Trackvertising, Oprah Winfrey and Women in Gospel Music

"Any gospel music fan is aware of the critical connection between the music and the diverse yet shared tradition of Christian commitment and liturgical sensibility known as the "black religious tradition". Melinda Weeks, 2009 retrieved from here

This statement is debatable of course. If it is true that the Christian faith has and continues to use music to promote Jesus and Christianity for the black community in particular, then it would be fitting to argue that trackvertising  has been practiced by Christians since the invention of the music video and gospel song. 

In this video, Oprah shows how American superstars testify and go back to their gospel roots:

Shakira's "La la la" music video has become synonymous with the term "trackvertising", the combining of music tracks and advertising. According to Gunn/Jerkens Marketing Communications in their post entitled Trackvertising, "The difficult part is making sure that these ads resonate with consumers online." Gospel music has certainly resonated with many new born-again Christians online and offline. There really is nothing new under the sun. 

Music is the Last Thing We Think About

It has become a norm in the South African music industry that when event management companies, TV production companies or advertising agencies go about producing projects involving music, the last item to be checked on their list, is the music. I suppose when music is considered as entertainment, it becomes the icing on the cake and nothing much more. This is a dangerous habit as there is the rise of "trackvertising" (a topic for another day).

The Guerilla Marketing Field Guide would advise that, "TV Production costs are lowered still if you produce your soundtrack first. Once you have it, you can shoot footage to match the amount of time the words and music take. (For instance) Shooting sound and picture at the same time means that if a plane flies overhead or a motorcyle zooms by, you need to reshoot." Jay Conrad Levinson and Jeannie Levinson (2013, p. 109). Similarly, if one is organising a big event, it helps to speak to music producers who can conceptualize the entertainment with you and assist you with technical riders in order to avoid last minute arrangements that will lead to sleepless nights before the event. It helps to have a cut-off time for technical riders in order to organise what is required without having to pay extra from suppliers simply because it is ordered at the last minute.

The underlying principle is that being as organised as much as possible way before deadlines saves you from loads of time, money wasted and unnecessary stress.