Foote Cone & Belding (FCB), Chicago, recently launched a new campaign for KFC designed to get the decades-old fast food chain back to the basics. The package, called "Chicken Capital USA," has a retro 1970s-inspired look to it and utilizes upbeat music, strong visuals and KFC-ized versions of familiar slogans to get the job done.
In "Chicken Capital USA," recording star Trace Adkins belts out the eatery’s fast-paced anthem. It strings together catchy bumper sticker-style slogans like "I Brake for Chicken," "Fried with Pride" and "The Bucket Stops Here"—all of which are reiterated on T-shirts and hats shown in quick, tight shots. The :30 spot begins with the line: "I’m in the Colonel’s army and I’m proud to be right wing, left wing—it tastes the same to me." It then serves up, in rapid succession, shots of regular people (donning the logo tees and hats) eating KFC, a KFC-inspired NASCAR racecar zooming around a track and a KFC-themed float in a small town parade. Throughout the ad, Adkins is heard uttering lyrics like, "There’ll be one less man at the salad bar tonight" before delivering the final line: "Gettin’ hungry? Well that’s okay—you’re in Chicken Capital, USA."
In another spot titled "Drive Thru Diva," a bevy of attractive women dons the logo tees emblazoned with such taglines as "Wanted: Roasted Chicken" and "Havin’ a Good Chicken Day." The scenes accompany a peppy soundtrack with such lyrics as: "I’m a drive-thru diva, get out of my way" and "Chicks for chicken want KFC." It has a similar feel to "Chicken Capital USA," but is aimed at the more calorie-conscious consumers who might opt for KFC’s roasted fare. Both commercials embrace the ’70s not only in their music and fashion, but also in the sort of animated shooting-star graphics that stitch the action together. The ads were directed by Greg Kohs of bicoastal/international @radical.media, with additional footage from @radical directors Neveldine & Taylor (Mark and Brian, respectively). Michael Somoroff of bicoastal MacGuffin Films helmed the food imagery.
"We wanted to get to the essence of what the brand rests in—that NASCAR, rock ‘n’ roll, unabashed going-for-it type of spirit," explains Tom O’Keefe, executive creative director at FCB. "In order to do that, we needed to hearken back to the 1970s, to the equities of the brand that we all know and love, by reminding people of the time when Kentucky Fried Chicken was everybody’s chicken place—when it was the only place you thought of for chicken. This campaign is built on that cornerstone; it captures that spirit in a contemporary yet relevant way. We’re calling it ‘old school cool.’ "
FCB’s relationship with KFC began last September and first manifested itself in a campaign that touted the eatery’s offerings as being part of a healthy diet. The new spots, however, head in a decidedly different direction. "In the time that our team has been working with KFC, we’ve gotten to really know and understand the company’s products and its core users," says O’Keefe. "This campaign is a way for us to be unapologetic and celebratory about KFC as Kentucky Fried Chicken.
"The goal this time was to celebrate why the core users love KFC and then branch out from there," he continues. "The ‘Diva’ ad is the perfect example of that branching out because in essence you’re welcoming a whole new market segment into the KFC brand, but doing it in a way that still feels consistent with how we treat the core user via that initial anthem."
O’Keefe stresses that the process was extremely collaborative and credits FCB copywriters Pat Durkin and Bob Jensen with creating the lyrics and revamped slogans that the spots were built upon. "There was a tremendous effort from everyone on the team who, in about a month from go to finish, put this campaign together," O’Keefe states. Additional agency credits go to art directors Matt Reinhard, Wayne Carey and David Zorn, and producers Ivo Knezevic and Scott Mitchell. "We didn’t want the spots to feel like they were happening in just one place; we wanted them to have a widespread quality," says O’Keefe. "So instead of just working with a single director, we actually worked with several directors."
The Music
O’Keefe credits Roger and Scott Wojahn of Wojahn Brothers Music, Santa Monica, with creating the unique sound of the spots. "It’s a contemporary take on Southern rock from the ’70s," explains O’Keefe. "The Wojahns are brilliant and what they delivered was a melody that makes you want to sing along, but also allows the lyrics to retain their bite. Overall, the final result came together in a way that combined all aspects of the original vision: organic, raw, big and contagious."
The idea for the logo T-shirts was embraced by the campaign’s numerous collaborators early on. "We looked at current trends and saw that T-shirts with logos are super-hot in stores like Abercrombie & Fitch and Urban Outfitters," O’Keefe recalls. "They were perfect for our needs because they are retro and contemporary at the same time."
O’Keefe hopes to get even more mileage out of the retro fashions in the coming months. "We’re looking into marketing the shirts because they’ve generated so much interest and because they represent a big opportunity for us to reach beyond television," he relates. "They help to define the brand’s voice to the masses in a way that still has a hip edge to it, and that’s what we’re excited about continuing to promote."
FCB plans to expand the campaign by at least two more spots. The first of the new commercials is currently in postproduction and stars NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Jeff Zwart of @radical.media directed the new spot.) "Thus far we’ve gotten great reaction to the campaign, but ultimately it’s about the sales of the product," O’Keefe says. "If we get the kind of numbers we’re hoping for, it will be a huge success."
