Queen’s ‘We Are the Champions’ Appears in New Gatorade Commercial
"If it's not game time, it's recover time," says the tagline in a new commercial from Gatorade, which is best known for its aggressive, sweat-drenched ads. The 30-second spot -- which you can watch above -- shows you what happens after the game. Or as Gatorade calls it, "recover time."
As athletes take it easy after the game, resting their sore muscles, they snack on Gatorade Recover protein bars and sip the company's beverages as the soundtrack chills out with a Muzak-style version of Queen's "We Are the Champions." The ubiquitous sporting-event favorite is taken out of the arena and stuffed into the elevator for a decidedly non-rocking song here, most likely not what Freddie Mercury had in mind when he wrote it.
Back in the day, "elevator music" was mostly supplied by Muzak, a company that provided smooth and calm background sounds that were pumped into doctor's offices, call centers as you were put on hold and, yes, elevators. The concept dates to the '50s, but it's most associated with the '70s, when it appeared that no artist was safe from a sterile instrumental makeover.
Gatorade's new commercial features a perfect Muzak take on "We Are the Champions" that wipes away all emotion, excitement and drama from the song -- apparently just like the product will do from your life after a particularly intense game or workout.
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