Pop-Punk Met Hitchcock in blackbear and Machine Gun Kelly’s ‘gfy’ Video

The sound of pop-punk is back and this time it’s musicians like blackbear and Machine Gun Kelly leading the way, with Travis Barker (of Blink 182, original icons of the genre) producing. The ‘gfy’ video, co-directed by John Tashiro, blackbear, and Tyler Serebreni, with editing from WAX’s Jeremy Huff, tells the story of a toxic break-up. Mired in angsty proclamations, like missed red flags, the track’s upbeat tempo and imperative-laden chorus (“go fuck yourself”) means the pair don’t spend too long moping around. 

Complementing the song’s sound is the retro dream of a video that John and his co-directors chose to take to an unexpected place. Instead of using the song’s narrative as the inspiration for the ‘plot’, they juxtaposed it with Americana iconography, oversaturated hues, and a sinister murder case at the centre of it all. Turning to the master of suspense himself for inspiration - Alfred Hitchcock - both John and Jeremy infused their respective work with his “vibe”. Combining Dutch angles to frame the villainous Machine Gun Kelly with cuts that build tension, the video puts the viewer in a position of quiet discomfort - lulled in by the white picket fence and then let loose to discover what’s hidden behind. 

Today, John and Jeremy tell LBB’s Zhenya Tsenzharyk all about the inspiration behind the song’s visuals, and why pop-punk and Hitchcock aren’t such strange bedfellows after all. 

LBB> What was your initial inspiration and how did it shape the video? How much creative  freedom did you have? 

John> I was connected with Tyler who sent over an amazing collage of key Americana iconography throughout the mid to late 20th century pulled from magazines, books and films. Elvis to Edward Scissorhands and everything in-between! This became the "Rosetta Stone” for our vintage visual aesthetic - key styling, art direction and photography. Tyler and blackbear introduced the general premise: blackbear would play the father in a traditional “nuclear family” with suspicions that his new neighbor, Machine Gun Kelly, was a devious murderer, but to be presented in an a campy and satirical way that was timeless. I loved their passion and saw exactly where they were trying to go. We then moved as a unit to fill in the blanks and flesh out the storyline. 

Jeremy> There was a lot of creative freedom throughout the process. We had a clear narrative to follow but once we locked down the structure it was on and there was a fair amount of  exploring to do. From the opening shot through the news bulletin, to the dreamy flashback sequence and the mayhem that ensued in the shed. 

LBB> The song’s lyrics and the visuals don’t appear to be linked. How do you see the connection  between the two or was it a deliberate decision to create a video distinct to the song? 

John> All credit to blackbear and his creative director Tyler Serebreni (both also co-directed) who had the vision to contrast the song’s aggressive, emphatic message with bright, supersaturated overtones while also weaving in a foreboding narrative. I then heard the track and right away knew if we mixed blackbear and Machine Gun Kelly’s personal taste with surreal, dream-like visuals, set to the tone of a Hitchcock film, it had potential to be something special.

LBB> The video blends a retro suburbia aesthetic with pop-punk elements. Did you have any particular references in mind when  directing the video? 

John> Classic videos like Soundgarden “Black Hole Sun” and Beck “Deadweight” were good reference points for surrealist vibes, along with a series of ENZYTE “Smiling Bob” ads from the mid-00’s which served as our benchmark for campiness. 

LBB> What kind of mood did you want to achieve with the edit? 

Jeremy> So much of the vibe was captured on set, honestly. We just aimed to keep a nice balance between that classic Hitchcock vibe in terms of cutting (or not cutting) with the pop-punk energy of the track. 

LBB> Did you use any references or inspiration for the final edit? 

Jeremy> I didn’t lean too heavily on any particular reference but upon seeing the treatment I knew I had to revisit some of the Hitchcock classics. If only to get a sense of tone from the master himself. There was also a lot of incredible imagery referenced in the treatment so I had  quite the range of ideas to chew on. 

LBB> Where did you shoot the video and why did you choose that specific location? 

John> We shot at an incredible property in Los Angeles that sat at the end of a cul de sac across from an equally cookie-cutter yet creepier looking home which became Machine Gun Kelly’s place. You could look in either direction and instantly be transported to a middle American neighbourhood frozen in time! 

LBB> I spotted a few Dutch angles used to frame Machine Gun Kelly - what was your thinking  behind this? 

John> Dutch angles generate an immediate unnerving feeling and became a key part of the visual language we used intentionally to foreshadow unsettling events throughout the video. 

LBB> How closely did editing and directing have to work together on this one, and what was the creative relationship like?

John> I’ve worked with Jeremy on music videos across many different genres - he is a chameleon with great instinct for pacing and rhythm. Our working relationship is always intuitive: a very rough paper edit with scene order was made and we proceeded to mould and refine using our eyes and ears. Once we felt the structure was strong, Jeremy infused style via a cocktail of effects to heighten the kinetic energy as an added creative layer. 

Jeremy> We worked pretty closely and in-person for much of the edit. John is very hands on and present throughout the process which I like. John is a generous collaborator and is willing to try anything you throw out there. He comes very prepared and is genuinely enthusiastic about the work, which is really all I could ask for. 

LBB> What was the most challenging part of working on the video and how did you overcome it? 

John> Our collective goal was to cross-pollinate the current pop-punk sound with retro aesthetics, forming something not too old but not too new. Everything inside each frame had to appear like blackbear and Machine Gun Kelly’s own hermetically sealed world. We had many discussions between every department on how we would carry this out - from committing to using old school hard lighting techniques, sourcing incredible vintage wardrobe pieces, down to a custom LUT created by the colour maestros at Company 3 - meticulous execution (with lots of experimentation) was vital in achieving the vision. And the fact that this entire video was shot in a single day! 

Jeremy> Fast turnarounds on music videos always get me. You want more time to explore. Luckily, the team set me up for success and got everything we needed, so we were able to lock down a solid storyline quickly. From there, it was all about finding those moments. 

LBB> What was it like working with blackbear and Machine Gun Kelly - what was your favourite  part? 

John> To be able to collaborate with true artists who are both trusting and understanding of the process, yet completely uncompromising and dedicated to taking big risks in order to produce bold imagery is unbeatable - something I constantly strive for. It’s too easy to make any work that drifts into the sea of average. In such a democratised medium as music videos currently are, it’s thrilling to place stars in unorthodox roles as they take on personas and allow the viewer to experience who they are visually - a major part of what ultimately makes them so unique.

Jeremy> I really enjoyed this one from start to finish. There were many moving parts from the opening to Benny’s “News Bulletin” to the crime link analysis in blackbear’s office and the final set up in the shed, to the teasers that relied on more suspenseful, frenzied cutting and sound design, which I love to create.