'Hero' Panettiere's Album Gets a Boost

By Ann Donahue,

Reuters

Posted: 2008-06-07 16:42:30

LOS ANGELES (June 7) - Fashion brand Candie's didn't have to look far to find its new pop-music "it girl": "Heroes" star and Candie's spokeswoman Hayden Panettiere.

Hit the Town With Hayden

Reality television personality Bob Guiney, from left, actors Brea Grant, Hayden Panettiere and Greg Grunberg attend the after-party for the Ford Flex Rally which launched the Ford Flex Crossover vehicle on Saturday, June 21, 2008, in Los Angeles. (Chris Weeks/AP Images for Ford)

AP IMAGES

Actors Greg Grunberg, left, and Hayden Panettiere arrive at the after-party for the Ford Flex Rally which launched the Ford Flex Crossover vehicle on Saturday, June 21, 2008, in Los Angeles. (Chris Weeks/AP Images for Ford)

AP IMAGES

Actress Hayden Panettiere and actor Greg Grunberg attend the Flex Rally 2008 at Edison, Downtown on Wednesday, June 21, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. [Shea Walsh/AP Images for Ford]

LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 14: Actress Hayden Panettiere attends designer Kira Plastinina's United States Launch Party on June 14, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Hayden Panettiere arrives at The Kira Plastinina US Launch Party on June 14, 2008 in Los Angeles, California..Kira Plastinina US Launch.Los Angeles, CA United States.June 14, 2008.Photo by Alexandra Wyman/WireImage.com..To license this image (15856953), contact WireImage.com

WireImage.com

LONDON - JUNE 03: Hayden Panettiere arrives at the Glamour Woman Of The Year Awards on June 3, 2008 in London, United Kingdom (Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

Getty Images

As part of the latest deal linking its teen clothing line to a young female music act, Candie's will help promote the song "Wake Up Call" from Panettiere's forthcoming album from Disney's Hollywood Records.

While financial terms were not released, Hollywood says Candie's will absorb the "majority of the cost" of the single, which will include a multimillion-dollar ad buy on cable and network TV, a print campaign and a music video.

The ad campaign will begin at the end of July, while the song will be released digitally Aug. 5. "Wake Up Call" will appear on Panettiere's still-untitled debut album, which is slated for 2009.

Candie's announced an advertising and marketing pact with Panettiere in February. The brand's incorporation of her music into the campaign follows in the footsteps of its deal last summer with Interscope and Fergie, whose songs "Big Girls Don't Cry" and "Glamorous" were promoted in Candie's TV commercials.

The brand also used Hilary Duff's "Wake Up" and "Supergirl" as part of an ad campaign in 2005-06. In the Fergie and Duff ads, the performer received a chyron at the start of the spot identifying her, the song and the title of the album featuring the track.

Candie's has had a long history of using female music stars in its advertising. Earlier campaigns have featured Destiny's Child, Ashlee Simpson, Ashanti, Ciara and the Dixie Chicks.

"When we look for our talent, we always look for the 'it girl' in pop culture," says Dari Marder, chief marketing officer for Iconix Brand Group, parent company of Candie's. "We really feel our customer connects with music . . . it's a great formula."

While best-known to audiences as world-saving cheerleader Claire Bennet on NBC's "Heroes," Panettiere's record deal with Hollywood precedes her prime-time success from the past two years, according to Hollywood Records senior VP of marketing Ken Bunt.

"We had to work within her crazy schedule to determine what direction she wants to go with her music," Bunt says. "Wake Up Call" is a reggae-flavored pop song that was written by Andreas "Quiz" Romdhane and Josef Larossi, who have previously written tracks for Geri Halliwell, Diana Ross, Il Divo and Westlife.

"They gave us a couple of songs, and when we heard this song we knew immediately," Marder says. "It's a girl power summer anthem . . . you can understand all the words and jam with it on the radio. It's the kind of song that really gets in your head."

The print campaign, music video and TV spot will all take place within the context of Iconix's overarching back-to-school campaign advertising Candie's shoes at Kohl's department stores. In the TV ad, Panettiere performs the song at a club in front of a crowd of fans -- all wearing Candie's shoes. Panettiere eventually rallies the audience out into the street.

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"What was exciting for us was really featuring Hayden as a musical artist," Marder says. "A lot of people know her as an actress, and in this she's really seen as a top 40 pop star."

The ad will air on "anything that appeals to our Candie's demographic of 18- to 24-year-olds," Marder says, including Fox, the CW and MTV. It is entirely possible, then, for Panettiere's video for "Wake Up Call" to appear on MTV immediately following the ad featuring the song.

The video and commercial were shot by Chris Applebaum, who has previously directed videos for Duff, Rihanna and Jessica Simpson -- as well as Paris Hilton's bikini-clad hamburger-slurping commercial for Carl's Jr.

Candie's has long been known for its cheeky approach to advertising -- a print campaign in1997 featured actress Jenny McCarthy sitting on a toilet in her Candie's shoes. In the "Big Girls Don't Cry" video, Fergie stands by a backyard clothesline and removes a pair of underpants with "Candie's" emblazoned on the rear in sequins.

Reuters/Billboard

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2008-06-07 15:38:04

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11 comments

mdsss1580 06:32:37 PM Jun 08 2008

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she,s good

ttfneeyore 10:46:00 AM Jun 08 2008

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Sweet Cinderella type song. The young kids will love it and she is a good role model for the younger croud. She'd rather try to save dolphins and whales than get drunk and do drugs. She is out there for the teenie boppers to see and as long as she is setting a good example for them let her be. They need someone that has their head screwed on tight. They've been let down by all of their other idols so far.

v555sharkteeth 08:22:46 AM Jun 08 2008

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who ????at of nowhere these A HOLES who can't sing appear out of nowhere and are splashed all over the place no talent please no more of this CRAP she sucks can't sing a lick more EMPERORS NEW CLOTHES ,,,my god are people that stupid that this is accepted as ENTERTAINMENT ..................WAKE UP SHEEP STOP FOLLOWING THIS KINDA GARBAGE

bro3alic 02:40:04 AM Jun 08 2008

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Wouldn't it be nice if new musical artists were actual musical artists instead of being fabricated from an actor...or worse still, fabricated from the fame of a sibling (who are most often fairly talentless themselves).

In this case, however, I'm willing to make grudging exception to my default judgement on such things. I wish her well with whatever recording career she may have, although I'll probably never hear the end result.

I'm willing to make an exception due to the fact that it's an overwhelming relief to see a famous young person who is *actually* worthy of being a role model (whether or not she wants to be, unfortunately). At this point in time, she is definitely that. I don't believe that the bit with the dolphins was a ploy for attention for *her*. It was, IMNSHO, the best use of fame as a weapon. It's excellent that she was able to do that...and the parental support was also excellent.

Her celebrity focused public attention where it was (and still is) desperately nee

gusandpoppyskid9 10:27:10 PM Jun 07 2008

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I'd nail her.....
:)

Sonnynight66 08:07:22 PM Jun 07 2008

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There was a time maybe 1 yr or 2 ago when Hayden was a cute girl and a good role model, the show Hero could not write a better one, for young girls,a cheerleader who can not be hurt,a young girls dream,then she turns into a spoiled rotten little tiny Diva like teenager who at 17 ,is groomed along with her mother by a pedophile,you can say what you want,but that guy might as well been cruising high school parking lots or hanging at Mallls,I could care less,about her sleeping with a 31 yr old when she was 17,and if you going to say age don't matter ,when people are in love,ok, would you have your daughter or sister at 17 with a 31 yr old,is it a good thing for young girls to do,will a young girl meet a man on the net who says he is 31,or 32,and he ends up being a sicko ,!! it has happend ,it will continue to happen,and young girls will be sexualy assaulted,or abductted,and that will be the last time we will see her face ,or it will be on a milk carton,so Hayden can try and sing,she can

wra92 07:36:59 PM Jun 07 2008

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Why in the world does every actor think they can sing? Was she ever on Nickelodeon, because just about every kid that has ever acted on that channel, tries to be a singer.

konajimjim 06:23:13 PM Jun 07 2008

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Blah, blah, blah......

aapal 06:19:10 PM Jun 07 2008

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She's a terrible singer! Her album will be totally pitch corrected in the studio, for sure!

lisamailbox 06:10:36 PM Jun 07 2008

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Yep, that song was right down the middle of the pike. Fits good with the bubblegum Cinderella story though. But don't think I'll be rushing out to buy that one.