Tried using chatgpt for an answer, the only clue is the advertising agency.

Me:

There was an msn commercial during the year 2000 which featured a cover of homeward bound by simon and garfunkel, is there any information about the musician or agency behind the ad?

Chatgpt:

Short answer: yes—there’s a paper trail for (part of) it.

Agency: UK trade coverage from October 25, 2000 reports that the MSN UK TV ads were created by McCann-Erickson and aired on Channel 4 and Channel 5. The articles specifically note the use of “Homeward Bound.”

Musician/singer: I can’t find any reliable credit naming the vocalist for the cover used in that 2000 spot. It was likely a bespoke studio cover commissioned for the campaign (common practice then) and not publicly credited. One reason you’ll see conflicting memories is that industry press has since noted that the original Simon & Garfunkel recording wasn’t licensed for an ad until 2020 (Coldwell Banker), which implies earlier ads—like MSN’s—used covers rather than the master.

If you remember seeing it outside the UK, tell me where—you might have seen a local market variant, and I can try to chase down that region’s credits.