CSAA 'Rickrolls' out ad campaign with '80s hit-maker
Singer Rick Astley is teaming up with the carrier to update the video for ‘Never Going to Give You Up.’
CSAA Insurance Group is partnering with 1980s hit-maker Rick Astley for a 17-market ad campaign in which the crimson-haired crooner remakes the video for “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
A number one hit in 25 countries, the song found a second life as an internet trend during the late 2000s. Colloquially known as “Rickrolling,” the MacMillan Dictionary describes it as the act of tricking “someone by getting them to click on a link that seems useful but in fact links to a video of Rick Astley signing his 1987 hit “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Neither Merriam nor Webster could be reached for comment.
The music video has generated more than 1.2 billion YouTube views and nearly 600 million Spotify streams, according to CSAA.
“We are thrilled to partner with Rick Astley to not only revisit the joy of his video, but amplify the incredible value that our customers receive with InsurAAAnce,” Linda Goldstein, executive vice president, customer experience & marketing, CSAA Insurance Group, said in a release. “And clearly, the indelible lyrics of ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ are one of the best ways we can share that message.”
The new campaign reimagines the music video in an effort to spread “the good news about InsurAAAnce — the insurance that never gives you up,” according to a release from CSAA. In the target markets, consumers can scan a QR code, which features Astley’s “iconic hairstyle,” to view the new video.
Jones Krahl and Milton Correa, co-heads of Creative for Brand and Advertising at Deloitte Digital, said in a release: “We wanted to communicate that in a memorable way not only by recreating the legendary music video after 35 years, but also serving it in a manner that pays homage to how internet and meme culture has made Rick Astley its own.”
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