Spinner

What's That Song in the NBA Commercials?

'Every Day,' by Carly Comando

The category is Words That Describe the NBA. Elegant? Thoughtful? Angelic? In past seasons, such descriptions would have been about as ludicrous as Ice-T hosting a Tupperware party. But thugs can change. The scandal-plagued NBA is on a mission to repair its image, and they've gone a long way toward achieving that goal with the simplest of marketing campaigns. The unlikely but very effective ads, "Where Amazing Happens," feature a handful of gauzy photos, some garbled syntax and the achingly beautiful piano stylings of a classically trained punk chick Carly Comando from Brooklyn.

Start with "Where grown men crying happens," the caption that accompanies a picture of an overwhelmed Michael Jordan after a championship win. If the NBA is hip-hop to its core, there's also room among giants for a little vulnerability, a softer touch. Which is not to say they've taken away the thrill of the game: The league is still the place "where are you kidding me happens," "where 1.3 seconds left happens."Carly Comando's solo piano instrumental first gained attention when it appeared as the accompaniment to 'Everyday,' the YouTube phenomenon in which young photographer Noah Kalina made a short film of more than 2000 self-portraits he took over a six-year span. (The piece has become so iconic it was parodied on 'The Simpsons' back in December.) Time marches on, the clip screamed, and the unsettling beauty of Comando's score emphasized the point.

But sports glories are frozen in time. Major League Baseball and the NFL have been masterly at making nostalgia a critical component of their self-promotion, and the NBA clearly wants a piece of that action. With the help of a piano-playing hipster in a wife-beater T-shirt, they're gunning for it.


Listen to the song!


Buy it on iTunes

Next: Super Bowl



All the AOL Music info you want to know

Billboard Music Awards 2012 Winners List

AOL Music Blog

Ethan Miller, Getty Images for ABC The music industry stepped out for the…

Billboard Music Awards Red Carpet 2012…

AOL Music Blog

Getty (3) The Billboard Music Awards 2012 have kicked off, and with stars like…

Robin Gibb Dead at 62: Bee Gees Legend…

Spinner

Gareth Cattermole, Getty Images Robin Gibb, the singer, songwriter and…

See all AOL Music »

Add a Comment

Sign in »
*0 / 3000 Character Maximum

5 Comments

Filter by:
Roy

Does anyone know the music that plays in the NBA's 2009 "Where Wow Happens" ad campaign? Here's a link to the ad on Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CFjjZu_oao&feature=related

January 13 2010 at 1:22 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Lordcor

Carly Comando - Everyday

January 29 2009 at 3:53 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
pat

whats that song on the gieco commercial with the caveman on the walkway in the airport?

March 08 2008 at 8:16 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Melissa Patterson

My question is the same as Trista's What is the name of the song on the Disaronno commercial with the twins? Please reply asap!!

February 28 2008 at 2:05 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Trista

What's the name of the song in the Disaronno commercial with the twins?

February 17 2008 at 6:39 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply