Queer, Latinx artist Baby Yors just released the visuals for his latest track "Bad Influence," and the video is an homage to the classic, queer-themed 1950 short film Un Chant d’Amour, taking place between two male lovers, separated by a jail cell wall.
PRIDE caught up with Baby Yors to ask him a few questions about "Bad Influence," as well as what we can expect to see from him next.
PRIDE: What inspired the song and music video for "Bad Influence?"
Baby Yors: This came out first as a visual in my head. I spent a few hours in a jail cell after being robbed and having an altercation with my thief. The authorities took me in to testify. Maybe they thought I started it. But in that moment I had so many things go through my mind. I was on a visa, so that was very scary. I didn’t want to have a problem with that, and at the same time I was an actor and a writer. Any experience like this is gold. There were two people in there with me. They were a few cells away from me but we could still hear each other and we started a conversation. There was a redheaded older woman who had grabbed another woman’s hair on the bus and a mysterious homeless man that I didn’t know much about. Long story short, I ended up singing "At Last" by Etta James to them. They were so into it and wanted me to sing more, but of course a police officer came in and took the fun out of it, telling me to stop or I would spend the night there.
After this, I saw the film Un Chant d’Amour by Jean Genet and felt very inspired. Loving someone through a wall...loving someone when you’re not "supposed to." It felt very close to home and it also felt like a good metaphor for how we interact with other people. We don't see much of their faces anymore.
About a year after, I was on the piano writing music and the chords for "Bad Influence" came [to me]. As I started singing it, the jail images came to mind, and that’s when they both married into one piece.
What do you hope to achieve with your music?
I want to provide an escapism, but also an environment where people can feel safe and as outrageous or conservative as they want. This is very simple to me. I am someone who wants to have fun and connect with people that think in a similar way than me. I am living my life and letting it inspire me. Music is also great because it’s like shaping a tribe, and once that tribe is big enough, things can get done at a bigger scale. Hopefully changes that will take us to a better place.
I think nowadays we need visceral things like gatherings, concerts and a certain kind of music to exchange with each other. I want to make songs that people can see themselves singing but also knowing that there’s always a story behind each one of my songs and that everything that I make comes from a place that’s deep inside.
What can we look forward to next from you, Baby?
I am releasing a song called "Gogo Girl" very soon. I think and I’m shooting a music video for it too. It has more of a punk vibe to it. I love it. It makes me want to dance. And then a bunch of live shows, an EP, and a bunch of art I’ve been working on.
Watch the video for "Bad Influence" below!
