BURBANK, CA. (Top40 Charts/ Hollywood Records) - This past December,
Plain White T's vocalist Tom Higgenson and director Mike Venezia hit the streets of
Chicago to shoot a quick, inexpensive video ("just something fun to throw on YouTube," says Higgenson) for new single "1,2,3,4." Four weeks later, however, their low-budget music clip is quickly becoming an
Internet phenomenon.
Shot in 18-degree weather, the video, which can be seen at www.plainwhitets.com/1234 follows Higgenson around his hometown of Chicago as he busks for passing couples. Captions identify each couple, along with tidbits about how and when they met. "We were armed with only a camera and a guitar," says Higgenson. "'1,2,3,4' is a simple love song, and so we wanted to capture various love stories throughout Chicago."
And thanks to an innovative interactive version of the clip-created by digital media company HDgreetings - those stories are now spreading worldwide. This alternate version of the video allows fans to create their own digital Valentine by dedicating "1,2,3,4" to someone special by including their own photos and captions in the storyline. "We believe that this is the first time a band has offered fans around the world the ability to create real-time rendering and personalization of their own photos and captions into a band's official music video," says Brian Ressler, Director of Digital Marketing for Hollywood Records. "I have wanted to work with HDgreetings. I knew they had this technology and this video presented the perfect opportunity to showcase it."
Over the course of the past week, fans have been sharing their videos and stories of love and friendship on the band's website www.plainwhitets.com. To have personal photos and captions embedded into the clip, fans can go to www.plainwhitets.com/1234 or the band's myspace page: www.myspace.com/plainwhitets then click on the link to customize the clip.
About the idea behind the video, Venezia says, "We didn't know how people would react. It was freezing outside, so we weren't sure they would stop to listen, or if the cops would hassle us, but it was an amazing experience. We went to different locations around the city and whenever Tom began playing, people would just flock to him - it was incredible. At one point, we got kicked out of the ice skating area near Millennium Park, 'cause they thought he was busking for money. I told the security guard that we were doing a student project, so he let us stay. But when some fans recognized Tom and started shrieking, the security guard raised an eyebrow and asked, 'What school do you go to?'"
When asked about the video's budget, Venezia laughs: "There was no budget. But Tom did buy me lunch."
"1,2,3,4" can also be heard in select movie theaters this February promoting Fox's slate of most famous movie love stories.
Currently, Plain White T's is finalizing plans for a national headline tour. Dates will be announced in the weeks ahead.
