Yoste (rhyming with “lost”) shares his new release, Flaws, produced by Tones and I, (of Dance Monkey fame) member, Konstantin Kersting, along with an authentically driven music video representing raw and real footage of Yoste, as the main focus, being submerged into a pool, that can be interpreted as to how our flaws remain a part of ourselves at our truest forms, like when Yoste submerged.
The video was filmed by Yoste’s father, none other than Anthony Sines, an award winning Australian cinematographer.. The song surrounds the concept of personalities in a relationship in which each person has their own set of flaws that get in the way and hold weight over them.
The lyricism is incredibly real and simple, yet remains complex. Especially at the Chorus section:
I’m not typical lately I’m so difficult when we Go outside, fall apart Kitchen lights, break my heart You were right, it was hard
Going back to the original idea of rawness that our flaws stem from, the part where he confesses his difficult traits as a flaw, speaks a hard truth. The performance is captivating but not so much distracting from the low-key production that supports it. Yoste describes his music and songwriting as the process of navigating life as a young adult, trying to express the highs and lows of relationships and personal struggles.
Yoste earned his credentials gaining attention from success of stand-out singles Arc and Blue from his debut album, try to be okay, released in 2019, amassing over 85 million streams throughout his discography. Touching into the atmosphere of ambience and pop landscape, he is heavily influenced by artists such as Jonsi, Bon Iver, The Cure, and The 1975, in which you can hear the little aspects of each within his music. Check out his music video for Flaws, and let us know what you think in the comments!
Taylor Swift literally became “The Man” in her new video to highlight scenarios of toxic masculinity and we’re so here for it. Per her typical fashion, there are lots of hidden symbols and scenes to decode, so let’s get to it!
The video starts out with a businessman (Taylor’s male alter ego Tyler Swift) yelling at his employees, who of course all cheer for him, and we get a signature wink to the camera from Taylor-as-the-man. Next we see him in the subway, smoking a cigar and manspreading with no regard for the other people on the train (raise your hand if you’ve experienced this too).
The “omg” moment of the video happens when the man steps out at 13th Street Station (a nod to Taylor’s favorite number, 13) and promptly pees on a wall with graffiti writing of all of Taylor’s albums that Big Machine Records currently holds the rights to.
The two signs really bring home the message, with “Missing: If Found, Return to Taylor Swift on the left and “No scooters” on the right, alluding to her feud with Scooter Braun, who purchased BMR last year–without giving Taylor the option to buy her Masters.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
The camera pans down from one word also written in graffiti: Karma.
Next the man is making business calls on his yacht, which of course is littered with a handful of lounging models in matching yellow bikinis. He yells at the waiter, and then parties with the models (hello champagne!) before heading back to work. This matches with the lyrics of the song, “I’d be just like Leo, in Saint-Tropez” nodding to how celebrities like Leo DiCaprio are out on dates and vacationing with models in tow. The difference is they are men, and therefore their conquests are celebrated, whereas in contrast, her relationships have been portrayed in the media in a completely negative context for doing the exact same thing.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
But what really stuck out to me was the second part of the video. The man gets dressed in the morning after presumably having a fling with the half-naked girl asleep in his bed. Instead of having a “walk of shame” like a woman would, he gets a “walk of fame” instead. 19 hands high five him as he runs down the hallway, proud of his accomplishments.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
In the next scene, he’s in the park with his little girl, and all neighborhood is raving over the fact that he’s a great parent, throwing a “World’s Greatest Dad” party for him–another reference to how the double standards exist between women and men when it comes to parenting. So often women are questioned for being career-focused while being a parent, while on the other hand, men get praised for being a parent.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
Then the man is playing in a tennis match (for a women’s charity) and when he isn’t winning, he has a mantrum–a man tantrum–and breaks his tennis racket and throws the tennis ball at the umpire when he doesn’t get his way. Many people think that this might be a nod to the incident in the 2018 US Open, when Serena Williams was fined for having a clash with the umpire. She later stated that it felt like a double standard because men have gotten more upset and said worse things during a game with no repercussion.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
Next it’s 58 years later and the man is finally getting married–to a woman half his age. She proudly displays the massive ring on her hand, before shaking her head and walking away after the cake cutting.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
In my opinion, the best part of the entire video is the end, when the man walks off of the tennis set to the directors chair. Taylor Swift (the real Taylor Swift) is the director, and she gives the man some instruction:
“Could you try to be sexier? Maybe be more likable this time?”
AKA things that the media have all criticized Taylor for in the past. Burn. For her directorial debut, she’s absolutely killing it.
Clip from the music video for The Man by Taylor Swift.
And then it ends with “Directed by Taylor Swift, Wrtitten by Taylor Swift, Owned by Taylor Swift, and Starring Taylor Swift.” She certainly doesn’t need a man, or anyone’s help for that matter. She’s in charge, and that’s an empowering narrative to share with the world.
Taylor Swift literally turns into “The Man” for her new music video.
Swift is singlehandedly fighting the patriarchy and isn’t afraid to speak up about unfair gender biases in the world today. In the video, a man gets away with so many things that if a woman did, would get a very different–and not to mention more negative–reaction. We think she completely nails it.
She might not be a dude, but as far as we’re concerned, Taylor Swift IS the man. You can check out the full video below.
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards take place on Sunday, January 26. While I’m most certainly excited for all of the other awards, as a visual artist I’m partial to the music video categories. Let’s go through the videos up for Best Music Video, Short Form.
Glad He’s Gone – Tove Lo
Entertaining the whole way through, Tove Lo takes us on a journey to show us how far she’d go to be there for a friend. Her casual walk and nonchalant expression contrast impeccably with the wild scenes behind her, and every expression on her date’s face at the diner is perfection. With scenes as short as a couple seconds, I’d be worried information would get lost, but the timing keeps everything interesting and brings a few chuckles along the way.
We’ve Got to Try – The Chemical Brothers
Starting off dark and moody, you think you’re in for a serious music video. But then it becomes humorous, then wacky, and then back to serious. And somehow it all works. I don’t know how we went from training the dog to drive a racecar to fly a rocket ship, but I’m ok with it. I loved the edits back and forth between the flight and the video game screen, the ride the story took my emotions through, how they used different people to sing the words, and, of course, that it stars a dog. A big round of applause to the credits at the end, too!
This Land – Gary Clark Jr
I loved the shots at the beginning of this video; the arrangement, lighting, and sound effects reeled me in. The use of children is powerful, made even more so by the matching outfits. The part that lost me a bit, though, is the scene with the window, hands, and the galaxy. I feel that section deterred too far from the style of the rest of the video, and the change in editing pace was much more effective at the end than it was there. But I’m so appreciative to see another video with some end credits!
Cellophane – FKA twigs
Well this video certainly did not feel like it was nearly four and a half minutes long. I highly enjoyed the sound effects of her shoes across the floor, and I give all the respect for anyone who can walk in those heels in the first place. Another bit I loved was the women crawling up in the masks and how that moment went from frightening to loving. But the things I did not appreciate include the sped-up motions while she was dancing and the sequence where she was falling. The too fast body movements threw me off and took away from the beauty of pole dance, and the falling scene was so chaotic that I thought it was slightly overdone. I will say I adored the quick second where you could see she was holding onto someone’s hand!
Old Town Road – Lil Nas X
Ok, what isn’t there to love about this? A country western, dance battle, street race, Bingo, and line dancing? What more can you ask for? A perfect balance of comedy and production quality, and with lovely cuts away from the music, this video was pure enjoyment.
So who is going to win? With each of these songs and videos being so different from each other, It’s hard to make a decision. And while I’m a dog lover and Tove Lo fan, my pick to take home the Grammy is Old Town Road.
What do you think? Vote in the poll below to let us know!
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