FKA Twigs Says She’s Thankful Lil Nas X Addressed “Montero” & “Cellophane” Video Similarities
In a post on Instagram, FKA Twigs shared: “I think what you have done is amazing and I fully support your expression and bravery in pushing culture forward for the queer community.”
Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” video has had the Internet in a frenzy since he dropped it last week.
Immediately after it arrived, social media users were calling out the fact that the visual was similar to FKA Twigs’ “Cellophane” video. In fact, last week, Andrew Thomas Huang, the director of “Cellophane” shared quite a few thoughts via a Twitter thread. He noted that he’s a fan of Lil Nas X and that “sharing aesthetics and paying homage is part of the creative process.” But, he also urged major labels to do better in their approach to mining content from directors and creatives alike.
Following Huang’s thread, Lil Nas X shared a post on Instagram acknowledging and thanking both FKA Twigs and the director. Alongside a clip from the “Cellophane” video he wrote:
“The ‘cellophane’ visual is a masterpiece. I was not aware that the visual would serve as inspiration for those who worked on the effects of my video. I want to say thank u to twigs for calling me and informing me about the similarities between the two videos, as i was not aware they were so close.”
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Directly after the “Old Town Road” rapper shared his post, FKA Twigs thanked him in a separate post. “Thank you @lilnasx for our gentle honest conversations and for acknowledging the inspiration cellophane gave you and your creative team in creating your iconic video,” the caption read.
She also added: “I think what you have done is amazing and I fully support your expression and bravery in pushing culture forward for the queer community. Legend status.” Later in the caption she notes that she’s thankful for “sex workers and strippers for providing the physical language to make both videos possible.” Twigs also thanks Andrew Thomas Huang and choreographer Kelly Yvonne. She closed out her caption by sharing that she’s been working with SWARM (Sex Worker Advocacy and Resistance Movement) and how followers can donate to the organization.
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Take a look at Andrew Huang’s Twitter thread below. Watch the “Montero (Call Me By Your Name) video here.
I’m a fan of @LilNasX. “Old Town Road” is iconic. Sharing collaborators is common. Seeing the “Cellophane” choreographer collab with Lil Nas X is awesome (love a Satan dance). Sharing aesthetics and paying homage is part of the creative process. Collective consciousness exists.
— Andrew Thomas Huang (@Andrew_T_Huang) March 28, 2021
When an artist is in a position of power (amplified with the help of major record labels, social media, PR, etc) and repurposes someone’s labor and ideas to serve their brand image, they cause harm by displacing the efforts of the artists who did the original leg work.
— Andrew Thomas Huang (@Andrew_T_Huang) March 28, 2021
I urge the music community, particularly major record labels like @ColumbiaRecords to respect directors, uphold artistic accountability and honor the ingenuity of artists dedicating their blood sweat and tears to imagine better futures amidst a broken industry. We can do better.
— Andrew Thomas Huang (@Andrew_T_Huang) March 28, 2021