When Willie Nelson's not wearing cowboy boots he has on a pair of Skechers.
Nelson is the star of Skechers' Super Bowl LVI commercial campaign.
The first one ("On the Road") shows people wearing Skechers to the tune of "On the Road Again." Nelson shows up at the end and warbles, "I can't wait to get on the road again."
The second one ("Legalize") is moderately controversial. It opens with the CelebStoner talking to the camera: "Hi, I'm Willie Nelson. I've fought for the legalization of the one thing that can bring confort to millions - Skechers." He's interrupted by the producer: "Willie, I don't think Skechers are illegal anywhere."
Nelson responds, dumbfounded: "But they feel so good, I just assumed The Man made them illegal."
"No."
"Not even a little illegal like you can wear them to a concert, but not to a kid's soccer game?" Nelson asks.
"You can wear Skechers anywhere," the producer affirms.
And then Nelson delivers the penultimate punchline:
"Well, pass the Skechers!"
AdWeek calls the latter spot "a tongue in cheek reference to Nelson’s long-enduring efforts as a staunch voice in cannabis legalization."
Nelson states in a press release: “I can’t resist making an appearance during the Super Bowl. And I’m doing this because of a message we can all agree on - everyone deserves the right to feel comfortable. From the bus to the stage to a jog around the ranch, staying healthy and feeling good is how I can keep doing what I love.”
The two 30-second spots were filmed at Nelson's Luck Ranch near Austin, TX by Lindsey Clarke and the Skechers Creative Advertising group.
Clearly, Nelson and Skechers are being coy with the message. Otherwise, the latter ad would not have been accepted.
Nelson turns 89 on Apr. 29.
Weedmaps's Brock Ollie
A more brazen ad ("Brock Ollie") submitted for appoval by Weedmaps was rejected. A man with a broccoli stalk on his head says, "Since we can't talk about cannabis publicly, my likeness is being used as a safe substitute. I don't see the resemblance."
In an office, a women asks him if he's going on a break and makes the toke sign. "They're not even being subtle anymore," Brock sighs.
In the Xerox room, a woman comes in and says, "Let's hot-box this..." as the copy machine roars over her last word, an expletive.
"It's taken over my life," Brock says at home. "Cannabis is here to stay. That's great. But when will we just call it what it is? I'm broccoli. I mean you guys get it." He's talking to two people at this point: One has a pot on his head, the other a leaf on her face. Then the screen reads:
Cannabis is here.
Let's talk about it.
#SaveBrockOllie
Lay's Stay Golden
More typical is the Lay's SB LVI ad ("Stay Golden") featuring CelebStoner Seth Rogan and Paul Rudd. As they share of bag of Lay's potato chips, the two buds reminisce about their times spent together in flashbacks.
"They were good times," Rudd says.
"They were golden," Rogen adds.
Then Rogen gets married to a ghoul and they do a wedding dance while in chairs, with Rogen yelling out, "Best day of my life."
Super Bowl LVI: Cincinnati Bengals vs Los Angeles Rams
The AFC champion Bengals are four-point underdogs in SB LVI. The NFC champion Rams are playing at home at the new SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. The Rams won the Super Bowl in 2000. The Bengals have never won the Super Bowl.
Kick-off is at 6:30 pm ET Sunday, Feb. 13 on NBC and streaming on Peacock.
The halftime entertainment will feature Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar.
