Reese Lansangan Dives into the Depths of Fear in ‘All I Know is I’m Afraid’ MV

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Reese Lansangan is afraid of uncertainties. And she sings about her innermost fears with much candor in “All I Know is I’m Afraid.”

On April 23, she unveiled the song’s music video on her YouTube channel, with the creative piece serving as an invitation for her listeners to journey with her into a world where vulnerability is at the fore.

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Braving the unknown

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In one of the most fragile songs of her sophomore album “Time Well Spent,” Reese grapples with the crushing weight of the unknown.

The opening sequence of the accompanying visuals fittingly captures the track’s introspective mood: The singer-songwriter is seen alone in a messy, candle-decorated room, gazing out in front of a mirror and staring at the ceiling.

As the second verse comes along and she drowns in haunting thoughts, the artist falls into the water. “Floating above the air/ My worry rooting deep/ Hopelessly paralyzed/ By fear that follows me to sleep,” she tenderly sings.

This metaphoric visual interpretation would later return — with a higher degree of intensity — as she repeats the same lines for the song’s bridge.

Throughout the music video, the audience finds the indie powerhouse wandering around the different parts of the home. A vivid sense of uneasiness lingers, as some portions feature her in shaky, handheld shots.

But after all these poetic images steeped in anguish are portrayed, there’s a comforting resolve that arrives toward the end. Reese closes the door, draws the curtains, starts picking up the mess, and bounces onto the bed with a subtle smile on her face.

The music video is directed by visual artist and long-time collaborator GELOYELLOW.

Ode to growing

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“Time Well Spent,” the album of which the song is included, is the 32-year-old act’s ode to growth. She released it in 2021, coinciding with a pandemic that ushered crippling anxiety into the lives of many.

Her sophomore effort is a worth-the-wait follow-up to her 2015 breakout record “Arigato, Internet!,” containing 15 tracks that follow her journey as an artist acknowledging — and overcoming — self-doubt.

“I am a seed, taking root, I am a flower facing the sun. I am in mid-bloom. I am a work-in-progress. I celebrate life, and welcome joy and pain as friends. I dance with the freedom of the wind. I feel all things. My time here is a gift, [and] I cherish it. I am growing. I am going,” wrote the multi-hyphenate on the project’s dedicated page.

In an effort to visually narrate the distinctive sections of the record (the “chapters,” as she calls them, are based on the themes tackled in the tracks), Reese has been releasing music videos for the album.

In March this year, she dropped the music video for “Pocket,” which took the well-rounded artist on a dreamy road trip.

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“Coming from Chapter 1 (Pocket), a song of sunshine and happy detours, Chapter 2 is the reality that you come home to after the high — dull, dark, heavy, and often remains unseen. The music video attempts to show the manic episodes, the constant overthinking, [and] the restlessness that all exist within us,” she penned in a social media post.

While the song and its visuals fearlessly depict Reese as someone rife with uncertainties, a glimmer of hope emerges: “Now I don’t know/ For how long I get to live/ This life of mine/ But all I know/ Is write in song/ Hymn of my heart/ And anthem of my mind.”

With music as her ever-faithful companion, she keeps pressing on and navigating the unknown — one poignant track and music video at a time.

Watch the official visuals for “All I Know is I’m Afraid” below:

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Stream “Time Well Spent” here.

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Written by Emmy Borromeo

Editing by Pauline Bolaños

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