Toronto-based artist Alex Exists recently released his latest single/music video, “Believe The Hype,” featuring Sam Casey, a track lifted from his upcoming debut album, Everybody’s Famous, slated to drop June 16 via The Confidence Emperors.
Everybody’s Famous is a sonic exploration of expressing optimistic nihilism and radical authenticity as we tread into a brave new world. Alex jokes the album resembles “a wrestling match with one’s ego.” It’s a story about finding one’s true self amidst the chaos, continuing to create through the chaos while learning how to wield the energy of the changing tides instead of swimming against it – and letting it destroy you.
Talking about “Believe The Hype,” Alex shares, “[This is] a cautionary tale about the dangers of blindly accepting popular beliefs and trends without questioning their validity. It satirizes the modern-day hype machine and surrounding trends as entirely fabricated. It reveals how your beliefs can be subverted into blindly following the crowd, such as developing unhealthy habits or even falling victim to scams or hoaxes. The song is a defiant anthem about the importance of being skeptical and critical in an age where information and opinions can be easily manipulated and distorted.”
“Believe The Hype” was inspired by Alex falling victim to identity theft.
“The experience really shook me,” he says. “It made me solidify the need to express the anger of inauthenticity in general. That, and of the never-ending cavalcade of fear-based nonsense spewed from mainstream news and TV.”
“Believe The Hype” begins with a sleazy, baroque intro flowing into a thumping rhythm topped by crunching guitars and droning, oozing synths. Blending tinges of pop, new wave, and glam rock, the tune hums with ingratiating flavors, revealing the nuanced slickness of the world of scams and deceptions. Alex’s vocals evoke just the right amount of smooth, inviting persuasiveness.
The video, directed by Agata Waclawska, depicts Alex as a talk show host, whose non-stop flow of inflated propaganda reveals the hollowness of his words.
At once subtly flamboyant and stylish, with “Believe The Hype,” Alex Exists delivers an excellent song, dripping with a dark warning.
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