Rhapsody Thinks Outside the Box

A few days ago I saw a tweet fly by from Todd Defren mentioning something to do with Jay-Z and Rhapsody.  Since I’m a HUGE fan of Jay-Z I followed the link.  The link took me to this amazing Rhapsody commercial promoting Jay-Z’s new album, The Blueprint 3.  If you’re not a fan of Jay-Z then it will be a little hard to understand why this commercial is so cool.  BUT, any true Jay-Z fans will notice that, in the span of one minute, the commercial seamlessly takes you through most of Jay-Z’s album covers.

YouTube Preview Image

I think this is a great example of a brand thinking outside the box.  Most commercials, especially for upcoming music albums, are sheer promotion for the album.  This commercial takes you back to all of the fantastic albums that Jay-Z has released over his career.  While showing you the previous album covers, the new single, Run This Town, from The Blueprint 3 is playing in the background thus hyping you for the new album.

The commercial ends with a call-to-action to head over to the specially designed section of the Rhapsody site dedicated to the album release.  There you can listen to the album, send updates to Twitter and Facebook of your favorite songs from the album, comment on the commercial, sign up for a subscription to Rhapsody and a whole bunch more.

There is so much that I think is cool about this but I want to know what you think about it.  If this was a commercial for an artist you really liked, would the commercial and landing page make you any more likely to try Rhapsody and/or buy the album?

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Written by Justin Levy

View Comments to Rhapsody Thinks Outside the Box
  1. justinlevy
    September 7, 2009 | 9:42 am

    I really think Rhapsody thought outside the box with this new Jay-Z commercial http://bit.ly/1D4u2r

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  2. datboyjaywill
    September 7, 2009 | 10:16 am

    If you a real JaY-Z fan, this commercial is sick as shit. http://bit.ly/1D4u2r

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  3. Alltop_Social
    September 7, 2009 | 10:22 am

    Rhapsody Thinks Outside the Box http://bit.ly/XFVxY
    Social-Media.alltop

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  4. Nina_PR
    September 7, 2009 | 11:53 am

    Rhapsody Thinks Outside the Box For Advertising New Jay Z Album http://bit.ly/XFVxY Punchline: “Jay Z Fans Get It..”

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  5. chrisbrogan
    September 8, 2009 | 7:59 am

    Cool! @justinlevy shows me a really cool Jay-Z ad (video) – http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  6. tammymcdaniel
    September 8, 2009 | 8:04 am

    This is cool – how many things can a 1 min video advertise!? RT @chrisbrogan Cool! @justinlevy a really cool Jay-Z ad – http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  7. 40deuce
    September 8, 2009 | 8:09 am

    amazing ad (especially if you love Jay-Z RT @justinlevy Rhapsody Thinks Outside the Box http://bit.ly/Dqk0T

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  8. stevejpr
    September 8, 2009 | 8:11 am

    nice. RT @chrisbrogan Cool! @justinlevy shows me a really cool Jay-Z ad (video) – http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  9. JihoonJ
    September 8, 2009 | 8:14 am

    This is really cool! RT @chrisbrogan Cool! @justinlevy shows me a really cool Jay-Z ad (video) – http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  10. netgencorp
    September 8, 2009 | 8:38 am

    Marketing to his most profitable customers RT @chrisbrogan: Cool! @justinlevy shows me a really cool Jay-Z ad (video)- http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  11. BR80
    September 8, 2009 | 8:49 am

    Brilliant video: RT @chrisbrogan: Cool! @justinlevy shows me a really cool Jay-Z ad (video) – http://bit.ly/VC6v2

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  12. 40deuce
    September 8, 2009 | 8:08 am

    WOW!!! that ad is fantastic.
    Jay-Z is the man, and a huge kudos to Rhapsody for that great ad idea

  13. justinlevy
    September 8, 2009 | 8:42 am

    I agree! I think it was a fantastic concept and well executed.

  14. KimSherrell
    September 8, 2009 | 9:52 am

    It's over the top! Nice find, Justin.

  15. TDefren
    September 8, 2009 | 5:02 pm

    Thanks @justinlevy!!! http://bit.ly/3aQ2w1

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  16. justinlevy
    September 19, 2009 | 10:47 am

    @URwingman I liked the Jay-Z commercial so much, I blogged about it :) http://bit.ly/1D4u2r

    This comment was originally posted on Twitter

  17. Clay Hebert
    September 19, 2009 | 11:22 am

    Straight up brilliant. It's a great ad even if you don't know that it's all his album covers but it's that much better if you're a fan. In a sea of worthless, pointless, expensive ads, this one is effective and does a great job of tightening the tribe.

    Great post, Justin.

  18. justinlevy
    September 22, 2009 | 2:24 pm

    I agree! It's such a great commercial. It's definitely one that I'll watch
    in the future again :)

  19. justinlevy
    September 22, 2009 | 6:24 pm

    I agree! It's such a great commercial. It's definitely one that I'll watch
    in the future again :)

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