Video: Charli Lark Releases Cover of Empire of the Sun's 'Walking on a Dream'

Dark Electro-Pop Siren Charli Lark has released her cover video of Empire of the Sun's "Walking on a Dream," with a premiere on 1883 Magazine, hot off the back of the track which debuted on Untitled Magazine.  This release is a follow-up to her critically acclaimed single, "LIMBO" and its UK remixes, that received rave reviews from WONDERLAND and EDM.com, among others. 

Bringing the energy of a strong woman that has fought her battles and risen as a phoenix from the ashes, Lark reveals,“‘Walking on a Dream’ has always made me feel so free and alive, such an optimistic confidence booster. It reminds me of the dreamy, intoxicating high of all-consuming love that lifts you up out of the mud and into a living dream.You don’t know how it’s real, but you don’t care, nothing else matters and you never want it to end. I’m a vivid dreamer and I really connect with how the song plays on that in-between space of dream and reality. I love an upbeat love song. I wanted to honor the vibrant drive of the song and amp up some ethereal lushness, drop even deeper into that otherworldly dream state. Lean into the introspection and beauty at the core of the original. Empire of the Sun are legends and it’s been so fun to cover an electropop anthem I love so much and give it my take."

Lark continues, “It was so fun and invigorating to channel what the song represents to me and creatively bring it all together into a video. To capture that beautiful weirdness, unexpected surprise feeling like you’re walking around in your dreams.   I wanted the visual to feel free, dreamy.  I think we all could use a bit of that these days!  I want the listener to be left with something that can truly take them away to a fun, care-free world and experience!  I hope that is what people get out of this as that is how it felt making this video!”

Growing up in Louisiana, pursuing music as a passion was no small feat for Charli despite the rich musical history of cities like New Orleans. Transplanted from New Orleans to a small town in northern Louisiana through high school, Charli sang all throughout her childhood. “I started singing at fairs and talent shows, before I got into acting,” she remembers. Music still stayed at the forefront, and by the time she reached college, she was taking part in local open mic nights. But the small town mentality, coupled with a lack of opportunities left Charli feeling as though her musical aspirations had to take a backseat. “I had to make money,” she explains, “and so after I left college, I took corporate jobs.”

While working in corporate America, Charli still wrote songs and sang, ultimately moving to New York City in the hopes of making her passion a profession. It was there that she met her ex-husband, and the two married, had children and bounced between coasts—eventually landing in Idaho. Over the years, her relationship grew in toxicity, and while adjusting to motherhood (plus still keeping a marriage together), Charli kept her songwriting sharp as a form of therapy. However, going from a high-powered corporate job on the coast to being sequestered in a rural town in a tumultuous marriage took its toll on Charli, and one day she simply had enough. “It might have looked like a breakdown, but now I know it was a breakthrough.”

At the heart of her work, Charli Lark aims to inspire through experience.  Her music is designed to hit you in your core, while remaining intensely personal to her journey.  “I want to make music that impacts, that makes a person feel, that carries my energy through to others, and maybe helps alchemize something within them.”  

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