GoKawiilThis story is part of 9to5Mac’s series celebrating Apple’s 50th anniversary.
It’s certainly not news that Apple has made tremendous contributions to the music industry. But what’s often overlooked is its role as a tastemaker in the music space, not just changing the way songs are bought and sold but what people are actually listening to.
I’ve compiled a comprehensive, but curated playlist of some of the best songs that Apple has used in commercials, product introductions, events, and more. You can stream it or add it to your library on Apple Music. But I also wanted to acknowledge a few songs that were made particularly iconic thanks to their inclusion in Apple marketing materials over the years.
Feist’s “1234”
In August of 2007, Steve Jobs took the stage for the annual iPod event and unveiled the third generation iPod nano to the world with the simple tagline “a little video for everyone” accompanied by one of their most iconic advertisements. Set to Feist’s “1234” hands from off screen pick up different color nanos stacked on top of each other, each playing the music video. Apple’s use of the song propelled it into the mainstream and eventually the top 10. It spent 15 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.
Yael Naim’s “New Soul”
Many people first met the world’s most popular laptop when it was pulled from a manila envelope set to the now iconic “New Soul” by Yael Naim. The song spent 19 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida”
In May of 2008, Apple aired a little ad for iTunes set to a new song by one of Steve Jobs’ favorite bands. Coldplay debuted “Viva La Vida” on iTunes on May 7th, 2008 and to coincide with the release, Apple made their last iPod silhouette ad. “Viva La Vida” ended up being the number one best-selling song on the iTunes Store that year.
Jet’s “Are You Gonna Be My Girl”
... continue reading