Dark-pop singer Riah releases a one-take video called Lestat

Riah has released a one-take music video called Lestat, AllHipHop reported on August 3. The dark-pop singer plays a vampire who flips the usual power dynamic, going from apparent victim to a figure in control of her own story. Riah co-directed the video with Luke Ostermiller, and the single continuous shot follows her character through a vampire den populated by a cast that includes queer and nonbinary performers drawn from Denver's vampire community.

Riah said the concept was her first music video built around a full cast of extras and her first attempt at a one-shot production, adding that she wanted the audience to feel like they were wandering through the den with her in real time. "I love stories that subvert expectations," she said. "You think you're watching a woman searching for a man, but really she's hunting."

She has described the song and video as drawing on her own experience entering the Los Angeles music scene as a teenager, then stepping away from traditional industry structures before returning as an independent artist.

Lestat is part of Riah's forthcoming pop album, titled Insurrection, and the beginning of a larger theatrical project. She is also developing a scripted immersive production called Medusa's Curse with DejaView Productions, and the video joins the rest of the month's releases at the release calendar.