New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Funk legends
Chromeo debut their video for "Don't Sleep" starring 90s icon
Robin Givens (Never Heard, Riverdale, The Bold and the Beautiful) and featuring
French Montana and Stefflon Don today. Directed by Allie Avital (serpentwithfeet, Moses Sumney), the visual is another sophisticated installment in Chromeo's collection of artfully hilarious clips.
Of the video Avital explains, "It's lonely at the top. 'Don't Sleep' is a 2018 satire for the age of dissatisfaction; the age of overstimulation and Tinder.
Robin Givens plays a version of the 'sad king,' where the more pampered and entertained she is, the more disaffected she becomes. All the bulging biceps, sponge baths, and lap dances can't cure her existential void."
Avital continues, "Harems are historically reserved for men, and music videos have a long history of ornamental 'video girls,' so I wanted to flip both of those narratives. The video was directed and produced by a team of women, which gave the shoot a funny, meta dimension. Dave and Pee are so open and collaborative, and in this often-formulaic industry, it was a breath of fresh air to be given so much artistic freedom and trust."
"Don't Sleep" is produced by
Chromeo and legendary R&B producer Rodney Jerkins. It's an infectious dose of trunk-rattling funk. The follow up to singles "
Juice" and "Must've Been" featuring DRAM, "Don't Sleep" is taken from Chromeo's acclaimed fifth studio album, Head Over Heels, that was released in June on Big Beat/Atlantic and subsequently reached #1 on the iTunes Electronic charts. Featuring twelve tracks of funk and R&B history colliding with modern pop songcraft, Head Over Heels is a collaborative celebration where the duos favorite artists' signatures touches intermingle in
Chromeo world. The album's guest list includes
Jesse Johnson, Pino Palladino, DRAM, The-Dream,
Amber Mark, Onyx Collective,
Raphael Saadiq and more.
Since the release, the band has been on an extensive tour of the world, playing over 100 live performances this year with sold out shows in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Paris London and more, plus festival plays at Coachella, Lollapalooza, Osheaga, Outside Lands and Primavera, among others. The duo also made television appearances this year on The
Tonight Show Starring
Jimmy Fallon and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, plus an exclusive full-band performance on NPR's Tiny Desk.
Chromeo is the iconic duo of Montreal natives and high school best friends Dave 1 (David Macklovitch) and P-Thugg (Patrick Gemayel). The group rose to prominence with their seminal 2007 release Fancy Footwork, heralding the dawn of the '80s electro-funk revival.
French Montana is a Moroccan-born, New York-raised rapper, singer and songwriter. He is the founder of Coke Boys Records and has released twenty mixtapes and two studio albums over his storied career.
Stefflon Don is a multilingual, multitalented rapper, singer and songwriter. She is one of seven siblings born in Birmingham to Jamaican parents, now signed to Motown and Quality Control.
Robin Givens is an award-winning actress, author and advocate for women's rights who has been a powerful force in Hollywood for more than three decades.
