Today, Jared Gaines (also known as Vaines) releases “Bullets,” a powerful song with a harrowing music video weaving in interviews and footage from a life he’s previously kept out of the limelight. His second single under the moniker Rat Park, “Bullets” reflects upon his family’s complicated history with prison and drugs in a way most artists wouldn’t dare to make transparent.
Watch the video HERE.
While some artists would shy away from discussing such personal topics, Jared turned it into the inspiration for his latest project. Using the self-produced track/music video to call attention to the addiction epidemic by interviewing his own family, Jared maintains a sense of positivity and hope despite his upbringing. Addressing his family’s struggles head-on in his music, Rat Park is paving the way for Jared and others in similar situations to process and heal.
"Sometimes dark things happen in small towns and people don’t even bat an eye. Nobody questioned why me and my other teenage friends were spending our whole summer at a stranger's house who was three times our age,” shares Gaines about “Bullets”. “I didn’t know how to tell my parents that I had seen a man do heroin in front of me at 14, or that some of my friends were going upstairs with him and never coming back down. It hurts knowing that I made it out of my small town but my friends weren’t so lucky. Bullets are deadly, but there are other ways to destroy somebody than to kill them."
Hailing from a small town in upstate New York, the multi-instrumentalist moved to LA to pursue his music career and distance himself from his family’s complicated history. Now making peace with his family, his new direction as Rat Park is fostering a commendable honesty in his music. Rat Park, named after an experiment done in the 1970s which tested the effects of opiates on rats, is an opportunity for Gaines’ creativity to run wild and unfiltered.
“Bullets” will follow the LA-based alternative artist’s previous song/video “Missing You” which was released earlier this summer.
Fans of RatPark and the new song can anticipate more music coming soon. In the meantime, stay tuned for additional updates on TikTok and Instagram.
