Ashnikko’s new music video taps into our ultra-kitsch obsession with trinkets

Ashnikko is a truly modern pop-star. In the same vein as kidcore, Tumblr darlings Melanie Martinez and Poppy, the feisty, vulgar and unabashed rapper-singer is not just modern in her sudden emergence through TikTok, anime-inspired get-up or weirdcore visuals. Ashnikko, like zoomers, loves a freaky accessory. Her newest song Trinkets is created in collaboration with Blinkink, and Léa Esmaili, a director and photographer whose portfolio is filled with saturated colours, urban grit and elevated, dream-like perspectives.

Ashnikko came locked and loaded with visual ideas for her concept-heavy song, which is about the accessorisation of a romantic partner, turning the toxic concept of physical ownership over someone into a tongue in cheek and risqué jest. “ I loved blending our worlds together, because it felt very natural. It’s a collection of ideas I had tucked away in a corner of my mind, and I applied them to her universe,” says Léa. “I’m inspired by everything – what I see on social media, in the street, people, music – I record everything and take photos of it all.” One of the most provocative images in the video features Ashnikko riding two men lying on top of each other to create a rocking horse. Aesthetics that revolve around childhood, such as this and googly eyes (which are seen pasted all over Ashnikko’s buttocks) are constantly run through the bizarre, psychosexual filter that has become Ashnikko’s signature.

The song’s drop coincides perfectly with the peak of the Labubu craze. Léa’s maximalist style, which uses visual clutter, noise and chaos, fits hand in hand with the song’s metaphors of collectables, keepsakes and trinkets – it’s a match made in heaven. Léa and Ashnikko realised they had the same reference in mind for the video: the large, detailed and picture heavy I Spy wimmelbooks popular in the 90s. “We also have those in France, and it was funny that we both had the same reference for the project without even talking about it beforehand,” says Léa. With images such as Ashnikko’s digitally manipulated head inside of a gumball machine and severed doll parts scattered across tables, the viewer is given a feast of imagery within its sub 2 minutes runtime.

Addicted to “pushing music video ideas through every style”, Léa’s impressive and complete vision encompasses CGI, stop-motion and animation all in the same video, taking that visual maximalism an extra step further. “Here, the real challenge was making sure the styles didn’t feel disconnected, but instead merged together. What really helped was the integration of the trinkets, the stop motion, and the texture work,” says Léa. Like a fashion shoot on an acid trip, Ashnikko’s brand typically weaves her unique costumes into music videos – this time it’s what Léa calls the “rabbit girl”, manipulating Ashnikko’s appearance with cosmetics and digital trickery to accentuate the grotesqueness of her punky, riotous characters. Even if the recent uptick in trinket collecting dies down, Léa and Ashnikko will outlive trends with this ultra-kitsch, fun and weird imprint on alternative pop.