We have all seen the typical music videos of a pretty boy or a pretty girl singing a song about another pretty boy or pretty girl. Tori Kelly’s song “Paper Hearts” has taken that concept and added interpretive dance to tell a story not only with words but also with dance.

Kelly plays the girl in the video and Ian Eastwood, America’s Best Dance Crew contestant, plays the boy. The video switches between Kelly’s memories of spending time with Eastwood and Eastwood telling the expressing the lyrics through interpretive dance. The music video entrances the audience and the dancing makes the lyrics more dramatic and heightens the emotions.

One of the most captivating lyrics in the song is “Pictures I’m living through for now, trying to remember all the good times. Our life was cutting through so loud. Memories are playing in my dull mind.” And with a great lyric comes a dramatic dance move. In the music video, Eastwood mimics struggling to close a photo album full of pictures and memories while this lyric of the song is being played. The music video ends with a silhouette of Kelly looking at a photograph while the lyric, “Hoping that you won’t forget,” plays.

Kelly’s music has a unique tone to it, mostly because she mixes all of her music. Mixing music means the artist puts all of the instruments and vocals together and controls the levels of the  bass, treble and the other instruments.

In finalizing the piece, the artist also makes sure that all tracks (instruments and vocals) are in balance. The dominant instruments she uses in her songs are the violin, guitar, and very little percussion, allowing the listener to focus mainly on the lyrics. This personal touch allows Kelly’s fans to recognize her song when it is playing.