Rising star Brinn Black’s newest music video, 72’s, is a glorious cinematic “fix.” The piece was directed by Cory Brandon Clay (Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum, Keith Urban, CMA Fest, CMT) and edited by Jake Bonham for The Jukebox Romeos.
Who created the concept and how would you best describe the final video?
Cory and I came up with it together while we were brainstorming over sushi. The superbloom was happening in LA at the time, so It was really important to me that we showcase the beauty of it. Especially with the contrast of the damage from the wildfires surrounding it. I felt like it was a beautiful metaphor for the song, and the story.
For the most part, we just wanted the video to portray where I was in my relationship at the time when we wrote the song, because so many people go through similar situations. I really wanted it to be relatable, while still staying true to my story as well.
Were there any funny stories about the creation or the genesis for the video?
Yes! The whole experience was such a God thing. I really wanted to shoot a music video while I was in LA for the month, but had no idea how it would all come together. Thanks to social media, I found out that my good friend Cory, who I met in Nashville, was back in LA, so I reached out to him to catch up. While we were hanging out, I told him about wanting to shoot a video, and he looked at me and said “Brinn, you know that’s what I do right?” And in that moment we decided we were gonna make it happen.
Then, in one of my Writing Sessions, my co-writer Jake, (who my Nashville friend Kate from the duo Hasting &Co. Connected me with) mentioned that he was a film and music video director/editor... so I suggested him, Cory and I get coffee to brainstorm and figure out how we were gonna make it happen.
We had coffee on a Friday morning, and we shot the video 4 days later on The following Tuesday.
Honestly, everything fell into place better than I could’ve ever planned.
Even the beautiful convertible we used was a blessing.
Originally we wanted a vintage convertible like a 98 VW Cabrio, but we weren’t able to find one available to rent in that short amount of time, so I called a friend I had made while traveling back at and forth to LA over the years. His name is Louis, and he works at the LAX Hertz location. We met on one of my first writing trips, after my dog. Mollie, caught his eye because she reminded him of his fur baby who had just passed away. We struck up a conversation about our love for animals, and have been friends ever since.
Louis came through big time for the video and saved the day! As of the night before the video, we weren’t sure if we were gonna be able to have a convertible, but he talked to his manager, and they gave me several options to choose from.
Seeing as a Mercedes convertible has always been my dream car, I immediately picked that one and was SO excited.
I should have had them give me a rundown on how to work all the controls though, because during the entire filming, we couldn’t figure out how to work the fancy stereo system, so we drove around with no music.
Another funny story is that the bar scene wasn’t supposed to happen, but I’m so glad it did. We were filming the last shot of the day, and one of Cory‘s friends happen to walk by while we were filming. Her friend is the bar manager at the bar we ended up filming at, and they invited us to film there so they could be in the video, and It turned out to be the perfect piece of storyline we needed to wrap up the video.
What can you tell us about the locations you used for the video shoot?
We used an ADORABLE Airbnb in Venice for the interior shots, and then hopped in the car and explored the beauty of Malibu, and Southern California. We would stop at different places up the coast that inspired us as we drove along.
Did you know the lead male actor – or how did you find him?
No, but we are friends now. I found him on a casting website. It felt like I was on a dating app or something.. there were 3,000 guys to choose from, but he was the only one that had tattoos (like my actual boyfriend behind the song) and was an occasional smoker. We wanted it to feel authentic, and unstaged. Ben was a PRO... he brought out the part of me that we needed to tell the story, while making me feel extremely comfortable. Thanks to him, I learned so much about the art of acting! It was an amazing experience.
In your opinion, what made this video special and different from your other music videos?
This video was special for many reasons, but it definitely was the biggest production of any video I have ever done.What really made you it special with how free everyone was with the creative process, and how we all worked together to make the best possible visual to tell the story of the song.
Honestly, it was like I got to bring my childhood music dreams into reality. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience.
How would you describe the shooting process with Corey?
Corey went above and beyond for every shot. He even risked his life as he hung out the back of Jakes SUV to get some of the filming shots, and as he sat on the back of the convertible with the top down, while we were driving down the PCH.
Throughout the entire process, I learned so much about the art of film making from Corey. His is absolutely brilliant.
Also, this video would not have happened without Jake Bonham’s hard work, and creative input, both on set and in the editing process.
The argument scene in the bridge was Jakes vision, and it turned out to be such an important part of the video.
Were there any special pieces used in your wardrobe for the shoot?
The necklace I am wearing with both of the dresses is a gorgeous Coach necklace that was a gift from my late fiancé, Erik. He would have been super proud of this song and video.
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