Premiere: Zhuli Explores Her Own Luscious Atmosphere With “The One” Music Video
A COLOURFUL SPIN ON THE DULLNESS OF MODERN DATING – Zhuli invites us to escape into a world of vivid colors in her new “The One” music video. Inspired by her own experiences, “The One” is a candid tale of messy situationships and the chaos that follows it.
Creating an entirely unique atmosphere, the music video is a delicious mix of classic and contemporary as it flows from drenching Zhuli in bright, complementary colours, to bathing her in glamorous and soft lighting. She artfully plays with the video's aspect ratio and the pacing of the clips, offering a visual translation of the tumultuous heartbreak that weaves its way through the track.
Following the release of her debut single “IKEA”, which was released last year, Zhuli’s latest track offers us a second taste at her experimental take on modern indie pop. Check out the “The One” music video below, and read on to learn more about the creative process behind the video.
LUNA: Can you tell us a bit about the story behind “The One”? Where did the inspiration for the song come from?
ZHULI: The One was actually inspired by a messy breakup and a university deadline. My last assignment for uni was to make a capstone album and I had challenged myself to write and produce and record it all. Simultaneously I was going through my first and my messiest breakup. This song was one of those ones that just poured out of me – most of the lyrics are the same as what I wrote in half an hour in my shoebox apartment. The person I had just started seeing was on a date with someone else, and I was not handling it at all. The pain I was feeling in those moments didn’t feel justified or worth it, and I just wanted to run away. It’s funny cause the song meant something so different when I wrote it, but i still relate to it now!
LUNA: How would you compare the process behind making your debut single “IKEA” to your latest track?
ZHULI: So both these tracks were produced by my friend Harry James who I started working with in 2019. “IKEA” was the second song we wrote together, and it was a really fun, light-hearted writing session. “The One” was more personal as it came from a lot of emotion and anguish from me. Harry helped develop that emotion after it was written.
LUNA: What sparked your interest in pursuing music full time?
ZHULI: I’ve been doing music for at least 6 years – playing gigs around Sydney and writing with friends - but this is the beginning of my journey as an artist. I was ‘the singer’ at both primary school and high school, and I went on to study music at university. I definitely felt major imposter syndrome, and struggled with the idea of pursuing music because it felt so unstable and I felt like I'd been pushed into it by everyone around me. It was only when the pandemic hit and I went through some major lows that I really connected with my musicality and music became the way that I understood the world. I have never felt more right and sure in my path than right now, which I’m grateful for. Lots more music to come from me!
LUNA: The music video for “The One” jumps between different colours, as well as black and white filters. I'm curious if this has some sort of meaning to you?
ZHULI: To me, this music video sets up the vibe and aesthetic for Zhuli, and every set up relates to that. I wanted the color and vibes to be visually stimulating and contrasting but also connected to each other. It’s not so much a connection to the song as it is to the artist in general. We just vibed off the aesthetic and actually developed a lot of the scenes on the day.
LUNA: What was the creative process like for the music video? How does the final piece compare to your initial vision for it?
ZHULI: I am so lucky to have worked with a great team for this video. Cristobal, the director, and I had multiple zoom calls and he even did a test shoot where we tested out some outfits, lighting, and choreography. This song for me is emotional and pained, even though the lyrics are quite assertive, so I wanted the video to reflect that vibe. We planned it with mainly visuals in mind rather than a story, and Cristobal was amazing in organizing the set, projector, lighting whereas I did my own styling and makeup. The end product was exactly what I was after, if not better than what I expected!
LUNA: What are you most excited for people to see once the video’s released? Is there a specific scene that means more to you than others?
ZHULI: There are no specific scenes that mean more to me, but my favourite set up was the red vibes with the glove, which you see at the start of the second verse, but because of some phasing lighting issues we couldn’t actually use many of those shots. I am also obsessed with the spotlight microphone shot, which gives me such classic vibes. I think I'm really just excited for people to start seeing the visually expressive side of Zhuli!
LUNA: Is sharing the visual side of your music important to you? What made you opt for creating a music video for this track but not your debut one?
ZHULI: The visuals are so important to me! Whenever I write, I draw emotions from visual scenes, movies, and memories in my head. Sometimes I even brainstorm a potential music video to help me get more in the space of the song. I love both music and film, but together they can be so powerful. If I could make a music video for every song I write I would! “IKEA” was my debut release, and it was actually quite a scary process. I was so nervous about finally putting music out in the world, and I kinda felt like I wasn’t ready to make a video for it. I wanted to get the nerves out of the way, and start to figure out who I was as an artist before investing in a video, plus “IKEA” came out the week Sydney came out of a harsh lockdown which made it difficult to organize anyway. In saying that, I am considering making a little, homemade one for “IKEA” this year.
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weekly tunes playlist has been updated! new tracks from @furtradeband, @pecqband, @garryfool & more! check it out! https://t.co/ToFU0R6YGo -
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RT @oliviaborch: new @LunaCollective out todayyy shot by @alltookev ✨ @P1H_official editorial design by me ! https://t.co/cvSCKsWB5D
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RT @rlyblonde: @AnnieDirusso for @LunaCollective shot by me #35mm #portra800 https://t.co/0UUJSCBGcH
