With a traditional upbringing in Colombia's Bogotá, Lao Ra isn't your typical '90s baby. Being raised in the heavily Catholic city during the war on drugs has had a huge influence on the transatlantic pop singer, but more so in developing her sense of outspokenness and rebelliousness. (You know that your debut single is making a difference when your mum worries that it might be disrespectful to the community.) "Jesus Made Me Bad" places Lao Ra directly in her Catholic element as she takes us on a spiritual journey of the conservative culture that she's been confined to.
"I've wanted to shoot a DIY video in Colombia for a while," Lao Ra told NYLON in an email. "I tried to do it with my dad’s camera—having my sister as my camera girl—but that was bit of disaster. So we got in contact with Simon Hernandez who has made a lot of videos for cool bands in Colombia. I wanted this video to show how Bogota looks: the food market, the baby Jesus, the mountains etc. Originally I didn’t really have a storyline, but then I thought about the idea of starting the video in a church (referencing Madonna's 'Like A Prayer') and finishing in a junk yard with a gang of dogs, kicking windows. Like a good girl, gone bad."
If you're not worshiping the South American ground that Lao Ra fiercly walks on by the end of the video above, you might need to seek professional guidance. If she reminded us of one thing, it's that music is our religion.
