What does “Reign On” mean to you?
That was the question asked and answered by a few of the guests and celebrities in attendance during Crown Royal’s unveiling of their new Reign on Campaign during an exclusive event at All-Star Weekend in Houston. The well known premium liquor company released multiple commercial spots that embody what it means to “Reign On” with the center of that campaign featuring a commercial with celebrity and Hall of Fame legend Julius Erving. The music for the commercial was produced by 9th Wonder, who teamed with rapper Big K.R.I.T., who spit the lyrics heard in the advertisement.
Erving and 9th Wonder were in attendance at the Reign On event, along with Terrence J, who served as the host/MC for the evening. Crown Royal representatives opened up the event with comments about the company and how elated they were to have Erving, 9th Wonder, Big K.R.I.T (not in attendance) and Terrence J all involved with their product and brand. From there Terrence J gave a brief overview of his history with the company and then introduced the man himself, Dr. J.
Erving explains what “Reign On” means to him in a one on one commercial with Terrence J shown at the event. However, in Erving’s speech to the audience, he offered insight into the moment in his life where he thinks reigning on all began for him.
At the age of 20, he was selected to participate in the Olympic basketball trials as an alternate. He eventually made the team and overheard his teammates discussing their plans to make a career as professional basketball players one evening after a practice. Erving said it never dawned on him that he could make money as a basketball player as he always focused on getting his degree. He really just considered basketball an extracurricular activity, but after listening to his teammates and realizing he was more skilled than all of them, he revaluated his career path.
He went on to lead the team in scoring and rebounding in an European tour and thought to himself afterwards if his teammates were going to go play professionally that he had a “pretty good shot” to make it as well.
The rest is history as Erving now stands as a 16-time NBA and ABA All-Star and Hall of Famer. Erving ended his story by saying, “That was my reign on moment. It started when I was 20 and we rode it all the way to the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. 1993.”
Erving is no stranger to All-Star Weekend, and is certainly not a stranger to being a celebrity endorser to a well known product. Crown Royal hopes his involvement with their product will encourage others to reign on in their chosen paths and to do so responsibly.
Hit page 2 to check out some behind-the-scenes photos from the party…
What do you think?
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