Jalopnik: Toby Keith

Ford Looks To The Amerigasmic Power Of Toby Keith To Save The F-150

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:01:00 EDT

We've already noted the propensity of Ford PR to drop happy releases right after their sad releases, as if somehow the good news will cover for the bad news. Today we got news that Ford is stalling F-150 production and then, minutes later, Ford released this note about Toby Keith's big, bad jingoistic tour:

FORD F-SERIES PRESENTS TOBY KEITH'S 'BIGGEST AND BADDEST' CONCERT TOUR
DEARBORN, Mich., June 20, 2008 - Singer, songwriter and entertainer Toby Keith kicks off his "Biggest and Baddest Tour," presented by Ford F-Series, tonight in Birmingham, Alabama.
"Toby Keith is the Biggest and Baddest star, and the new Ford F-150 is the Biggest and Baddest truck," said Todd Eckert, Ford Truck and SUV Communications Alliance manager, Ford Division. "It's a perfect fit."
Ford Truck's involvement with the "Biggest and Baddest Tour" goes beyond traditional sponsorship. The show opens with a theatrical video produced by Ford that features Keith and the F-Series trucks.
"Toby Keith enjoys doing the videos, and the fans receive them extremely well to the point that they have become an anticipated part of the concert experience," said Eckert, adding that this season's video is tied to Keith's upcoming movie, Beer for My Horses.
The integration continues throughout the concert, with Ford Trucks — and/or parts of them — appearing on stage with Keith. Last year, a Super Duty grille formed the front of a drum riser throughout the entire show. The plan for this year's presence on stage is top secret, suffice it to say that it will be impossible to miss the new 2009 Ford F-150.
In addition to the opening video and a strong presence on stage, Ford Trucks is launching a new consumer promotion at www.biggestandbaddest.com that will award one lucky winner a new 2009 F-150 and the chance to accompany Toby Keith on his next concert tour with his or her own personal tour bus.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that only Ford Trucks and Toby Keith can provide," said Eckert.
More than 160,000 people registered for last year's promotion - a chance to win a private concert with Toby. And according to Eckert, almost 40 percent of those people went on to become handraisers for F-Series.
"We drove significant sales from that experience," he said.
Anyone who registers for this year's contest will have access to special content and free downloads, including Built Ford Tough and Toby Keith ringtones, wallpaper and exclusive photos taken as the "Biggest and Baddest Tour" travels to 60 cities across the country.
The partnership between Ford Trucks and Toby Keith is a virtual match made in heaven, according to Eckert. More than 60 percent of F-Series buyers enjoy country music, and Keith is one of the hottest acts around.
"Toby Keith is a third generation Ford truck man, and he's number one in the country music realm," said Eckert. "Couple that with the fact that F-Series has been the best-selling truck for the last 31 years running, and you've got a very strong partnership."
Ford Trucks has been the presenting sponsor of the Toby Keith Concert Tour since 2002, including the "Big Throwdown" tours in 2004 and 2005, the "Hookin' Up and Hangin' Out" tour in 2006 and last year's "Big Dog Daddy" tour.
Toby Keith remains one of the most successful musical entertainers of his time. With nearly 35 million albums sold, he has been deluged with critical praise and peer approval in the form of awards and he's consistently been one of the top-drawing live performers in the nation. His current hit single, "She's A Hottie," is featured as the only newly produced track on his latest two-disc release, Toby Keith's 35 Biggest Hits, which puts together his smash hits that span his entire career. His second major feature film Beer For My Horses is due in theaters on August 8.

The F-Series, America's best-selling truck line for 31 years running, turns 60 years old this year. Since its debut in 1948, Ford has built more than 33 million F-Series pickups. Today, Ford has more F-Series pickups on the road with 250,000 miles on them than anyone else in the truck business.

May the road go on forever and the Amerigasm never end.
[Source: Ford]

Ford Recalls 655,000 F-150 Pickups To Fix Hose Problem

Ray Wert — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:40:00 EDT

No, not that kind of Toby Keith hose problem — the only way to fix that problem is with Viagra. And really, that doesn't fix it, it just makes the problem a bit more hard. No, what we're really talking about is Ford recalling more than 655,000 Ford F-150 and Lincoln Mark LT pickup trucks to fix some bad brake hoses in...

...2005-2006 versions of the pick-me-up equipped with the 5.4-liter engine. 600,000 of the trucks are in the United States and around 50,000 are in Canada. The rest? Who knows? Zimbabwe, maybe? Although Ford says there have been 11 minor accidents, no injuries have been tied to the issue. Except maybe Toby Keith's ego. Well, maybe that's more a problem with this post than the actual recall.

Detroit Auto Show: News that will shock no ...

Jonny Lieberman — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:35:00 EST

Detroit Auto Show: News that will shock no one — Toby Keith does not appeal to the Jalopnik demographic. magnificentbastard and rocketrodeo debate.

Toby Keith Has An Amerigasm For The 2009 Ford F-150

Matt Hardigree — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 11:16:54 EST

Toby Keith, the Ford Truck Man, he of the Bold Toby Keith Emissions Boot-in-Ass Emissions was on hand to introduce the new 2009 Ford F-150 pickup truck. It's a fantastic Amerigasm of our country-ism. No talk of EcoBoost or hybrid powertrains here. Later, basically everyone with a camera stormed Keith and put a camera in his face. Which was probably worth the money they paid him. USA! USA! USA!

Mike Rowe Sold Purses Before He Sold Ford F-150 Trucks

Ray Wert — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:45:00 EDT

Who would have thought the man who shills for the F-150 and doer of other "Dirty Jobs" used to sell purses on QVC? Well, at least Mike Rowe's "relatively secure in his masculinity." We wonder if Toby Keith thinks he's "relatively" secure as well? Although Rowe may have something over Keith due to his love of cartoon women. [Hat tip to Eric] – Ray Wert

Mike Rowe's Greatest Television Moments.... on QVC [Blog You Like A Hurricane]

The FordLink Mobile Office: An Amerigasm Of Computing For The Ford Truck Man

Ray Wert — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 14:19:00 EST

Apparently there's a part of the Toby Keith "Ford truck man" song we must have missed. It's a part of the song that must not have reached the commercials, where Keith pulls out a pocket protector and a tablet PC — and then says

"If you're the type of man who needs to surf the web and check your e-mail on the go, and do it from a ruggedized tablet platform running off of an AMD Geode LX 800 chipset, then you're probably a Ford truck man."

Keith must have said it — because with FoMoCo's new FordLink Mobile Office system, they've gone and done just that — come up with a way to integarate a tablet PC built by Azentek into your Ford truck — acting as the trucks GPS unit, satellite radio system, and surfer of Pr0n. FoMoCo claims it's a system designed for folks who use their truck as their office and want a simplified dealer-installed way to make sure their road office has the same amenities as their real office — namely a computer. We had the opportunity to do a test-run with the system, available only for FoMoCo's Super-Duty trucks, at the automaker's SEMA pre-show blowout two weeks ago, and the video above's the result. Also check out the gallery below and the full specs on the unit below the jump. – Ray Wert

[FordLink Mobile Office Gallery]

FordLinkTM Mobile Office System Display - 8.4" TFT LCD with resistive touch, outdoor readable
Display resolution - 800 x 600 (SVGA)

Processor - AMD Geode LX 800

Memory - Flash technology 4 Gigabyte imbedded or 30 gigabyte mini Toshiba hard
drive

Memory RAM - 512 Megabyte

Software Operating System - Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Storage - Internal Flash Module, Compact Flash Slot, HHD or USB options

Enclosure - Magnesium-Aluminum Alloy

Stylus - Included / ruggedized plastic

Protective Jacket - Rugged Rubber Ears

AC/DC Adapter - Input: 90-240 VAC / Output 12VDC, 3.5A

Power Cords - USA

Battery Packs - Lithium-Ion, Internal (14W) Optional External (28W)

Network Interface - PCMCIA, USB 2.0, Bluetooth (built-in) and CF slot in 4GB systems

Wireless - PCMCI Slot / Bluetooth

Input and Controls - Four front buttons; One Oval 4-way, One Power; One for voice
recording

Input / Output Ports - 12V DC-in jack, Microphone in, Headset jack, USB 2.0

Dimensions - 7.9 x 9.6 x .08 inches / 200 x 240 x 18 (mm)

Base Weight - 1.9 lbs (0.86 kg)

Regulatory - FCC Class B, CE, UL

Operating Temperature -10 C to +40 C

Humidity - 0% - 90%

Idolator Wants Its Own Ford-Flavored Toby Keith Amerigasm

Ray Wert — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 17:01:00 EDT

Our brother/sister site obsessed with music, we are flattered to learn, was so tickled by the phraseology we used to explain an orgasmic display of American patriotism — such as that displayed in the new Toby Keith Ford truck ads or the Mellencamp-soundtracked Chevy Silverado ads — they now want nothing more than to experience a Toby Keith-flavored "amerigasm" of their own. They're issuing a call to arms — a plea of help — an ecstasy-filled scream — to all of America's red-blooded and patriotic journalists to help them in their quest to find:

"The first person to write a professional review or article mentioning Keith's "Amerigasmic" ways will not only get our undying admiration, but they'll also get their work posted and praised on Idolator."

All we've got to say is now that Toby's stickied us with his amerigasm, we're looking forward to watching our brother/sister-site get their own love-shower. – Ray Wert

Toby Keith Votes Yes On "Amerigasm," No On Sarcasm [Idolator]

Toby Keith Loves Us Like He Loves The Hot, Sweaty And Shirtless Working Man

Ray Wert — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 15:11:09 EDT

It would seem our review of Toby Keith's most recent amerigasm over the new 2007 Ford F-series trucks did not go unnoticed by the country crooner. In fact — he loves it so much he's gone and had it inserted in a place of honor in a very special location — the top of his website. Yes, that's right — Toby Keith appears to have taken our post like a man, eschewing the obvious irony, and even seems to want to wish us well, showering us with all sorts of traffic spewing from the link-love from atop his manly wood-paneled website. Yes, we've never felt so happy having a man like Toby Keith reaching out and touching us over the internet — at least not since that one time a guy from Florida was IM'ing us after we interned in DC. – Ray Wert

Toby Keith Plays With His Guitar And Spews Forth An Amerigasm Of Song About Ford Trucks [TobyKeith.com]

One Of These Things Does Not Belong: God Blessed Texas With The 2008 Ford F-Series Super Duty

Ray Wert — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 09:29:04 EDT

Things supposedly run a bit different in Texas than they do in the rest of the country. For the most part, from what we hear, things are bigger, longer and a whole lot more god-fearing down there. We guess since stuff's so big, long and holy — it'd make sense for the automakers to have spent the end of the last month down there showing off their new hotness in trucks at the "nations biggest state fair." Although we weren't going to be providing coverage of the circle jerk that is the Texas State Fair, today we came across a picture just begging for us to show ya. Above, you'll see the new 2008 Ford F-450 Super Duty with FoMoCo's president for the Americas ~~Ennis Del Mar~~ Mark Fields and country crooner ~~Jack Twist~~ Toby Keith. So, we guess, after you see the pic above and the rest of the pageantry in the gallery, you've probably got the same question we've got:

[Ford F-Series Gallery]

– Ray Wert

Ad Watch: Toby Keith Plays With His Guitar And Spews Forth An Amerigasm Of Song About Ford Trucks

Ray Wert — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 12:38:57 EDT

FoMoCo must think it can't match Chevrolet in American flags, but might be able to out blue-collar it. In the latest ads for the F-150 and Super Duty trucks — part of a "Ford Truck Month" zero- and low-percent financing on 2006 and 2007 models campaign — country crooner Toby Keith shows up in what might as well be a solo project by the Construction Worker from the Village People, crouching atop industrial machinery with his massive, throbbing Ford guitar jutting forth menacingly, hands strumming his magic, with what we're sure are countless workmen in tight-fitting jeans but sans shirts, toiling beneath him. Speaking of beneath — we've got another commercial, the lyrics to Keith's custom-written ditty and the press release from Ford below the jump. – Ray Wert

DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 3, 2006 - Music superstar Toby Keith returns to the airwaves today to kick off a Ford truck advertising campaign featuring a new Ford Truck anthem, "I Am A Workin' Man." The ads launch Ford's Truck Month sales event and showcase the bold music maverick with the company's hot lineup of Ford F-150, F-Series Super Duty and Ford Ranger trucks.
The Truck Month ads featuring Toby Keith will offer zero percent financing on Ford's 2006-model F-150, Super Duty and Ranger, as well as low financing available on Ford's 2007 trucks. During Truck Month, Ford also will offer zero percent financing on most of its 2006 vehicles.

"As a third-generation Ford truck owner, Toby Keith represents what our trucks and customers are all about - they're hard-working, genuine, and get it done every day," said Al Giombetti, president, Ford, Lincoln and Mercury Marketing and Sales. "Our customers relate to Toby because he is a 'Workin' Man' who puts his own Ford trucks to the test on his ranch."

Keith debuted the song "I Am AWorkin' Man," written to honor the spirit of American workers, in Ford Truck Country last week during the reveal of the new 2008 Ford F-Series Super Duty to truck customers, dealers and media at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas.

Ford is fortifying its truck leadership - particularly in battleground states like Texas, where F-Series' share of pickups is up 2.3 percentage points through July. F-Series share has climbed 1.2 percent in the U.S. overall in that same time period.

Ford's Truck Month campaign, developed by JWT Detroit, will run through the end of October in most major markets. Participating dealers will be able to select from nine 30-second spots and customize the ads to highlight specific truck offers and meet the needs of their local markets. Print executions featuring Keith and Built-Ford-Tough messaging such as "Bold Stands Proud," "Bold Gets it Done" and "Bold Never Quits" also will debut in major newsweeklies beginning today.

During Truck Month, Ford is offering customers the following:

* Zero percent financing for 60 months on all 2006 Ford F-150, Super Duty and Ranger models.
* 2.9 percent financing for 60 months on 2007-model year F-Series Super Duty and Ranger, or $2,000 customer cash in lieu of low financing on these models.
* 3.9 percent financing for 60 months on 2007-model year F-150 or customer cash of $1,500 in lieu of low financing.
* Zero percent financing on most 2006 model vehicles.
* In addition, low financing rates are available on 2006 Fusion and Mustang.

"We're already seeing great results for our 2006-model sell-down," said Giombetti. "Truck Month is an established campaign that highlights the strength of F-Series versus the competition. We believe these new ads will keep the momentum going and drive truck customers to our dealerships."

Ford Trucks and Toby Keith - Top of the Charts

Keith has been the Ford truck spokesman since August 2002 when he wrote an original song for the "Ford Truck Man" advertising campaign. In addition, Ford Trucks have sponsored every Keith concert tour since 2002, including the "Shock 'N'Yall" tour in 2003 and the "Big Throwdown" tours in 2004 and 2005, and now the "Hookin' Up and Hangin' Out Tour" presented by Ford F-Series.

With country music attracting more than 60 percent of all truck buyers, Ford's involvement with Keith continues to drive bottom-line results. The company has reached tens of thousands of potential sales leads through promotions and efforts tied to Toby Keith's concerts. Each concert tour reaches approximately one million fans, and features Ford truck product integration and pre-concert videos showing Keith putting Ford trucks to the test.

Later this month, fans will be able to check out Keith's high-energy appearance from the State Fair of Texas at www.HangWithToby.com Segments of the new ad campaign are highlighted in this video, showing Keith pushing every Ford truck to the limit. The website also features a promotion giving consumers a chance to win a 2007 Ford F-150 FX4 pickup, as well as an opportunity to meet Toby Keith and appear in an upcoming video.

Ford truck advertising will be seen in heavy rotation during television coverage of the newly opened NFL season and the NASCAR "Chase for the Cup" series as part of the fall advertising strategy.

"I Am A Workin' Man"

Music and Lyrics by Toby Keith

I gotta get up early
I gotta be on time
I've got to go bust it
Man, I got to go get mine,
I am that kinda guy.....
And I want a piece of that American pie

I put a lot of sweat
Into the job at hand
You can count on me
I am a .... workin' man!!!!

So when it's quitting time
And you've had enough
I'm still good to go, baby
Cuz I'm Built Ford Tough

Ad Watch: If You're Not Toby Keith In A Ford Truck, You're Just A "Good Size"

Ray Wert — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 10:30:00 EDT

Toby Keith's still a Ford Truck man. Apparently that's all he drives; he's got no boundaries and won't compromise (ka-ching). Although if Bob Seger's career is any indication of what'll happen once a former truck ad-man loses favor with the automaker, he'll be driving a Porsche and a Nissan pickup in no time. But for now, Keith is FoMoCo's big-time big truck man — and he's still the star in the most recent of a set of six new FoMoCo commercials for 2007 Ford F-150 and Super Duty trucks. This first spot, titled "2nd Best," shows off the '07 trucks' newest capability — winning local dick-waving contests by settling the score between a Dodge and a Chevy (driven by country-dumb caricatures of the competitors' advert characters, mind you) in pure tractor-pull fashion. Maybe Ford should have tossed a third competitor into the mix (maybe from the land of the rising sun) to see how far Keith would get, but we won't be seeing another such vehicular johnson until next year at the earliest. Speaking of size, we've no clue the size of the campaign in dollars, but we're assuming it was J. Walter Thompson that produced the ad — but there's nothing to tell us that in the detail-light press release on the campaign from August, posted after the jump.

FORD PLANS FALL AD BLITZ FOR F-150 AND SUPER DUTY

* Ford plans F-Series marketing blitz to leverage Toby Keith concert tour, NFL season and NASCAR "Chase for the Cup" as 30th anniversary of truck leadership approaches.
* New TV ads carry F-Series leadership in design, capability, durability and loyalty to the widest-ever audience, including Asian-American, African-American and Hispanic consumers.
* Ford expands four-year-old partnership with country music superstar Toby Keith as Keith begins his "Hookin' Up and Hangin' Out" concert tour and prepares for his big screen movie debut in the Paramount Pictures film, Broken Bridges, which opens Sept. 8.

DEARBORN, Mich., Aug. 17, 2006 - The 2007 Ford F-150 and Super Duty pick up trucks will be fixtures on the football, racing and country music scenes this fall as the Ford brand launches an onslaught of new advertising and marketing initiatives to cement its 30 th consecutive year as the full-size pick up truck leader.

Ford is scheduling a total of six truck ads - including new spots featuring Asian-American, African-American and Hispanic consumers - for heavy rotation during the NFL season, which kicks off on Sept. 7 and the NASCAR Nextel Cup "Chase for the Cup," which begins Sept. 17. Ford trucks will also be prominently featured on-stage during country music superstar Toby Keith's "Hookin Up and Hangin' Out" concert tour, which began Aug. 11, and his newest venture co-starring with Kelly Preston and Burt Reynolds in the Paramount Classics and CMT Films release, Broken Bridges, which opens Sept. 8.

"We are playing offense with Ford Trucks," says John Felice, Ford general marketing manager, Marketing, Sales and Service. "We created more Ford Truck ads targeted at more diverse audiences than ever to continue increasing leadership by solidifying our base and going after new customers."

The new ads will build upon the Ford Bold Moves marketing communications platform and the foundation of Built Ford Tough - bold design, outstanding capability, unmatched durability and exceptional customer loyalty.

For example, several spots will showcase the fact that more Ford trucks have reached 250,000 than any other brand. Another Super Duty spot introduces the concept of "heroic toughness." In addition, Ford has created unique ads to reach Hispanic, African-American and Asian-American consumers.

"The truck market is very diverse from a cultural standpoint but they all value the same attributes in their F-Series, and those are bold design, durability and capability," says Felice.

"Ford Truck customers are the 'go-to guys' - they take action and do the right thing in everyday situations, and use their F-Series truck to get the job done," says Brian Rathsburg, Ford Truck communications manager. "In 'Tunnel', the Super Duty customer is tested in a dramatic situation to demonstrate the extreme acts of helpfulness we call heroic toughness that can only be performed with F-Series Trucks."

The new truck ads will leverage the Bold Moves platform and introduce several new themes that reinforce the Built Ford Tough brand positioning. For example, several new Ford Truck ads will showcase for the first time on television the F-Series' leading number of high-mileage

trucks - those with 250,000 miles or more - in service compared to any other brand.

For the first time ever, Ford will communicate truck messages across all media platforms and key audiences at the same time. This strategy is designed to expand Ford's leading share in traditional truck segments while simultaneously expanding in Hispanic, African American and Asian segments where Ford also already leads in truck sales.

The ads include:

2007 F-150 "Vintage" : Highlighting the Ford Truck emphasis on family and good deeds, this ad includes Ford's 250,000-mile truck leadership message. A proud, second-generation Ford truck customer locates a vintage Ford F100 truck, restores it and delivers it to his father's home. Dad reflects that it looks like his old truck and his son replies, "Well, now it's your new truck."

2007 Super Duty - "Tunnel" : Introduces the idea of "heroic toughness." A Super Duty driver demonstrates the truck's best-in-class maximum tow rating by freeing a tractor-trailer that has become wedged in a tunnel and blocked an ambulance on an emergency run.

2007 F-150 - "Lee and Lee" : A Japanese father and son who own a landscaping business are featured. The father hands the keys to a "new" truck to his eager son who soon learns they're not for the new 2007 F-150, but rather a still hard working1980's-era F-150.

2007 F-150 - "Barbershop" : Set in an African-American neighborhood, an F-150 owner is the "go-to-guy" who helps restore the barbershop he has patronized since childhood.

Toby Keith Concert Tour - Began Aug. 11: F-Series will present superstar Toby Keith's much-anticipated "Hookin' Up and Hangin' Out Tour" in the United States which began August 11 in Cleveland, with 60 tour dates planned. Ford Truck enters its fourth straight year sponsoring Keith in his wildly successful concerts, including the 2003 "Shock N'Y'All Tour" as well as the "Big Throwdown Tours" in 2004 and 2005. Ford's tour sponsorship integration - including dramatic entrances and on-stage appearances that kick off each performance - is the product of creative collaboration between Keith and Ford.

Ford Truck also launched the new "Hang With Toby" website promotion at www.HangWithToby.com. One lucky entrant will win a 2007 Ford F-150 FX4 pickup and the opportunity to meet Toby Keith and appear in an upcoming video. In the Ford Truck tradition of offering once-in-a-lifetime experiences, the winner also will earn a spot in the actual video.

Paramount Pictures Broken Bridges Movie Trailers - Sept. 8: Toby Keith will cross entertainment mediums yet again when his new feature film, Broken Bridges co-starring Kelly Preston and Burt Reynolds, makes its theatrical release on Sept. 8. Ford trucks will again be paired with Keith, including truck product placements in the movie and the lead sponsorship of movie trailers in theaters now, in this Paramount Classics and CMT Films release.

About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures and distributes automobiles in 200 markets across six continents. With nearly 325,000 employees and 110 plants worldwide, the company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Aston Martin, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercury and Volvo. Its automotive-related services include Ford Motor Credit Company and Hertz. For more information regarding Ford's products, please visit www.fordvehicles.com.