :
Jamie Scott
Compositing Team :
Greg Cutler
Compositing Team :
Chihcheng Peng
Compositing Team :
Jose Arauz
Compositing Team :
Elaina Brillantes
Account Supervisor :
Brittney McDonald

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