Call yourself a rock star at work? Five real life rock stars think otherwise, in Workday’s Super Bowl ad

Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, Joan Jett, Kiss’s Paul Stanley, and blues guitarist Gary Clark Jr all star in the first Super Bowl ad for Workday, a workplace management software provider that is doing its best to become a household name.

Old time advertising creative directors take note: the bona fide rock stars are all fed up with people using the phrase so casually in the workplace, just because they’re pleased with themselves.

The ad is by Ogilvy, directed by Jim Jenkins who made Jeep’s classic “Groundhog Day” spot with Bill Murray in 2020. Rock stars are not necessarily known for their comedy performances but he’s managed to get creditable performances out of them, apparently by being adaptable with people’s roles and playing to their strengths during filming.

It’s unusual to see Americans bringing each other down a peg or two, so all credit to Ogilvy for pulling it off with humour.

MAA creative scale: 7