Infinitely colourful, infinitely talented; these are the words that come to mind regarding Brittany McQuinn, Frederictonian electronica whiz and the creative mind behind her solo project, Qwinn. Coming off her debut on prominent Canadian EDM label Monstercat, where she collaborated with artists Slowpalace and FWLR on the single “Already Gone,” Qwinn is back with a brand new music video for her track “Congratulations.”
The visuals and audio collide effortlessly, with the video popping at the seams with style and each building block of the song crafted with a particular mesmerization that McQuinn is all too good at creating. Together, the result is equal parts ode to self-reclamation, groovy club bop, and bisexual anthem.
“The inspiration for ‘Congratulations’ comes from making boundaries to protect my queer self from getting hurt anymore.”
“This song is the result of years and years of frustration building combined with discovering who I was when I stopped trying to please people,” says McQuinn. “Congratulations is about the moment when I say ‘You can’t do this anymore. You can’t tell me that you know what I need better than me. You can’t keep asking me to reconsider if I’ll listen to you argue your point from a new angle. You can’t treat me the way you do and then hope I’m cool with it, or that I forget and that we go back to normal. Normal doesn’t work for me. We need to change our dynamic now, because I have realized that the way things are hurts me.'”
Throughout the video, we’re treated to a hypnotic backdrop of velvet curtains, a colourful slew of balloons and streamers, and McQuinn taking on the role of the song’s protagonist, sharing intimate moments with both a man and a woman as the sensually-coloured set drifts in and around them.
Sonically, each piece of the tune layers over one another for a track that positively maximizes both the parts and their sum. McQuinn’s lucid percussion and spellbinding synths gel gleefully with her uniquely-rhythmic, heart-melting cadence; as expected from an artist like Qwinn.
“For the music video, I wanted to make something where people like me (pansexual is probably the best term apart from queer) see themselves represented,” says McQuinn. “What I hope people take away for themselves is that they’re allowed to be complex. In dreaming up my ideal prom, I dream of taking a boy – then a girl, then I end up taking both because I couldn’t pick!”
I admire the creativity of every person involved. I’m super happy with the production on the song, the cover art, and the music video.”