It, at least for the past week, has reigned as the number one song in America. And, as of Wednesday, it is now the sound of a global brand.
Lorde’s “Royals,” which reached number one on last week’s Billboard Hot 100, serves as the aural backdrop of a new, global Samsung spot promoting its Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear devices.
Called “The Developer,” the cinematic commercial chronicles the dealings of a mysterious, well-dressed individual who is using his Samsung devices while overseeing a development project taking in a modest Barcelona neighborhood.
Curious about the mysterious man’s plans, a group of children, none of whom have royalty in their blood, snoop on his dealings while singing a poignant version of Lorde’s ubiquitous smash.
As they move about the streets, they stumble upon a beautiful reality: the man, footballer Lionel Messi, was not building a project for his own vanity but one for the benefit of the community.
That unveiling of that project–a soccer field–transforms the children’s emotions from concern to joy as they embrace the development that Samsung’s technology helped facilitate.
According to Billboard, the spot was conceived by ad agency Leo Burnett. Its music supervisor Gabe Burnett, who decided to go with the contemporary smash over a classic musical theater number, brokered the deal with Universal Music Group and Sony/ATV. Music veteran George Drakoulis oversaw the audio mixing.
Posted to Samsung’s YouTube page, the ad follows:
