With Nike, Serena, Chloe, Becky, Simone, Ibtihaj Want Women To Dream Crazier
Sunday, February 24, 2019 at 06:35PM By Barry Janoff
February 24, 2019: Last year, Nike asked people to "Dream Crazy" in a multi-media campaign anchored by a TV spot, narrated by Colin Kaepernick, which proposed to male and female athletes, “Don’t ask if your dreams are crazy. Ask if they’re crazy enough.”
Now comes "Dream Crazier," a campaign with a lead spot narrated by and including Serena Williams, which proposes to female athletes, "If they want to call you crazy — fine. Show them what crazy can do.”
The full 90-second spot, which broke during the 91st Academy Awards on ABC and now goes into regular rotation in shorter 15-, 30- and 60-second versions. The tag: “It’s only crazy until you do it.”
The effort, under Nike's "Just Do It" mantra, also includes digital, social media and a dedicated space at the Nike Web site.
Lead agency is Wieden+Kennedy.
In addition to Serena, it also features such athletes as Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim, Olympic fencer Ibtihan Muhammad, Olympic track & field and swimmer Simone Manuel, WNBA stars Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, former WNBA star Lisa Leslie, San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon, teen female football standout Sam Gordon and the U.S. women's national soccer team.
All are Nike endorsers or associated with Nike, so we don’t get to see shots of such women athletes as Naomi Osaka — an adidas endorser who literally lived her crazier dream by defeating Williams to win the 2018 U.S. Open and followed that with a championship at the Australian Open.
“If we show emotion we’re called ‘Dramatic,'” says Serena in voiceover, interspersed with shots of the women athletes in action.
“If we want to play against men, we're ‘Nuts.” And if we dream of equal opportunity, ‘Delusional.’ When we stand for something, we’re ‘Unhinged.’ When we’re too good, there’s something wrong with us. And if we get angry, we’re hysterical, irrational or just being crazy.
“But a woman running a marathon was crazy. A woman boxing was crazy. A woman dunking (a basketball) — crazy. Coaching an NBA team — crazy. A woman competing in a hijab, changing her sport, landing a double-cork 1080; or winning 23 Grand Slams, having a baby and then coming back for more . . .
“Crazy. Crazy. Crazy. Crazy. And crazy. So if they want to call you crazy — fine. Show them what crazy can do.”
Nike continues and enhances the conversation at its Web site, also selling sports gear and shoes for women, which offers, “Break a record you didn’t even know was possible. Win a race nobody invited you to compete in. Live for a dream so crazy, it’ll do more than change sport . . . it’ll change the world.
"For you. For her. For everyone."
At the site, Nike says, “Tell us the motivation behind your crazy dream and join a community of crazy dreamers just like you. We’ll bring you inspirational stories, first access to products, rewards and a chance to have Nike showcase your crazy dream.”
Late last year, adidas broke a campaign featuring many of its top women endorsers, “She Breaks Barriers,” a multi-faceted effort, designed to “inspire, enable and support the next generation of female athletes, creators and leaders,”
Did Serena Play A Role In Kaepernick Nike Campaign?
adidas Supports Female Athletes Who Break Barriers
Back to Home Page