Playlist: Natalie Rae

What’s the best music video you’ve seen recently and why?

PTA’s Radiohead video for Daydreaming last year was so smart yet effortless. For such a conceptual work and abstract end, it still had the ability to create a strong emotion. I think that’s where music videos are the best - when they aren’t fully spelled out on surface level, but leave you deeply moved. Perhaps sinking into the music allows the experience of a music video to be more subconscious than other formats.  

What’s the first music video you remember being impressed by? 

Go ahead and laugh, but I remember being pretty young and loving Barbie Girl by Aqua. Felt like a new level of reality. I re-made the whole video with Barbies, and Barbie cars…  moving them around with fishing twine and stop motion acting outing the whole thing. I need to get that VHS digitized! 

And what’s your all-time favourite music video?

I love Paolo Nutini Iron Sky by Daniel Wolfe… impossible to choose just one though. Loved how primal, disturbing and beautiful it was at the same time. I’ve always wanted to focus on true stories, or artfully illustrate a point of view on a current issue and Iron Sky did an amazing job at that.  

Feist The Bad In Each Other was captivating - I loved how natural and relatable the performances were. We feel these glimpses of tension between characters and you can create your own narrative around it.  

Similarly, something like Aimee Mann’s Save Me from the film Magnolia. We get to see intimate glimpses of life and each detail is so precise; the one frame gives you just enough information to tell a story but let the audience fill in the blanks. I love the balance these type of videos have, very specific and crafted works, but they let the emotion lead everything. The story is more subtle and inferred. 

What other directors/artists do you look to for inspiration?

Hiro Murai is amazing - I’m super into dance elements, and his concepts and dance choreography are genius. His work is timely, in a broader sense of the American condition. Photographers that do everyday and street photography - like Diane Arbus, Sally Mann, Weegee, and also some more contemporary like Wolfgang Tillmans - are huge sources of inspiration to me as well.  

Everybody and her grandmother loves Call Me By Your Name… I’m no exception! The father-son scene, later in the film, is one of the most touching moments in recent film history. 

What are you listening to at the moment?

I went back to some old Future Islands, new Leon Bridges, a jogging list of 90’s dance songs that’s too long to share! George Michael is my best friend in the shower these days.

What’s your favourite bit of tech, whether for professional or personal use?

My Sonos speakers. But I have a sneaking suspicion they’re listening to me.

What artist(s) would you most like to work with and why?

Florence and the Machine is at the top of my list. She’s able to touch the most delicate to the most dramatic notes in one song. I would relish the challenge to create a film which is as powerful and balanced as her music, it would be an absolute gift to work with that kind of material. When I see how some artists can make people connect with each other and feel so deeply like she can in her live shows, it makes me want a) come back to life as a singer and b) try to build that audience energy through film. 

How do you feel the music video industry has changed since you started? 

The internet - but obviously the internet isn’t really a new thing any more. It feels like we’re still at the very early stages of seeing what’s possible through the democratization of video-making online and how that creates a global audience. It forces creative to be better to stand out. It allows individuals to decide and curate, seeing the rise of more independent videos, unknown artists and directors gaining more momentum from great pieces. The power in the access is exciting.  

Seeing videos take shape as a longer narratives alongside albums is cool. It seems like a great opportunity for an artist to keep a holistic vision for the record rather than break it up with different videos and directors, and it's cool to see that happening more and more. For directors it’s also obviously nice to develop a deeper creative relationship with the artist and music which hopefully translates to richer narratives/concepts in the videos.  

Branded content is also becoming more prevalent in videos now that they are showing such a resurgence in global youth culture. Brands such as Apple Music and Tidal investing in videos has been a welcome development in recent years. Brands as enablers of entertainment is exciting, and I’m really curious to see how far that will go.

Music videos have had a resurgence of late; where do you see the industry being in five years’ time? 

I think the visual stories will keep playing a large role in the experience of the music. Probably more curated video channels and possibly video sections on Netflix and those type of content hubs. Hopefully more direct connection to audiences and fans to evoke more personal and experimental videos. I think the countdown will come back! I think we’ll keep seeing new collaborations as music videos seem to be the place we can experiment. 

Tell us one thing about yourself that most people won’t know…

My DJ fantasy name is “The Reverend".