Q: “Every Inch” is such an emotive and sensual track. Is there anything specific you hope audiences will get from the track?
GARRETT: Honestly, I felt like people needed a song that just made you feel sexy, and confident, and wanted you to explore deeper parts of yourself… and possibly, deeper parts of some body else, too. 🙂 We’ve been through so much as a collective in the past year plus, and it’s time we feel ourselves… and have some freaking fun! “Sexy times for everyone” is my vibe right now.
Q: The music video for “Every Inch” is styled by Ilaria Lepore. How did this collaboration come about and how did it evolve throughout the music video’s production?
GARRETT: I met Ilaria at her store on Brick Lane not long after moving to London, and we just hit it off. She liked my music, and it was just a natural progression of collaborating together. I love her clothes, and coming to London after a couple of years living in Berlin, her aesthetic fit naturally with my life as well as my art. I’ve been lucky to have her be willing to just lend me clothes as well as her store for performances, etc. She’s a really cool chick.
Q: What was the biggest challenge you faced while shooting the music video?
GARRETT: Well, we were in Scotland, and the weather was all over the place! It was the last day we were there… and it had been stormy until then. For my full vision of the video, we needed a perfect sunny day… and we had it on the morning we were to drive back to London, but honestly, we were time crunched, and after several days of shooting in stormy weather… I was exhausted! But the energy sort of peaked through the clouds, just as the sun did, and we found this perfect beach… and just went for it! I’m glad we did, because we almost just drove back to London and gave up when another location didn’t quite work.
Q: You grew up in New York City and now live in London. How have these two breathtaking cities affected your artistic identity?
GARRETT: New York taught me everything I know. I grew up fast, and started modeling at 15 years old, and was going out all the time with a crew much older than me. I don’t feel like I lost my innocence too early, but I did have so much fun… and it felt like I could conquer anything. That feeling has lasted with me, and I’m thankful for that… because London definitely influences me (especially music, since UKG and house is very present in my own tracks), but I’ll always be that bad ass original I was. New York runs through my blood.
Q: As live performances become a reality again, what is up next for you?
GARRETT: I have my next show at The Old Bank Vault here in London on Wednesday, July 21st… and I was able to perform for the first time in a year and a half last week. Since I’m a trained dancer, and love doing my infamous splits on stage, I’ve really been missing this aspect of my art. So that’s the plan… do as many splits on stages, all summer long and beyond!!!!!
Interviewed by Sarah Scott
FOLLOW GARRETT PAKNIS:
