Toyota Drops A New Sienna Single: 'Swagger Wagon' Feat. Mommy And Daddy

Richard Read

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Richard Read covers technology, social media, advertising, legal issues, and other auto industry topics for High Gear Media. With a background in... More

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Screencap from Toyota Sienna 'Swagger Wagon' video

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You know, we weren't exactly thrilled with the last round of web ads for the Toyota Sienna. True, the Sienna's a minivan for the soccer mom set, so we weren't exactly hoping for Kill Bill, but the warmed-over Christopher Guest/The Office shakycam aesthetic felt forced at best. Thankfully, cleverer heads have finally prevailed, and the company recently dropped a new Sienna clip on YouTube -- a hip hop video parody called "Swagger Wagon".

"Swagger Wagon" features the same actors as the previous "Mommy Like/Daddy Like" clips, the typically hilarious Rachel Drummond and Brian Huskey. This time, however, the commercials don't just rely on faux-reality show style and quirky delivery for laughs; they've built comedy into the spot by poking fun at music video cliches.

Reaction to "Swagger Wagon" in the Twitterverse has been mixed. Much like the word "Twitterverse", the clip has made some people cringe, kind of like when old people try to rap. Here at SCN, though, we can see beyond that and enjoy the spot-on parody of hip hop videos (including some very smart verses). In short: earnest dullards rapping = painful, but talented comedians poking fun at rap = pretty damn funny. Yo, check it:

Even better? While the previous slew of ads was probably just fine for the Sienna's core audience, the cleverness of this spot may actually stretch the minivan's demographic appeal. In these iffy economic times -- and given Toyota's recent troubles -- who could argue with that?

P.S. We're still waiting for a video to accompany Boyota's "Sienna" song from the 2010 Detroit Auto Show. That's in the works, right? Right?

[YouTube via Saatchi & Saatchi LA]