Beats is a brand built on being defiant and resonant in culture. Going beyond a traditional campaign brief, we had the unique opportunity to engineer a pairing that taps into the connection between basketball and rap culture by collaborating with the biggest rapper in the game and one of the biggest stars in the NBA. This was our moment to make something much bigger than an ad for Beats and give the brand even more momentum coming off of their most successful product launch in a decade.

“Dark Mode” carved each image out of the darkness with a quiet intensity, blurring the boundaries between commercial film and art. We worked with Lil Baby to write and produce a completely original track that spoke to Ja’s unparalleled talent. Lil Baby switched up the tone, speed, and pace of his flow to effortlessly parallel Ja’s shifting mindset as he works under the shadows. We worked with a visually inventive directing collective to capture the feeling of Ja’s relentless game and Baby’s acrobatic flow shot completely on film.

We discovered that NBA star, Ja Morant, had a mantra he often used in his socials, “Dark Mode,” to reference when he was deeply focused on his training. “Dark Mode” started showing up on his posts, clothing, and team merchandaise and though he was using the phrase regularly, Beats wanted to give his mantra more momentum and reach our Gen Z audience as the Grizzlies were headed towards the playoffs. Knowing he is Ja’s favorite artist, we hand-selected Lil Baby, to create a custom track that brought “Dark Mode” and Beats Studio Buds to the light, while also showing the parallel they represent – two young talents rising up to the top of their industries.

The :90 spot debuted on broadcast during the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors playoffs game on May 7, 2022. “Dark Mode” was launched on social media shortly thereafter via Beats-owned channels (Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook), as well as Ja’s and Lil Baby’s channels. Over the course of the next few weeks, we released supporting assets to social across all accounts to help sustain the conversation around Beats well into NBA playoff season and summer.

Our final piece was more than a music video. It became an anthem for Ja, circulated by top artists like DJ Khaled and headlined by publications like “Complex.” Our track even made its way into the Roblox video game. But perhaps biggest of all, “Welcome to the Dark” established Dark Mode as the place for Ja’s fans, keeping Beats firmly rooted and resonant in culture and helping the brand to be named the number one most relevant brand to the Gen Z audience.