Pop-R&B singer Tinashe’s known for the high-concept treatments of her music videos such as “X,” “Bouncin,” and “Pasadena,” but rarely have they been as viscerally provocative as her new video for “Naturally.” Seemingly inspired by 1970s psychological horror (and its recent resurgence), the video finds Tinashe covering herself in gore for a literal bloodbath on a sun-soaked farm where she apparently slaughters some local livestock and performs choreography with a team in Western ranch regalia.
“Naturally” is the first single from the deluxe version of Tinashe’s 2021 album, 333, which adds four new songs to the singer’s second independently released album. Two of the songs also bring in new featured guests, Compton dance musician Channel Tres, and Oakland rapper Christian Blue.
In a recent interview, Tinashe talked about her pioneering, experimental sound and why she hated being categorized as “just” an R&B artist. “I hated being called an R&B star,” she said. “I really, really had a strong aversion to that. I felt that created a ceiling to my artistry that really turned me off in the early days. I didn’t want to be in that box that I felt had some type of inevitable lid on it. I’ve always honestly classified myself as a pop star. That’s always been what I see for myself, and then I think people’s interpretation of what that means is maybe where it gets convoluted because some people think pop means mainstream. Like, I don’t know, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, or something. But I think that’s not what that really means. To me, it’s more like what you embody more so than, I think, what it sonically sounds like.”
Watch Tinashe’s “Naturally” video above.