KennyHoopla and Travis Barker have joined forces once again for the new cathartic pop-punk track “hollywood sucks//,” which follows their collab last November on “estella//.”
On “hollywood sucks//,” KennyHoopla offers his own commentary on Los Angeles culture. He mocks the privilege the city awards some of its residents, with references to badly parked Priuses, terrible friends and Coachella.
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Kenny also mentions moving to the Midwest, a call-back to when he was staying with his friend in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. While there, he had an inspiring dream one night that compelled him to work on new music the very next day.
The artistic direction taken in the video is similar to the MTV-inspired video for “estella//,” which itself is currently number 8 on the Alternative Radio charts. The casual, fun-loving vibe of “hollywood sucks//” is also reflected in the collab‘s bright visuals and stop motion art.
Kenny and friends run through the streets of Hollywood in the video, stepping over stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at some points. References to California are also scattered throughout the video. In some scenes, a man wearing a devil costume can be seen on Hollywood Boulevard. He holds a sign that reads, “Keep Jesus out of LA,” referencing a line in the song about Jesus hating LA. We can also see kids riding their bikes down palm-tree-lined streets while a pizza-eating cop chases them.
Then, Kenny commandeers a Starlines tour bus, the iconic red double-decker busses known for giving celebrity home tours to sightseeing tourists. He and Barker take over the top deck, giving a sightly performance of “hollywood sucks//” to passersby on the street.
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You may recognize part of the video from Barker’s Instagram, where he posted a behind-the-scenes clip of him and Kenny surrounded by balloons on the bus.
Fans got a taste of the song after Kenny posted a now-deleted audio snippet of the song on Twitter.
A big fan of Kenny’s sound, Barker first reached out to connect with him on Instagram. Soon after, the two began writing and recording music together, releasing “estella//” shortly after.
“I loved Kenny’s music from the moment I heard it and showed everyone it,” Barker says. “We connected and kept talking about working together. ‘Bout a month ago we got in the studio for a few hours and it was magic. That’s when we wrote ‘estella//,’ rest is history.”
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The adoration went both ways with the two, as Kenny is also a big fan of blink-182.
“It’s like this pathetic vulnerability of the heart and this truth to it,” Kenny says about his connection to the band. “A lot of people will talk about depression in their songs. And then people ask me, but I don’t feel cool about that. And it’s not even something that I want to do. It’s just what it is. It sucks. I feel crazy feeling the way I feel and [being] the person I am…I really have been [an] outcast and been in weird situations growing up. And that’s what comes out in the music, so that’s what I’m saying. It’s natural. That was what blink-182 were. They were just putting it all out there.”
“hollywood sucks//” comes ahead of the singer’s recently announced upcoming project SURVIVORS GUILT: THE MIXTAPE. This track will be the first installment from the project, which is set to be released June 11.
Later this year, Kenny will Machine Gun Kelly on his Tickets To My Downfall tour and YUNGBLUD on his Occupy The UK tour. He is also scheduled to appear at various festivals around the globe.
You can watch the video for “hollywood sucks//” below, and let us know your thoughts on the song in the comments!
KennyHoopla tour dates
8/09 London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town (w/ YUNGBLUD)
8/10 London, UK @ O2 Forum Kentish Town (w/ YUNGBLUD)
8/28 Leeds, UK @ Reading & Leads (Radio 1 Dance Stage)
8/29 Leeds, UL @ Reading & Leads (Radio 1 Dance Stage)
9/02 Milwaukee, WI @ Summerfest
9/09 Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/10 Omaha, Nebraska @ Westfair Amphitheater (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/11 Indianapolis, IN @ Farm Bureau Lan (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/13 New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/14 New York, NY @ The Rooftop at Pier 17
9/15 Boston, MA @ Rockland Trust Bank Pavilion (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
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9/17 West Springfield, MA @ The Big E (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/17 Chicago, IL @ Riot Fest
9/21 Detroit, IL @ Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/22 Cincinnati, OH @ Icon Music Center (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
9/24 Dover, DE @ Firefly Festival
10/03 Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/10 Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/15 Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre
10/16 Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/17 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/18 Denver, CO @ Red Rocks (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
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10/20 Los Angeles, CA @ The Shrine (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/21 Phoenix, AZ @ Mesa Amp (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/23 Atlanta, GE @ Shaky Knees @ Piedmont Stage
10/23 Atlanta, GE @ Shaky Knees After Show @ Masquerade
10/24 Dallas, TX @ Toyota Music Factory (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/27 Charlotte, NC @ Metro Credit Amp (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/28 Richmond, VA @ Virginia Credit Union Live (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)
10/30 Pittsburgh, PA @ Peterson Event Center (w/ Machine Gun Kelly)