Shamir never planned for “Diet” to be a single, nor for there to be an accompanying music video to the popular track. However when the song gained popularity after the release of his second album, Shamir, the video followed. Shamir often creates without necessarily planning for what is to come. His first album was released without any label at all, though he ended up creating his own label Accidental Pop Star in 2019. His latest album, he stresses, is his most honest and bold album ever and his tracks are universally relatable. Shamir goes about the act of creation with no artifice, he doesn’t hide any of his internal identity and maybe that is what draws listeners to his music. He’s not faking it.
The inspiration behind the “Diet” video came to Shamir after watching “My Friend Dahmer”, which I think is awesome. Despite the attractive, poppy sound and the bright visuals within the video, the song is about intrusive thoughts and the darker aspects of our nature that we try so hard to push down so that we can show the best of ourselves. Shamir says of the video “we all have with our darker urges and/or neurosis that tend to appear during our adolescence/pubescent years and how that plays a part in developing our moral compass.”
“Diet” was filmed in Shamir’s homes state of Nevada, with the musician standing under a heavy snowfall or romping around in a homemade sweater dress. He sits at a table laden with turkey and pie without ever taking a bite. Dark urges don’t always look distasteful, if anything they often come under the guise of something delicious and tempting. After all, everything looks pastel pink when you’re wearing rainbow glasses.
Shamir is already working on a brand new album and with each new single showing a unique and compulsively listenable facet of his identity, it’s no surprise that people are already hungry for more. Shamir might not plan for it, but he is already a big party of a lot of people’s diets.
