R&B singer Marsha Ambrosius tackles gay bashing, suicide and homophobia in the urban community in her latest music video.
Her song, “Far Away,” is one she initially wrote after a close friend attempted suicide.
“Because they’re in such a bad place in their lives, there’s nothing you can do to help someone if they can’t help themselves,” she said.
In the clip, a man seen with Ambrosius appears to be her boyfriend. They walk in a park, say hello to a group of men and to a woman and her children. Later, the video shows the man kissing another man. When the men return to the same park, now holding hands, the mother pulls her kids away. And when Ambrosius’ friend is alone, he’s assaulted while the American flag stands tall in the background. The clip concludes with the man lying on his couch; a suicide letter and dozens of pills are visible.
Ambrosius says the video will speak for those who don’t have a voice.
“I lost a friend and I’ve had friends that have attempted suicide. There are people that don’t have a voice to speak out and show what is happening and what can happen, so I just wanted people to see the honesty in it and be aware,” she said in an interview from Philadelphia on Wednesday.
The 33-year-old singer, first introduced as one-half of the Grammy-nominated, British soul duo Floetry, says she has a strong gay following — and needs to support it.
“I go to my shows and my audience is predominantly gay … I’ve been approached by many who’ve said my music has influenced them and we’ll speak about experiences that they’ve had. It’s just only right that I give that voice back,” she said.
Ambrosius co-wrote Michael Jackson’s 2002 hit song “Butterflies” and has collaborated with rappers like Nas, Busta Rhymes and the Game. The clip was directed by Ambrosius’ manager, Julius Erving III, and is the second single from her solo debut, “Late Nights and Early Mornings,” due out Feb. 22. Ambrosius says what she offers is honesty, when other recording artists hold back.
“I think many musicians separate themselves from what they’re actually going through in real life for fear of being judged for, you know, what their political views are (and) what they feel personally about things that are going on in the real world,” she said. “Music for me is personal and that’s the only way I know how to approach it.”
Ron Cicero and Bo Clancey Launch Production House 34North
Executive producers Ron Cicero and Bo Clancey have teamed to launch 34North. The shop opens with a roster which includes accomplished directors Jan Wentz, Ben Nakamura Whitehouse, David Edwards and Mario Feil, as well as such up-and-coming filmmakers as Glenn Stewart and Chris Fowles. Nakamura Whitehouse, Edwards, Feil and Fowles come over from CoMPANY Films, the production company for which Cicero served as an EP for the past nearly five years. Director Wentz had most recently been with production house Skunk while Stewart now gains his first U.S. representation. EP Clancey was freelance producing prior to the formation of 34North. He and Cicero have known each other for some 25 years, recently reconnecting on a job directed by Fowles. Cicero said that he and Clancey “want to keep a highly focused roster where talent management can be one on one--where we all share in the directors’ success together.” Clancey also brings an agency pedigree to the new venture. “I started at Campbell Ewald in accounts, no less,” said Clancey. “I saw firsthand how much work agencies put in before we even see a script. You have to respect that investment. These agency experiences really shaped my approach to production--it’s about empathy, listening between the lines, and ultimately making the process seamless.” 34North represents a meeting point--both literally and creatively. Named after the latitude of Malibu, Calif., where the idea for the company was born, it also embraces the power of storytelling. “34North118West was the first GPS-enabled narrative,” Cicero explained. “That blend of art and technology, to captivate an audience, mirrors what we do here--create compelling work, with talented people, harnessing state-of-the-art... Read More