LOS ANGELES, CA- An LA-based artist that we’ve been very excited about since we caught her performance at LA Pride in 2019 is Flavia. Her music always slaps. Always.
Her latest single, “Them”, is another banger. With Timbaland like production value, the track’s sonics are on point. But the track isn’t just ear candy. It’s an anthem about being how “unapologetically yourself”, and in doing so, “the world will follow”, as it’s beautifully directed music video proclaims at its conclusion.
We were able to briefly catch up with Flavia to ask her about the new track and its video.
************************************
You’ve been very supportive of the LGBTQ community for as long as I’ve known you. What motivated you to write this anthem?
I’m a queer artist and activist. Most of my activism comes through my music in some capacity. I think music has the power to change the world, and I feel lucky enough to have music and my art as an outlet to deal with and process my emotions. When I create music, it’s really important for me to make art that positively impacts people, that can bring us all closer together, even from a distance.
My song, “Them”, was inspired by a specific romance I had with a trans-masculine person, but the video’s intentions were to be inclusive of the entire trans/gender non-conforming/non-binary community. Through my relationship with this person, my eyes were opened up to how little I knew about the trans community beyond the surface. I became so much more aware of how underrepresented they were in popular media and that I wanted to help change that. I’m very grateful for my time and experiences with this person, as I learned through their openness and my own new seeing how powerful language truly is, and how impactful a word choice can be for someone. Whether it’s delineating between the use of ‘chest’ instead of ‘breasts’, or using someone’s correct pronouns, it can be the tiniest shift in our language that makes someone feel seen, validated, and respected.
Can you describe what it felt like to create that music video? I loved that final shot with everybody in the video singing the hook. Very powerful.
The “Them” video was directed by Basil Mironer who has been creative collaborators for the last 5 years on everything from music videos and single covers, to visual projections during my live show. My entire life for over 3 weeks went into creating and prepping this video. Given that we were only a small team producing this (myself, Basil, and Kai Wes – a trans/NB producer, actor and trans activist), we had our work cut out for us. Bringing almost 50 of the most diverse, beautiful humans together into a room and creating a safe space and sense of community was a magical feeling, and shooting the day of was an incredibly profound experience for me. I am truly grateful for all the people that came together to make this video possible.
Follow Flavia on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
*********************
