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Ten years ago today the team and I filmed this music video for Close to You from my record Inclusions. The idea was ambitious: animate a whole environment on set around a stationary character in a single shot. With the guidance of director LC Crowley, the team at School of Humans, and the help of 80+ fans and volunteers we built the set at the Souls Grown Deep Foundation warehouse in Atlanta, GA. After a lot of rehearsal, we filmed a few takes with me pedaling and singing at half-speed. With the footage speed up the final video takes on a beautiful, whimsical feel for a song that is even more relevant in a pandemic.
There's some pretty special easter eggs in the video including work by some of the great artists of the south and a cameo by Lonnie Holley himself.
Before I understood my mission to create experiences that grow a greater sense of togetherness, this video holds up as a relatively early example of my gut sense of making art through collaboration. Huge thanks to Katie Benson, Matt Arnett, Lc Crowley, Phillip March Jones, Lonnie Holley, Puja Chaudhari, Viva Vadim, artist Jon Prichard, The Bicycle Museum of America, Mark Wofford at PC&E, and all the volunteers who made this happen. Good times!
PS: I miss Bill Arnett.