Music in TV advertising

Music in advertising is often employed as a device to help an ad capture a feeling or set a mood. The choice of music can make or break a TV ad. Different music can change the mood of an ad entirely and the right track can take a commercial to a totally different level.

Below are a few examples of recent TV ads that I think use music extremely well:



For it’s 2009 Christmas ad, John Lewis chose to use a Folk cover version of the Guns n Roses classic ‘Sweet Child Of Mine’. This is one of my (many) favorite rock songs so for many reasons I should typically hate this version of the song. However, within the context of the ad I think it is great.

The softer, subtler version helps create a festive atmosphere and it manages to capture the innocent excitement of childhood in a very poignant way. The ad successfully evokes childhood and reminds people of the magic of Christmas, without the use of an obvious seasonal track.

The music in this ad feels very natural and it works well with the idea, the tone and the brand. I think it is the perfect use of music that has taken this ad to a different level.




This ‘Lyrics’ ad for Budweiser is bright and uplifting. The Hours’ cover of The Beatles’ All Together Now is the perfect song to get you singing along and tapping your feet. It is joyous and fun – reflecting some of Budweiser’s core brand values.
The band chose to record the track as organically as possible to keep the tone in line with the film. It was recorded in their hotel room using basic, unsophisticated equipment and apparently some of the percussion was even made in obscure ways like banging a fire extinguisher against a metal heater (how inventive!)

The ad was shot from within a moving train, which had to travel at precise speeds that mimicked the pace of the song. As the train trundles along, scenes appear outside the windows that match perfectly the song lyrics. Each ‘lyric’ (30 in all) coincided precisely with the train’s schedule and the visuals are all beautifully choreographed to fit.

Music is usually selected after an ad has been shot, however for this ad the track obviously needed to be chosen before filming. Surprisingly, the song wasn’t part of the original script. It was found later during pre-production. The script simply specified “a song that everyone likes and wants to sing along to.” However, this particular song fits so perfectly, you would think that it was part of the initial ad concept.