JESJESSE JO STARK RELEASES “SO BAD,” A NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO Featuring Jesse Rutherford
Jesse Jo Stark, a Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter, has released her new single “so awful,” paired with a scorching hot music video. Both the song and the video have a fierce sensuality and striking flair that is characteristic of Stark’s work, which is honest and real.
Michael Harris (HAIM, Angel Olsen) and Jesse Rutherford (The Neighbourhood) co-produced “so awful,” which also features Jesse Rutherford’s vocals. The tune is insatiably catchy and reverberates with an underlying edginess, buttery smooth and with an ambient tone. It’s a song that acknowledges the duality of good and bad, as well as the fact that we occasionally choose what we want above what is genuinely beneficial for us.
“Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different outcomes,” Stark says. “‘So awful’ is about the vicious cycle of pursuing something you desire despite knowing it’s unhealthy for you.”
The accompanying music video, directed by Ramez Silyan (Everybody’s Everything), has cameos from figures from Stark’s life, including her father, Richard Stark (Chrome Hearts), Steve Jones (Sex Pistols), Luka Sabbat, and Rutherford. We see Stark seek vengeance on those who have wronged her brother (having returned home missing an eye). Stark goes on a visceral and action-packed spree, complete with fantastic one-liners (“Eye for an eye / Dead even”) and vigilante justice, in a Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez-style. Little allusions to the aforementioned filmmakers can be seen throughout the video, especially in Tarantino’s Kill Bill franchise — from a handwritten list on a notepad to a tracking shot of a lady in a skirt holding a keychain that resembles a weapon used against the Bride/Black Mamba (Uma Thurman).
The opening single off Stark’s impending new album, DOOMED, is “so terrible.” The 11-track album is one of Stark’s most personal works to date, encapsulating all of the different colors and opposing characteristics present within a person, from the intimate to the obscure.
“The record explores life’s duality, such as love and grief, light and darkness, glamour and horror,” Stark explains. “I don’t believe we are all just one thing, so I provide everything I have.”
Stark is a multi-dimensional artist who spends her time not only making music but also establishing a foothold as a designer, creating custom items for musicians such as Post Malone, Orville Peck, and Yungblud. She comes from a hardworking artistic family (her father founded the American brand Chrome Hearts). Stark started her own merch firm, Deadly Doll (named after one of her songs), to combine her abilities and cross-pollinate between fashion and music, seeking ways to push limits in both sectors.
Stark began her musical career at an early age, writing her first song at the age of seven and creating her first band at the age of eleven. Since 2017, she has released solo singles and performed with The Heavy, as well as opening for Guns N’ Roses and Jane’s Addiction. Last year, she was cast in the five-part episodic drama “Fracture” by French fashion label Balmain and Channel 4, for which Stark composed original music.
For more on Jesse Jo Stark, make sure to visit her website and follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
