Who Is The Singer In Peyton Manning's Nationwide Commercial?
A new commercial for Nationwide starring former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning debuted during the Monday Night Football broadcast on October 16. Its opening shot is of a country singer noodling on an acoustic guitar. He and Manning then start brainstorming a jingle that can communicate Nationwide's services beyond their insurance offerings. When Manning doesn't like the singer's suggestions and claims that he's the songwriting authority, the singer is quick to point out that he's a three-time Grammy winner before they devolve into personal insults.
Fans of country music will recognize that this singer is none other than Brad Paisley. In fact, while Paisley is a country star first and foremost, he's been a staple of Nationwide ad campaigns for years now. Collaborations between the insurance company and the Grammy-winning singer date back to a 2016 commercial in which Paisley adds heartfelt lyrics to Nationwide's signature jingle. Nationwide started pairing Manning and Paisley, starting with a 2017 spot in which Manning played something of a record producer role, giving Paisley notes on a performance of that same jingle. The comedy of this latest ad, then — in which Manning acts like he somehow knows more about music than a megastar — is steeped in six years of continuity.
Brad Paisley is a major player in the country music industry
Brad Paisley references three Grammy awards in his latest Nationwide commercial with Peyton Manning. He won his first in the 2008 Best Country Instrumental Performance category for a song titled "Throttleneck," and his next two the following year in the Best Country Instrumental Performance and Best Male Country Vocal Performance categories. Accompanying these three wins are 18 Grammy nominations in total, between 2001 and 2010.
Paisley is likewise no stranger to TV, having acted sporadically for nearly as long as he's been a country star. He appeared, for example, in three episodes of ABC's Jim Belushi vehicle "According to Jim" starting in 2002, when his debut LP was just three years old. Since then, he's lent his talents to series like "King of the Hill," "South Park," and "Two and a Half Men." He's also appeared as himself on shows like "America's Got Talent" and the 2018 season of "Hard Knocks," which follows his NFL team of choice, the Cleveland Browns.
So, while Paisley is a musical performer first and foremost, he's both an established football fan and actor, too, making his involvement in Nationwide's ongoing ad campaign opposite Manning an altogether logical development in his career.