The legendary music video director breaks the mold of convention. 

<p>To say that Jonas &Aring;kerlund is one of today&#39;s most iconic music video directors is to downplay the Swedish auteur&#39;s body of work. With credits to his name that include Beyonc&eacute;&#39;s &quot;Hold Up&quot;&mdash;famous for channeling Queen Bey&#39;s inner vandal&mdash;Lady Gaga&#39;s epic ode to feminine fury in &quot;Telephone,&quot; not to mention a slew of hits that run the gamut from Maroon 5&#39;s &quot;Moves Like Jagger&quot; to Madonna&#39;s &quot;Ray of Light,&quot; &Aring;kerlund is a true visionary in the industry.</p>

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<p>&quot;The key to his success is his knack for making the image he presents bigger than the screen itself.&quot; &mdash;Iggy Pop&nbsp;</p>


<p>And though his aesthetic style has changed over years&mdash;who else could go from directing Christina Aguilera&#39;s &quot;Beautiful&quot; to &quot;True Nature&quot; by Jane&#39;s Addiction&mdash;&Aring;kerlund&#39;s ability to marry bold imagery and electric performances gives his videos an unmistakable quality. When asked to describe that style, &Aring;kerlund simply responds, &quot;In your face.&quot; Indeed, for &Aring;kerlund, artists come to work with him when they&#39;re looking to do &quot;something different, something they&#39;ve never done.&quot; If they want normal, &quot;I am not their guy,&quot; he continues.</p>


<p>&quot;Jonas has a unique vision&mdash;he interprets the language of music videos like nobody else.&quot; &mdash;Nick Rhodes, Duran Duran</p>


<p>Tellingly, for a director that&#39;s worked with the biggest names in the music industry, &Aring;kerlund has his pick of artists to work with. Pressed to name the one band, past or present, he&#39;d love to do something with, he responds, &quot;Anything Black Sabbath.&quot;</p>


Director Jonas Åkerlund Doesn't Care What You Think

L'OFFICIEL USA May 2024 - Natalie Portman Cover

Director Jonas Åkerlund Doesn't Care What You Think

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