You're listening to Song Exploder, where musicians take apart their songs and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made. I'm Rishikesh Herway. This is Key Change, where I talk to fascinating people about the music that changed their lives. My guest today is Demi Edijuibe. One of the things that makes Demi so special is how hard it is to summarize him in an intro like this, because he has so many talents and applies them in so many different ways. He's a stand-up comedian with a brand new one-hour special out on Dropout TV. He co-hosted the podcast's Gilmore Guys and Punch Up the Jam. He's a screenwriter who wrote on TV shows like The Good Place. He's famous on the internet for his parody songs, spoofing artists like Will Smith and Lana Del Rey, and for his September videos, where for years he made increasingly elaborate videos of himself dancing to the Earth-winded Fire Song, and he's the popularity of those videos to raise over a million dollars for charity. He's also directed several music videos, including one that he made for one of my songs back in 2022. And for this episode, we're talking as much about a music video as the song within it. And that song is... You only live once by the strokes. If my math is right, you were 13 years old when that came out? Wait, so this album came out 2006, I believe. So I do believe I was 13, yes. Is that when you first encountered the song? No, I must have encountered it a little bit later. So my introduction to the strokes as a whole only came because of Guitar Hero. That must have been around 2005, I want to say. And this album came out of your later, but I didn't get really into the strokes until I was 15. And this album was my first favorite album. And this song, Crazy Up, The Music Video for this song, is a video that it convinced me that I wanted to work in film, that I wanted to do visual graphics, actually. And I wrote an essay about it that was my college application essay and got me into the college I went to. Genuinely, this song is responsible for a large trajectory of my current career. Wow. Let's go back to the Guitar Hero part. Was that an important game for you? Yeah. It was such a big thing to me because I did not have my own sense of musical taste. Like I had an iPod and it was just filled like, I've heard the song on the radio. I like this, sure, I guess. And it wasn't until these games came along Guitar Hero and Rock Band and had like sound tracks that I was invested in. And it was like, I'm playing this because I'm playing the game, but I have an active connection to this song, this soundtrack that makes me go, oh, these are the songs I like. And I feel like I didn't have musical taste that wasn't from video games for a long time after this. I think going into college it became like, oh, I'm learning about new bands and being told about this. And I'm, I have an active sense of discovery. But before that, it was just like, I'm playing a motocross game and this song plays a lot. I'm going to put it on my iPod. And then playing this game was the first time I was like, oh, I'm learning who these artists are. I'm seeing their discographies. Let me see what else they got. And the strokes was the first one where I was like, I like the way that playing this song feels. Oh, I want to learn to play this on piano. I want to learn different instruments to play these instruments because it's like, I think just the act of playing an instrument for the first time really with Guitar Hero made me just feel like, oh, this feels nice. And I wish I could do this for real. And you know, you get the sensation of being able to mine it with Guitar Hero and then with drums on Rock Band. But with the strokes, it felt like the music was so appealing to me in a way that it was like, this is for me now. So those games where you're gateway to learning music. Correct. I taught myself to play piano in fourth grade, but it wasn't until like Rock Band and Guitar Hero that I was like, this is what it feels like to play guitar. I understand the appeal. I understand the feeling. I want to do this for real. And I'm going to pursue it. And my trajectory with drums was also Rock Band came out. And I was loving playing the drums to the point that it was like, oh, I know how to map out the Rock Band drums in front of me. I wanted to imagine playing these with real drums. And it was like, there was a promo video they had for Rock Band where I think Stuart Copeland from the police is playing drums and being like, it's just like playing the real drums. And even at the time I was like, I know you're getting paid to say this, but it worked on me. And I was like, I do feel like it is close enough. And it was like then I started mapping out just real drums in my head. And for years, I would be like, I'm learning the drums without playing the drums. Like, you sort of karate kids. Just like, you'll play on air. You will wash this car. You will never set foot in a dough, Joe. And I'm like, that's, it's not a great way to do it. But it was like because of Rock Band, I was like genuinely dedicated to doing it. And it's like, it was fully my introduction to music and playing music. And it was a gateway in another way because the song you're talking about, you only live once, wasn't on Guitar Hero, right? So first the game had to lead you to the band and then to, to then this album, which is the first impressions of Earth. And it felt both futuristic and sort of like classic to me in a way that I was like, oh my God, they're talking about the future. They're talking about the climate. They're talking about love and all these things. And like, oh, I want to ask this girl to prom. What if I sing this song to her and it's like, thank God I didn't know that I just imagined. Every time I hear the song, red light, I'm like, this was the most romantic song I'd ever heard in my life up until that point. And you only live once was just such a fun song. It's got so many like high moments in it and it's so like moving, but also has like a bit of a quiet build in the beginning. And I think it just felt very much like a song that was accessible, but also interesting to me. So did you already know the song when you first saw the music video or was the music video the first time you heard the song? Yeah, I think that I'd already known the song. And there are actually two music videos, which is one of the reasons that I was, I think, so obsessed with the one that I wrote the essay about because they have the official music video, which is like them performing in this room that slowly starts filling up with oil. And I was just like, cool, music video, whatever. But there was another music video that is almost entirely just like CGI and digital graphics was made by Warren Foo. I don't know the story behind it. It was like just an alternate video or whatnot, but it's set in space. And it's like this spaceship that is projecting footage of them as other tasks are happening. And I remember being so enamored by it. I remember thinking like, this is a really cool application of what like visual graphics can do. This is what I want to do when I came to LA being like, I'm going to be a visual effects guy. This video I watch on loop so many times. And I still remember like little moments of like bars loading and things coming out of like a console. And I was just like, how they do that? None of this is filmed. How did he do this? It also reminded me that music videos as a whole can just be art pieces. And it's like, you don't really have to tell the story you can, but you can just be like, I'm going to do something with video graphics. And that really sort of captivated me. How did you even find the video, especially if it wasn't the official video? It was on Vimeo. It was like on the director's Vimeo. And I'm now like, how did I find that at all? And I think it was like, you know, that thing of like you get so involved into a band or you just get so into them, you just start looking for new things like this was on the Japanese release. And this was on the New York release of this album. I think this is one of the things that people were like, this is the unofficial video, like he made this, but didn't release it or the label didn't like it or whatnot. There are a lot of things in my life like that when I was younger where I get really invested in something, just go like digging for every a femoral thing around it. But I think that's how the video came to me. How did you decide that that was going to be the subject of your college essay? We had to do presentations in high school in my English class. And I did one on this music video and like did a bunch of visual effects stuff around it and like after effects. And my teacher was like, that's really good. I think he's right about this. And shout out to Miss Dobbs, my 12th grading list teacher for that inspiration. And I did and I got into UT and I was like, wow, cool. Time to do visual effects and I kind of did not. I did, but also then was like, oh, writing, huh? Yeah, I can do that. Do you think if you'd seen the exact same music video, but with a different song behind it, it would have hit you in the same way? I think it would not have. I'm also so specific when it comes to music, which is what? I'm really bad at discovering music to this day. Really? That's so surprising to me. Really? Yeah, because I think of you as such a music obsessive. You have such strong feelings and such in-depth thoughts about music. I think that is true, but I think it's always about the same things. Like I think for the last maybe 10 years now, my Spotify rap has just been the same artist sort of like rotating. When I find an artist I like, I get really invested in them. I care about them so much and I think so deeply about their work. It inspires me and I'm like, oh, that's the kind of thing I would love to make if I made music. But then I think in terms of discovering new things, I'm really bad about doing that. I think if this was a music video that was set to another song, I would just be like, this isn't the feel of the song, or like it doesn't create that sort of like synchronicity in my head. This is what the song is supposed to feel like. And I think even when I watch the original music, like the official music video, I'm just sort of like, this is good, but it's not the feel of the song to me. Yeah. So I think having that music video be exactly how it feels, even down to like in my head, it's like there are colors for this song. The real music video is too bright. That doesn't work. It's weird that it's all white, but this one is dark and it's like neon and that's what the album is. So that's right to me. Before you came over, I was thinking about the distinction between the song that changed your life the most and your favorite song. They don't have to be the same thing. Yeah, no. I mean, I think a song can change your life and be a song I absolutely hate, but I also, I don't think, I don't think I call this my favorite song, but I also, I don't think I'd call them my favorite band for, oh, they were my first favorite band for sure. Like they were the first band that I was like, this is something that I've chosen that I am actively engaged in. And I would classify the band and the song as having changed my life because they made some of my strongest and first friends in college because we bonded by just our love of the strokes. I would like sit in the common area and hear this other guy play the strokes and talk to him about it. And then we both befriended this other woman who then told us about radio head. And that's how I became a fan of radio head. And it changed my life and that it gave me a sense of taste, I think, and also just made me realize what I wanted to do with my life. Like professionally, it's like, I just wanted to work in some visual medium. I don't think I would have found that without this song in this video. And I wouldn't say that it is my favorite of any of it. It's like probably not even my favorite music video. But it was the first step towards, yes, towards being able to say, this is what I like and this is what I don't like. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I remember having a moment in college, have you seen Subrisky Point? No, what is that? It's a movie from the 70s directed by Antonioni. There's a moment where a house blows up. And the music in that moment is done by Pink Floyd with Jerry Garcia. It's this incredible scene. They blow up this house and then there's this long sequence where all the contents of the house are just floating in space. And this psychedelic music plays. And I remember seeing that in college. And suddenly this thought that had kind of only been in the back of my head came rushing forward, which is that I want to make music for films. Yeah. It was such a big moment for me. And yet, it's not my favorite movie. Do you ever watch a movie and think like, I don't like the way this music is synced to the scene and think about how you do it differently? I feel like I have three different kinds of reactions to music and films. Either I notice it because I love it, or I notice it because I really don't like it. Or I don't notice it at all. And that could be good because it's just serving the scene or it could be bad because it's bland. But either way, I'm not paying attention to it. But I don't know that my brain then goes, what would I have done differently? I think with a lot of movies in general, I find myself going, here's what I would have done different. And I don't think I'd have the sense of being able to know what it is about those things until I developed my own sense of taste. And it's like this album and this song felt so fresh to me at the time, even though it's structurally so simple. I mean, two verses and two choruses and then it kind of goes out. It feels like it cuts short in a way that I'm like, oh, I like it. It builds in the right way to me. More with Demiha, did you eBay after this? So you only live once, help to establish your taste initially. But what about nowadays? Like when you go to make new work, whether it's something for yourself or you're making a music video for somebody else, are you consciously thinking about the things that you liked or the reason why that appealed to you nowadays still? You know, it's funny. Is I think until you asked me that, I was like, I don't know that I do. And I'm like, no, I actually do because I think there's a lot of times where I hear a certain sting or like a small section of a song. And I'm like, it feels so important to me that that has to sync up with the song. Like in any visual representation of what I do, it's like, that little bit has to be connected because it's just like that is, it's like if I hear a long piece of music and it's like there's a part in there that just sticks out in a way, in my head, it's like everyone who hears that is going to think that sticks out. And I don't want the video to ignore it. And so I do think that because in my head, there is a right way to interpret the song or to have listen to it when you're like actively listen to every piece of it. And you're like, the drums do this thing here, like the bass is something here, like this changes in some way here. I'm like, it has to do the same thing in the video. And I think that is such a weird instinct within me for someone who's also just like, videos don't have to be anything. They can just be sort of like a piece of art attached to the song. But I think when I'm making it, I'm like, it's a piece of art that tells the same story that the song does. Is this a song that you still listen to these days? Like I'm wondering, has your taste grown to include more things or has it evolved in a way that left stuff that you listened to earlier in your life behind? Like are the strokes going to show up in your your endless? I don't think they'll show up in my year endless. But here's another thing that shows how bad I am with discovery. When I get into my car, when I'm just like, I want music to listen to, I will always always just listen to the same starred playlist that I've been starting since 2011. It's just if I like a song, I'll add it to that. So it's just like thousands of songs in this one playlist. But because of that, like stroke songs still come up and I still feel like every time I hear one, it'll be nostalgic. It'll be this like transporting me back to like, oh, remember when I was sitting in the dorms talking to my friends about this song, it still feels like I am having the same connections to all these songs to this one, especially because I think just the other day, actually, I think the same day that I told you I want to do this song, I was like, you know what? I haven't played this song on this set of drums and I'm going to play it. And I remembered that another thing I love about this song is that the way that the drums are mathematical in a way. Got it. And I'm like, I don't know how to describe this without either sounding crazy or like I'm doing a beautiful mind thing up here. But it basically is like going into the chorus, the pattern that Fabrizio Mareti plays on the drums, it's like crash, hi hat twice, crash, hi hat once, crash, no hi hat. And I've always been so fascinated by that because I think when I can see math in a pattern, I go, got it, makes sense to me. And so hearing that in the song made me go, oh, I understand how to play these on drums and it's such a fun part to play. I got an electronic drum kit, maybe a year and a half ago because I was like, I want to get back into playing drums and I have a space to do it now. And then I was like, I'm going to post videos of me playing drums as I'm getting back into it and like getting better at it. And the first song that I ever played was you only live once. And it was just comforting to play that again, like just understanding that pattern and seeing it just made me feel like, oh, I really do get this. It's playing a rhythm game again. When you hear the song, is there a specific scene that you get transported to, like a specific time in place in your memory? I get transported to my bedroom, my parents house, where I have a big rug mat that says dead end, like the dead end sign and then a dart board with Homer Simpson in Barth on it. And I used to have a record player and I would play so many of those records until they just got warped. That's where I get transported to just to playing this record and hearing the crackling of the album and then it going to the dint, dint, dint, dint, dint, and I'm like, oh, yeah, I'm home. I feel cool. I think it's also that's what it was to me. It's like this record felt cool. It's my taste. It's no one else. It like, this wasn't like a band that was big amongst my friends in school. It wasn't a band that my parents got me into. It was a band that's like, yeah, they're big enough to make it into a rhythm game like this. But to me, it was like, I discovered them and they are mine. And I think it just felt cool to be like, I have taste that like, I know people who are older than me and are cool also like them, but I like them too sincerely. And that makes me cool. And so I think I just feel like I'm back in my bedroom in high school just being like, I love the strokes. Have you ever heard this early version of the song that the strokes did, an early version that was called I'll try anything once? I had heard I'll try anything once in college, I believe. And I remember listening to it and being like, I don't like this as much as you only have once, but I also remember thinking it's so cool that you can just have like demo versions of a song like this or other versions of a song like this. And it sort of doesn't feel the same even though it's like, it's the same melody, it's the same harmony. And I don't think I had the words to be like, this is what that is, but just kind of feeling like, wait, it's a different version of the song. Why not just releases this is its own version? And I think that introduced me to the process of like demo tapes and of being like, what else can a song feel like? Well, and I love the way that that idea connects back to this phenomenon that there were two videos for this song and that they each had their own feeling totally. I guess related to that idea, have you ever thought about doing a parody of a stroke song? No, but I think that I couldn't only because when I do a parody of something, I think it's because I have such a grasp on like the little hallmarks of their musicality. But I think a lot of my favorite bands are like known for songwriting or for like strange choices. And it's like, I like them because I can't do that or I couldn't like come up with that. You said that you wanted to talk about this because it feels like it was a piece of the trajectory of your career. But because of where that piece falls, would it be overstating it to say that the entirety of your career kind of hinges on having seen this video? No, I mean, I think it's a fair thing. It's like me being here now and being in LA and doing any of the things that I've ever done is all because I was like, I wonder where I am about this music video. I think music videos are cool. Because I was so attached to this song, I decided to look into the band because I look inside of looking to the band. I found out about this video. I found out about Warren Foo and I looked into his filmography and like there's so many things he's done now that I'm just like, people are like, oh my god, he's worked with Taylor Swift. He does this. He's done this. I'm like, it's not going to make the strokes video also. Like that to me, he will always be that. Like friends have been like, oh, he works out of my gym and I'm like, that's awesome. Will you tell him that I love the video that he did for the strokes that never fully like officially came out? But I think it's like little works like that. And I think a lot about that to when there are things I make that I'm just like, I don't know that this works or that this is going to matter to anyone. It's like, yeah, but that's might have been what he thought about it. And maybe he's really proud of it. And I'm just putting words in his mouth. But the idea that this something I only found on Vimeo and it wasn't like, this is everywhere. This is what people consider the official video for this song. It wasn't even on YouTube at the time. I'm like, oh, that little thing that he made changed the trajectory of my life. And I think is so important is so cool. So I don't think it's unfair to say that at all. I think it's correct. I think that like my passion for this song and just connection to it and connection to the video made me realize that I liked music videos that I like art that I like directing that I'm really into visual effects. And it's like all of these things are completely responsible for me being a writer in a weird way and being into film and being a comedian and being like, oh, all these things that I want to do as a purpose of getting to one day do visual effects. Let me do the other things first and then be like, oh, I like the other things. Oh, I just like making movies. I just like filmmaking. Yeah. So I think it's important to trace it to that moment. Thank you so much, Demi. Thank you so much for having it. That's incredible. It's crazy to hear that. Here's a little post script. Hi, Demi. It's Warren. Warren, could you explain what the backstory was a little bit of how you made that video? Yeah. I mean, it was my first music video that song came out and it really inspired me. I said, this is like the most perfect song. So I had this idea, this visual came into my head of this story around that. And I was like, how do I get this to the strokes? I just Googled them, found their address with kid management. Okay, write that down. There are an RCA records write that down. And I made two copies of this presentation of storyboards, sent it off two packages. I got an email back from RCA record saying, who are you? And I think they snipped out that I wasn't a professional music video director at that time. Fortunately, the management side of things, they opened up that package. They saw the artwork and everything I put together. And then they showed it to Julian. Julian Casablakis from the strokes. And then I got a call from Julian. And he said something like, wow, this is like so perfect. Unfortunately, we just shot the San Bayer video. Obviously, a legendary director and he did an incredible video. And I was, but I was bummed that they already shot it. So all the money is gone. But he said, you know, can you ask the label for a little bit of money so we could still make this as an alternate version? When I say I directed that video a lot of people say, oh, you did the one where they're in this big white room and there's oil rising up. No, I didn't know. I did this other one that nobody saw. And so I just, I would not expect it to affect an inspire and other artists in that way. The theme of the video is sort of like, I was always fascinated with, you know, the Voyager missions, like when I first heard about Carl Sagan and then I put this little beacon, this little capsule of who we are as humans. And it's launched into space. And it's like this beacon land somewhere. And is there anybody there to hear it? Yeah. And so the video is sort of like that too, because it's this video I launched out there. Not a lot of people saw it, but seems like he found the beacon. He's a super talented person. And I'm honored to be a part of his journey. Demi's comedy special is called Demi Edigee Weebe is going to do one backflip. And it's out now on Dropout TV. You can also follow Demi on Instagram and other places. He uses the handle at Electrolemin. He is very fun to follow. Also, check out all of Warren Foo's incredible work at WarrenFoo.com. And on his website, you can find the video made for the Stroke song you only live once. Visit songexploter.net slash key change for more key change episodes. And for a playlist with all the songs that have been discussed. This episode was produced by me and Mary Dolan with production assistance from Tiger Biscoop. Huge thanks to WarrenFoo for being part of this episode. And special thanks to LisiWeb. Song Exploder is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent listener supported artist-owned podcasts. You can learn more about our shows at radiotopia.fm. And if you'd like to hear more from me, you can subscribe to my newsletter. You can find a link to it on the songexploder website. You can also get a songexploder t-shirt at songexploder.net slash shirt. I'm Rishikesh Herway. Thanks for listening. PRX For the first time, there's going to be an Oscar for achievement in casting. And the kitchen sisters are going to take us behind the scenes to meet the Academy Award nominees and learn about the mysterious, fascinating world of film casting. Plus, it's hosted by four-time Oscar winner Francis McNorman. So check out the kitchen sisters present, everyone's a casting director, the first ever Academy Award for achievement in casting in the 98-year history of the Academy Awards. I can't wait to listen. Check it out at kitchencisters.org or wherever you get your podcasts.
