AiAA: Southwest Airlines – "It's On!"

Once or twice, within the confines of this lightly-read blog, I might've mentioned that I earned a degree in marketing from San Diego State University.

Similarly, you might've heard that I'm an African-American.

As a result, I am eminently qualified to recognize dated Black slang in an ad campaign.

This pains me to write, Southwest Airlines. From 1996 through 2006, you were my official airline provider for multiple trips into Oakland where I hung out with m'man Vig, caught a Saturday afternoon A's game and spent the evenings in assorted San Francisco speakeasies.

Really, though…"It's on"? Does Will Smith still hold the copyright to "jiggy"?

I'm not sure when "It's on" fell off [see what I did there?], but I vividly remember that it was the tagline for this movie AND a cut off of this album – both released in 1994!

C'mon, Southwest…do you really want to align your brand with references from the same year that gave us pogs, OJ jokes, Newt Gingrich and soccer's World Cup on American soil?

No…you don't.