Have you seen the Paul McCartney Carpool Karaoke video yet? James Corden’s Late Late Night Show from London has been doing a whole series on carpool karaoke with stars that has been great fun. But the one released Friday June 22nd with Paul McCartney was simply amazing in so many ways.
For Corden fans, the opening lines set us up to guess which star singer might be joining him in Liverpool but what followed can best be described as a lovefest between the Iconic Paul McCartney, his hometown and fans that transcend the generations. Catch it on Facebook from Paul McCartney’s Page and you’ll avoid the old style interruption advertising of old distribution channels. This 23 minute and 39 second video deserves to be watched without commercial break (shame on you Google’s YouTube) and banner ads popping up. McCartney’s Page presents it best.
Imagine driving around with Sir Paul and visiting his childhood home while reminiscing about his parents influence, the rooms where he composed songs and practiced with John Lennon, then driving along Penny Lane and dropping in on the Barber Shop and wrapping up with a small juke box style concert in a tiny Liverpool pub that had once hosted him to far less acclaim.
The video posted at 6am East Coast time and received an average million views per hour over the first three days; nearly 70 million views logged on Paul McCartney’s site as I wrote this. The YouTube version linked by other writers (with some 13 million views) is an inferior experience marred by commercial interruption. Something folks of that age would expect from the remnants of the big three TV stations. Avoid it and get the full seamless experience right from Sir Paul McCartney’s website or Facebook page.
This pathway of viewing the collaboration is simply outstanding in its attention to detail to the customer experience. Corden’s regular viewers are already stoked to roll with whatever zany experience comes their way and his particular audience is masterfully integrated into our online experience which serves to further amplify the communal enjoyment.
There had to have been a lot of backstage planning to pull this off but it was also obvious (let’s use the word transparent) that the barber showing photographs, the people walking down Penny Lane and the folks in the pub were clearly just lucky random everyday people who were in the right place at the right time. Transparency and authenticity delivered in an electrifying way and without commercial interruption. Paul visits the house he grew up in for the first time since he left and James talks about his own grandfather –a fan who would have gotten a kick out of seeing this amazing video session unfurl.
The music is so full of love, joy and positive things and remains relevant today despite Paul’s original expectations of just a ten year run. But indeed, in times of trouble – these tunes still resonate today. That the whole escapade is part of one very high class new product (album) launch was taken fully in stride. In fact, being part of the audience makes us even more open to the experience. Yes, an experience, not a jarring commercial interruption.
Marketers and businesses take careful note here. This is what we, the consumer, expect from our internet interactions. A pleasant experience or a great one. A visit that shows the seller knows something about our likes and dislikes and insures that there is a fair trade for our time and attention.
When we arrive on the internet we want a fast seamless experience. We are not looking for a jarring interruption or disclaimers plastered all over the place. We don’t want you grabbing credit for a video viewed when it is mandatory (“your video will start after this ad ends” or “you can skip the video in 4 seconds”) the time it takes for someone to charge the supplier perhaps? No thank you. Those are old rules.
The best brands and best creators of content know that the better they fit in to our experience the more we’re actually likely to pay attention to their message. We speak with our time, our attention and our money. Sir Paul’s #FreshenUpTour is certain to be a winner and clearly deserves one of my #BAT2018 awards for combining Business, Art and Technology with a good dose of authenticity fueled by wisdom!
Speaking words of wisdom – I’ve gone back multiple times now to share with friends this trip down Penny Lane and warm up to Paul McCartney’s new album. We laugh and cry and remember an all-around great experience and as a bonus, we’ve already been exposed to the new songs that are coming out officially September 7th.
Well done, Sir Paul McCartney who more than got by with a little help from his friends.