Are you ready for some more Birgit? Today, the three power womxn of the Berlin-based post-glam doom band Birgit Jones released the music video to their new single “Secrets”. In collaboration with talented Berlin-based director DISZIPLIN, our former artist of the week has created a visual piece of art that will sweep even the most critical music fans off their feet and onto the dancefloor. So, buckle up for some spicy scenes, accompanied by Birgit's trademark steaming-hot sounds in the new music video to "SECRETS".
Although Birgit only spilt the beans on her single release last week, she couldn't hold back any longer to spoil you with the juicy details of her latest break-up story. Different from other songs of this kind, "Secrets" is not about unfaithfulness and heartache in a relationship, but about gambling and theft. "A refreshing approach", as described by video director DISZIPLIN, which he brilliantly translated into visuals and cinematography in the clip.
“Birgit is no moral compass but a realistic character with many facets.”
Kristin Jones
As we know from past interviews, Birgit - represented by band members Kristin (bass), Rike (vocals), and Nathalie (drums) - was conceived from a collective of shared experiences and sentiments of several womxn. This latest song's story is written in a similar patchwork kind of manner. In other words: none of the three has had a similar experience to “Secrets” themselves. Instead, Birgit processes a collective of experiences in her songs.
The dream trio behind Birgit’s queendom likes to point out that the beloved character is by far neither the victim nor the hero of any of her stories. In “Secrets” just as well as in other tales of hers, Birgit primarily looks after herself. At the beginning of the video, she is the one whose car got stolen and gambled. In a funny twist, the story ends with her meeting a guy with a car, which she is trying to charm into her possession - because this girl can!
“Nowadays, we are just constantly bombarded with heteronormative stories. I think it’s very unfair to how diverse the world is.”
DISZIPLIN
AN ODE TO BREAKING FREE
In this video, Birgit proves again that she cannot be reduced to the limited capacity of heteronormative storytelling. Truly, the funky character has never failed to surprise us with her empowering song lyrics, and DISZIPLIN's clever cinematography and visual storytelling only serve to enhance their meaning. His creative mind, cherishing a love affair with dramatic elements as much as the next guy, complemented Birgit's vision on this project flawlessly. Quite frankly, his work ended up exceeding her expectations while always keeping a cool head, as Birgit Jones' members point out. A real overachiever, isn’t he?
In “Secrets” Birgit is sick and tired of keeping up with her girlfriend’s gambling issues. While the overall story is being interpreted more freely in the video production, the universal message of the song maintains. With the lyrics "Did you really think we would stay together? I know better - this is goodbye forever", Birgit screams a big FUCK YOU to all those who fail to appreciate their partners. At the same time, she provides a wake-up call for all those in need, overdue of finally standing up for themselves and making their own decisions no matter the consequences. “An interesting way of presenting strong female character”, as DISZIPLIN describes it.
The video enhances this very message by visually nudging the viewer in the right direction. It goes without saying that the choreography of the three womxn is 100% contagious but there is much more to this dance than just making you want to bounce along. While all fans of the movie “First Wives Club” will now smack their foreheads, here's a little 101 for all fellow movie bums, like me. The choreography is a homage to the film's final scene. Here, the three main characters swing their legs to the song “You Don’t Own Me”, showing off the glow and power that can come with the end of a relationship. Borrowing her moves from "First Wives Club", Birgit chooses to honor feminist icons of the big screen and express the important message of: Don’t you worry hun, you gonna be just fine!
This makes you wonder … are there more hidden secrets in the video? Well, “that’s something for the viewer to discover” (- DISZIPLIN).
“Empowerment in this case can be linked to the fact that we do not see, do not want to see, and should not see other women as competition. We as women simply have to stick together and celebrate each other!” -
Kristin Jones
UPLIFTING AS A FORM OF EMPOWERMENT
True to this, the cast of the main characters is made up of various musicians from other bands like Squit Smoking and JAGUWAR. Hence, Oyèmi (bass of JAGUWAR), breathes life into Birgit’s character, while Lu (bass of Squid Smoking) successfully embodies the red devil of the story. This way, the womxn manage to empower one another and set a pristine example of seeing other bands as colleagues rather than competition.
“I think we would totally pass the Bechdel test”, DISZIPLIN explains when he comments on the link between the music video and the matter of equality and equal rights. The Bechdel test is a way to measure the portrayal of female characters in fiction. It analyzes how many women are featured, how many have a dialogue without discussing the topic of a man, what their goals are etc. Since the cast is like the video’s storyline - truly diverse and non-stereotypical - we believe that the test would’ve been an easy pass for the team behind “Secrets”.
“Shooting in many ways is like an assembling of an engine, and once it starts running you really got to go with it.”-
DISZIPLIN
Luckily, the Birgit x DISZIPLIN engine ran soft and smooth all the way. While this dream team is as ambitious, structured, and badass as it gets, they are sweet as honey when it comes to describing their collaboration. “10/10”, “It was a pleasure”, “the perfect match”, “a dream type of collaboration”. Sounds like a match made in heaven!
While Kristin, Rike, and Nathalie were able to relax on set, knowing DISZIPLIN would professionally handle the whole video production, he got motivated by the band's trust and enthusiasm linked to his work. “It was like the gasoline to my car”, he explains. DISZIPLIN managed to create an atmosphere that motivated all actors to give their best. Together, Birgit and DISZIPLIN tackled all challenges along the way, to finally end up with this forbidden treat of a music video, left for you to enjoy!
P.S.: There's one final revelation to make that will keep you hungry for more! Birgit’s last secret for today: Her first EP “Cheers to my Haters!” will be released on the 19th of March.
