Playboy Has Tips for Keeping Safe (but Sexy!) in Pandemic Times

In a bout of maddeningly convenient timing, last week Playboy released a PSA titled “Practice Safe Six,” which brings deep funk vibes to the principle of safe and sterile … socializing.

You know, this is gonna sound ridiculous, but given how close six is to five (fingers!), I really thought this would be about masturbation.

It turns out six is a reference to how many feet apart you should be from others!—unless you’re sheltered with the people in question, or have received permission to advance into a person’s bubble of safety (#boundaries). Created by Austin-based agency Preacher, the video’s advice uses double-entendres to remind people to wash often, and wear “protection”—a mask and gloves. Kinky! 

It takes a minute to work out that this advice is not actually meant for intended sexual encounters. Maybe we’re just slow today. But hey, if you want to keep your mask and gloves on for the act, we see no downside. Maybe just ensure your gloves are fresh?

“When the Preacher team pitched us the concept, we immediately loved it,” says Playboy CMO Rachel Webber. “A cheeky PSA ripe with innuendos is the perfect playful way to encourage our audience to be safe and protect each other and themselves, and the wink to the clichés of a high school sex-ed class is a nice nod to some of our other initiatives to reinvent the way we talk about sex as a society.”

“Practice Safe Six” went live on May 14 across Playboy’s social media channels. It’s accompanied by news that you can buy a mask—or three—from the Playboy shop for $15 each. Each purchase will be matched with a mask donated to Special Service for Groups, which provides services for low-income ethnic minorities and their families.

“The next few months will see a lot of people starting to venture out of their homes, experimenting with new and old routines. These tips are cheeky but they’re true, and if the tone helps keep these precautions top of mind, we may all be safer for it,” says Maxx Delaney, Preacher’s associate creative director.

CREDITS

Client: Playboy Enterprises International, Inc.

Agency: Preacher
Chief Creative Officer: Rob Baird
Chief Executive Officer: Krystle Loyland
Chief Strategy Officer: Seth Gaffney
Associate Creative Director: Maxx Delany
Associate Creative Director: Nick Troop
Senior Designer: Tim Praetzel
Production Artist: Jenna Krackenberger
Exec Producer: Stacey Higgins
Business Affairs: Abbi Press

Motion Design: Proper Studios
Motion Design Art Director: Chapman Bullock

Illustrators: Nick Troop/ Tim Praetzel

Edit House: Union Editorial
Executive Producer: Vicki Russell
Producer: Julie Andreson
Editor: Kevin Ray
Assistant Editor: Drew Johnson

Music: Singing Serpent
Executive Producer: Dennis Culp
Composer: Conor Meads
Vocalist: Rebecca Jade
EP: Glen Galloway

Mix: TBD Post, Dusty Albertz
Audio Producer: Francess Thomas-Sahr