Alumni Profile: Ian Rappaport, '09
Ian Rappaport, B.A. ’09, had the night of his life—and the largest audience in American television history watched it happen. More than 111 million people tuned in on February 2 for this year’s Super Bowl and its much-anticipated advertisements. One of those ad campaigns, Bud Light’s “Up for Whatever” spot, featured Buffalo State’s own ready-to-go regular guy in an unexpected night of partying.
Rappaport, who works for CMS Consulting Group, an advertising agency in New Jersey, thought he was participating in a standard focus group session. Instead, he was whisked away in a limousine and led into surreal encounters with celebrities Minka Kelly, Don Cheadle, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The commercial ended triumphantly with Rappaport joining the band OneRepublic on stage as the crowd yelled his name.
“It could have turned out differently if I had decided not to get into that limo, but I took a chance,” Rappaport told the Buffalo News. “That’s the kind of person I am, and I guess Bud Light saw that.”