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Sarah McLachlan on Why She Still Can't Watch "Angel" SPCA Commercial

Sarah McLachlan reflects on the continued cultural impact of that 2006 ASPCA ad featuring her song "Angel" and why she can't watch it.

No one can ever doubt the pop culture impact of Sarah McLachlan from her nearly four-decade music career to her animal advocacy. On certain occasions, it's had a double-edged sword, especially when the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals spotlighted her 1997 hit Angel in their 2006 commercial that featured a montage of abandoned animals in need with the song's melancholic tone. That powerful combination yielded one of the most successful campaigns for the organization. Speaking with Rolling Stone, the Canadian singer-songwriter remains painfully aware of the combination and reflects on its continued legacy.

Sarah McLachlan on Her 2006 ASPCA Ad, Why She Can't Watch, and Parodies

"The music and the visuals … it's painful," McLachlan said. "I couldn't watch it. It was just like, 'Oh, God is awful.' But it worked like a hot damn." As far as how it all happened. "A friend of mine was on the [ASPCA] board and said, 'Hey, do you want to do this commercial? We've never done this before with a celebrity or someone known.' I love animals, and we thought it might be a cool thing to do, so I did it," before noting, "And in a year, it raised $30 million or something like that."

The three-time Grammy winner and Lillith Fair founder took whatever opportunity to parody herself from the additional unintended fame she's received from the APSCA ad. "It's funny, because I'm a super-happy, super-optimistic person, but that showed me as this sort of quiet, sad person with all my puppies and kittens," she said, adding, "I'll never forget the director saying, 'I just need a little more [makes a sad face] from you.' So when I got the opportunity to take the piss out of it, with the Audi commercial and the Super Bowl [Busch Light] commercial, that was just gleeful for me."

The ASPCA would collaborate with McLachlan two more times, featuring her rendition of the Christmas classic "Silent Night" and her song "Answer." McLachlan embraced the collaboration, introducing a new generation of fans to her music, telling Makers, "I got a whole new audience out of it. I swear I'd be at Target in Missouri at 10 p.m., getting off the tour bus, and I'd be going down the aisle, and these two little old ladies would be like, 'Are you that dog lady? I love that song!' Daily. Daily this would happen."

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