Reel Ad of the Week

Katt Williams turns wireless marketing into comedy roast for TextNow

By Reel Chicago
July 31, 2026

(Courtesy of Burrell)

The wireless industry has spent years trying to convince consumers that choosing a phone plan requires navigating a maze of contracts, hidden fees, and confusing pricing. TextNow has a simpler message:

Only fools pay for that.

It’s a bold premise, and one that only works because the company found the perfect spokesperson in Katt Williams.

Created by Burrell Communications Group, “Exposin Fools” is the centerpiece of TextNow’s first major national brand campaign, Way Too Smart To Pay Dumb. Rather than explain wireless plans through charts and savings calculators, the spot lets Williams do what he has built a career doing—calling people out.

Directed by Cam Busby and produced in-house by Burrell Studios, the commercial feels more like one of Williams’ stand-up sets than a traditional telecom ad. Standing atop rooftops and framed in striking black-and-white photography punctuated by TextNow’s signature purple, Williams unloads on an industry built around confusing consumers into paying more than they should. Watch below:

Every line lands with confidence because the campaign never asks Williams to become a corporate spokesperson. Instead, Burrell wisely builds the creative around the comedian’s unmistakable voice.

That authenticity is what separates Exposin Fools from the celebrity-driven advertising audiences have become accustomed to. Williams isn’t simply endorsing the product—he’s delivering a point of view.

The soundtrack helps reinforce that attitude. Nipsey Hussle’s U See Us injects the commercial with a sense of independence and self-determination, aligning perfectly with TextNow’s positioning as a service for consumers who refuse to play by the wireless industry’s traditional rules.

Visually, the campaign is equally disciplined. The monochromatic palette gives the work a timeless confidence, while strategic pops of purple keep the brand front and center without overwhelming the storytelling.

For Burrell, the campaign is another reminder of the agency’s enduring ability to build culturally relevant work rooted in authentic voices. Rather than imitate the polished sameness that dominates telecom advertising, Burrell leans into humor, swagger and personality.

It’s also a smart strategic move for TextNow. As the largest ad-supported wireless provider in the U.S., the company isn’t trying to outspend industry giants—it needs to outsmart them. By turning its value proposition into entertainment, TextNow gives consumers a reason to remember the brand long after the commercial ends.

The result is funny, stylish and unmistakably confident.

More importantly, it’s proof that even a category as crowded as wireless can still surprise people when the creative takes center stage.

Why It Made Reel Ad of the Week

Because it trusts comedy over clichés.

Instead of another predictable telecom commercial built around coverage maps and monthly savings, Burrell hands the microphone to Katt Williams and lets his personality become the strategy.

That’s not just smarter advertising.

It’s way too smart to pay dumb.

BRAND: TextNow

AGENCY: Burrell Communications Group