Proceeding from my awestruck, this commercial may have a reverse affect by providing thousands of kids an "oh shit" moment when they see Phelps riffing. "Is that what I look like?" "I rock the axe cooler than him, right?" "Maybe I should dust off Madden."
Let me explore the space a little more on Michael Phelps. I thought he was going to pull a hundred million in endorsements after his record breaking Olympic Games. All I have seen is a low budget AT&T commercial. Don't gold medals have a life expectancy of 3 months? I already see a gymnastics rock jam coming to a city near me. I know he is not struggling already pulling in over $5 mil a year and living with his mom, but he might want to stop scratching the dog and kick it up a notch.
Back to the commercial. Why is Kobe lip syncing? Does the game have an attachment that measures lip and tongue movement? Because the knockoff that Guitar Hero is knocking off requires actual singing. Come on Kobe, aren't you America's sweethheart again? Isn't that why you received a call to do this after being sent to the corner for 4 yrs, ehm Sprite, ehm McDonalds. I thought you were this great competitor? Let's hear those pipes.
Unfortunately, this commercial was set to fail the moment A-Rod pranced onto the screen. Everyone knows if an athlete is going to be the spokesman for Guitar Hero, the first call is to this guy:
