THE INSOMNIAC Takes On Sleep Deprivation, Horror All In One Bite

My new video, THE INSOMNIAC, is now available on the new Videos page here at I AM ALEX AUGUSTE.

As made obvious by the name, THE INSOMNIAC, is literally a song about not being able to sleep, struggling with restlessness, and how relying on vices like alcohol, sex, and partying only further contributes to a level of fatigue is unbearable. Simply put, the song is about having to choose restlessness because we can't be productive, and having to choose productivity because we are restless.

The song was hinted last year as the potential follow up to The Perfectionist, but was not able to have the same treatment (no pun intended) due actually to some of the permits that would have been required to execute my idea, per the City of Tampa. While the video's concept was always going to involve a shrunken down production site of my 2-bedroom apartment, nothing will apply pressure on an idea like the end of a lease.

The original idea was intended to follow The Perfectionist, creating a storyline where I would lose my job for dancing with the girls, forcing me to grind harder, hustle more, and eventually leading to extreme burnout and fatigue. It would involve the concepts and visuals like sleep paralysis demons, and pull inspiration from some of my favorite horror flicks.

Sequels are tough, of course, and while this video doesn't follow The Perfectionist, it still manages to pull elements to look and feel like horror.

"Sleep Deprivation Is Our Own Personal Horror Movie To Experience."

"It's not hard to make a video feel eerie when it's 5am, red lights are glowing in contrast to green lights with the pulse setting on..."

The intention was always for THE INSOMNIAC to be a horror-inspired music video. It's about sleeplessness. And with the current state of the job market, economy, and most other elements of life these days - it seems we're being demanded to be more, do more, and be more places. I wonder how many, like me, struggle with getting rest, whether it's due to anxiety, work, children, stress, or anything else that might challenge the idea.

Included in the video is audio from "The Pain of Being A Black Man In Racist White America", a 1994 sermon delivered by Nation of Islam Leader, The Honorable Minister Louis Ferrakhan, who talks about how work must come before pleasure - and that by removing a man's ability to work, you doom him to find pleasures and vices to distract him from the pain of being a non-contributing member of society. This same sermon can be heard in my YouTube Video, My Real Vivid Life: The Preface is the End, Part I, and has long been a piece of audio I listen to to stay motivated and to focus on bringing ideas to life.

The new Videos Page on I AM ALEX AUGUSTE will now house creative videos like these. Be sure to subscribe to I AM ALEX AUGUSTE on Youtube as well to see additional videos, including My Real Vivid Life videos, the new Side Chats series, and VividLife TV.