Dive Brief: 

• Anheuser-Busch InBev brand Busch Light is teaming up with singer Sarah McLachlan for a 30-second commercial for Super Bowl LVII, per details shared with Marketing Dive. 
• The spot, titled “Shelter,” riffs on McLachlan’s song “Angel,” which has become synonymous with commercials for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, as brand mascot Busch Guy attempts to speak to the importance of finding adequate shelter outdoors. 
• The effort, which also includes a charitable component, serves as the launch of a yearlong campaign focused on compiling a “Busch Guide” full of outdoor tips. Also timed to the big game, the brand is bringing back its Mountain of Busch social media sweepstakes to give away free beer.

Dive Insight: 

AB InBev’s Busch Light is back in the big game with a 30-second advertisement that weds the beer brand with its recurring nature-filled backdrops and playful messaging, rounded out with an out-of-pocket tie-up with music star McLachlan. A previous announcement from AB InBev indicated Busch Light will be part of it’s national ad buy for the Super Bowl this year, representing a broader push compared to its regional presence last year, which also saw an unconventional pairing with saxophonist Kenny G.

This year’s Busch Light ad comes at a pivotal point for parent company AB InBev, which gave up its alcohol advertising exclusivity surrounding the Super Bowl last June. Still, it announced it purchased three minutes of national commercial time to highlight brands Busch Light, Michelob Ultra and Bud Light, and 30 seconds of regional advertising time to market Budweiser.

Created with The Martin Agency, “Shelter” features brand mascot Busch Guy unveiling his “Busch Guide” book of outdoor survival advice and three priorities necessities including food, drink — a case of Busch Light — and shelter. Though, as he introduces the word “shelter,” McLachlan emerges from a tent and begins her well-known ASPCA monologue to the tune of “Angel,” before realizing she is cuddled up to a wolf. 

Coinciding with the commercial’s release, Busch Light will donate $25,000 to nonprofit One Tree Planted to help restore forests and support biodiversity efforts. The beer brand often champions sustainable efforts, introducing novelty products like a flameless cookers to curb wildfires. The commercial also serves as the introduction of what will be a yearlong campaign that will see the “Busch Guide” expand through various ads that offer outdoor tips like how to signal for help, avoid poison ivy and face a black bear.

Busch Light is also bringing back its social media sweepstakes, Mountain of Busch, encouraging consumers to reply to the brand’s posts on its Facebook, Instagram and Twitter page with the hashtags #MountainOfBusch and #Sweepstakes for the chance to win a “mountain supply” of Busch Light. Every reply now through the Super Bowl counts as an entry and another can that is added to the prize fund.

AB InBev sacrificing its exclusivity agreement quickly lured competitors to the arena, with Molson Coors, Crown Royal and Rémy Martin already announcing plans for in-game ads despite a hefty price tag of $7 million for a 30-second commercial.