Emmy The Great: Algorithm
Chinese-English singer-songwriter Emma-Lee Moss, aka Emmy the Great, collaborated with London-based artist Daniel Swan (who’s done music videos for Django Django and PC Music’s Life Sim between his own avant-garde work) for her track “Algorithm.” In the vein of calculations that lead us where to eat, who to date and what to buy, the duo wanted to use an algorithm to write a music video. Enlisting the help of programmer and artist Nicolas Seymour-Smith, they compiled synopses of classic and modern music videos, fed it into a machine, and taught it how to generate plots based on its knowledge. The resulting video for “Algorithm” mashes up some familiar YouTube videos and text like “The girl and the singer Justin Bieber are depicted as enamored with their boots.” Generate your own music video treatment at Emmy the Great’s website, where a smaller version of the machine awaits; simply type in a name to get started. Her album Second Love releases this week, 11 March, on Bella Union.
