I first became aware of Gia Darcy in February 2023, when I saw her performing on a stage outside Ed Sheeran’s Sydney concert. I was blown away by her stage presence, vocals and warmth, and have keenly followed her journey ever since.
Now, Darcy is taking us behind the scenes of the video for her latest single, “What’s To Blame?”, a duet with Perth musician Sam McGovern. Directed by longtime collaborator Renata Dominik and shot by cinematographer Alexander Leeway, the clip moves through the streets and rooftops of Sydney as it explores two people sharing the same city while becoming increasingly unable to understand one another. Below, Darcy talks us through the shoot, the race to capture its rooftop climax before sunset, her Australian-designed wardrobe and the team that brought the song’s emotional distance to the screen.
What was your experience working on the set of “What’s To Blame?”
It was so much fun shooting a music video in the streets of Sydney. This is only my second ever music video and my first time shooting outside of a studio, so it was a completely different experience! I also had the most incredible team around me. Working with Renata and Alex is always such a dream. They’re both so talented, and we honestly just have the best time creating together.
What are your favourite shots from the video?
Definitely the rooftop scene… although the opening shot is a very close second! The opening scene was actually the very first thing we filmed that day. Alex, my videographer, Renata, my director, George, our trusty cam assistant, and Dani, my mum (legend haha), were all standing on the opposite side of the road yelling directions to me through the traffic while I walked back and forth. At the time I honestly wasn’t sure how it was going to turn out, but when I saw the final edit I became soooo obsessed with it. It’s genuinely one of my favourite shots we’ve ever done.
Are there any fun anecdotes from the shoot?
As you’d expect when you’re filming in the middle of the city, we had some pretty entertaining interactions with people walking past. One man asked if he could star in the video with me, and another offered his services as a doctor “just in case anything went wrong,” which definitely gave us a laugh. We also had so many people stop and ask what we were filming, which was really sweet. Overall though, everything actually ran super smoothly!
Was it smooth sailing, or were there any hiccups in the process that needed a fresh approach?
The biggest challenge was definitely filming the rooftop scene at the end of the day. We wanted to capture it at sunset, so we had a pretty tiny window to get everything right.
The concept was for Alex to circle around Sam and me while we stood back-to-back. It’s the emotional peak of the song, where we’ve both come to the realisation that we just can’t see each other’s perspective. Even though we’re standing right next to each other, we’re still facing away from one another, which perfectly represents the story.
The only problem was Alex quickly realised he physically couldn’t run around us fast enough to capture every lyric in one take! We tried slowing the song down so we could film it in slow motion, but we weren’t sure if that was going to work either. In the end we filmed it so many different ways, starting the circle from different positions, changing the speed, trying different angles, basically giving ourselves as many options as possible in the edit.
It was definitely a lot of trial and error while the sun was disappearing, which added a little bit of pressure! But looking back, I’m so glad we kept trying different things because it ended up being one of my favourite scenes in the whole video.
Tell us about your outfits from the video.
I style all of my music videos myself, and I absolutely LOVE supporting Australian fashion brands.
For the first look I’m wearing a dress from Aussie label Benni with boots from Alias Mae. I loved that outfit so much that I actually wore it on stage for my last show supporting Charley in Melbourne. Those boots honestly make me feel like a superstar.
I’ve always been drawn to bright colours, so you’ll probably never see one of my covers or music videos without some kind of bold colour in it.
For the second look, I wanted something that felt really fun and vibrant, so I chose the cutest red matching set from Bubish. I knew we’d be filming on a rooftop surrounded by the city lights, and I wanted the bright red to really pop against the skyline.
What was it like working with your longtime collaborator Renata for this clip?
I absolutely love working with Renata. Since the first time we worked together back in 2022, I’ve always felt like we’re creatively on the same wavelength. She just gets my vision straight away and always comes up with the best ideas. She’s so creative, so smart, and constantly thinks of things I never would’ve thought of myself.
As soon as I started planning the visuals for this project, she was the first person I wanted to call. I knew she’d understand exactly what I was trying to create, and I’m honestly so proud of what we made together.
And likewise, with Sam on the song and in the video?
Sam is such a creative force. I originally wrote What’s To Blame from my own personal experience and initially imagined it as a solo song. But once I’d finished writing it, I realised how much more powerful the story could be if people got to hear both perspectives.
Sam was the very first person I thought of. I’ve always loved the tone of his voice, and I just knew it would suit the song perfectly. Thankfully he said yes! He brought so much to the track, both vocally and creatively, and having him in the music video as well made the whole story feel so much more real. I was honestly stoked he wanted to be a part of it.
This was right at the end of the day, our very last shots. We wanted some moody cutaways in the red light, so we drove out to a second location in Parramatta and it ended up being the perfect spot.
My favourite red set from Bubish. The perfect pop of colour for this shoot!
These photos were taken at one of our first shooting locations, right next to the Ian Thorpe Swimming Centre. We loved the moodiness and urban feel of this spot because it mirrored my inner world throughout the video and that feeling of isolation.
I was so in love with the hair and makeup Holly Rose and I created for this shoot. We went with a super blushy, soft look with baby blue all over the eyes and loose curls. It felt perfect for the world of the video.
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