A local uilleann piper is ‘over the moon’ his music will be used in an expensive ad starring Barry Keoghan which will be showcased to millions during this weekend’s Super Bowl.
Chris McMullan (37), from Strabane, is well-known on the traditional music scene across Derry and Donegal.
The web-hosting services company, Squarespace, unveiled its return to Big Game advertising, with a tease of a 30-second ad that is expected to run between the first and second quarters of Sunday’s Super Bowl LIX on Fox.
The Super Bowl is the final championship game of American football’s National Football League (NFL) and is watched by over 120 million viewers worldwide.
Earlier this year, Fox was demanding at least $7 million for a 30-second ad berth during the game.
“Over the moon to announce that my music will be used for Squarespace’s Super Bowl advert this Sunday,” he posted on his Instagram page last night.
We asked McMullan how a trad musician from Strabane had his music chosen to be used in an ad for an international tech company featuring an Oscar nominated actor.
“They just searched ‘uilleann piping’ online and they found me,” he told our sister site Donegal Daily.
For the brand’s 11th Super Bowl campaign, Squarespace enlisted director Steve Rogers for a 30-second spot set in Ireland called ‘A Tale as Old as Websites’ – a comedy-take on The Banshees of Inisherin.
The quirky ad features Irish actor, Keoghan, on a donkey moving along on a path in rural Ireland in years gone by, tossing laptops out of a satchel as he travels.
The scene is accompanied by the sound of McMullan’s uilleann pipes playing ‘The Limerick Lament’.
Watch the Squarespace Super Bowl ad below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC5V4aIoWes
Keoghan said: “I’m a very proud Irish lad so bringing this campaign to life with Squarespace and shooting it against the beautiful backdrop of Ireland was incredible.”
To listen to, and find out more about, McMullan’s music, go to his Facebook page or: https://www.youtube.com/c/ChrisMcMullan
His music can also be streamed on iTunes and Spotify.
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