I was boggled by the topic of spiritual
advertising. As it was taught in
class, spiritual advertising capitalizes on religious insights. Its advertisements are meaningful and
do not focus on the product. A
next level advertising that utilizes the art of persuasion, it aims to create
loyalty beyond reason. But to this
extent, how does it work? What
does it mean to tap into religious insights of the public audience? My answer comes in the form of Lady
Gaga’s music videos. What about
Gaga and spiritual advertising?
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| It's Lady Gaga, again?! |
Ask yourself this question. As you are
watching Gaga's music video, which do you notice more, her powerful voice or
her eccentric performance? Do you find yourself appreciating her skills
in projecting a voice that is beautifully controlled? Or do you find
yourself fixated to the imageries in her video? I find myself doing the
latter most of the times. It was
only after watching Lady Gaga’s live performance on Jimmy Kimmel that I began to realize that she has a very good
voice…and I was surprised.
Could her music video be so successful in
presenting metaphorical messages that I have failed to notice the very product
that the music company is trying to sell i.e. Lady Gaga’s voice? Some people watch “Bad Romance” and
thinks that it tells of sex trafficked victims. Some understands it as a message of unconditional love. The inclusion of faith elements in her
music video tells me explicitly about her messages, not her voice. Many look past her voice and look towards
what her song means in their lives.
Could this be an intersection of advertising and spirituality? And because of that, do I have that much
deeper imprint of Lady Gaga in my mind?
Perhaps I have not failed to notice Lady Gaga’s
voice. Perhaps I am just going down the
path that is engineered by spiritual advertising, which has created and is hoping
to meet my desire for meaning.
