Watch Lafawndah’s “Epic But Solitary” Video For “Ally”
It’s “like a fight that you’d have with yourself.”
In an interview with Dazed, Lafawndah described her new video as "a journey." "It includes very simple rites of passage gestures and unfolds to the dance scene which, to me, is a very vulnerable moment," she continued. "I guess I wanted to find a way to talk about love that felt comfortable. How do I put into imagery a song about the first few hours of a crush? It had to look epic but solitary in a way. It had to look beautiful and delicate but also strong, like a fight that you’d have with yourself.
She also issued a statement about the clip in a press release. Read that below, and revisit the singer's GEN F profile.
The smoothing of the six upper teeth takes about 15 minutes. The filing is performed by a dental specialist. Before the ceremony begins, the technician will read spells to ensure that the ceremony runs smoothly.
After the reading of the spells, the technician will inscribe a sigil on the teeth and chest using a ruby ring. This ring is also useful for guarding the ceremony from the attacks. Before the filing of the teeth, her mouth will be first propped open with lumber or sugar cane. She will then rinse her mouth with turmeric water.
When the ceremony has ended, she with the filled teeth bites betel leaf. The saliva is collected on an ivory coconut. The ritual ends with a sprinkle of purified water.
The ceremony itself is expensive. Therefore, it is usually done en mass and in the summer.
Each of the six teeth corresponds to six human attributes that are considered to be those that humans inherited from animals. The teeth are filled in order to harness these powers. They are: kama (desire); loba (ambition); krodha (righteousness); mada (wildness); moha (cunning); matsarya (justice).