"The Weather Channel is staffed by music fans who know when to take themselves not-so-seriously."
The Weather Channel is serious business. They let you know when to expect vicious downpours, scorching heat, approaching hurricanes, or even just a boring old nice, sunny day. But when Lady Gaga’s team recently came knocking with an idea about having a bit of weather-related fun promoting the single “Rain on Me” from the singer’s just-released sixth studio album, Chromatica, well, they just couldn’t resist jumping into that potential pop-nado of fun.
“When Lady Gaga’s team reached out to The Weather Channel to promote her new single ‘Rain on Me,’ we were instantly flattered,” Angela Massie, vice president of live storytelling at the network tells Billboard. “Then we got to work. How do you create a memorable moment on The Weather Channel with one of the biggest pop icons of a generation, that will resonate with fans of both?”
Luckily, even though TWC staff is laser focused on sharing life-saving forecast information, Massie says the network is also staffed by rabid music fans who “know when to take themselves not-so-seriously.” She says there is constantly music blaring in the studio every morning during commercial breaks to keep the on-air team engaged. That might explain why viewers may have seen an odd sight earlier this week when two very unofficial looking reporters calling themselves the Chromatica Weather Girls showed up in a very odd 75-second clip in which they were being soaked by fake rain while hoisting TWC-branded umbrellas.
A second 1:20 video of outtakes, in which Gaga wields a TWC mike cube wrapped around a wooden spoon, showed up on Thursday, with the station’s official logo floating just above Ariana Grande’s head.
Explaining how the videos came to be, Massie says that as the marketing and PR team brainstormed the best way to take advantage of the superstar opportunity, they had a “what if” moment about using their instantly recognizable umbrellas with fake rain that made everyone on the conference call LOL. “Followed by a pause. Then a ‘hey, that may work!,'” she says. “From there we added on: make Gaga & Ariana look like they’re reporting for The Weather Channel, but they’re really reporting about their new duet.The idea snowballed from there — with the graphics design and the video shoots coming together over the holiday weekend.”
The bit clearly worked, as Massie says they’ve gotten “resounding, positive” feedback from Little Monsters and Arianators, with The Weather Channel’s audience also responding with delight that “the news brand they know and trust also knows how to have a little bit of fun and spread some sunshine, even when there’s ‘Rain on Me’ in the forecast.” See what she did there?
Watch the Chromatica Weather Girls spot and the outtakes reel below.
