News 2002
Virgin Mobile Launches New TV Campaign Starring Wyclef Jean
03/05/2002
“You ain’t my real daddy”
Virgin Mobile has today launched its latest advertising campaign which features the American rap superstar/producer Wyclef Jean.
In the ad, aimed to appeal particularly to Britain’s younger mobile phone users, Wyclef signs what he thinks is an autograph for an insistent female fan, only to discover that he has signed a legally binding marriage contract to the woman. We then see Wyclef’s descent into trailer park marriage hell, with a bucktoothed wife and several hillbilly stepchildren, one of whom taunts him with the line, “You ain’t my real Daddy. His dentally-challenged wife then demands her conjugal rights, leaving Wyclef to rue his hastily given signature.
The amusing commercial does have a serious point, however. It aims to warn viewers to be careful what they sign, particularly in the case of mobile phone contracts, and illustrates the fact that Virgin Mobile’s Flex Tariff allows users to earn free minutes without committing to any contract.
The film was written by Richard Beesening, art directed by Martha Riley and directed by Doug Nicol of Partizan Films.
Alison Pye, brand manager at Virgin Mobile, said: “Getting Wyclef is a real coup for us - he is a movie star in the making. ‘You ain’t my real Daddy’ is unlike any other mobile advertising."
James Kydd, brand director at Virgin Mobile, agrees, adding: "That’s just the way we like it. 02 has bubbling water, T Mobile has an 80’s rock band, Virgin Mobile’s got Wyclef Jean. Need we say more?”
The television spot launches today, 3rd May, and will run as a national campaign on TV until June 3rd, and in London and the Midlands in the cinema until mid June.
