While bright visual artistry, an alluring plot, and an infectious melody all characterize Kygo and Selena Gomez’s newest music video for “It Ain’t Me,” a lack of convergence of these individually compelling elements translates into altogether detachment.
Released as a single on Feb. 16 and as a music video on April 24 by Interscope and Ultra, “It Ain’t Me” serves as the first tease for DJ Kygo’s second studio album. The song itself conveys the dissolution of a relationship plagued by debilitating partying and alcoholism.
The video commences with a couple suiting up for a motorcycle excursion in the dark. While coasting down an empty curved road, an unforeseen flash of light blinds them, causing the male driver to swerve and flip the bike. The woman, clad in red leather, peels off her helmet to reveal her horrified expression as she gazes upon her immobile partner. She removes his helmet and exposes his cut face, the moment which ushers in Gomez’s raw vocals.
A series of clips exhibits a slew of physicians attempting to revive the man, but he ultimately remains in a coma as the woman anxiously paces his hospital room.
We then enter into the surreal realm of the man’s subconscious, a state enveloped by a violent cobalt mist, which a healthy, albeit dazed, version of him stumbles through. The woman, whose desolation transforms into peaceful bliss and pacing molds into dancing, places her headphones on her partner, and his subconscious erupts into a multitude of varying colors that shift instantaneously with the music.
The closing of the video captures the man’s waking, a miracle met with the stark absence of his partner.
While the independent features of music, plot, and visuals intrigue, together they each seem to move past each other, never achieving true accord. This translates into a wholly discordant art piece that does no justice for the endless possibilities for creation that the song allows.
Although “It Ain’t Me” certainly draws attention, it fails to hold it due to an absence of concept fluidity.
Featured Image By Interscope Records
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