Nostalgic NiteVibe

When it comes to hearing Creating Your Own Happiness, I know that a phrase like that is usually associated with manifesting and meditating on the goals we want to achieve, the love life we want, the social life we want, the opportunities and abundance we can receive. But for me, another definition of the phrase brings to mind me doing anything creative. One of my newfound outlets is curating and editing fan-made montage vids.

Initially starting off as a maladaptive night dream, one had whilst awake, Nostalgic NiteVibe is a birthed fan-made montage duology series that’s centered around the narrative of HBO’s Euphoria, as well as the subject of nighttime festivities. Featuring shots from Euphoria Season 1 and its two following Holiday special episodes (“Trouble Don’t Last Us Always/Part 1: Rue” and “Fuck Anyone Who’s Not A Sea Blob/Part 2: Jules”), as well as clips from various unrelated music videos, these montages play out their fantasy over a choice selection of noir-ish, electronic songs by American synthpop band, Chromatics.

So to get this artistic statement unfurled, I figured it would be best to tell you a story. It all started when I had finished a Euphoria Season 1 binge, with the uncertain ending of Rue’s fate being determined through fan theories. Like the obsessive creative I am when watching a show, I became so emotionally invested that I imagined myself into the show’s narrative, effecting change. I started this ritual by walking around in my room, in circles while listening to music, whatever the shuffle could conjure. Feeling unsatisfied, I decided to search for some new tunes on Apple Music. I came across this band named Chromatics, who I've heard of but didn’t really remember their music. I came across a song they have - “Cherry”. And instantly, I got mentally zapped back to 2014, when I was still attending Midwood High School. I heard a song called “Man of the Year” by Schoolboy Q which, come to find out, sampled “Cherry”’s entire instrumental, save for an added layer of trap/west coast hip hop beats. That was also a time when I had a crush on someone who would cap off a long line of future unrequited lovers. So that was a sad nostalgia all on its own for me. Yet, feeling all of these feelings while bumping to the funky, groovy yet crooning track that was “Cherry”, I decided to give the titular deluxe EP a listen for similar songs. What I’ve found and kept, permanently downloaded, were the songs - “I Can’t Keep Running”, “Hands In The Dark”, “Cherry”, “Cherry (Vocals)”, and “Cherry (Instrumental)”. I then did some further digging on YouTube and acquired the alternate, original version of “I Can’t Keep Running” that featured a monologue exchange from lead singer Ruth Radelet calling out to “Cherry”. And that in my mind also reminded me of Rue calling out to Jules.

When I heard the lyrics that were present in fourfold “I Can’t Keep Running”, its original version as well, “Cherry”, and “Cherry (Vocals)” - “Cherry - Can be very sweet when she needs a friend - But it’s only - A mask that she wears so she can pretend - And I can’t keep running - All of the time - No, I can’t keep running - All of the time…” - I knew this was something I needed to work with in a project. Instantly I envisioned a night-type vibe of video. With Euphoria still being on my mind after the binge, I imagined an imaginary scene between Rue and Jules, and eventually the main characters, in which they would be roller skating at a rink and eventually through the streets of suburbia at night, with “Cherry” by Chromatics playing in the background. The cinematography would be similar to Summer Walker’s “Girls Need Love” music video, which also served as influence and integral visual in the montage series second part.

But we needed to know how we got there. That’s the thing - when it comes to dealing with uncomfortable feelings, we often try to disassociate and become nihilists but that’s not helping in the long run. I express this because I wanted to disclose that these montage videos signify an emotional state that I’m currently in which feels disheveled. So I thought about making a Part 1 - entitled, Nostalgia. A video that would focus on the beautifully flawed romance of Rue and Jules in Euphoria. It would start off with the ambient, suspenseful instrumental of “I Can’t Keep Running (Original)” followed by its sound bit of Ruth Radelet’s message to “Cherry”, juxtaposed over a shot of Rue and Jules having a heartfelt goodbye. It would then continue forward to the bassless beat that would kinda float in the original and new versions of “I Can’t Keep Running” that I would edit back and forth between too, to simulate a sonic climax in certain parts of the videos. As I would show their love life in the span of the song’s length, I would include a teaser to the second part of the montage series, playing out on “Cherry (Vocals)” beat as I show not only Rue and Jules from Euphoria but also various songstress’ in their respective music videos as I include them in this montage. The music videos would serve as incorporated archival footage, and the songstress’ playing as my characters would seem a little down or reserved. The starting intro of “Cherry” would play out dynamically before cutting off as the beat drops.

Going back to the plot of the Second Part - monomonously titled NiteVibe, the teaser at the end of the first part would now be the intro to this video. The montage would either stay on a static screen shot or CUT TO BLACK before a title card for NightVibe (or NiteVibe) Part 2, would appear. It would then be a much more upbeat yet still moody, dancier video, showing shots of roller skating and genuine bliss in night activities. As the song and video finishes, I would make an after credits sequence with clips from the people I’ve featured, followed by their name drops as I give thanks to the creators of said works. It would play out to “Cherry (Instrumental)”.

Now my reason for having two parts in the first place is because this montage series is meant to spiritually represent not only what I may think and feel at those times, but what others may experience mentally and emotionally as well when dwelling into an irrefutable factor - the past. No matter how hard we try, we can’t seem to let it go. Even with COVID having us cooped up in quarantine, we keep reminiscing on how things used to be and what we want things to become. We’re not locked in all the way in the present. Part One is for sitting in the dugout, processing the grief of what could’ve been - whether it’s a failed relationship, friendship, or missed opportunity. Part Two is for acknowledging the pain is still there but choosing to heal through it by dancing away the sorrows. And in the end, you’ll realize that you’ll be okay.

I got the idea for the title just by the aesthetics of the visual references alone. I was inspired by the title of Tinashe’s album/mixtape, NIGHTRIDE, and wanted to pay a little homage to that era but in my own artistic expression. Another reason why this series is genosized. This series is also something that can procure my happiness because I want to further my editing skills and lately I’ve just been thinking about night time again and what it does for me, along with the idea of skating. So with that being said, I present to you:

The rough cut of Part 1, which at first was named NightVibe, but will be retitled as Nostalgia and re-published in this soon. So enjoy and stay tuned...