"WHY" Single + Animated Music Video OUT NOW
Crissi Cochrane
My new single and music video are officially out TODAY! I am so thrilled to finally unveil the masterpiece that is the “Why” music video by Delaney Beaudoin. I sincerely feel that this work is the loveliest piece in my entire catalogue of projects, and I hope you find much to enjoy in the animation and the song, and discover new moments to savour on each re-watch and re-listen.
What follows is the official media release sent out this morning - read on for more details on the making of “Why”. And please be sure to watch, like, subscribe, and otherwise stay connected and spread the word about “Why”!
Crissi Cochrane releases emotional new single and animated music video, “Why”
A must-see music video tells the story of star-crossed lovers in the 1920s, animated. byDelaney Beaudoin and accompanying the latest single by pop/soul singer-songwriter Crissi Cochrane
A still from the animated music video for Crissi Cochrane’s song “Why”, created by Delaney Beaudoin.
Windsor, Ontario, CANADA (Thursday, September 23, 2021) - Crissi Cochrane's latest pop/soul single “Why” relates an emotional story of star-crossed lovers in a recording produced by Windsor artists Mike Hargreaves and Dane Roberts, and a breath-taking animated music video created by Windsor artist Delaney Beaudoin, both released today.
While taking inspiration from narratives of unrequited love in historical fiction and classic literature, “Why” is entirely modern: swelling horns, bossy bass-lines, and a searing guitar solo create landscapes filled with bittersweet urgency, where Crissi's sultry and romantic vocals soar. The recording taps into Crissi's singer-songwriter roots with the input of assistant producer and folk/rock artist Dane Roberts, and honours her pop/soul aesthetic with the intuition of Crissi's husband and producer, singer-songwriter Mike Hargreaves.
While taking inspiration from narratives of unrequited love in historical fiction and classic literature, “Why” is entirely modern: swelling horns, bossy bass-lines, and a searing guitar solo create landscapes filled with bittersweet urgency, where Crissi's sultry and romantic vocals soar. The recording taps into Crissi's singer-songwriter roots with the input of assistant producer and folk/rock artist Dane Roberts, and honours her pop/soul aesthetic with the intuition of Crissi's husband and producer, singer-songwriter Mike Hargreaves.
Delaney’s work on the project was part of her co-op credit towards her animation degree at Sheridan College, and is her first full-length solo project.
“It was such an exciting opportunity to collaborate with Crissi on this project and bring her vision to life,” says Delaney. “This was my first project of this scope and a great exploration of directing and aspects of animation I hadn’t yet explored.”
The music video is entirely 2D hand-drawn animation, set in the 1920s and starring a seamstress who creates garments that come to life around her and re-enact memories with a lost love. Each memory ends in a moment of missed connection, building to a climax with a heart-breaking finish that proves it all to be mere fantasy. “Animation is such a beloved medium of storytelling,” Crissi explains in an Interview with the Artists video hosted by Vanessa Shields and published today on YouTube. “We were able to create moments of poetry that we never could have accomplished with traditional music video story-telling.”
In particular, the project's animation created opportunities for sewing to carry metaphors about art and life. “In one of my favourite moments of the video, the seamstress is weeping, and her tear becomes a pearl bead that she catches on her needle, and it becomes part of an embroidered pattern,” explains Crissi. “I feel that it's a great metaphor for what we do as artists, and it calls to mind the Carrie Fisher quote, 'Take your broken heart and turn it into art.'” In another favourite moment, the seamstress turns to stitches that are ripped out and pulled away. “I feel that this is a great metaphor for the impermanence of everything. These two metaphors are really what inform me and drive me as an artist. To get to see them captured in a video like this, moves me to tears every time.”
Presented in partnership with Soul City Music Co-op, Crissi Cochrane's 2021 single “Why” is available now on all streaming platforms, and the animated music video is available now on YouTube.
