Western clothing brand Tecovas is again placing music at the center of its marketing strategy for a fall denim campaign starring rising country band Chaparelle, according to details shared with Marketing Dive.
The campaign, which launched Sept. 16 and spans YouTube, connected TV and linear TV, is rooted in a spot set to Chaparelle’s cover of the 1984 Mel McDaniel hit "Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On.” However, the work extended beyond the ad alone: Tecovas Creative Director Scott Ballew worked with the band to co-create a full music video supporting the cover. The move is part of Tecovas’ efforts to deliver more authentic storytelling while cementing its ties to Western culture, explained Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing Samantha Fodrowski.
“We see real value in investing in the art, music and culture that matter to our customers and to us,” said Fodrowski. “We want to work with creative people in ways that give great work a platform, introduce our audience to artists we believe in, and contribute to the culture around the brand.”
Tecovas has long looked to support artists in intentional ways, Fodrowski said, including through musical festival integrations and by sponsoring a Grand Ole Opry emerging artists program. Earlier this year, the marketer linked with Academy Award-winning singer-songwriter and actor Ryan Bingham for a 14-minute short film called ”Love Letter to Texas.”
The new spot follows Chaparelle frontman Jesse Woods as he sports a cowboy hat, boots and jeans while walking through the crowded streets of New York City. Woods then stops by a street vendor to purchase a single flower, which he delivers to wife and bandmate Zella Day, who is performing the cover of "Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On” inside a bar. The spot, inspired by classic films “Midnight Cowboy” and “Saturday Night Fever,” is available in both 30- and 15-second cuts.
The campaign veers away from past Tecovas creative, which has featured rural areas like Texas, Montana and the American Southwest. Instead, the ad looks to portray a sense of cool confidence by showing Woods strutting through New York City in a head-to-toe Western outfit with little regard for the local trends and styles, explained Ballew.
“When you find something that fits you and looks good, it elevates your confidence and your swagger, and the way you walk and the way people react to you,” said Ballew. “That’s the benefit of finding clothes personalized to your personality.”
Finding value in familiarity
This isn’t the first time Ballew has featured Woods in a video he produced, he said. Ballew, who joined Tecovas in October 2024, has often turned to the singer, also a longtime friend, including during his eight-year tenure at Yeti.
The first ad Ballew created for Tecovas centered around a song called “Faraway Skies” that was written by friend and country artist Dean Johnson, he said. The spot featured ranchers wearing Tecovas boots, while riding horses and ATVs on the range. Ballew characterized the work as simple and stripped down.
“The lyrics match perfectly with the footage, kind of daydreaming of life on the range,” said Ballew. “There was no tagline, there was no copy. It was just this really kind of beautiful ethereal footage and the song, and it ran forever because I think it was working so good.”
Ballew often draws inspiration from Western films while producing work for Tecovas, hoping to generate a sense of nostalgia for a time when cowboy hats, white t-shirts and full denim outfits were the norm, he said.
“It’s nice to remind people of that and replant the flag in the ground,” said Ballew. “These [outfits] aren’t going anywhere and they’re still cool.”
Other music-focused work from Tecovas includes a commercial released earlier this month that features a cover of Gillian Welch’s 15-minute country epic, “I Dream A Highway” and tells the story of a romance between a cowgirl and her partner. Last year, a spot featuring music from the band The Deslondes showcased a group of Western-styled men kicking back after work.
Ballew believes song selection is key to capturing the audience’s attention. When the executive struggles to come up with the right message in an ad, he spends days finding the right song instead, he said, an approach that’s “more powerful.”
“A good song can cut through the noise better than anything in my opinion,” said Ballew. “If someone’s watching a series of commercials with the volume on, and there’s a good song that makes the hair stand up on your neck, then that is a successful campaign.”
