“I'm Lovin' It” became McDonald's global advertising campaign in 2003. The slogan was written in a deliberately conversational style and paired with the distinctive “ba da ba ba ba” musical phrase.
The campaign was created during a period when McDonald's was seeking a more unified international identity. Earlier advertising had often relied on different slogans and executions in different markets. “I'm Lovin' It” gave the company a short, adaptable line that could work across languages and cultures.
The campaign is strongly associated with the song “I'm Lovin' It,” recorded by Justin Timberlake and produced by the Neptunes. Timberlake appeared in the early campaign material, but the slogan itself became more enduring than any single commercial.
A common mistake is to date the slogan to the 1990s because McDonald's had many successful campaigns then. Its official global launch was in 2003, making it one of the company's clearest modern branding milestones.