ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador tourism officials have released an advertisement highlighting the province's rugged scenery and lively music in response to a vacation rental company's ad that prompted a call from the premier for it to be pulled.
Vrbo ran the offending ad during the Super Bowl broadcast on Sunday, showing disappointed vacationers discovering that their rental is overrun by livestock while the Newfoundland folk song “I'se the B’y” plays in the background.
The provincial tourism ad, posted on Instagram and Facebook Monday evening, features a newly recorded rendition of “I'se the B’y” accompanied by picturesque images of Newfoundland and Labrador's rocky landscape, people out fishing on a sunny day and friends gathered around a campfire.
Reaction to the Vrbo ad in the province was fast and furious, with some denouncing it as a slur and Premier Andrew Furey asking the company on social media to stop airing it. "Your ad is not an accurate representation of our province, our culture, or our people," Furey wrote. "Be better!"
Newfoundland marketing agency Target, which produced the province's response ad, saw an opportunity amid the indignation.
“While the ad is unfortunate — both the unflattering use of the song and the implication that rural places and rural accommodations are subpar — we felt there was an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive for Newfoundland and Labrador,” Target president Catherine Kelly said in an interview Tuesday.
The resulting 35-second ode to Canada's easternmost province is titled "Our Song" and is accompanied by a caption explaining that the tune is more than a "toe-tappin' jig."
"It’s a testament to our resilience. To our sense of humour," it reads. "To our unwavering sense of community … A song so distinctly ours that you can almost feel the salt air on your skin when you hear it."
Musician Gordon Cormier, from the Newfoundland Celtic and folk band the Cormiers, recorded the new version of “I’se the B’y” Monday in less than an hour, Kelly said.
“It was all about using the attention the song was already getting to talk about our culture and showcase the beauty of the province and the beauty of the places here,” she said of the ad.
Korona Brophy, a Newfoundland musician and the artistic director of music group The Celtic Fiddlers, said the song is an important piece of the province’s history, complete with descriptions of fishing, dancing and boat building. The song also includes mention of such Newfoundland locations as Fogo, Twillingate and Moreton's Harbour.
“There’s a lot of history within our songs, especially this song. And that should be respected,” Brophy said, adding that the company owed an apology to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.
A Vrbo spokesperson said Monday the ad was meant to poke fun at their competition, "not anyone in Newfoundland." The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
Sergio Carvalho, a marketing professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, said it's clear upon watching the ad why many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians took offence.
"When you use something that's such a strong cultural symbol, such as this folk song, people see a reflection of their identity in that commercial … and they used the song in the negative portion of the ad, so they see their identity being attacked," Carvalho said.
But the commercial and backlash, he added, may have helped raise Vrbo's brand recognition.
"Vrbo made a silly mistake … but in the end they got a lot of publicity, a lot of brand awareness," he said.
Despite the possibility that the angry response to the commercial boosted the company's public profile, Carvalho said businesses should always avoid upsetting potential customers.
"A gain in awareness at the expense of offending others is not a very positive thing at the end of the day."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2024.
— By Lyndsay Armstrong in Halifax
Watch the province's ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOUlKdoBbLc
Watch Vrbo's ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dncumjtSid8
The Canadian Press
