Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' Music Video: Look By Look
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Despite the fact that Rita Ora has been seemingly everywhere over the past few months—on the runways, on the cover of magazines, working with Rimmel, DKNY, and Adidas, and filming 50 Shades of Grey—we were starting to really miss her, music-wise. It’s been two years since she released her debut album, Ora, but now we finally have a taste of what the follow-up is going to sound like, and brace yourselves, Ritabots, it’s good. In the video for the lead single “I Will Never Let You Down,” which just dropped today, Rita delivers her catchiest song yet, a pure pop love song adorably penned by her BF Calvin Harris. Of course, this being a Rita Ora video, there’s a lot of killer clothes involved, so let’s get into it!
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Our first shot of Rita is a tasteful black-and-white headshot just being developed. If you’ve seen One Direction’s "Story of My Life" video, you already know what happens next: She starts singing! But unlike 1D, the vibe of Rita’s animated photos is more early ‘90s and ties into the song’s throwback sound, which, Calvin Harris told Paper, was inspired by Whitney Houston.
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Soon we see that Rita is wearing a strappy black swimsuit with her tousled bob. The cagey one-piece looks it might not be the most comfortable thing to dance around in—hello strap imprints—but Rita is pulling it off like all of her modeling experience has led up to this moment. NBD.
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Next, Rita struts around in another swimsuit—this time, a hot pink Herve Leger one with a matching dyed-pink bob and see-through trench coat. IMO, when you look like Rita, anytime you’re not strutting down the street in a clear pink trench is a missed opp. Her dancers have an equally intriguing look with bikini tops, American Apparel disco pants cut into shorts, Adidas, and tube socks with ankle chains. If I saw this crew dancing down the street, I would definitely follow to see where they were heading.
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Rita and her blonde crew end up in a hallway. For this scene, Rita’s BFF Jeremy Scott, who’s currently heading Moschino, provides her clothes, an exact look from the runway: a powder-blue quilted suit from his debut collection for the fashion house along with a black leather cap, a belt, and chains all spelling out "MOSCHINO." Jeremy also loaned a bustier from his TV test collection to one of Rita’s dancers.
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
Next, Rita appears solo in a green snakeskin hat and matching shift dress with Chanel earrings. This look leaves us with one question: Is this creation also by Jeremy Scott? The designer came up with a similar red snakeskin look for the song’s single artwork and we know that his designs appeared in the scene before.
A still from Rita Ora's 'I Will Never Let You Down' video.
Photo: Roc Nation
The video ends with Rita laying on red clouds made of tulle. JK. That’s just the visual effect of her ruffled red outfit, which she accessorizes with a pink fingerless Chanel glove. Is it all a headpiece? A dress? A top? Alas, we’ll never know because the shot never zooms out. We're left wanting to see more, which—hey—is the mark of a great video.
