Steph Lecor’s ‘Face’ Video Is All Pink Glitter and Palm Tree Dreams
Sometimes the stars align next to a heart-shaped jacuzzi tub. (This is why we should never be FAR from heart-shaped jacuzzi tubs!) The video for Steph Lecor’s “Face” was sent my way when I was occupying a honeymoon suite in a cabin in California. Directed by Lucy Sandler, “Face” is a honeymoon that only YOU are on — and it feels FAMOUS!
Steph had a career in music prior to being a cast member on Love & Hip Hop Miami. A Miami native, she was in an EDM dance group before meeting DJ Khaled through her manager E Class. Now, she’s the First Lady of We The Best, and it took her not much longer than the length of a song to win over Khaled in the studio. Steph and Lucy, an LA-based director who’s worked with Puma, Complex, Out Magazine, and more met on the set of Complex’s Her Take, and pink glitter and champagne dreams followed. Things you’ll want to use “Face” for: getting ready with your girls, being in a hot tub, driving to the mall, driving home from the mall, walking into a business meeting.
They made the video on an iPhone, and it’s really the most glam Instagram story.
How did you guys meet, and how did the concept for the video come about?
Lucy: Steph and I met because I work at Complex, and last year we made a show called Her Take, which was a weekly show we filmed in Miami. She was the host and star of the show, and I was directing it, so we spent a lot of time together, worked crazy hours, and definitely just became friends from working together so much. The creative relationship developed after that and outside of [working together professionally.]
Steph: I instantly connected with Lucy — I loved her direction, and I loved having her around. When it came down to shooting a video, Lucy said, ‘If you’d ever want to collab on shooting a video, I would love to be a part of it.’ And I was like, ‘I was going to ask you if you’d want to be part of it!’
Making “Face” was a bit of a process. At first, we came in with all these big ideas and hiring a full-on crew, and then somehow over margaritas, we were talking about bringing it back to visuals and content and social media, and that conversation turned to iPhones. We were like, ‘It’d be so cool if we could shoot the video on the phone also.’ I trust Lucy’s vision, and we talked about what it would feel like, what mood we were going for. We both are very into retro themes, so we just went from there. Less than a week, we put it all together and had the look. We went vintage shopping together. Every aspect of this video was a complete collaboration as far as hair, makeup, clothes, location, creative direction.
Lucy: It was crazy. We agreed to do it at dinner, and the next morning she was at my house at 10am. We spent a week together — at least five days — just shopping and planning and making sure everything was in place. With very little time and very little money, we were just kind of throwing everything together and starting to make this vision we had come true as best we could. It was very much a collaboration between two friends, and it was about each other.
It totally comes through in the video! You guys look like you’re having so much fun, and it looks like a very beautifully shot Instagram story — like in the best possible way.
Steph: That’s exactly what we wanted! That’s the mood we were going for.
What was it like shooting a whole music video on your iPhone?
Lucy: It was definitely a new experience. I was just interested in the idea — I mean, I use my phone for so much, I’m on social media constantly. We saw the phone as something that was going to be able to empower us to make exactly what we wanted to make without spending too much money. As we discussed it more, it was like, not only is this going to free us from having to do anything anyone else’s way, but it can be an integral part of the style and the story behind the video.
It was totally new and definitely a challenge. I have an iPhone 6, and I was using Steph’s iPhone 7 and my friend’s iPhone 7, and just grabbing all these phones. It felt like there was so much going on even though we were just using a phone.
I wanted to ask about the song — it’s a great summer anthem, a great female anthem. I was curious to know the story behind it and what it means to you?
Steph: I was in Atlanta, and a friend of mine, Ralph, played me this song he wrote and produced. Initially, they had Beyoncé in mind for it, and when I heard it, I was like, ‘I need to record this song. It’s amazing.’ For me, it’s everything you just said. It’s so much fun, it’s such a female’s anthem. When I’m getting ready, that’s the kind of music I want to listen to. I want my girls around me; we’re getting ready and about to take over the world in whichever way, whether it’s on our way to a meeting or to the club or to dinner. That’s always my vibe when I know I need to get out and kill something.
It’s a dance record, and I just felt like it was perfect. Summer’s coming up, so it was the perfect time to drop it.
How did your collaboration with DJ Khaled and We The Best come about?
Steph: My manager E Class sent me a song, and he was so excited and passionate about this song. He played it for me over the phone, and I could barely hear it, but I could hear his enthusiasm, so I was just kind of like, ‘Yes, this is awesome, let’s do it.’ And the song was called “Saturday”, and it was the first time ever I had done anything that was more hip-hop driven, and more pop-y melodic kind of rap stylings because I’m a singer, and I remember thinking, ‘He’s so excited, I have to cut this and kill it.’
He played it for Khaled, which I didn’t know anything about, and he calls me and is like “Get dressed. You’re going out; it’s important,” and I’m like ‘OK, I’m a girl, what are the details? Am I getting dressed for dinner? Am I getting dressed for the studio? Am I getting dressed for a walk?’ You know, we need to know! He told me we were going to the studio, so I put on a cute studio look, and I walk in, and it’s DJ Khaled. We’ve never met in person, so it’s like instantly I’m thinking, ‘I wonder what his personality is going to be like.’
I walk in the room, and he’s like, “YOOOO, SHE’S BEAUTIFUL,” and he’s like “Ace Hood, Ace, tell her she’s beautiful.” [laughs] We sat down, and we had an amazing conversation. We both have a lot of things in common as far as our outlook on life and being positive and being a good person, and keeping negativity away from you. We started playing the song, and I started dancing, and I got him up and he started dancing. By the end, he took his chain off and put it around my neck and was like, ‘You’re part of We The Best now, you’re family forever.’ It was life-changing.
What was the experience of being on Love & Hip Hop Miami like? I was wondering if receiving that increase in public attention influenced “Face” and living your best life in this public way.
Steph: Filming Love & Hip Hop Miami was a very new experience for me. I’m so used to being an artist and moving a certain way and recording a certain way. I’ve been doing that for 12 years, being a signed artist and a professional. Walking into the production world and reality TV at that was something I thought I knew about, but I had no idea really what it was about. Love & Hip Hop was a huge learning experience, I definitely have grown from it. Now that the season’s over, I know a lot more about reality TV; I understand the angles and the production side of it.
The video for “Face,” actually Love & Hip Hop influenced it a lot because, on the show, we filmed a clip of me shooting a music video. It was a very over-the-top, glow-in-the-dark kind of vibe. It was very dramatic, and I knew deep down that it was a lot and it wasn’t really what I wanted for the song. I wanted to strip it away, and Lucy sent over an amazing treatment. It was so epic. It was like, let’s simplify this, let’s make this more relatable to people. We just came up with the concept, and I felt like the video now is definitely more relatable and fun and easy and light. The song is already so dramatic, I just kind of wanted the video to be the opposite of that.
Totally! And if you’re someone watching the video and listening to the song, you can kind of put yourself in the video too. As a Miami native, how did that influence your style and sound?
Steph: In a major way! Miami’s such a huge melting pot. Everyone from every walk of life is there. I grew up listening to everything from EDM to pop to rap to R&B and then of course Latin music. I grew up listening to Copa and Haitian music. My dad was in a Haitian band growing up. I’ve always been surrounded by music since the age of three. I would be sitting in the garage; my aunts and uncles would be practicing for a gig. I think that’s taking all of those things and all of the culture from Miami. It definitely reflects in my music.
I would say my music is a cultural mashup of everything and maybe a little bit ADD.
What are three things that make you feel ✨ VERY FAMOUS✨?
Steph:
-
- Mascara — I can’t live without mascara!
-
- Confidence — Confidence helps people attain fame
- Good people
Lucy:
- Listening to garage band rock with female lead singers before I go out, bands like Great Grandpa. Plus “Face” obviously!
- Not wearing a bra
- Doing my makeup!
Find Steph on Instagram and Twitter, and find Lucy on her site here. Photos courtesy of Steph and Lucy.
August 31, 2023
In "Features"
