Humanz gorillaz
Hey, this post may contain adult content, so we’ve hidden it from public view.
$850/room in a shared space
140 square feet
Brooklyn, NY
Ok. This is extremely long winded and requires a LOT of set up so bare with me.
The Humanz album is a multi-level concert in a five-story warehouse type building. Each interlude in the album is meant to be the listener entering onto a new floor of the building. The concert is meant to end on the roof as a final performance. The listener is meant to be an attendee at the concert. The concert is taking place on the night of the United States presidential election. As the listener enters, they are asked to please turn off their phone and not to turn it on as they proceed through the different stages of the concert.
Ready to get started?
The concert begins on the ground floor in a dark room as “I Switched My Robot Off” plays loudly through the room. As it ends, a spotlight shines onto the stage as Vince Staples starts the introduction to “Ascension.” The stage erupts in a light show as the first chorus begins and the concert begins. The first stage ends as “Momentz” comes to a close and 2-D, the Humanz, and De La Soul go backstage to a crew only elevator.
The listeners move onto the second floor where they are greeted by a hologram of Steve Martin’s “Non-Conformist’s Oath” skit from the interlude. The listener as well as the crowd shout out the parts theyre told to repeat. “Submission” then begins followed by “Charger” before entering the elevator to the next floor.
Still following? Good. Because we’re still building up to the true heart of this head canon.
As the listener enters the elevator, they hear Murdoc say “Elevator Going Up” before the doors open to 2-D already starting “Andromeda.” As “Busted and Blue” finishes, the listener goes onto the fourth floor.
“Talk Radio” begins with the next session of songs. This is when things get interesting. In the green room where all the guest stars and celebrities are watching the election closely.
The listener moves onto the 5th floor that ends with “The Elephant” as confetti shoots out over the crowd. As this is happening, all the guest singers for the deluxe version’s bonus disk arrive in the green room to celebrate Hillary Clinton’s election.
This is where the meat of the head canon comes to fruition.
The listener, as a singular person rather than the whole audience moves away from the crowd of the 5th floor towards the elevators heading to the roof for the final performance. They enter an elevator where they meet Benjamin Clementine and he sings a warning of sorts in the form of “Hallelujah Money” almost exactly like the music video.
As this happens, the guest singers move on to the first floor to help prepare for the VIP after-party and all the Gorillaz members move to the roof for the final performance with Jehnny Beth in tow. However, the guest singers of the deluxe bonus disc decide to stay behind and continue to watch the election. Almost like magic as Benjamin finishes singer to the listener, Trump begins collecting more and more votes until its beyond the point of no return.
In an almost ironic turnabout, the Gorillaz and Jehnny Beth begin “We Got the Power” as the listener walks into the crowd on the roof of the building. As the song goes on, the deluxe guest singers begin to accept the fact Trump has almost certainly won and collectively decide that they just cant let all the concert attendees go home to such a shocking disappointment and immediately begin writing the songs for the bonus disc.
The concert ends and the crowd begins leaving to go home. The listener gets caught in the crowd and cant quite get to the elevators to leave.
Suddenly, the bonus interlude “New World” begins to play for those still stuck on the roof. The listener is now a deluxe listener. The Gorillaz go to the green room, learn of the Trump’s win, and begin to help write “Out of Body,” “Ticker Tape,” and “Circle of Friendz.”
The deluxe guest singers tell the audience of what has happened and spreads the message of how the only way to win this is through love for each other and the songs begin. As “Circle of Friendz” begins, the sirens and sounds of bottles breaking are the sounds of the riots and social unrest in protest to president-elect Trump as the sun begins to rise.
The album ends as the listener leaves the building into the New World with the message of “we are still humans” repeating through their mind as the listener discovers what all has happened through the long night of what started as celebration but has ended in dread and fear.