An Uber sticker is seen on a car windshield on the street in downtown Miami on Jan. 9, 2020. The San Francisco-based ride-hailing company received a mixed response for its latest Super Bowl ad.
EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI/AFP via Getty ImagesUber tried to score a hit with its latest Super Bowl ad Sunday, but the 30-second spot may have been just as cringey as its recent advertising blunder at SFO.
In the commercial, the San Francisco-based ride-hailing company taps Diddy to create a hit song for Uber One, but he’s skeptical he’s being coerced into writing just another jingle. Nonetheless, he heads to the recording studio to come up with a catchy melody for the subscription service.
He’s joined by fellow chart-toppers Montell Jordan, Donna Lewis, Kelis, and Ylvis, who perform Uber-adjacent renditions of their respective singles, “This is How We Do It,” “I Love You Always Forever,” “Milkshake,” and “What Does the Fox Say.” Ultimately, it’s Haddaway’s riff on “What is Love” that wins out in Diddy’s eyes.
It's the third year in a row that Uber has paid for a Super Bowl ad. And despite the celebrity appearances, the commercial came off as a tired nostalgia play in a line of similar ads that attempted to tug at viewers’ heartstrings — notably, John Travolta revisited "Summer Nights" from "Grease" for T-Mobile, TurboTax celebrated Men Without Hats' "The Safety Dance," and E-Trade brought back its signature talking babies.
Twitter users were divided, with some calling the Uber ad "hilarious" and lauding it as their favorite of the evening. Others called it "the WORST Super Bowl commercial ever" and were quick to criticize the company for spending millions of dollars on a Super Bowl ad as their drivers struggle to make a living wage.
“Believe in yourself the way Uber — a company that has never made any money but just paid for a Super Bowl commercial starring Diddy — believes in itself,” journalist David Gardner tweeted.
Still, viewers couldn't argue that Lewis was a highlight.
"Yes Donna Lewis get that check from that Uber ad!!!" one tweeted.
In the end, there was one aspect of the ad most could agree upon.
"Please don’t bring that fox song back," Adweek's Al Mannarino tweeted. "Leave that in 2013 where [it] belongs."