Member-only story
MARKETING | ADVERTISING
Nike’s 50th Anniversary-Seen It All
Nike featuring Spike Lee
I love sports ads when they break the mold. I’m a huge fan of Nike’s advertising. They blister and burn up the screen with an intense social message and beautifully orchestrated ads.
Here, Spike Lee returns to direct Nike’s 50th Anniversary special. It’s a roll call of what’s come before and what the present and near future can bring. Devilish rhymes from Spike as he boasts of what he’s seen in his lifetime only to be matched by his niece putting Spike in his place.
Spike revises his Mars Blackmon character last seen treading the heights of Brooklyn in his ground-breaking movie, ‘She’s Gotta Have It’. Blackmon loved sports, especially the New York Knicks as much as he loved his Air Jordans. Indigo Hubbard-Salk, who appeared in the TV version of She’s Gotta Have It, plays his niece returning his namechecked volley of sporting greats.
Blackmon of course once featured in a Michael Jordan ad. Another great touch from the kings of footwear.
