Lexi Long
“Sometimes Lovers, Barely Friends,” an Ink 19 Premiere
by Christopher Long
Dig, if you will, an image of Joni Mitchell jetting off with Rickie Lee Jones for an exuberant getaway ski weekend in Aspen, where they consummate their relationship inside a cozy chalet just up the hill from Costner’s place. Nine months later, Rickie Lee coaches her love partner, clutching her hand tightly. C’mon Joni! It’s just like we learned in class. Hoo-hoo, hee-hee! Hoo-hoo, hee-hee! Then, after more than two hours, with her feet planted firmly in the cold, steel stirrups, Joni pops out a bouncing baby bundle of joy. While that scenario may be a bit absurd, it would explain A LOT about Lexi Long.
She’s been described as an exciting young talent with an engaging old soul. And since the release of her debut record, Sunswept, Long has been rising to a place of prominence on the southeast indie music scene. “I’m all about the vinyl revolution,” says the Florida-based, 28-year-old singer-songwriter. “I like tapes and records. I now listen to CDs in my car, again. I took a break from listening to entire records, but getting back into writing music made me want to listen and appreciate it more.”
Recorded in late 2023 and early 2024 at Wing Man Studio in Melbourne, Florida, Sunswept arrived last fall. Available both digitally and on vinyl from Long’s BandCamp site, the crisp and compelling, deeply personal ten-song set was a true labor of love. “It was a relief,” Long said, regarding finally getting her record out into the world. “You get that fear inside you as an artist of how people are gonna take it. I didn’t know what people were gonna think.”
But, Sunswept has been very well-received. As a result, Long now finds herself traveling extensively throughout the Sunshine State, performing live in such cities as Tallahassee, St. Augustine, Lakeland, Winter Park, Vero, and Orlando, as well as in her hometown of Melbourne. And last weekend (June 7), Long played at the annual Dunleath Porchfest in Greensboro, North Carolina. To add even more zing to Long’s story, she recently wound up in Los Angeles, working with celebrated filmmaker Julian Baner, shooting a music video for “Sometimes Lovers, Barely Friends” — a must-see video that premieres TODAY. “I knew that this was probably the most single-worthy song from my album,” Long commented. “But that it would actually make people laugh — I did not expect that. It’s a song I will always play live.”
“With the video, it was my husband, Jared’s brainchild,” Long revealed. “He gave me the idea to call up Julian, an old friend of mine from college (UCF), who was a film student and who is a very talented filmmaker. Even though I hadn’t spoken to Julian since college, I still had his contact stuff. Jared told me to just call him up then and there. I didn’t think I had the guts to, but it ended up working out. Julian liked the song, he liked the album, and he agreed to shoot the video. But, ya know, I’m in Florida and he works in Los Angeles, so I had to go where the crew and the sets are.”
Described by Long as “a long weekend in the desert,” the video was shot with Baner and his five-member production team on a set located about an hour outside of L.A. “Everything you see in the video was out at this ranch, where they have a bunch of retro-looking stuff which fit the vibe. What struck me immediately was, ‘You don’t see this every day.’”
One of the many interesting aspects of the video is Long’s “love interest,” a mannequin who the crew affectionately named, Kevin. “I told Julian, ‘Oh, I could bring in a couple of actors.’ So, that’s where my train of thought would have gone, to get some hunk to follow me around. It turned out to be a ‘hunk,’ of plastic! He (Kevin) became a very good friend, for one day.”
Long is “very pleased” with the video. “It’s quirky,” she said. “It’s strange, I do think that I’m one of those people who don’t like to watch themselves. Maybe I’ll get used to that. I’m always analyzing what’s going on, and just how to appear on camera the right way.”
“It’s movie magic,” Long said of the video’s final cut. “I hope it’s movie magic to other people. I’m very excited just to see where it will go — if people will enjoy that side of me. It’s great fun! I told Jared that I don’t think it’s possible for me to be sad on a movie set, unless I’m told to be sad.”
But what about Long’s overall California experience? Was she affected by the “big city” allure of Los Angeles? “To go to cities that have everything I like — movie premieres, record stores, and nature — California is calling my name!” ◼
Featured photo by Jae Lee.
