Country Racing Victoria turns ad music into an anthem in ‘Racing Strong’ campaign via Balance

Turning a piece of campaign music into a full length song is every agency and client’s dream. Yet that’s exactly what Country Racing Victoria has done as part of its new “Racing Strong” campaign, launched on July 11 via Balance.

Says Darren Galley, marketing and business development manager at Country Racing Victoria: “When we ran the new version of our music “back where we belong” in our previous TVC, it reflected what people in the bush had been through and we were blown away by the response.

“It was a message of survival and resilience that really struck a chord. People rang in from our clubs and went online saying it summed up how they were feeling.”

Says David Gullotti, CD, Balance: “This gave us the idea to turn it into a full song so we wrote a set of complete lyrics that reflected the spirit of those comments and engaged composer, Rob Upward to take the music to a new level.”

The ad version of this track backs two new 30 sec TVCs, outdoor and digital as part of an integrated campaign. The creative channels the beauty, fun and diversity that is unique to country racing, while different groups of racegoers give voice to “Why they do it”.

Says Rankin McKay, senior writer and strategist, Balance: “The campaign also has a moral underpinning that reflects the importance of racing in supporting bush communities, the simple love of horses and the passion that drives Country Racing’s grass roots.”

“Recorded at Melbourne’s iconic Sing Sing Studios, it was nice to be able to give some support to our group of seasoned musicians who had also done it tough during Covid,” explains Rob Upward.

Agency – Balance
Creative Director – David Gullotti
Senior Writer – Rankin McKay
Art Director – Deb Mortenson
Designer – Dan Valenti
Strategist – Rankin McKay
MD / Group Account Director – Trent O’Sullivan
Account Director – Elie Aoun
Account Executive – Sophie Toohey
Executive Producer – Sharon Rider
Sound – Sonic Playground
Sound Engineer – Mathew Gerber-Corn
Production – Two Tractors
Director: Tim Murray
DOP: Paul Travers
Producer: Izzy Watts
Grading: Manimal
Still Photography: Brian Carr / Jacob Gullotti

Client
Country Racing Victoria
Marketing Manager / BDM – Darren Galley
Media & Communications Manager – Maggie Payne

The song
Composer: Robert Upward
Lyrics: Rankin McKay, Robert Upward, Tane Emia-Moore

The band
Bass – Rod Bustos
Drums – Hayden Meggit
Guitars- Rob Upward
Guitars, Slide, Mandolin – Jeb Cadwell
Violin – Xani Kolac
Harmonica – Ian Collard
Lead vocal: Tane Emia-Moore
Vocal: Tika Maree