Watch Adele “When We Were Young” Performance-Art Cover By José Rivera, Jr.

Robbie Daw | February 3, 2016 1:27 pm
Pop Report Card: Adele
One Idolator writer revisits Adele's discography and ranks each record-breaking LP.

“When We Were Young,” clearly a favorite off Adele‘s latest record-busting album 25, was selected as her follow-up single to “Hello” by the powers that be. And so moved by the song was NYC-based performance artist/choreographer José Rivera, Jr. that he decided to incorporate it into his latest visual piece.

Through a video cover version of the song, José “grapples with his feminine and masculine identities while reflecting on memories of a past lover, seeking to address his own body dysmorphia through physical expression,” per a press release. That is quite a lot to work through via a pop song. And this is certainly one of the more, um, interesting Adele covers we’ve stumbled upon.

“By queering traditional narratives, my work provides visibility for bodies of all backgrounds, ethnicities, shapes, sizes, and identities in an effort to merge them with pop cultural norms i.e. ‘making difference mainstream’,” says Rivera, Jr.

Watch his take on Adele’s latest hit above.

What do you think of José’s rendition of Adele’s song? Let us know below, or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter!

Tags: