“You know, when I’m playing in the middle of the subway, I’m noticing how there’s so much commercial branding all over the subway now, the stairs have products on it, logos, every single space in the subway is kind of a big commercial now,” Mr. Ryan said.

Good observation Luke. New York subways have indeed become oversaturated with ads from everything the mind can imagine. Things are so cluttered that outside of a subway takeover, most messages get lost. The subway takeover that stands out to me is located in the Broadway Lafayette station in Soho (Manhattan, NY).  Belvedere Vodka uses this space A LOT. But anyway, back to Axe and Luke. This is corporate partnership that I have to smile at. The irreverent nature of it all is what I think works. It is one of those ideas that an intern can throw out during a brainstorm session and get the room laughing. It just so happens that this time the client was Axe. Remember when Oasis used NYC street and subway musicians to debut songs from their latest album? What a success. It is those type of ideas that get ignored by many but embraced by few. The Axe x Luke Ryan collaboration is an inexpensive alternative which uses the unique spirit of NYC to gain attention for a ‘fun’ brand.

via NY Times