Justin Bieber and Cody Simpson worked on a music video with legendary director Wayne Isham Friday night, on what was the first day of a rolling shoot.
That’s pretty exciting for all sorts of reasons. Not least of which, the fact that Isham , 56, is thought of as a pioneer in the field, and is the force behind some of the most iconic music videos of all time.
The greats Isham has worked with include – Bieber’s music hero, the late Michael Jackson (“You are not alone”), Van Halen (“Jump”), The Rolling Stones (“Rock and a Hard Place”), Bon Jovi (“Living on a Prayer”), Pink Floyd (“Money”), Kelly Clarkson (“My Life Would Suck Without You”), Sheryl Crow (“The First Cut is the Deepest”) and many more.
The UK’s Mirror is reporting Justin requested former Baywatch star David Hasselhoff, 62, for the shoot, which will film over a few days at a secret location in Los Angeles.
The paper cites a on-set source, as saying:
“It came about because Justin is a huge fan of The Hoff, he thinks he’s a legend,” adding the somewhat remarkable claim that 40 dogs will also feature in the video.
With the first single off Bieber and Simpson’s debut, acoustic duets album reportedly now imminent, activity in camp Bieber and Simpson has been ramping up over recent days.
First, the boys tweeted about rehearsing together last week. On Tuesday, mutual manager Scooter Braun , photographer Nick Onken, pals, the Twitter account Fahlo , then Justin and Cody, revealed the pair filmed a photo shoot on a Californian ranch on Monday.
Out on a ranch in California. Good day pic.twitter.com/XjBfCLcsoY
— Cody Simpson (@CodySimpson) September 16, 2014
Media and fans speculated whether the shoot was for an album cover , and a few pictures surfaced online.
That same day, the Biebs, 20, announced that he has signed Cody, 17 as “his new artist,” although details are scant. Then, two videos arrived online. The Australian and Canadian are seen playing acoustic guitar while singing one of their tracks inside a home setting. In a second clip, the duo goof off and dance on a hillside.
Fast forward to Friday. Cody , Fahlo and team members dropped hints that something big was going down.
shooting something special today. check my updates on @OfficialFahlo
— Cody Simpson (@CodySimpson) September 20, 2014
What shoot do you think @justinbieber is heading to? http://t.co/2yCSI8tdUy #GetCloserToJustinBieber
— Fahlo (@OfficialFahlo) September 19, 2014
( Photo via Fahlo: Bieber, “Getting ready.” )
Bieber’s longtime stylist Karla Welch tweeted a peek at some of the wardrobe used on the day.
Getting Ready pic.twitter.com/VskuI9HIfe
— Karla Welch Stylist (@karla_welch) September 19, 2014
Up next was an Instagram video of the Biebs doing a work out, captioned, “Warming up.”
Once everyone was on set, even more revealing visuals emerged. Braun posted a shot of himself, Isham and Justin.
It was captioned, “Video shoot with a legend papa Wayne.”
Justin also shared a selfie (with temporary ‘stache), while holding a guitar, to his Instagram page.
Cody got in the online action again. The teen posted a Shots snap, writing,
“Rockstars. Great day of shooting with Wayne Isham & JB.”
Post-first day of the shoot, Justin headed to a Nobu location in L.A. with a few pals.
And that’s a wrap! Something very different coming from @justinbieber soon. Was happy to be a part of it!
— Karla Welch Stylist (@karla_welch) September 20, 2014
After Justin made a group of fans happy with an impromptu meet-and-greet and posed for pictures — one of which he posted to Instagram — the heartthrob and others shared more snaps .
“Thank u for the love,” his caption read.
Cody and Bieber’s tour musical director / lead guitarist, Dan Kanter, shared the same photo from Nobu.
Cody teased, “We’ve got some magic on it’s way. New beginnings. So stoked.”
Day 1 in LA I’ve found myself a wingman @justinbieber #Nobu pic.twitter.com/7kpFAP44zk
— Bobby (@BobbyLD) September 20, 2014
Meanwhile, Stratford’s finest signed off his postings for the night with a shot of himself and Cody, alongside a loaded caption of “Day 1.”
With Isham directing, and Justin and Cody no doubt eager to do some chart damage with their first single from their duets album — not forgetting the possible inclusion of The Hoff — this is one music video to look out for.