Finally, an Anthem for the Underrated Kitten Heel
Music

Finally, an Anthem for the Underrated Kitten Heel

If you're a girl or a gay, then you know there's nothing more powerful than the sound of heels clicking against the floor. It is the entrance, it is the exit, and for Isabella Lovestory, it is the hook. Click, click, click, click, click. Today, the Honduras-born artist premieres "Kitten Heel," which she describes as a "love story" about the underrated shoe, and what it's like "being the hottest girl with the shortest heels."

The track, co-produced by Chicken and Rambow, arrives today with a bilingual lyric video shot by Shahan Assadourian. "I wanted the video to look hypnotizing, just like first time i saw my $12 holographic Miu Miu kitten heels on eBay," Lovestory says. "Walking in kitten heels gives you a particular feeling no other heel can give you. The shortness of the heel makes dancing so easy, as if you're barefoot — comfortable and liberating. You can dance so low, you can almost kiss the dancefloor."

The visual shows Lovestory wearing her kitten heels literally everywhere, beginning with her bed. There are low angle shots of her sitting on the toilet, getting soaked in the shower, waiting for the train and standing in the elevator (she even presses the buttons with her shoe's pointed toe). "Click, click, click, click [...] click, click, click, click, with my kitten heel," she says repeatedly, pressing the heels into her keyboard and manically playing the drums. You never once see Lovestory's face in the entire video.

"I wrote this song last year," the Montreal-based musician says. "I was thinking of how dancing feels as if you're casting a spell against all evil — casting words, stomping on the devil while dancing. A year later, the message of the song still resonates with me. It's important more than ever to work against the evil forces in this world, specifically helping the most marginalized people get the justice they deserve."

Echoing the song's deeper message, Lovestory is also releasing a t-shirt with all profits from sales going to the For The Gworls fund, which supports Black transgender people. On Instagram, For The Gworls specifically mentions assisting with their rent and affirmative surgery. This has always been vital work, but especially in 2020 when the Human Rights Campaign has already tracked 21 total murders of trans folks. According to USA Today, this nearly matches 2019's total of 27. The organization has "never seen such a high number at this point in the year."

"Kitten Heel," with its deliciously bratty production and well-deserved arrogance, follows two 2020 singles — "Golosa" and "JETAIME" — and Lovestory's 2019 Humo EP. In June, she announced that all Bandcamp proceeds from Humo would also support For The Gworls. "I would like to shift the focus from individualism, and use music and art to help our communities and neighbors," Lovestory says. "It is hard to be positive, but it's the only way forward."

Watch the PAPER premiere of "Kitten Heel," above," and purchase a $30 t-shirt at www.isabellasuperstar.love.

Photography: Fatine-Violette Sabiri

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