ERRATA AT 88 - | Errata at 88 | 2024
At 88, a woman finally took the stage she'd been owed for 60 years / Johnnie Walker "Errata at 88"
In 1962, a legendary concert at Carnegie Hall introduced bossa nova to the world. One of its founders, Alaíde Costa, wasn't on that stage. Now 88 years old, she finally got to stand there.
The problem
The reason was simple: she was a Black woman. While white men gained fame, Alaíde was told things like "if you're Black, sing samba" and was shut out of the mainstream. In 2023, when a 60th anniversary restaging of the same concert was planned, her name was left off the list again.
The insight
Johnnie Walker, known for "Keep Walking," fixed its attention on an unassuming newspaper feature: the correction notice, or "errata." The idea was that a brand claiming to keep moving forward should first admit to the mistakes it left behind.
The idea
In Folha de São Paulo, Brazil's largest newspaper, they ran a correction notice 70 years in the making, formally recognizing Alaíde's achievements as "the forgotten mother of bossa nova." Then, in October 2023, they brought 88-year-old Alaíde onto the actual stage at Carnegie Hall for the first time. Performing alongside Seu Jorge and Daniel Jobim, she received a standing ovation lasting more than three minutes.
What happened
The campaign won the Grand Prix in the Entertainment Lions for Music category at Cannes Lions 2024. Searches for her rose 747%, and her Spotify listeners grew 800%.
Afterthought
I never imagined that the quiet act of "issuing a correction" could become such a beautiful piece of advertising. Just picturing her finally receiving that standing ovation at 88 is enough to bring tears to my eyes. To move forward, sometimes you have to stop and look back first. This is a campaign that embodies exactly that.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Grand Prix 2024
