Portugal. The Man frontman John Gourley talks about the crazy whirlwind success of the band’s hit single “Feel It Still” (a Billboard Hot 100 top 10), why their upcoming music is their most personal yet and more.
John Gourley:
The stakes have changed. The motivation has changed. The reason I’m doing this piece all changed
I mean, it’s so wild looking back at that stuffÂ
This is where we used to skip school and snowboard. We’d hike up, this is like my happy place. Right when I come home, I listen to music and just walk along the top. Just silence that’s the thing I miss most about Alaska is just silence. We’re here in Knik, Alaska. I grew up out here. We come out for the dog sled races for the Knik 200, we shot a ton of our music videos
These two trees the way they were bent. It just it looked like a soundstage. I sent it to a buddy and he was like, where did you shoot this? It’s like literally my dad’s backyard. Last time I came down from the tree, she didn’t have video. It was all adrenaline. I was sitting up there. I was like, wow, like I have no strength left and I was at the top. I was like, please make it to the bottom please.
Watch the full video above. Read the full Billboard cover story, written by Lyndsey Havens, here. Check out the photo shoot taken in John Gourley’s home state of Alaska here.
