Don Toliver is His Own Protagonist
Love Sick: Open All Day, Every Night (Alexandre Moors, 2023) aired exclusively on Amazon. Presented by Rotation, Amazon’s hip-hop and R&B brand, there’s an episode for each song of Toliver’s album Love Sick to create an overarching narrative for fans.
The film is a collaboration between Toliver and Alexandre Moors, the director from the creative production studio, Good Company. Set in the 1970s, the episodes work to establish a place of lust, glamor and excess. There are many characters, and viewers are given a glimpse into each of their roles, unintentionally and unknowingly connected in a larger scheme. There’s heavy inspiration from Goodfellas (Martin Scorcese, 1990), with the use of debauchery and crime in many scenes.
Hip-hop is the world I feel most comfortable in, and it was exceptionally fun to build a narrative around this 70’s disco playground Don and his team had already envisioned. There was such a collaborative spirit to this project, and Rotation is the perfect team for this film.
– Alexandre Moors
Many listeners were thrilled, having seen the trailers on Instagram. Not only did the film create hype and noise for the album, but Toliver successfully visualized the stories within his songs. Some followers likened it to blaxploitation, a genre of movies that served as a cultural turning point for African Americans. Rethinking race altogether, these stories saw Black characters as protagonists.
Recognizing its eye-catching quality, The Telly Awards presented the film with three trophies: Craft (for Directing), Craft (for Videography/Cinematography) and General (for Music). Love Sick: Open All Day, Every Night makes a memorable addition to the many songs with cinematic music videos, masterfully creating a story with both music and videography.
Don Toliver kicks off his Thee Love Sick Tour 2023 in a few days, making his way around North America and then Europe. Make sure to check out dates and give his new album a listen on Spotify!
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