Jack White Has a Coke and a Smile

Jack White would like to buy the world a Coke.

The White Stripes frontman confirmed to British music site NME.com he has penned a song for a forthcoming Coca-Cola television ad.

"I've written a song and I wrote it really quickly," he tells NME.com. "It's an interesting commercial that's been made."

White was mum on specifics. He didn't say when the spot would air or which of the Atlanta-based beverage behemoth's agencies produced the ad.

There's been no official comment from Coca-Cola, either. While the soft drink purveyor hasn't been as reliant on celebrity ads as rival Pepsi, it has recruited the likes of Jennifer Lopez, the Dixie Chicks, Mya, Courteney Cox and David Arquette, Penelope Cruz and Christina Aguilera (who eventually shifted her cola allegiance).

The White Stripes have refused to license their music for product endorsements, despite numerous lucrative offers in the past; but the "Seven Nations Army" singer was drafted into the cola wars with an offer he couldn't refuse.

"I certainly wouldn't want a song that I'd already written to be used on a commercial. That seems strange. [But] to be asked to write something particular along one theme of love in a worldwide form that I'm not really used to appealed to me," said White, who's in England for the launch of the band's U.K. tour.

That seems to echo the theme of McCann-Erickson's classic 1971 "Hilltop" ad that featured the jingle "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke." The song, rerecorded as "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" by the New Seekers, became a Top 10 hit.

White's enthusiasm for the soft drink is the real thing. An unabashed Coke head, White once told ContactMusic.com that he used to down "six [Cokes] a day" and that "it's the greatest drink ever made by man."

Even his band's trademark red-and-white color scheme matches the iconic beverage label.

Perhaps White and his label hope the commercial results in wide exposure for the alt-rocker. V2 Records is still smarting from less than spectacular sales of the Stripes' latest release, Get Behind Me Satan.

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I'm a little disappointed. I always respected these two for not dancing around in Gap commercials. This is a little different than when The Shins sold 'New Slang' to McDonalds. They were a new band trying to get some exposure and make a living. The White Stripes are a world famous band that certainly don't need the money an ad like this would bring in.

So, what do y'all think?

Lame. I recall a few years ago they singled out some bands as sellouts. Audioslave was one.

At least that gave me the benefit of seeing Audioslave cover "Seven Nation Army" when I saw them that year as they started playing it as a "fuck you" to Jack White.

Was a good fuck you as well, since they're cover was much better than the original IMO.

Coke never tasted so good.
Coke never tasted so good.
Coke never tasted good to meeeeee....Yeah.

I like pepsi, so this doesn't bother me at all.

Hmmm...i dunno i guess since its written specifically for Coke its not too bad although id rather see Jack working on some new songs for a half decent new record instead.

NOt going to beat Wesley Willis doing a McDonald's "commercial"...

Oh you mean the soft drink...not as exciting a topic as I thought it would be.

Doesn't bother me. I actually enjoyed G. Love's Coke commercial and song.

Im a big white stripes fan and it's hard for me to believe that they would sell out like this.

And do you have a link to the article where they call audioslave sell outs?
Ive heard their seven nation army cover and IMO I don't think it's as good as the original.

It was two or three years ago, I'm not digging around for the link.

To each his own on the cover. I don't like the stripes at all and love Audioslave, so I'm probably biased.

I think the "feud" or whatever was a result of an article in rolling stone or one of the other music mags that called Audioslave the "saviors of rock" or something like that, and Jack White was annoyed as they'd been saying that about them for a while previously, but I could be mistake as it was a while back.

The whole selling out thing... I don't get it. If Jack White had remained an upholsterer, he could make whatever career moves he wanted and no one would blame him for trying to make more money. But he made the choice to become a musician (which, by the way, many people are happy about), and now there's some weird expectation that he should only make so much money. I mean, I understand that there's some romantic notion that we don't want our artists to be bureaucrats or businessmen, but if someone told me I should be happy with my current salary and never try to make more, I'd think it was ridiculous. And Jack White has accomplished more in life than I have so it seems even more ridiculous to have that expectation of him.

Also agree with you. I don't care one bit either way if some artist sells their music or face time for ads. Big deal. Selling out to me is when a musician waters down their music for the masses. But even that's subjective and not something I lose sleep over.

I could care less about an artist selling their music for ads. What I find disturbing is when an artist speaks out against doing so (i.e. Fugazi, R.E.M., Tom Waits, The White Stripes), and then turn around and do it like the WS seem to be doing now. That is where I have a problem.

Sure, he has ther right to do it. I'm still disappointed.

There are a million different ways that Jack White could make money off his music. Selling soda is just one of them.

Will we still be so understanding when he is selling coffee, burgers and underwear?

Auto is exactly right.

I don't care when bands "sell out" and I hate when people complain about them selling out.

The problem I have here is that Jack White was one of the people complaining about sell outs, and now he's doing the same.

It's the hypocrisy that bothers me, not the "selling out."

I'm right there with ya but I'm really hoping this is all BS. That write up just seems like a complete joke to me..............but then again, ya never know these days.

This partnership was rumored months ago and I thought the same thing.

This announcement seems more "official".

WORD! Couldn't have said it better myself.

If they change their sound to "go with the times" (whether it sells a million records or not), it's selling out. If not, then no, it's not.

Rocket From The Crypt did a Mountain Dew commercial about 10 years ago. They wrote the song specifically for Mountain Dew. They made a ton of money doing it too. Paid their rents for months at a time they desperately needed it.

Was that "selling out"?

Now what if I told you that tour was FREE tour? (meaning you didn't have to buy a ticket to see them). That was afforded by Mountain Dew. Was that selling out?

I say "no" to both situations. Now if all of a sudden, they started writing gangsta rap songs because that's popular, THAT would be "selling out".

I only use soda as a mixer nowadays, which is funny because I also only listen to White Stripes while drunk. It's beautiful how things connect like that sometimes.

Okay, so it is just me that hasn't ever heard of the band.

"I thinking about my Coke when you gonna drink it?when you gonna drink it?"
"I thinking about my Coke when you gonna drink it?when you gonna drink it?"
"I thinking about my Coke when you gonna drink it?when you gonna drink it?"

Moby sold his entire "Play" album, and it was used very, very, very often. Doesn't mean it's not a great album, which I think it is.

I guess it doesn't bother me too much, as I don't like the White Stripes, and I only drink coke if I'm having some rum.

This thread is giving me teh funny.

-Gunshy

I would call it selling out if he was selling/writing songs for companys/products he did not use. If he was writing a song for Merle Lynch, I could see a sellout argument, but this is Coke, he has stated that he loves Coke, where is the sellout? He is endorsing a product that he currently uses and has used heavily in the past.

Beat me to it.