Synopsis

The video begins with a close-up of a cassette boombox, a tape waiting to be played. Once the machine starts, Cities Aviv appears and turns the simple setup into a burst of energetic performance footage. He raps directly into the camera while the visuals move with the track's jagged, fast-changing rhythm. The analog cassette player and lo-fi presentation provide a tactile counterpoint to the song's focus on internet culture, digital identity, and the collision between online and everyday life.

Factoids & Trivia

• "URL IRL" was released on December 9, 2013, as the first video from Cities Aviv's album "Come To Life."

• The boombox opening was compared to the Replacements' video for "Seen Your Video," which also centers on a boombox-only setup.

• The cassette player gives the video an intentionally analog frame, contrasting with the song's interest in cyberexistence and online interaction.

• Cities Aviv explained that the title plays on "you in real" and "I in real." He described the song as being about self-realization, modern existence, and accepting self-love.

• The track was the lead single from "Come To Life," released through Young One Records in January 2014.

• Cities Aviv produced the song himself, building its hectic beat from chopped samples with an off-kilter, 1980s-influenced electronic feel.

• The video was premiered by Stereogum, which characterized it as a celebration rather than a conventional narrative clip.

• The video's straightforward performance concept emphasizes the song's immediate, exuberant quality and its blend of experimental hip-hop, pop, and post-punk energy.