Major League Baseball recently launched “October Hits Different,” a new marketing campaign that introduces the 2025 MLB Postseason with music as powerful and dramatic as October baseball itself. The campaign unites 13-time GRAMMY Award-winning artist, Academy Award-nominated Musician and Filmmaker, Philanthropist and Louis Vuitton menswear Creative Director Pharrell Williams, Virginia-based choir Voices of Fire, and a 25-piece live orchestra from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami to deliver a performance that sets the tone for the biggest stage in the sport. This spot features the top players in the game – including Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Kyle Schwarber, Cal Raleigh and others – and how their baseball artistry propels their Clubs forward for a chance to compete in the 2025 World Series presented by Capital One. Fans can view the new spot on MLB.com/baseball-is-something-else and on MLB social media channels.
Pharrell Williams has long celebrated his Virginia roots and the role of community in shaping his artistry. With Voices of Fire, he continues to showcase the cultural intersections of music, creativity, and shared experiences — now brought to one of baseball’s biggest stages.
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“Virginia taught me the power of music and community,” said Pharrell Williams. “Bringing Voices of Fire to the Postseason stage shows how those same forces of unity can come alive through sport.”
The heart of the campaign features “Are You Ready?” from Voices of Fire’s new album OPHANIM, produced by Pharrell and available on voicesoffire.com, and which has been designated the official anthem of the 2025 MLB Postseason. Voices of Fire is a renowned choir founded and led by Pharrell Williams’ uncle, Bishop Ezekiel Williams. Based in Hampton Roads, Virginia, the group rose to prominence through the Netflix docuseries Voices of Fire, which showcased their powerful harmonies, diverse membership and mission to inspire through music. Known for their dynamic performances that blend tradition with contemporary energy, Voices of Fire has become recognized worldwide and, in this campaign, plays alongside a 25-piece orchestra featuring talented students and alumni from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami.
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“With ‘October Hits Different,’ we wanted to capture the spectacle of the Postseason through music that feels just as monumental,” said Uzma Rawn Dowler, MLB Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Global Corporate Partnerships. “The anthem ‘Are You Ready?’ by Voices of Fire, produced in collaboration with Pharrell and backed by a live orchestra, reflects the passion and intensity of the journey to the World Series and embodies the excitement of October baseball.”
With Pharrell’s signature sound, paired with the choir’s soaring vocals and the orchestra’s sweeping arrangements, this campaign builds an unforgettable soundscape that mirrors the drama, anticipation and glory of October baseball. This Postseason campaign showcases baseball’s top contenders as they transform athletic ability into something transcendent, elevating their gameplay into an art form.
“October Hits Different” was created and produced in collaboration with creative agency Good Sports Creative and is the 2025 Postseason extension of MLB’s “Baseball is Something Else” brand campaign. It consists of :60, :30 and :15 ad spots that highlight the contending teams and their race to the Fall Classic. The new campaign will appear across MLB Media outlets, including MLB Network, MLB.com and MLB.TV; MLB broadcast partners including FOX, FS1, ESPN, TBS, ESPN Deportes, FOX Deportes and Univision; and across other paid digital media sites. The social series will also live across MLB social media platforms.
Image Credit: MLB
The 2025 Postseason begins September 30th with the Wild Card Series airing across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. Fans can tune into the action of the Division Series presented by Booking.comstarting October 4th, followed by the ALCS presented by loanDepot on October 12th and the NLCS presented by loanDepot on October 13th. The 121st World Series presented by Capital One begins on October 24th on FOX. The 2025 Postseason schedule, subject to change, can be viewed in its entirety at MLB.com/postseason.
Information Courtesy of Major League Baseball
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