• by Tanya Gazdik , February 22, 2019

Cadillac will debut four TV spots featuring its entire SUV lineup during the Oscars on Sunday. 

For the sixth straight year, Cadillac will be the exclusive automotive partner and vehicle provider for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The campaign, themed “Rise Above,” is from Rokkan and includes music from Childish Gambino.

“Childish Gambino is at the forefront of cultural conversation with his unconventional work and innovative spirit," Cadillac CMO Deborah Wahl tells Marketing Daily. "He is pushing boundaries and reshaping what it means to be an artist in today’s world. He is not only incredibly talented and progressive in style, but he possesses the same sense of imagination and creativity that Cadillac stands for as a brand.”

Last year, the General Motors luxury nameplate ran three spots, which continued the "Dare Greatly" platform created by Publicis North America and Publicis London, first revealed during the Oscars in 2015.

This year's four spots reimagine the Cadillac crest, highlighting its horizontal blue lines to form a staircase shape that represents the brand’s upward determination and drive to succeed.

The campaign drills down to the “spirit of perseverance that has always been part of Cadillac,” Wahl stated.. “The new crest treatment illustrates the brand’s determination and will to succeed — the same traits possessed by those winners who ascend the staircase to the stage at the Academy Awards. It’s the perfect platform to showcase our aspirational Cadillac SUV lineup.”

The Oscars effort includes an on-site red carpet presence and preshow broadcast integration, a first for the Academy Awards.

The marquee interview stage during the “Oscars Live On The Red Carpet” will feature illuminated blue steps that light up as celebrities take their mark on the platform. The installation will be featured during two exclusive interviews with talent who will share their #KeepRising stories followed by a Cadillac sponsor billboard and television commercial.

The brand will kick off Oscars Sunday with its own #KeepRising story on social media, using the blue step graphic. Each step will be paired with a different historic Cadillac innovation, such as the hiring of the first woman automotive designer. 

This iconography linking the “Keep Rising” theme to the brand will appear throughout the year at other key moments. 

TV includes a 60-second brand commercial, “Rise Above” which connects the theme of perseverance with the act of physically “rising up” into Cadillac’s complete SUV portfolio as both an enabler and a reward.

The brand will also air three 30-second spots featuring the Escalade (“Take the Stage”), XT4 (“Make Your Escape”) and XT5 (“Take Flight”). All spots are set to Childish Gambino’s “Me and Your Mama” and end with a collective shot of the full Cadillac SUV family.

Cadillac has teamed with accomplished artists and Oscar nominees including Yalitza Aparicio (nominated for "Roma"), who will share their #KeepRising stories throughout Sunday and during the Oscars telecast. These stories will feature personalized “Rise” graphics that will highlight the storytellers’ steps in breaking barriers and overcoming adversity. Viewers can follow the stories via #KeepRising on Twitter. 

The automaker is the sole sponsor of ABC’s backstage Oscars content, which will be distributed across Oscar.com, ABC.com, ABC Apps, GoodMorningAmerica.com, and the social channels for the Academy, ABC Network and “Good Morning America.” 

As part of the campaign, Cadillac will also debut a “Keep Rising” microsite with additional content featuring the complete SUV family. 

On Thursday, Cadillac hosted its fourth annual Oscars week party at Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood, Calif.  Throughout the weekend, a fleet of Cadillac CT6 sedans and Escalades will chauffeur guests to the awards show and other Oscars events.