music video
Page: 9
Aly & AJ sidled up to the bar on Wednesday (Feb. 15) to unveil their new single “After Hours” and its accompanying music video.
On the track, the sister act channels equal parts Wilson Phillips and ’70s Americana as they take shots at a moody dive bar with fellow Disney Channel alum Aimee Carrero and belt out, “You’ve had far worse days/ So pour a drink, I’ll do the same/ After hours, when the city’s in bed/ After hours, that’s when I’m out of my head/ I’m a live wire, it’s when I’m at my best/ After hours, after hours.”
The night owl anthem will appear on the duo’s upcoming fifth studio album With Love From, which will also include the previously released title track and follow-up single “Baby Lay Your Head Down.” The full studio effort — their second independent full-length after 2021’s A Touch of the Beat… — is set to arrive in March.
Throughout 2022, the pair behind “Potential Breakup Song” also dropped re-recorded versions of Into the Rush fan favorite “Chemicals React” and Insomniatic single “Like Whoa.” They also ended the year performing their harmonic cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Go Your Own Way” with tourmate Ben Platt for Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.
In support of their forthcoming LP, Aly & AJ plan to embark on a headlining U.S. tour this spring with stops at venues like Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, Boston’s MGM Music Hall at Fenway, New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom, The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles and more.
Watch the music video for Aly & AJ’s “After Hours” below.
After KEY opened up to Billboard about the film and family references that made Gasoline his most personal and empowering album yet, the K-pop star returns with its deluxe version, Killer, that showcases another side of the SHINee member.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The title track single “Killer” sees KEY throwing it back to the ’80s with a workout-ready, synth-pop production soundtracking the guilt and self-conviction he needs to justify a harsh breakup. The accompanying video keeps somewhat in line with the throwback sound with KEY embracing similar elements to classic sci-fi action flicks like Tron and Blade Runner for cinematic scenes of the star riding through a city on a futuristic motorcycle. Meanwhile, the dance numbers in the visual feel classically KEY as he powers through interpretive dance moves to tell his story.
KEY also showed how the vintage inspirations come to life in Killer‘s album packaging, sharing on Instagram the video game and VHS–esque graphics that will instantly strike nostalgia in any ’80s or ’90s kid.
Alongside “Killer,” KEY’s repackaged record includes two other new songs including anthemic thumper “Heartless” and “Easy,” produced by KEY’s past collaborators LDN Noise who have been behind tracks like “Guilty Pleasure,” and SHINee singles “View” and “Married to the Music.”
Watch “Killer” below:
Depeche Mode unveiled their new single “Ghosts Again” on Thursday (Feb. 9) along with the track’s accompanying music video and new album Memento Mori‘s release date.
In the stark visual directed by Anton Corbijn, Dave Gahan and Martin Gore wield matching walking sticks topped with chrome-plated skulls before sitting down on an urban rooftop to face off in a game of chess.
“Wasted feelings, broken meanings/ Time is fleeting, see what it brings/ Hellos, goodbyes, a thousand midnights/ Lost in sleepless lullabies/ Heaven’s dreaming/ Thoughtless thoughts, my friends,” Gahan sings before his bandmate swoops in to deliver the final lyric of the chorus: “We know we’ll be ghosts again.”
“To me, ‘Ghosts Again’ just captures this perfect balance of melancholy and joy,” Gahan said in a statement. Added Gore, “It’s not often that we record a song that I just don’t get sick of listening to – I’m excited to be able to share it.”
The reflective, mid-tempo jam precedes the duo’s upcoming 15th studio album, Memento Mori, which is set to be released March 24 via Columbia Records. The LP will be the band’s first full-length since 2017’s Spirit, as well as the first since the passing of keyboardist and co-founder Andy Fletcher in May 2022.
The rollout for “Ghosts Again” was fraught with controversy among Depeche Mode’s fanbase. It all started with a countdown clock on the band’s social media accounts and website, seemingly pointing to the track’s release last Friday (Feb. 3), but instead was revealed that eager listeners would have to wait nearly another full week for the song’s grand unveiling.
Watch the stark music video for Depeche Mode’s “Ghosts Again” below.
The music video for “Smack That,” Akon‘s hit 2006 single with Eminem, danced its way into the Billion Views Club on YouTube, the video platform shared on Wednesday (Feb. 8).
The visual features a cameo from Academy Award nominee Eric Roberts and revolves around Akon getting a 24-hour hall pass from prison in order to help the police run an undercover sting operation in a gentleman’s club frequented by Eminem.
Of course, the whole plot is set to Akon’s irresistible earworm of a track, which finds the Senegalese-American star crooning, “I feel you creepin’, I can see it from my shadow/ Wanna jump up in my Lamborghini Gallardo/ Maybe go to my place and just kick it like TaeBo/ And possibly bend you over, look back and watch me/ Smack that, all on the floor/ Smack that, give me some more/ Smack that, till you get sore/ Smack that, oh!”
As the lead single off Akon’s sophomore album Konvicted, “Smack That” reached as high as No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, a career high at the time for the singer that was soon surpassed by his dual No. 1 hits “I Wanna Love You” featuring Snoop Dogg and “Don’t Matter.” Its video is the star’s second to achieve the major viewership feat on YouTube after his 2013 collab with David Guetta and Ne-Yo, “Play Hard.”
More recently, Akon mounted a comeback with his TikTok-fueled 2022 EP TT Freak. He also spoke out in December in defense of Nick Cannon having 12 kids with six different women.
Revisit the music video for Akon and Eminem’s “Smack That” below.
Growing up in south Florida, the closest Christian Breslauer got to Hollywood was a nearby beach named after it. The cinephile looked up to renowned film director David Fincher, who also helmed music videos for Madonna and Billy Idol early in his career. After high school, he started directing clips for local artists. He moved to California in 2016 with sights set on working with London Alley Entertainment, a full-service production company behind award-winning videos for artists including Kendrick Lamar (“Alright”) and Logic (“1-800-273-8255”). Breslauer jokingly recalls that he reached out to founder/executive producer Luga Podesta dozens of times before first working with the company on a 2019 Cîroc commercial. However, London Alley didn’t start representing him until the following year, after Podesta saw the video for Roddy Ricch’s “The Box,” which earned an MTV Video Music Award nomination for best hip-hop video. “Our job as a company is seeing a director’s career long term instead of just per project,” says Podesta. “We strategize about who are the artists they want to work with and who manages those artists.”
Since then, Breslauer has become a go-to creator of visuals that are equally eye-popping and purposeful, working with superstars including The Weeknd, Doja Cat, John Legend and Lil Nas X (The latter’s “Industry Baby” clip with Jack Harlow won three VMAs). At the beginning of 2023, Breslauer directed the video for SZA’s “Kill Bill,” which has over 20 million views — and most recently, he helmed the ultimate Black girl superhero visual for Lizzo’s Special title track. “We helped [Christian] form the relationships with Lizzo and SZA,” says Podesta, also noting that the team “did four or five videos with SALXCO management and then finally got [him] to work with The Weeknd.” Adds Breslauer: “We try to build little Marvel universes for every artist I work with. That’s why artists like to come back and keep working with me.”
Tyga x Doja Cat, “Freaky Deaky”
Christian Breslauer and Doja Cat on the set of the “Freaky Deaky” music video.
Virisa Yong
After Tyga texted Breslauer about shooting a “futuristic” video for “Freaky Deaky,” a Doja Cat collaboration from his forthcoming album, Breslauer imagined a sexy cat-and-mouse game, with Doja capturing Tyga in various traps during a late-night rendezvous. The lyrics helped inspire some of them, including “Black Barbie, perfect and you gnarly,” which reminded Breslauer of a scene from Joe Dante’s 1998 film Small Soldiers when action figures punch out of their plastic boxes. “I put a lot of intention in breaking down the song,” says Breslauer. He often leans on artists to bring their own flair during shoots, noting that Doja Cat’s chastity belt lock featuring a phallic keyhole was an addition by her stylist Brett Alan Nelson.
Lizzo, “About Damn Time”
Lizzo and Christian Breslauer on the set of the “About Damn Time” music video.
Micayla Catanzariti
Last year, Lizzo’s team asked Breslauer to direct three videos for her Grammy-nominated album Special. But once the newly minted record of the year “About Damn Time” went viral and subsequently reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, that visual took priority. The two set out to make something uplifting, with Breslauer running with Lizzo’s idea to open in a support group setting. The visual won video for good at the 2022 VMAs, with Lizzo dubbing Breslauer “Tittylauer” during her acceptance speech. “We have so many funny moments. She brings such a bubbly energy where you just can’t help but love her,” he said, calling the recent “Special” video his favorite one from her album.
SZA, “Kill Bill”
SZA and Christian Breslauer on the set of the “Kill Bill” music video.
Micayla Catanzariti
For SZA’s latest video, Breslauer wanted to incorporate the singer’s idea of shibari rope bondage during the outro — a second sequence soundtracked by fellow SOS track “Seek & Destroy” — while still largely referencing Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill films. “It seemed too on-the-nose to have an Uma [Thurman] cameo, but Vivica [A. Fox] was right to me,” says Breslauer of one of its driving scenes. “She’s got the look, she’s got the swagger.” He adds that they wrapped that shot around 5 a.m. as part of a 19-hour-long shoot that happened just days before Christmas. The video came out two weeks later — which Podesta says is “definitely the fastest video we’ve done in a while.”
A version of this story originally appeared in the Feb. 4, 2023, issue of Billboard.
Lizzo dropped the music video for her latest single “Special” on Wednesday (Feb. 1) and unveiled her superhero alter ego in the process.
In the clip, Lizzo portrays a beleaguered and put-upon waitress who just so happens to moonlight as a caped crusader keeping little girls and victims of bullying and robbery safe. “In case nobody told you today, you’re special/ In case nobody made you believe, you’re special/ Well, I will always love you the same/ You’re special/ I’m so glad that you’re still with us/ Broken but damn, you’re still perfect,” she preaches after saving an elementary schooler from being hit by a car while also tending to the shaken-up driver.
Later in the Christian Breslauer-directed visual, the singer is labeled a “women-ace” as crowds of angry protesters wave handmade signs declaring “Public Enemy” and “Hope Over ‘Heroes,’” but turns the public narrative on its head when she saves the day by rescuing a baby from a burning building.
As the title track off Lizzo’s fourth studio album Special, the uplifting anthem follows No. 1 hit “About Damn Time” and its follow-up “2 Be Loved (Am I Ready).”
The lead single is currently nominated for three awards — record of the year, song of the year and best pop solo performance — at the 2023 Grammys, while the album as a whole is in the running for both album of the year and best pop vocal album. (Earlier today the singer notched three nominations at the upcoming 2023 Kids Choice Awards as well.)
Watch Lizzo flex her humanity-saving superpowers in the “Special” music video below.
Last fall, NCT 127 teased the possibility of a deluxe repackaging of their 2 Baddies album by telling Billboard to “look forward to being surprised by something unexpected.” Four months after the LP earned the K-pop boy band their second top 3 entry on the Billboard 200, the group unveils their Ay-Yo – The 4th Album Repackage album with three new songs, including the sleek title track single.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
While NCT 127’s previous title track “2 Baddies” seized listeners’ attention with its unrelenting chant chorus, the group’s latest takes a much more subtle approach with looping beats, delicate piano accents, and a surging, synthesizer-led chorus. Like they teased last year, the guys themselves also bring out unexpected musical moments in “Ay-Yo,” like when the silky-voiced vocalist Jaehyun kicks off the second verse with a rap section.
The accompanying music video is a mash of surprise delights too. Members like Doyoung and Jaehyun serve their best James Bonds with slick black outfits among a backdrop reminiscent of inside a pistol barrel as made famous in the 007 movies.
Meanwhile, leader Taeyong pulls off what will be one of 2023’s most shocking hairstyles with punky, pointy spikes that fans have found reminiscent of NCT label mates and K-pop pioneers TVXQ! and Super Junior.
In between the release of 2 Baddies and Ay-Yo, NCT 127 released a music video for their b-side “1, 2, 7 (Time Stops)” and held concerts in North America, Asia and Latin America as part of their Neo City – The Link world tour. The guys only wrapped their last show on Jan. 28 at Mexico City’s Palacio de los Deportes arena before dropping this new LP that includes its title track, the previously teased “DJ” plus hip-hop/pop hybrid “Skyscraper.”
Watch Taeyong, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Taeil, Mark, Yuta, Johnny, Jungwoo and Haechan in “Ay-Yo” below.
P!nk dropped the dramatic video for “Trustfall” on Friday morning (Jan. 27), the pulsing title track to her upcoming ninth album. The clip opens with the solitary image of a person crouching on a cliff overlooking the ocean as the singer solemnly intones, “Are you gonna fall? Is someone supposed to catch you? Or do you catch yourself? There will be something worth falling for,” as the action shifts to a chill house party.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The Georgia Hudson-directed visual then follows our young protagonist as she burns out into the night on a scooter in what appears to be an emotional state. The scene jumps to P!nk standing on the rooftop of the “Illusion Hotel,” where she sings, “Picture a place where it all doesn’t hurt/ Where everything’s safe and it doesn’t get worse/ Oh my, we see through bloodshot eyes.” As with most P!nk videos, there is some impressive dancing, with choreographer Ryan Heffington adding a layer of emotion to the tune’s message with midnight choreo in the middle of a darkened street that brings to life the mix of hope and fear in the lyrics.
The song, co-produced by Fred and Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid — who co-wrote it with the singer — features a driving EDM beat and emotionally fraught lyrics about pushing beyond your fears and putting faith in things you may not be able to see. “Close your eyes and leave it all behind/ Go where love is on our side, it’s a trustfall baby,” P!nk sings on the song’s chorus.
The journey ends with P!nk hugging the clip’s female co-star and offering the sage advice, “You’re s–t scared and your whole body is shaking… go in there and just f–ing do it. Just do it, whatever it is, and then boom, it’s gone. The fear is gone.”
P!nk’s upcoming studio album, also called “Trustfall,” is due out on Feb. 17 via RCA Records. So far the singer has released the undeniable bop “Never Gonna Not Dance Again” and announced the dates for her massive 21-city “Summer Carnival 2023” stadium tour featuring Brandi Carlile and new Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Pat Benatar & Neil Girlado on select dates and Grouplove and KidCutUp on all the shows.
Watch the “Trustfall” video below.
XG, the seven-member Japanese girl group that debuted last year, has unveiled the music video for its dynamic third single, “Shooting Star,” on Wednesday (Jan. 25). “Shooting Star” marks the group’s first single of 2023 and was premiered along with a bonus track, “Left Right,” with a live performance of both songs broadcast prior to their release.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Both songs express an elevated determination for the group, which launched under the XGALX label last January. “‘Shooting Star’ is about our desire to become a world-class group, and ‘Left Right’ is about our commitment to move forward, the only direction we know,” XG’s Jurin tells Billboard in an exclusive statement. “I personally believe that believing in yourself and becoming the person you want to be are keywords that apply to everyone and are the purpose of life. I also think that we were able to express a new side of XG with these two songs. … I hope we inspire courage in everyone!”
The group’s Harvey adds, “In the part I sing in verse 1, there is a line, ‘We a movement / Never losin’ / Making moves, stay poppin.’’ When I hear this line, I think of someone strong that can’t be beaten by anyone. I really like the lyrics, since they express the desire to keep chasing a dream with a strong foundation, no matter how uncertain things may be! I feel very strong when I sing this part!”
Composed of members Jurin, Chisa, Hinata, Harvey, Juria, Maya and Cocona, XG (short for ‘Xtraordinary Girls’) debuted last year with the hip-hop-inspired rhythmic pop single “Tippy Toes,” followed by the combustible, dance-ready “Mascara.” The latter reached No. 14 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 last year.
For “Shooting Star,” Chisa says, “Each part of this track has a different vibe, rhythm, and melody, allowing us to bring out more of our individuality. When recording my part, I really tried to picture the atmosphere in my head and visualized what Chisa would be like for this particular song.”
Check out the “Shooting Star” visual above, and listen to “Left Right” below:
In 2021 TWICE released their first-ever English single, “The Feels,” which soared into the Billboard Hot 100 and made them the fourth K-pop group to enter America’s main singles chart. To kick off 2023, the Korean troupe is eyeing another chart smash with their second English-language track “Moonlight Sunrise.”
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The slinky dance track aligns with TWICE’s brand of peppy pop numbers but boasts an additional mysterious and underlying synth groove. The ladies describe an overwhelming love affair, singing, “I don’t know how to say this, I hope this song’s on your playlist/ This feeling’s so hard to explain.”
While “The Feels” recalled TWICE’s early bubblegum-pop days, there’s a noted maturity in “Moonlight Sunrise.” The girl group delivers flirty and fun lyrics like, “Moonlight, sunrise / Baby, let’s do it all night” and “I got the moonlight, tequila sunrise / Come take a shot on me, I gotcha” — the latter of which could be a wink to the group’s excellent K-pop single “Alcohol-Free.”
TWICE also launched the music video for “Moonlight Sunrise” alongside the song release via a live premiere on YouTube.
After “The Feels” bowed at No. 83 on the Hot 100 in October 2021, TWICE nearly scored another entry with their 2022 K-pop single “Talk That Talk,” which missed the Hot 100 but managed to peak at No. 16 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. As the group’s new globally focused single, “Moonlight Sunrise” is being touted by TWICE as a “pre-release track,” indicating a larger project will soon be on the way and priming TWICE not just for exciting chart feats but the K-pop queens’ biggest year yet.
Watch TWICE’s “Moonlight Sunrise” video here: