What a difference a year makes. In 2015, the NFL used its Super Bowl commercial time to talk about domestic violence. This year, it's celebrating domestic bliss.
The league's new Super Bowl campaign, from Grey New York, launched Monday with a long-form music video based on a fun bit of trivia—that winning cities see a rise in births nine months after a Super Bowl victory. The video features actual Super Bowl babies—from the now 49-year-old offspring of 1967 Green Bay Packer fans to Seattle Seahawks toddlers born in 2014—singing a version of Seal's "Kiss from a Rose," with new and comical lyrics.
A 60-second version, directed by Lance Acord and Chris Wilcha of Park Pictures, will air during the third quarter of Sunday telecast on CBS. A number of 10-second teasers will introducing the featured Super Bowl babies. (Additional profiles of the babies and their families will live at youtube.com/nfl.)
The NFL and Grey worked to find Super Bowl-induced offspring from eight championship teams in all. (The others were the Dallas Cowboys, Indianapolis Colts, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.) Seal himself makes a cameo, standing on a hilltop overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge with the 1989 Super Bowl babies of the 49ers.
"For 49 years, our fans have rallied around their favorite teams on Super Bowl Sunday and passed their pride and passion down to the next generation," said NFL CMO Dawn Hudson. "We are excited to celebrate our football families by shining the spotlight on Super Bowl Babies, those fans born into a lifelong love of their team and the game."
"I was honored to be part of one of the biggest sporting events on the planet and to work with the NFL on such a fun family campaign," Seal said in a statement. "An event like this brings so many people together, and to have a song I wrote 25 years ago still be so loved is very special for me."
The lyrics are a bit tough to make out here and there, so check them out below:
"Super Bowl Babies" lyrics
Ba dada da da da da da da, bada da
What makes the Super Bowl so Super? A day we adore.
It is a day, so super, it's why we were born.
And in the end
When our team won
Mom and dad looked at each other
One thing led to another that night
[We're all] Babies,
It all happened on the night that a Super Bowl was played, ooh
That's why we're here singing this sweet serenade
And now Super Bowl Fifty is here
There's so much reason for cheer tonight
Ever since we were in diapers, we've watched every game
Cheering so loud. We goo-goo'd. We ga-ga'd. We waaaaah'd
[babies crying]
Baby! We were all just little twinkles, twinkling in our daddy's eye
Til that Super Bowl Sunday night
And when at last
Nine months have passed
They welcome to the world, us newborn baby boys and girls
[We're all] Babies,
It all happened on the night that a Super Bowl was played, ooh
A day when history and our families were made
And now Super Bowl Fifty is here
So much reason for cheer tonight
We're all Super Bowl Babies, oh yeah
We're all Super Bowl Babies, oh yeah
When there were no more jalapeno-chili-bacon chicken wings
Mommy and dad, they cuddled. Canoodled. All night. Baby.
On that night our moms and dads were so filled with desire
[filled with desire]
Here we stand, a baby choir.
[We're all] Babies,
It all happened on the night that a Super Bowl was played, ooh
That's why we're here singing this sweet serenade
And now Super Bowl Fifty is here
So much reason for cheer tonight
Ba dada da da da da da da, bada da Ba dada da da da da da da, bada da
And now Super Bowl Fifty is here
So much reason for cheer tonight
• For more Super Bowl 50 news, check out Adweek's Super Bowl Ad Tracker, an up-to-date list of the brands running Super Bowl spots and the agencies involved in creating them.
CREDITS
Client: NFL
Creative Agency: Grey NY
Chief Creative Officer: Andreas Dahlqvist
Executive Creative Directors: Leo Savage and Jeff Stamp
Group Creative Director: Joe Mongognia
ACD/Copywriter: Patrick Conlon
Art Director: Will Gardner
Location Production: Park Pictures
Directors: Lance Acord and Chris Wilcha
Executive Producer: Townhouse23
Executive Producer: Misha Maher
Assistant Producer: Scott Cohen
Editorial Exile, Kirk Baxter and Nate Gross
Music/Sound Design by Human