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He spent five grueling days writing, recording and editing. His mother labored tirelessly at the sewing machine for the entire weekend. But in the end, all their time and effort was worth it. One soulful song and one giant avocado costume later, Greensboro resident Josh Anderson was $2,000 richer.

The 107.5 WKZL “Murphy in the Morning” show co-host took home the grand prize in a national video contest sponsored by Avocados from Mexico. The avocado distributor asked participants to submit a video about their love for the avocado and its aphrodisiac qualities.

Anderson, 33, won in the “Most Entertaining” category for his “I’m an Avocado Song (Green and Sexy),” a Marvin Gaye-style ode to “the love fruit.”

“I was like, 'Well, what would be the most ridiculous thing I could possibly

do?’ ” Anderson said. “And I think dressing up like a big puffy avocado is more ridiculous than anything.”

Anderson, who regularly writes parody songs for “Murphy in the Morning,” found out about the avocado contest from a 107.5 listener. When he learned the 15 finalists would automatically receive $500, he thought he might have a chance at placing.

“I’ve got a wedding coming up, and I was like, 'Well, maybe I can just make a few extra hundred dollars to pay for a DJ or something like that,’” Anderson said. “Which is ridiculous, having to pay for a DJ when you are a DJ.”

Anderson thought the best way to show the sexy side of avocados was with a smooth R&B song. But he faced a dilemma when it was time to make the giant avocado suit he wears in the video, because he doesn’t know how to sew.

With an egg-crate mattress pad and some green felt, Anderson’s mother sewed the costume by hand. Since the bottom of the costume was open, Anderson also had to wear pantyhose underneath.

“It was quite possibly the most embarrassing moment of my life,” Anderson said. “I didn’t really think as many people were going to see it as they did.”

Anderson also recruited his fiancee, Angel, to be in the video as the object of the giant avocado’s affection. She also lip-syncs to the video’s deep-voiced backing vocals.

“I told her, 'All you have to do, just no matter what I do, when I dance stupid and when I lay on our (kitchen) island like its a cutting board, you just have to look amazed by me,’ ” Anderson said. “And it’s probably the only time she’ll ever look amazed by me.”

A week after submitting the video, Anderson learned he was a finalist. After 10 days of public voting and scrutiny from a panel of judges, he found out he won the $2,000 grand prize.

“I was actually really surprised,” Anderson said. “One of the guys that was in the contest works for New Wave (Entertainment in Burbank, Calif.). He worked on 'Avatar’ and 'Sherlock Holmes’ and all these big movies.”

Anderson grew up in Davidson County, and unlike many other songwriters, he has no musical background.

“I started playing guitar because my very first girlfriend thought it was hot,” Anderson said.

From there, he discovered his love for parody songs. He started by writing witty melodies such as “Manhole Grandma,” about a boy who loses his grandmother at the mall and discovers she fell down a manhole, and “Porpoise With a Purpose,” about a porpoise who just wants to help mankind.

“When I was in high school, my teachers would give me the first five minutes of class to get whatever I had in my system out,” Anderson said.

His humorous tunes have evolved since then to include local jingle work, such as the original Greensboro Grasshoppers theme, and several national competition wins.

In 2007, Anderson won $11,000 in an Alka-Seltzer jingle contest and was flown to Los Angeles to record the song for a commercial that aired during the Super Bowl. He filmed the commercial with notable music video director Nigel Dick, who has collaborated with Britney Spears and Nickelback.

Above all, Anderson is grateful to the “Murphy in the Morning” listeners for supporting his passion for humor.

“They’ve been supportive of everything I’ve ever done in the past,” Anderson said. “I think they helped me out more than anything.”
Next, Anderson will enter a jingle contest for FedEx. But this time, he’s leaving his giant “love fruit” suit at home.

Contact Alexa Milan at 373-7120 or alexandra.milan@news-record.com.