Sorry, dog, it was kind of pitchy
Mary J. Blige collected all those Grammys on Sunday, then drove away in her Chevrolet SUV, dropping off Tony Bennett at the local Target store.
Well, maybe that isn’t what happened, but it wouldn’t have been surprising following a CBS Grammy telecast that reinforced the ongoing synergy between music and merchandising.
Those frequent Chevy commercials, featuring Blige, T.I. and other musicians serenading their rides, were line-blurring exercises, but Chevy topped itself when it aired an ad featuring Robyn Troup, the amateur who had just won the honor of performing with Justin Timberlake, minutes after their duet had concluded.
On the show itself, Bennett mentioned Target (“the greatest sponsor I ever worked for in my life”). Later, the Grammys paid tribute to the Eagles, whose upcoming album will be available exclusively at Wal-Mart for one year under a partnership between the band and the retailer.
Signs of pop’s commercial entanglements were sprinkled throughout the evening, including spots for Bob Dylan and Sting and one of Prince giving his thanks for his Super Bowl half-time performance. Which, of course, aired on CBS.
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