Wanted: feel good music. As the severity of the coronavirus became apparent, Madison Avenue reacted swiftly. Commercials with hard sells were out, while soft sells with uplifting messages were in.
Song publishers quickly pivoted to meet the musical needs of their clients' changing messages. "The shift happened pretty quickly," says Brian Monaco, Sony/ATV Music Publishing's president/global chief marketing officer.
Brands began looking for "songs of hope, unity, togetherness." "[Briefs] tended to lean more heavily on what I think of as [musical] comfort food," agrees BMG senior vp of creative synch Jonathan Palmer, who placed Andra Day's "Rise Up" in an Amazon spot, as well as Black Eyed Peas' "One Tribe" for Facebook's new Messenger Desk