Under Armour’s commercials traditionally focus on the gritty, tough side of athleticism, sending the message that wearing their products will turn you into some muscled, gruff super-athlete. With its new women’s campaign, however, Under Armour is taking a different approach.
The campaign began with an ad featuring ballerina Misty Copeland. A pioneer in her field, Copeland is one of the only African-American dancers to be a part of the American Ballet Theater (ABT). In her commercial, she demonstrates her athletic ability and grace while a young girl’s voice reads a rejection letter from ABT; the rejection letter Copeland received when she initially applied.
In the letter, Copeland is told she has the wrong body for ballet and is too old to be considered for the program. She has clearly proved the letter writer wrong as she proudly dances across a stage while her credentials are displayed: Soloist, American Ballet Theater.
The ad went viral, and so did its message, “I will what I want.”
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