Synopsis

Four teenage friends set off across California in a red van, turning an ordinary outing into a loose, psychedelic road trip. After an opening guitar nod to "I Could Have Lied," the group experiments with a toad, picks up an unexpected passenger, and eventually reaches Venice Beach. Their journey ends in a chaotic paint fight, with the youthful adventure capturing the song's sense of freedom, imagination, friendship, and spontaneous discovery.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was created through a worldwide fan competition announced by the band in March 2007. More than 2,600 people joined the contest group, and 420 completed videos were submitted.

• Omri Cohen was 25 years old and living in Tarzana, California, when his entry was selected. His prize included $5,000 and a trip to meet the band and attend their July 6, 2007, concert in Paris.

• "Charlie" was not released as a single, making its fan-created video an unusual promotional project for a deep album cut from *Stadium Arcadium*.

• The opening guitar passage references "I Could Have Lied," a song from 1991's *Blood Sugar Sex Magik*.

• The video was dedicated to Hillel Slovak, the band's former guitarist, adding a personal connection to its nostalgic depiction of the group's imagined youth.

• Anthony Kiedis said the winning entry moved him and his girlfriend to tears. That reaction helped convince the band that Cohen's video was the right choice.