Alesso And Liam Payne Talk Uplifting 'Midnight' Video, Self-Isolation, And Fan Remixes

Alesso and Liam Payne are on the phone, although before we can begin talking about their new single, we need to decide what day of the week it is.


"Does anyone know what day it is? Is it Tuesday or Wednesday? Or Sunday?" Payne asks, only half-joking about the all-too-relatable query so several of us have asked while spending all our time at home.


"These days feel like between Christmas and New Year's Eve," Alesso agrees. "You don't know which day it is and you're just waiting for something."


For fans of the British singer and the superstar DJ, the wait for their hotly anticipated teamwork, "Midnight," was the one gnawing at them. Immediately after a few days of teases and snippets, the track arrived on Wednesday (April 8), marking the best marriage of Payne's confident vocal flow and Alesso's buoyant dance production. On it, Payne begs a partner to "stay till the morning, stay for a while." "I just wanna lay here, fall into midnight / And fall right into you," he belts, before the beat drops and Alesso's lush synths swoop in.


"The song has this really positive message of overcoming things in a relationship. It's actually funny that it fits so well with the time now — we're all overcoming something bigger with each other Payne told MTV News. "This song's about that sort of adversity in a relationship and going that step further. You never thought you were going to get as far as you did, and here you are. It's very uplifting."


Impressively, Payne and Alesso even managed to create a music video for "Midnight" while self-quarantining at residence. Last month, they filmed their parts from their respective residence bases: Payne on the rooftop terrace of his apartment in London, and Alesso in his recording studio in Los Angeles. It's an intimate look at the artists in their element, and the clip beautifully blends the two scenes to show how they're standing with each other in isolation.


"Alesso was saying to me yesterday about the way the video feels really natural because we're just doing what we do. It was nice not having a large crew around because folks are constantly telling you how to perform and all," Payne admitted. "We both just got to put ourselves into it, which you never get the possibility to do very much. I quite enjoyed it."


Making the song, both artists contended, was a similarly smooth and intimate process. Rather than simply emailing his vocals in, Payne flew to Alesso's native Sweden to record the song, and Alesso mentioned he was immediately sold right after hearing the initial cut.


"There's something so fantastic any time once you are in the studio and it also just turns out the way you want it. It's those moments that you'll remember forever. He fully took the record to another level," Alesso mentioned of his collaborator. "Just his vocal efficiency. This song was brilliant for him. It's a strong chord that you should carry via the entire song and he totally nailed it."


"When I first heard the song and I heard the chorus, I was like, 'Oh my God, my throat's going to drop off.' It's so high," Payne chimed in. "I don't ever seem to pick the easy songs; that's my biggest problem in life at the moment."


Right now that "Midnight" and its accompanying video are out, Alesso and Payne's next responsibility is to pick a winner for the track's official fan remix. In March, Alesso put the call out for fans to send in recordings of themselves singing a portion of the chorus, and one of these will be handpicked for a remix that will combination their vocals and Payne's.


"It's certainly going to be a tough choice," Alesso mentioned. "You really, really visualize how there's so several talented people out there. I think we've already collected our favorites, yet they keep coming in everyday. It's actually cute to be able to see how creative people become throughout these times. We'll pick someone who makes it their own version and gives you a new feeling to the song."


In the meantime, both artists are focused on channeling their own creativity at residence by experimenting and getting outdoors of their comfort zones.


"I feel like I'm working more creatively than ever before, actually," Payne mentioned. "I've been painting and sketching, and it's been quite fun to disaster around with things I wouldn't typically get the chance to. And I've got so several beats coming through for different things and attempting to write melodies. It's a good way to get out of your own head for a little, and an outlet to put your feelings down."


"The same for me," Alesso mentioned. "Mostly music needless to say, however I've also been practicing playing drums and I'm YouTubing daily. "I've never been house this much, and I found there is lots of things that I wanted to explore creatively and right now I have time to do that."


Up until we hear all that music Alesso's making and all of the artwork Payne is whipping up, visualize their video for "Midnight" — which made its broadcast premiere on MTV Live, mtvU, and MTV International — above.