Frank Ocean appears in Calvin Klein’s #MyCalvins ad campaign
“I Frank Ocean in #mycalvins” (YouTube: @calvinklein).
In a surreal video filmed by British filmmaker Tyrone Lebon, Frank Ocean joins a host of other celebrities in modeling for Calvin Klein’s fall 2016 #MyCalvins global campaign. The one-minute underwear advert sees Ocean discussing his passion for music as a new instrumental plays in the background. He also quotes prospective song lyrics from his overdue album, Boys Don’t Cry. Alongside Lebon, the production features art direction by BeGood Studios and styling by Max Pearmain. An actress portraying Marilyn Monroe is also cast with Ocean. It was likely shot in London, England, in 2015 or early 2016. The YouTube video, interview transcript, and photography are available below. Select a photo to view it fullscreen.
“I Frank Ocean in #mycalvins” (YouTube: @calvinklein).
Transcript:
If you start a habit, and you keep it up for four or five weeks, and then you stop, you feel like you’re missing something in your day. That’s what music is for me. It feels like a necessary act.
“It takes a mind to worry, a conscience to feel ashamed, but there’s no place to hide out here; these skies are filled with planes.”
You just sort of like romanticize something that’s in the past, which is fantasy, ‘cause it’s not exactly how it went down. Fantasy plays the role of—almost like a supplement. [I] draw in fantasy to make things hyperreal, I guess, [to] saturate the colors.
Screenshots:
Photography:
Photo: calvinklein.com.
Update 2016-08-20:
A month and a half after Calvin Klein debuted their video, Frank Ocean released Boys Don’t Cry as a magazine and two albums, Endless and Blonde. The visual album Endless premiered first via Apple Music on August 19, 2016. It includes the instrumental from the advert, used in the track “Mitsubishi Sony,” as well as the lyrics quoted by Ocean in the first verse of “Wither.” On August 20, Ocean released his album Blonde with a video for its lead single, “Nikes.” Several scenes in the music video visually echo the Calvin Klein ad; both were directed by Tyrone Lebon and styled by Max Pearmain. Read more about “Nikes” here.
“Nikes” (Vimeo: @tyronelebon, 2016-08-20).
Update 2017-02-14:
Two unreleased promotional videos for Boys Don’t Cry and Blonde have surfaced online six months after their release. One of the two, known as the “interview promo,” features a conversation with Frank Ocean in which he recounts his passion for music, much like he does in his July 2016 Calvin Klein advert. Read more about the promos here.
‘Interview Promo’ (Vimeo, 2017-02-14).
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