ZEENAT MOORAD: Coke plays it by ear
Coke Zero devotees are hissing at the NYSE-listed company
It’s not uncommon that one gets a song stuck in one’s head. But did you know there are specific reasons why certain songs tend to stick more than others?
According to the American Psychological Association, these songs are called "earworms". They’re typically fast, with a fairly generic and easy-to-remember melody but with some particular intervals, such as leaps or repetitions that set them apart from the average song. The association last year completed a large-scale study of earworms, you see. Their findings show that these are some of the most popular earworms: "Moves Like Jagger" by Maroon 5, "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen and "Poker Face" by Lady Gaga. This column is not about songs. It’s about Coca-Cola. Every time I write about the group that song from their 1970s "Hilltop" ad pops into my head. You know it.
"I’d like to buy the world a Coke/ And keep it company ..."
Earworms are also more likely to get more radio time, be featured at the top of the charts and used by advertisers. That ad remains one of the brand’s most iconic. It was filmed in Italy and was aimed at celebrating the diversity of cultures and the unification that the brand engenders. It really is one of the most enduring and universal consumer connections, Coke is sold in every country except Cuba and North Korea. The original 35mm footage on which the commercial was filmed is housed in a vault in the Library of Congress — the research library that officially serves the US Congress and is the de facto library of American culture. Its likely that the 45th president of the US didn’t watch the ad.
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