Joe Bermudez Talks ‘Lose My Number’ Collab with Louise Carver
Some producers and singers are made for each other. House artist Joe Bermudez and vocalist Louise Carver are more than just frequent collaborators: They understand each other and know how to reinforce their mutual artistic strengths. Bermudez’s tracks are never any more scalding than they are when Carver is singing, and Carver is never as forceful and magnetic as she is when she’s backed up by Bermudez’s beats. They topped the Billboard Dance chart together in 2016 with “Sunrise,” and they did it again two years later with “Crazy Enough.” “Lose My Number,” their newest project, has already become, in a very short time, their third smash.
The track has everything that makes Bermudez’s music irresistible: propulsive danceable beats, squiggly synthesizers, magnetizing breakdowns leading to singalong choruses, and attitude to burn. “Lose My Number” isn’t just an ordinary breakup song — it’s an emphatic kiss-off, a mind-wipe, a wild wish for a fresh start. Louise Carver sings it with the right blend of impertinence and self-possession: she’s thoroughly through with her former partner and doesn’t care who knows. Carver excels at fitting vocals to dance music; she’s an accomplished singer-songwriter in her native South Africa, and she invests all her performances with a depth of personality rare in EDM.
Real collaboration demands a degree of aesthetic coordination uncommon in the arts. Timing, empathy, intelligence, and openness to happenstance: it’s all mandatory for the artist who aims to match his vision to that of an equally talented musician. Joe Bermudez is a veteran co-operator – in addition to his work with Louise Carver, he’s recorded with Lee Wilson, Dana McKeon, Paloma Rush, and many others – and he’s well-known within house music circles for his responsiveness and his ability to execute a plan. The humorous clip for “Lose My Number” is, among other things, a cheeky visual metaphor for Bermudez’s creative mastermind. The video follows an ex-lover and shows the lengths some people will go to stay that way. When Bermudez is ready to end the relationship and his former partner won’t get the hint, he takes matters into his own hands. He spies, downloads schematics, and breaks into her mansion and does it with the audacity, resourcefulness, and fleet-footedness of a thief-hero in a caper flick.
At what point did you discover your passion for music production, and how long did it take to realize it was worth pursuing professionally?
I’ve had a passion for music for as long as I can remember. I was always digging through my parents’ old records and staying up late listening to the radio, but never thought I could do it for a career. Then one day I drove past this little radio station in a barn, had nothing to lose, turned around and demanded they hire me so I could pay rent…haha Lucky for me they needed someone to do some menial work, but it got my foot in the door and forever changed my path
When and how did your musical collaborations with Louise Carver begin? Having two charting hits with her before this one, how was it getting into another creative project together?
I first heard of Louise when I was on tour with David Guetta in South Africa. I kept asking everyone I met who the best local singers were and am so thankful someone recommended her. She has an amazing way of telling a story with every syllable she sings
Due to the pandemic this was the first time we weren’t in a studio together. We didn’t even zoom. At this point we have a pretty good workflow so we just emailed lyrics and voice memos back and forth until we had something we were happy with. Once we did Louise recorded the vocals in Johannesburg and I went through her takes and comped everything in Boston
Where did you find the inspiration for “Lose My Number”? How did the creative process play out when it came to fully realizing the single?
Like all songs you never end up where you think you’re going to. I made a rough backing track that we could write to and the first draft of the song was called End It about a jealous boyfriend that doesn’t treat you right. There were a couple ideas that made the final cut, but for the most part 99% of the song did a complete 180 and after 30+ pages of lyric ideas it somehow morphed into Lose My Number
What was your experience shooting the “Lose My Number” music video, and what was it like co-directing with Ernesto Galan?
Ernesto is great! He shoots for the Boston Ballet and brings a classy element to the videos. Everything he does is super polished. I on the other hand am the silly one and am always trying to inject humor or something ridiculous into the shots
Talk about the vision and concept that comes through to tell the song’s story in the visual. What was it like acting it out?
It wasn’t easy coming up with a concept for this one. I knew I didn’t want just another party video and went through several ideas before landing on the heist concept. Once we found a mansion with secret passageways to shoot at I knew we were onto something! I’m glad I took my time coming up with something different for this one as people have really embraced it. My friends seem to think I’m a natural stalker. Not sure if that’s a compliment though…haha
What can fans and followers expect next?
More music! And of course more music videos!!! The next single is called Tug Of War. This one was shot in a gym so the only thing I’ll be breaking into is a sweat…haha. I don’t want to give too much away, but it will be the craziest spin class you’ve ever seen!!!
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About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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