Julie Mintz – Take Me Home, Country Roads

The music video for the Julie Mintz cover of “Take Me Home, Country Roads” takes the viewer into Virtual Reality 360, riding along with Julie Mintz on a deserted country road, taking in the scenery with 360-degree views.

“I had plans to release a new, original song this month, but our Los Angeles “Safer-At-Home” order came right as we were to go into the studio to record with a live band. Having to shelve that song for the time being got me thinking about something I could release that could somehow be a source of comfort during this time. I feel like the familiarity of a beloved cover song can be an excellent gateway to get to know an artist, and so John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” immediately came to mind.”

“We shot the VR 360 music video with just me and the director, Oden Roberts, long before COVID-19 became a global pandemic, and social isolation was in place. We simply thought it would be fitting to have me driving a sunny yellow vintage El Camino down a country road with beautiful light in the sky. The director also did a neat camera trick to make it appear as though I’m riding in the car driven by no one—or a ghost perhaps. But what we could never have predicted was that when we released the music video, everyone would be stuck at home, some people without any sort of soothing view. So the thing I love most about this video is that you can watch it on your phone, spin around 360 degrees, and feel like you are really immersed in the vast open expanse of nature.”

How are you managing the current situation? 

Maybe it’s the lifestyle of an artist, but I have always spent a lot of time on my own, quietly writing and playing music at home. As a shy person by nature, I prefer the creative part of working alone on music as opposed to the public performance part. All that to say that I’m managing the social distancing and isolation just fine. Of course, I feel concerned, sadness (and gratitude!) when I think of all the doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, and essential workers in so many fields who are risking their lives to take care of us so we can stay home and safe. Staying home, working on music, and practicing my (not-great) cooking skills is such a privilege not to be taken for granted.

Photo Credit: Michael David Adams