Hi all! Quick update: Last week I shared Mariah Carey’s “GTFO” video, which had just come out and which didn’t yet have a director’s name attached to it. Now it does. Her name is Sarah McColgan and you can find more of her work here. (Most of her work is photography, but she’s directed a little over a dozen pop videos, including co-directing the “Boys” video with Charli XCX.)
LCD Soundsystem’s video for “oh baby” (directed by Rian Johnson!!) is still exclusively on Tidal. Yes I am sad about it. But here’s a whole list of other great videos! Playlist will be available here shortly.
The Videos
Jorja Smith “On Your Own” (dir. Rashid Babiker)
Jorja Smith appears in many different versions of scrapbook collages.
2 Chainz, “Bigger Than You (ft. Drake, Quavo)” (dir. Nathan R. Smith)
“You are hiding a child” without the “hiding” part.
Cher, “SOS” (dir. Jake Wilson)
This video promoting Cher’s album of ABBA covers is like watching “Freedom! ‘90” for the year 2018. “Freedom! ‘18”!
Young Thug, “Dirty Shoes (ft. Gunna)” (dir. Millicent Hailes)
Millicent Hailes has been doing some strange, fantasy-influenced videos for the Young Thug/Lil Uzi set. Lots of Alice in Wonderland-type stuff. I’d keep an eye on her work.
Dream Ami, “Wonderland” (dir. ???)
Speaking of wonderland!!
BROCKHAMPTON, “J’OUVERT” (dir. Spencer Ford)
Are you guys okay????
Years & Years, “All For You” (dir. Fred Rowson)
The third installment of Years & Years’ “Palo Santo” video storyline, which concerns androids enslaved as cabaret dancers. I loved the first two installments and while this one is definitely more of a traditional music video, it still features some incredible choreography and gripping characters.
Pale Waves, “One More Time” (dir. ???)
Was this video not filmed in 2003?? The fisheye lens, the band-trapped-in-a-box schtick, the monochromatic outfits: all of this points to an LES band that hung out at Max Fish with the Strokes, or a PNW local act that opened for the Thermals. I know Pale Waves are supposed to be riffing off of The Cure and ‘80s synthpop but this is so Meet Me In The Bathroom it hurts. Ugh it’s so good.
Pardison Fontaine, “Backin’ It Up (feat. Cardi B)” (dir. Kid Art)
The styling in this video is flawless. There’s something very Bad Boys about the whole production, but without Puff Daddy’s cheeseball sensibilities.
Foo Fighters, “Run” (dir. Dave Grohl)
“Riot in the nursing home” isn’t an especially new concept, but I gotta hand it to the makeup department on this one, and to Grohl for self-directing.
Jay Park, “V” (dir. ???)
“Hotline Bling” with Froot Loops.
Pongo, “Baia” (dir. Chip & Dale)
That suit!! I’m in love with Pongo’s suit. Plus this is my favorite song this week.
Leon Vynedall, “Movements (Chapter III)” (dir. Young Replicant)
There’s a waitress in this video who looks just like Greta Gerwig and I can’t for the life of me tell if it’s her or not. Even if it isn’t, I think it speaks to the video’s quality that it’s so placidly atmospheric (zero plot or character development; no trippy visuals, either) and yet it still hooked me the whole way through.
Brett Eldredge, “Love Someone (The Edgar Cut)” (dir. Jeff Venable)
I LOVE WHOLESOME COUNTRY VIDEOS. WITH A DOG. AAAAAAA
Noah Cyrus & Lil Xan, “Live or Die” (dir. ???)
When I first saw a still from this video, I thought someone had photoshopped That Photo of Lil Xan trying to kiss Noah Cyrus into the video frame. But nope, that’s really the face he makes every time his face is a few inches away from her face. He just looks like a potato, all the time.
A Place to Bury Strangers, “Execution” (dir. Evan Fellers)
The opening to this video is the most disorienting visual I’ve seen all year, and the rest of the video…continues that trend.
Marshmello, “Stars” (dir. Toby Wosskow)
I haven’t seen another Marshmello video and I don’t plan to, because I’m pretty sure there’s only one video gimmick you can do with this guy and it’s completely spent up here. But it’s a fine gimmick.
NVDES, “Mind Body Soul Music” (dir. Josh Ocean & Audrey Vignoles)
This was filmed at Hicksville Pines Bud & Breakfast, a cannabis-friendly B&B in Idyllwild, which should tell you pretty much everything you need to know about this video.
Wiz Khalifa, “Fr Fr (ft. Lil Skies)” (dir. Cole Bennett)
Seems like the chillest supermarket in the world.
Jeremy Loops, “Gold” (dir. Rob Smith)
Cuuute, good storytelling, great hats!
GOT7, “Lullaby” (dir. ???)
There is Way Too Much Going On in this video, but it’s a K-pop video, so what do you expect?
Dillon Francis, “White Boi (ft. Lao Ra)” (dir. Allie Avital)
This is a ton of fun. Avital recently did the beautiful “Cherubim” video for serpentwithfeet, and this is just as gorgeous with a completely opposite tone. I’ve also noticed this shade of red that they’re wearing appearing in every video, likely because it stands out on both film and digital cameras.
This week’s throwback video: The Breeders, “Cannonball” (dir. Spike Jonze)
One of the earliest videos Spike Jonze ever made. Imagine a music video where the director decided to keep in every shot where the boom mic drops into the frame, or a crew guy accidentally walks in front of the camera, or you can see the edges of the set just behind the band members, who also have no idea how to behave in front of a camera. That’s this video. I love it more than words can express.
Fuck it, I’m also going to repost that Thermals video I linked to, because it rules
The News etc.
Report: 75 percent of music industry revenue now comes from streaming (via UPI) – This includes YouTube and Vevo, so no matter how culturally relevant you believe music videos to be, they’re certainly financially relevant.
Super 8 film has taken over music videos (via The Fader) – This observation by Olivia Craighead at The Fader couldn’t be more accurate: Super 8 and 16mm are everywhere now in music videos, including a few in this edition of the newsletter. As Craighead notes, not all instances of film grain, faded colors, and perforation (i.e. that rectangular hole you see in the left corner of some of these videos) are real; all of those qualities can be replicated with digital filters, just as you can now add VHS fuzz and color blurring to digital clips. And like Craighead, I am driven bananas by it.
Eminem’s “Killshot” Has the Biggest YouTube Debut for a Hip-Hop Video Ever (via Billboard) – *heavy sigh* So, “Killshot” isn’t a music video. It’s an “official audio” video of the track, which happens to be a diss track directed towards Machine Gun Kelly. Hence, I assume, why it racked up so many views so quickly. The article goes on to mention that Kanye West and Lil Pump’s “I Love It” broke both artists’ all-time 24-hour view records, as that video garnered almost 14 million views in its first day.
MxPx announce beer collaboration, release music videos for entire album (via AltPress) – Quite the headline here. I haven’t tried this Washington punk band’s beer, but I’ve watched a couple of the album videos already and they’re a ton of fun. If Scopitones still existed, I can see dive bars across America stocking them with MxPx’s new visuals.
Outspoken Kajan Johnson explains how recent music video created more trouble with UFC (via MMA Fighting) – I’m not caught up on MMA drama, but I’m always hyped for a “music video igniting controversy” story. It seems that Johnson was getting fed up with how UFC’s president was running the company, and so he made a music video featuring a tied-up bald guy that resembles the president and Johnson himself as a snarling werewolf. Johnson denies that the resemblance was intentional, but now the UFC is all in a hissy fit about it.
YouTube music video leads to Elsmere man’s guilty plea on gun charges (via The Courier Express) – A man in Delaware by the name of Jiaire Boyer was arrested for possessing a firearm in a music video posted in February. Nine other members of the Shoot To Kill (STK) gang had weapons charges brought against them for the same video. I guess if you’re filming a video in Delaware and you want to use guns, get fake ones?
Mac Miller to Be Buried at Pittsburgh Cemetery Used in His Music Video (via The Blast) – Homewood Cemetery, near Miller’s childhood home and where he will be buried, was featured in his “Nikes on My Feet” video.
BTS’ ‘Idol’ Music Video is Fastest Reach 100M Views in 2018 (via Billboard) – No surprise here. Strong bet that “Idol” is going to set a new record every other week until the end of the year.
When Taylor Swift and five other chart-toppers made music videos in Indiana (via Indy Star) – Obviously a ploy to get you to come to Indiana so you can tour…the music video sets…but nevertheless, it’s got some neat behind-the-scenes tidbits.
Bad Bunny and Drake Spotted Filming Music Video Together In Miami (via Remezcla) – I’m happy about this, because now we’ll have definitive proof that Bad Bunny has more charisma than Aubrey.
Please direct all feedback, questions, comments, tips, etc. to ClaireShafferVevo at gmail dot com. And feel free to forward this email, share on social media, and encourage your friends to subscribe. We’ll be back next week with more vids. •