Powering Through
In this Powerade commercial, we see a teenage boy leave his house with Powerade and bike around the bad neighborhoods of Chicago, ending up near the United Center. While this is happening, a poem by Tupac Shakur is read about roses that have grown from the concrete. Finally, we end with Derrick Rose looking out at the court at the United Center, drinking a Powerade, with the phrase “Don’t as me why, ask me how” spoken to end the poem. Throughout the ad, a few elements are established, such as the need to achieve, used show Powerade helped Derrick Rose to become successful. Powerade also shows the unique selling proposition that Powerade can help you power through in athletics and other parts of life. Visually, the ad highlights the bad neighborhoods in Chicago that Derrick Rose grew up in to show how much he overcame, partially due to Powerade.
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This ad creates the need to achieve by ending with Derrick Rose in his Bulls jumpsuit, having achieved his dream of playing for Chicago’s NBA team, a dream he’s had since he was a teenager. Tupac talks about a rose that has broken through the concrete due to its tenacity and will to reach the sun, clearly a metaphor to mirror Rose’s rise to fame. We also see the young boy (presumably young Derrick Rose) drinking Powerade as well as when he’s famous. So, the connection can be made that what gave Rose the tenacity and will to break through was the Powerade, especially with they ending phrase saying to ask him how not why, showing how he go there is with Powerade. This shows the audience that Powerade can do the same for you. This also shows Powerade’s unique selling proposition, that it can help you power through anything. This sets itself apart from competitors like gatorade because instead of highlighting electrolytes or refueling, Powerade takes it a step farther by showing how Powerade can make you break through on or off the court, as Derrick Rose broke through in basketball but more importantly the bad neighborhoods of Chicago. Visually, the ad is very simple. It shows mostly bleak colors in the shots of Englewood to show the harsh nature of Rose’s childhood, but the Powerade is always bright blue to show it as the key factor of what helped Rose escape.
The target audience for this ad is young athletes, most of whom are aspiring to be professional athletes, and specifically are lower class and likely from places like Englewood. This is effective for many reasons. First, just having Derrick Rose and Tupac Shakur as the center of the ad appeals to this group of people because they both came from lower class lives but have made it out to be very successful. Second, the story of the ad is a man escaping a lower class life and achieving his dreams, which appeals to the lower class that is trying to do the same.
This Powerade ad sends some mixed messages to its viewers. It is implied that Derrick Rose worked incredibly hard to reach where he is today, but some viewers may get the impression that simply Powerade got him where he is today. But overall, I think this ad is positive because it gives lower class kids hope they can achieve their dreams like Derrick Rose did. Also, the poem from Tupac sends the message to embrace the “damaged petals” we all have and use them to your advantage.
