CALIFORNICATION and The Myth of California

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When the world thinks of California -- they tend to think of a fairytale.
The beaming sun, the surf-ready beaches, the famous celebrities, and of course the beautiful babes. For so long, the Golden State had been looked at as the pinnacle of Western civilization and a metaphor for the American Dream. It’s been described in countless tunes by dozens of artists and over several decades. But one song in particular looked to correct that entire façade (“Californication”).
The Red Hot Chili Peppers are undoubtedly a California band. They not only formed in LA but their songs are full of themes, images, and references to their home state. They’ve seen firsthand the effects the Hollywood lifestyle has had on its inhabitants and the world at large. And their most prominent song, “Californication”, speaks to just how far the state has fallen -- revealing the darker side of Hollywood that seems to go unnoticed. But where did things go so wrong? In order to find out, let’s explore the state’s history and peek through the lens of the artists that shaped California’s fabled identity.
CALIFORNICATION and The Myth of California
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#Middle8 #Californication
This video is sponsored by CuriosityStream
Written by Frank Furtado and Daniel Rosen
Voiced and edited by Frank Furtado
Additional Music by Matthew McClelland

[@arlofleenor1838]

California doesn't even seem like a word anymore lol

[@TheInnertainment]

especially after you listen to the chili Pepper's discography

[@user-xf4gn5zw1n]

Most words from California aren't words anyway duder

[@thomasridley8675]

Well, if we don't get some snow. Most of the west will become one giant sand dune. And the grave yard of abandoned cities.

[@louieo.blevinsmusic4197]

I was about to say. Now when I think of California, I think of a skid row, gangs, fake tits/lips, fake people in general, and it being on fire. I’d love to visit north California any day but LA and majority of the rest……. I’m good. I hope the people there the best, though.

[@khersy]

Maybe if you’re from there

[@craneisthename]

The song aged like fine wine, what it said holds even more weight today.

[@fabiang6116]

“born & raised by those who praise control of population” is still one of my favorite lines

[@97HawksFly]

Right! The psychic spies line is so relevant considering China's involvement in Hollywood these days

[@johnherrera5261]

Yeah California is hobo crackhead land now

[@craneisthename]

@@johnherrera5261 you forgot the fake people, pedos and high taxes

[@flamingcheetopuff8434]

@@97HawksFly Hollywood sure loves getting its cash from there

[@espvp]

It's worth mentioning that California already had this "dreamland" fantasy notion for the first Spaniard Conquistadores that had heard tales of this promised land from the natives.

[@specter1549]

That's fake news it was named California because Cortez thought it was an island that was beautiful so he named it after a book he had been reading of Amazonian woman tribes who lived in a mythical island

[@jasonbrown372]

gee, what happened to those Natives, Kemo Sabe?

[@fahs]

The Spanish never believed that. They never really settled CA. We we dont know for sure, but the most reliable.estimates have Spanish Creoles numbering about 40k.

[@tubarao1143]

Cortez never reached California..

[@tecpaocelotl]

Not true. I recommend doing research on the fictional book Las sergas de Esplandián.

[@thisisfyne]

Long story short, it's just that California represents the potential for both personal utopia and demise. Some artists choose to praise its glory and sunshine, while others choose to reveal its ugly coked-up superficial face. I think we can find examples of that in all eras, except maybe in the 60s when we were still in the early days of the would-be massive entertainment industries. By the 70s, the facade had already started to crumble for those who'd been there in the decade prior. Amazing video, as always!

[@vanillakilla23]

Just sayin this “California” being referenced is just SoCal and is not representative of the entire state. Dumb as hell a state with almost 40 million people with each half specializing in completely different industries (Entertainment vs Tech) is getting lumped and generalized together.

[@biscuit119]

@@vanillakilla23 What you're saying has universal application, people see what they want. The fact is its easy to lump & generalize then rationally going about it. Folks like the easy way.

[@jordanwilliams6972]

*represented

[@bobsbuurgers3714]

Tell me you don't live in California without actually telling me...

[@EJH-jn6mo]

@@vanillakilla23 eh, speaking of making generalizations, you are actually lumping and sterotyping all of SoCal. LA might as well be another planet than Orange County and San Diego.

[@Nudelllsuppe]

Like SOAD said: "You should have never trusted Hollywood."

[@caesarorzell600]

Love that song!!!!

[@lettysharp578]

The place sucks you in and spits you out

[@MortanAMrk]

Also like SOAD said: "Tony Danza Cuts In Line (old school hollywood, washed up hollywood) Standing in the sun im wasting my time"

[@RyanMichero]

"I buy my crack my smack my bitch right here in Hollywood" I can't believe he didn't mention SOAD, so many songs to choose from.

[@chad_the_bug4091]

old school hollywood baseball

[@notIshan]

As Kendrick Lamar said - "They come for Women, Weed and Weather. Wh-what more can I say, W-Welcome to LA"

[@whatsinaname691]

That’s a biggie reference

[@seth5394]

what song

[@whatsinaname691]

@@seth5394 hypnotize

[@notIshan]

@@seth5394 The Recipe.

[@lex8239]

@@whatsinaname691 No

[@dalmallama4634]

Fun Fact: None of the current Red Hot Chili Peppers members were actually born in California, with Anthony being from Michigan, Flea from Melbourne, Australia, Chad from Minnesota and John from New York

[@Atrazeal]

"The sun may rise in the East at least it's settled in a final location"

[@zephyr74ds37]

👏

[@DichotomousRex]

RHCP were writing about Weinstein and what Hollywood does to women long before the #metoo movement. This album lays out the whole story.

[@papafoundry5537]

No one cares anymore

[@Awesomebaconman123]

@@papafoundry5537 Everyone still cares. Don't understand why you have to be an ass.

[@clicheguevara5282]

@@Awesomebaconman123 If anyone _actually_ cared, Me Too would have been more than a trendy social media pitchfork mob and Hollywood would actually be reforming itself.

[@papafoundry5537]

@@Awesomebaconman123 im not being an ass. it is just the sad truth of the movement

[@Awesomebaconman123]

@@clicheguevara5282 You have to see around you, the normal people that wouldn't speak up now are. Not just here but globally, I'm not sure if you don't talk to females about sexual harassment and how many men got away with it but it's a lot. Including on social media.

[@wandersonoliveira263]

For years, because English is not my native language, I never realized that Californication was the juncture of the words "california/californization" and "fornication". I'm a dumbass.

[@MortanAMrk]

........ Same Brother so true, English is actually my 3rd languace honestly most of my english language has been shaped by watching wrestling, since they talk alot

[@conradborba4324]

You’re not a dumbass! English is hard and learning is hard, especially when it comes to words that are created to mean multiple things at once, like Californication

[@rjhoff925]

English is my only language and I just now noticed this because of you lol

[@sbgx3]

I thought it was California and vacation D:

[@Sage0016]

@@sbgx3 your meaning tbh is more suitable.

[@alecsimoni5876]

Stellar vid mate. As a Californian I feel like you hit this state's ever-warping identity dead on. Keep it up!

[@alexdiaz1492]

Agreed! Not only that but the exodus of california is starting to take place. I’m trying to get a PhD in order to secure a good paying job only so I can afford a fixer-upper in an area thats not so nice…

[@wolfganginvasion]

@@alexdiaz1492 just come move over here in oregon ;-) no but for real, this place is so much nicer than california it’s unbelievable

[@squidling_9851]

@@wolfganginvasion Sadly not so much anymore. Oregon is becoming the second California just without all the public attraction

[@siberiaswan4060]

I've lived here for 20 of my 27 years. I keep telling people to stop moving here. It's an overpriced tar pit. The state equivalent of the hot girl at the bar that you find out later is just a gold digger and will bleed you dry the first chance she gets. That's California to me.

[@georgedavidson2024]

Why are you still there then? (If you don’t mind me asking)

[@wolfganginvasion]

just come to oregon lol

[@monochet]

Leave. We don’t need you.

[@westcoastrenegade8594]

@@monochet who's we? People with too much money to count?

[@simonscheideler4627]

@@monochet as a Californian, I completely understand wanting to leave

[@garyermann]

I'm NorCal born and raised (bounced between Sacramento and SF Bay Area depending on family, school, work, etc.). It's far from perfect here, but I gotta say every time I go to another state, I can't help but compare it to home and I usually find myself glad to live in California. It's honestly a nice place to live: easy weather, open-minded people, amazing produce in grocery stores, a world-class higher education system, and the variety of beautiful things to see and fun things you can do within a 2-5 hour drive is astonishing. I can go see Yosemite or amazing Coastal Redwood forests. I can go skiing in the mountains in the winter, and drive to beautiful beaches in the summer. But it's not paradise on earth... no place is. Excessive hype almost always leads to disappointment and disillusionment, and California has been defined by its hype ever since the Gold Rush (and probably even before). However, just because it doesn't live up to the hype doesn't mean it's terrible, just that it's a real place, with real people living real lives. Reality has a way of complicating things, no matter how great it seems something should be. Overall, I've found the state to be a great place to live.

[@highhat583]

Well said, I'm also from NorCal too, and despite its flaws i still love this place.

[@jocelynkelly3294]

Yes! I love Cali. So much happens here and it’s like have our own civilization. I wish we had better people in office, politicians that actually cared about this state and the citizens.

[@Oliviux78]

I completely agree. I love California. I’m happy where I am and I wouldn’t want to live in any other state. California is beautiful.

[@SebastianMartinez-bl7hz]

I think NorCal is the best out of all the places to live In California

[@FreddyD177]

Everything you said I disagree with but Maybe it's because I'm in SoCal education system is garbage

[@marshall4439]

All of this can be true AND California can still be a magical place. Moving here from Kentucky, even though my life's path has changed several times, was still the best decision I've ever made.

[@Peanutdenver]

From my great grandfather to me my family has been in California living in Oakland all the way down to Long Beach and San Diego. I was a kid in the late 90s growing up in HB as a surf and moto rat and loved it. But California is a state that has 100 different worlds with in it and that's just SoCal. Someone in Studio City may have never seen the ocean...and someone in Newport Beach has seen more of Hollywood on the internet than in person. It's all relative and can be a shock for people thinking they'll become movie stars or tech kings by moving here. Times are trying in DTLA and hopefully they'll improve, regardless this is home good and bad. I'm glad you've found your island of happiness friend...welcome to California.

[@assael2]

As someone from outside the US, California always seemed amazing to me. Until I've been there and saw the other side of it

[@papafoundry5537]

Californians ruin it

[@GoldenGod69]

@Soy Orbison that’s childs play to how it is now. I grew up and still live near SF. You can literally taste the doo doo particles in your mouth just walking around market street

[@GoldenGod69]

@Soy Orbison I believe it man, I lived in Tacoma for 3 years and used to go to Portland, I saw alot of similarities between SF and Portland

[@lauramessy]

what is the state of Seattle right now?

[@ninja_tony]

Despite all the naysayers and haters out there, California CAN be and often times IS still an amazing place. Actually, I feel like as much as some people (who usually seem to fall into one specific political faction) don't want to admit it, there's a reason California and New York are idealized. They are both quite frankly the most honest and valid representations of the US as a whole. I could write a whole essay on why both places have earned that spot in people's minds, but more importantly, I don't think anyone is truly claiming them to be perfect. They are flawed, they can be ugly and dirty, overcrowded and objectively imperfect, but that's also true of America as a whole, and of our lives in general. But they are ALSO often beautiful, inspiring, motivational, and they can both represent something so deep most just can't understand. As Anthony Kiedis once said, California really can feel like a friend at times, that's always there for you. But it can also kick you around if you let it.

[@Zack-xv2yc]

Haven't heard this song in a LONG time. Now listening to it again sound SOOOO nostalgic to me, it actually shocked me.

[@Carcosahead]

Makes me feel ancient

[@shaneharrington3655]

Tool’s Aenema is the best song about LA. Vicious lyrics.

[@pavese1379]

Here in this hopeless fucking hole we call LA, the only way to fix it is to flush it all away

[@skeene_6824]

Learn to swim

[@andrewdamore2571]

See you down in Arizona Bay

[@albenmurcia4716]

Mr bungles none of them knew they were robots is also about california from Mrbungles California album released the same week as Californication( which led to keidis lashing out at patton

[@KiyotaiTalks]

@@pavese1379 everyone should get some of the dead redwood trees and push the san andreas fault and push LA into the water lmao

[@justindekock7211]

As a huge RHCP fan for years, I never really looked into the song’s lyrics too much, and always just kinda took most lines as gibberish to be honest. Now that I actually look at the lyrics there are some genius lines.

[@eigengrau2591]

Let's take a puff every time the word California is said or pops up on this video and then listen to the entire Californication album.

[@jamesbrasfield2944]

Two minutes in and my eyes are redder than the roses on Blood Sugar Sex Magik

[@Jeff-zx6rt]

ill do the first part

[@EuropeanQoheleth]

Let's not.

[@EclecticoIconoclasta]

No. You are distracting us from the message of the song and the video. I will smoke my weed with something else

[@janfarkas8953]

@@EuropeanQoheleth peasant

[@Cavemankind_]

There is something special about Southern CA. After visiting for a few months from GA, I realized the culture is amazing, people are inviting, but overall it’s just a big beach town, one after another. Who wouldn’t enjoy that? It’s all relative though, as is life.

[@GrizrazRex]

12M in LA County alone, and I can tell you that only a small fraction lives near the water. You did not explore enough.

[@wamspray7397]

As a Californian I love it here it is a awesome place to visit but I wouldn't suggest leaving where you live just to live here you're not going to become rich and famous but it is nice to enjoy the beach and our beautiful weather for a couple days

[@known_film4081]

That’s what these people need to understand. Native Californians live here day by day working, having normal lives and it’s not glorifying. It’s home, it’s what we know. I hate how people come here only to become famous and rich and when it doesn’t happen, they accuse the entire state or LA for it. I mean it may have been easier back in the 1920s but we are way past that.

[@Astro_raptor_]

I hate that all of California gets generalized mid cali “the salad bowl” is Yee haw area (rice almonds walnuts and milk), So Cal is the rich holly wood tech area, and Nor Cal is the mountainous weed growing moonshine area. All of it is ridiculously expensive because of people moving here due to the facade of “beautiful” Hollywood. Native born Californians have got to pay the expenses of the fat cats in Hollywood through rent and taxes

[@sopretty43vr]

technically this is florida’s demise too spot on except cali is more popular of course

[@jorgeo1492]

Colorado here, were all good. just hikers in the hills and hipsters in Denver is the generalization i think

[@Astro_raptor_]

@@jorgeo1492 I might move to Colorado 😂

[@creattive2396]

I live in Silicon Valley, and associate tech with Nor Cal

[@Astro_raptor_]

@@creattive2396 nor cal coastal cities maybe Like San Fran? Pretty much the whole coast is made up of rich people. Other than that I can’t think of anything tech related in nor cal.

[@AndreideLosSantos]

I'm from Brazil and this California thing is so interesting It's like a place that was the root to so many changes in the world

[@brunomelgacio]

It resonates a little with the controversy of Rio

[@seemysight]

@@brunomelgacio been to both enough to say. The vibe is absolutely similar. Not the same problems, not the same solutions. But the vibe, the same, indistinguishable

[@-i1007]

California is both simultaneously accurate to the assumption of corruption and hedonism but also remains true to the myth of perfection as a life long resident of the state I find that it is possible to experience both at the exact same time. Furthermore to be frank the escapism of the California dream has gotten a lot of people through tough times. A great example of this is the popularity of nerd culture in San Diego with things such as comiconm

[@PlasticCogLiquid]

They turned nerd culture into something completely different than it was to begin with. Now it's a bunch of Final Fantasy furries with anime avatars that are gender confused. Nerd culture was awesome back when it was actual nerd culture. They straight hijacked that shit. It used to be hacker types that love technical shit and creating things and the comics/video games were our side hobbies, not our entire lifestyle to try and pretend to be Leon from RE4 or Pyramid Head every year. Those people are cancer and they killed everything that was good. If you go to any of the gaming subreddits those dumb ass cosplayers post their pictures constantly, there's subreddits FOR THAT. Regular gamers don't give a shit about cosplayers, fuck offffff!

[@michaelboydston313]

Ikr

[@michaelinglis8516]

I highly recommend Anthony Keidis's book Scar Tissue. He knows more about the Hollywood life than most people realize. As a kid he would regularly stay with Sunny (of Sunny an Cher). And that's only the tip of the iceberg. It's a great book for anyone into music, RHCP or anyone in recovery looking for some strength in someone elses story of getting clean. It really helps me to see that I'm not alone in my addiction. I'm almost a decade free of heroin. Realizing I'm not the only one to struggle with such a string addiction is motivating. And knowing the powerlessness of my addiction wasnt just a character flaw really helped me. Anyways great book check it out. This was also a great video, good job!

[@laurisaarinen1126]

The music i think of when i think about California is Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jane's Addiction, Sublime and 311... Even tho the last one is from Omaha they really, REALLY have that Cali sound.

[@Sicnus]

I was 31 or 32 when Californication came out and I was living in California. We've since moved back to GA, but... I went there thinking of the fairy tale life, and it was great for a while, until the dot bomb era came to an end. I love the state. Miss it to this day. The Bay area... (Lived there about 9 months) and Lake Tahoe(lived there 2+ years) will always hold a near and dear place in my heart. After all, that's when I adopted the Lakers and they gave me 3x championships in a row! ;) Thanks for this great video!

[@lukebastian2870]

It's like he doesn't even listen to weezer

[@dewitt.powers]

I'm pretty sure he doesn't listen to RHCP that much either, judging by the fact that 80% of this video has nothing to do with them or really even the lyrics. Or the fact that 2/3 of the times he said the name of the song, he said "California-cation" instead of "Californication" like it says at the end of every verse.

[@ninja_tony]

@@dewitt.powers I love Weezer AND the RHCP, they are two of my favorite bands. But you seem to be missing the entire point of the video, which isn't ABOUT the RHCP in the first place. That should be obvious to you within the first 30 seconds of the video as he makes it clear that he's not making one band or song the subject, rather an entire culture and ideology.

[@horrorview]

@@dewitt.powers THANK YOU!!! I was just going to say I sat here for 13 minutes waiting for a deep dive into the song's lyrics, but got about 30 seconds of analysis for a handful of lines and 12 minutes of snippets from other songs. They should have just called this "Here Are A Bunch of Songs With California in the Title".

[@somebraveapollo8211]

We don't talk about "Beverly Hills".

[@frickindaniel]

They have alot of california songs!

[@DomSte128]

It's amazing how you put all of this songs and didn't got copyrighted. This video is an edit mas content masterpiece

[@Middle8]

Don't jinx it

[@DomSte128]

@@Middle8 sorry, but you should give a editing tutorial hahaha

[@Middle8]

@@DomSte128 8 seconds or less of audio seems to do the trick

[@trevman_825]

@@Middle8 I've tried that and I still get my uploads removed and receive strikes on my channel. I like to upload videos of concerts I've been to and they get removed even when the entire audio is from the camera, no licensed music at all. Is there any way around that besides trying to fight youtube? Genuinely curious. Great video by the way. Thanks!

[@pabloapostar7275]

​@@trevman_825 US Law: If you are at a concert and the musicians are playingcopyright This is rudimentary and I have not been an "expert" in copyright law for 20 years, so ....

[@charleymorris2653]

Great video, but in my opinion it's not complete without mention of the people who have been raised in poverty in California and the migrant workers who are payed criminally low rates to risk their lives getting there. Compton and the factory farms are just as much a part of Cali as San Francisco and Beverly Hills

[@jamesbelkin9204]

"San Francisco" (Be Sure to Wear some Flowers in your Hair) was performed by Scott McKenzie. John Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas is credited as writer

[@browncesario]

as a laurel canyon native i did jump when that part came up. but also i would like to add that the real myth of california is that california is just this one aspect of it. it's an incredibly diverse place rich with history, nature, and culture that exists outside of the entertainment industry.

[@n.m.dimmick194]

My thoughts exactly. This video and this song are a great breakdown of L.A.'s mythos and where it goes astray, but none of it really applies to the rest of California--and hell, there's so much more to L.A. than the entertainment industry.

[@browncesario]

@@n.m.dimmick194 yes exactly! la obviously can’t be divorced from the industry but there’s also so much more

[@d0ntfeedphil447]

As a Southern Californian I approve this video.

[@llcoolg7028]

As a Pennsylvanian I wish California would get swallowed up by the ocean. You're what's wrong with America

[@Jose-im1ch]

@@llcoolg7028 Wow thanks for wishing death upon millions of innocent people

[@clicheguevara5282]

As a SoCal native, I’m SO glad I got the hell out of the open air mental institution known as California. I also find it pretty funny that people are upset about anti California jokes when “flyover state” jokes are 100,000X more common. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@llcoolg7028]

@@Jose-im1ch innocent lmao 🤡

[@d0ntfeedphil447]

Y'all need to chill

[@raccoonja5905]

It's weird to think about how many songs about California I knew before I could even speak a single word in English. Two other songs about the myth of Callifornia that weren't mentioned are "it never rains in southern california" by Albert Hammond and "Lost in Hollywood" by SOAD

[@Sebastian1979XD]

My wife and I are leaving California after being born and raised here in 2 days. She's been off and on emotionally. We've said goodbye to our eldest kid who plans to try it out by himself here while we take the other 2 with us. It was hard to keep myself together while my wife broke down in the car ride back home. Even before that car ride, I've been having moments thinking to myself if I am doing the right thing for us. But then I moments like these that remind me that California isn't what use to be anymore. I'm lucky to have a great job lined up when we arrive in our destination and potential rental property in the coming days. I hope to come back one day and find an affordable house for us to live in but for now, we will start a new chapter somewhere new 🙏 "Another turning point A fork stuck in the road Time grabs you by the wrist Directs you where to go So make the best of this test And don't ask why It's not a question But a lesson learned in time It's something unpredictable But in the end it's right I hope you had the time of your life" -Green Day, Good Riddance

[@brooklyn3299]

Tears 😢... this alone is what makes me want to work 10x harder just to stay near the beach.

[@RetroFoamStudios]

My family and I will move out of California in a few years, for us the problem is the homelessness and the crackheads

[@MondoRdr]

I hope you find what you are looking for! And if you don’t, we’ll be here waiting with open arms! Hopefully a tad cleaner :) Good luck to you.

[@Tavat]

People from every state move to every other state all the time. California will be all right, and I hope you are doing all right two years later, wherever you are. ✌️

[@soto8639]

Sounds like your wife doesn’t want to leave but you’re forcing her too. Good job breaking up your family. Your wife is going to resent you for sure

[@michaelrobertson8955]

“Beverly Hills! That’s where I want to be!” “Gimmie gimmie…” -Weezer {The original counter culture California song of my generation.}

[@elizrebezilmadommdo1662]

For years I actually never knew they were saying, "Gimmie" in the song. I guess I assumed the song went, "Hey! Hey!" I've never been good at hearing the correct lyrics of songs. Lmao

[@EduardoAraujo-uk3dg]

That song and Phantom Planet's California were missing...

[@kayreece96]

@@EduardoAraujo-uk3dg dang i was waiting for phantom planet

[@connercurtis3920]

california doesn’t seem like a word anymore after hearing it so many times

[@flamingcheetopuff8434]

Nor a Place anymore.

[@Alex-xt9hn]

Hungry for likes I see

[@robertlear2735]

When I was in High School in Missouri, California really seemed like the Promised Land. I moved out there the year I finished college. I am living there now.

[@karlphilipemanuelcook4322]

The fact that you didn’t mention Welcome To The Jungle is a damn shame

[@Ghilly666]

not even Aenema by Tool

[@matiaswustner2154]

Man, i honestly love your videos and i love the RHCP too. I never looked deeper into Californication, and i find really cool and interesting to get to know this song, from one of my favorites bands, in a deeper way. Your videos always make me get deeper into music. Thank you so much for the good work, keep it up man! I hope to help you in Patreon once i finish my education. Greetings from Chile!

[@elbeto191291]

"Tell Me Baby" from the Peppers also talks about broken dreams of people who moved to California to "make it" and didn't work out

[@miggypeso909]

I’m going to write a song about Riverside. That’ll set everyone straight about California. Maybe people will stop moving here then. Like “Oh you want to come to California? Welcome to the only place you can afford!!!!! RIIIIVER SIDE A CATION!!! ITS ALL YOU CAN AFFORD TO LIVE IN!!!!!”

[@sanderaser8886]

Riverside gang lmaoo sucks here

[@miggypeso909]

@@sanderaser8886 ehhh,it’s not that bad. I accept it for what it is and enjoy what’s good about it. I’d rather live here than the Midwest or the south. Hell I’ll take Riverside over the eastcoast too.

[@jasonfire3434]

Could be worse, you could be in San Bernardino 😛

[@miggypeso909]

@@jasonfire3434 I actually grew up there lol. East Baseline till I die.

[@wtfsamusidk7574]

Inland Empire for life

[@NCKMCMLLN]

Love the video. As a Bay Area native, I'd love to see a follow up video on the music more centered around Northern California, like E40, Mac Dre, and the Oakland Hip Hop scene, or The Grateful Dead and other folk/ jam band sounds coming out of The Haight.

[@JRenz829]

I love the Red Hot Chili Peppers. they are a good band with nice instrumentals and good vocals

[@danielvisintainer3352]

9:00 I always thought the line referred to how interested we were in space travel in the 1960s, but overtime we’d rather just watch it on a movie screen than actually explore space.

[@pabloapostar7275]

Space being "the final frontier" is a reference to the opening lines to the credit crawl for Star Trek episodes. "Made in a Hollywood basement" is an allusion to the hoax that the moon landings were faked while being an accurate, pragmatic retort to Star Trek's fiction of "the final frontier".

[@loppydop71]

"Are you Californiacated ?" Me: hell no ! You lost me at earthquakes.

[@aidenp6001]

It lost me at the mortgage problem

[@Astro_raptor_]

@@aidenp6001 I’ve been living here my whole life and I can barely afford to live here ☹️ rent here is ridiculous but my family has lived here for centuries

[@lauramessy]

it seems that you need to be rich to live the glory of California

[@Astro_raptor_]

@@lauramessy it seems the “American Dream” is for the rich :(

[@rich068]

Psh it ain't that bad. I have a house, a business, and family here. Most of califirnua is rural farm country. I live in a small town 40 minutes south of Sacramento. But it's home!

[@joshuatxuk]

Natalie Merchant's "San Andreas Fault," the opening track of her 1995 debut solo album, is another good example of exploring California as a mythical and allegorical dreamland. It reminds me of David Lynch's Mulholland Drive (2001) which touches on that as a theme as well.

[@mindmaster323]

I grew up in L.A, so I've been able to see behind that curtain forever. I have an aunt who works in professional make up and stuff like that and got to be in a few music videos, and in the dressing room, and seen how fake even the actual rich people are. Most people who grew up outside the rich areas will just as well tell you it's all dressing. Californication and California Love are pretty honest about what it's like here. I'm a little surprised Tool's Aenima didn't get a feature in this.

[@johndoe-zf8kg]

all i can say about Cali from all 20 years ive been here San Diego is really quite an "underrated?" city. (compared to LA and SF) much less severe issues, similarly beautiful skyline and coronado is a beautiful spot to cruise around in, closest thing u can get to beverley hills any more south of LA

[@DragonforceSCGS]

Honestly this development seems to have also predicted what would happened to the image of the US as a whole outside of the US.

[@sw0rdhyd350]

Your content reminds me of Polyphonic, but backwards. Usually he pulls multiple topics out of one song, but you do multiple songs for one topic. I love it!

[@dominicsouthern7672]

As a person that lives in cali, I can say it's a hellhole and it's not like it was back then.

[@Gome200]

Minute 6:12 The song 'San Francisco' is from Scott McKenzie, not The Mamas and The Papas!

[@Yash-lh9nc]

"Space may be the final frontier but it's made in a Hollywood basement"

[@cdrath]

I always thought this more referred to Star Trek than faking the moon landing.

[@cdrath]

@moon man J I am referring to this line specifically.

[@DanoftheDead805]

Watch the documentary "A funny thing happened on the way to the moon" Very interesting.

[@AkitaSyn]

I always thought it was a Star Wars reference, like referencing Hollywood.

[@upliftmofo]

Definitely a Star Trek reference. Space. The final fronteer. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.

[@robpolaris5002]

I grew up in Santa Barbara county CA. During the 90’s it was amazing to be a teen. Great concerts, movies and restaurants. We would hit the beach to surf, sail and take ladies to our late night bonfires. Or we would ride motorcycles to the hills to go shooting, hike to a local lake or just explore. At night in spring in the hills it was pitch black and you would see near constant shooting stars. There was a group of us that was 7 guys and 18 girls that hung out. There was drama from break ups and people getting back together, some would fall away and some new people would enter but without a doubt the best time of my life. I would give almost anything to relive those days.

[@bryantcuriel1641]

As a California born, I hate how Californiacation tricks so many people. I tell them I live in California they think beaches and all, I live in a desert in the center of the state, it ain't just beaches and Hollywood, we got rain, thunderstorms, 19 degree weather and 113 degree weather

[@caesarorzell600]

"Californication", as well as the album, is an almost masterpiece. Thank you for this video and history lesson!

[@brunomelgacio]

I'm really happy that Entertainment from Rise Against was added to this video!!! I knew it would fit the theme, but wasn't expecting that it would make it. I don't think they are that well known by the major audience...

[@brianagee2790]

Yes. I buy into the California dream. It gives me hope. I find myself pessimistic about a lot of things. It's tiring. California gives me a reprieve.

[@ninja_tony]

You know, I think this is one of the few genuinely healthy mindsets I've seen lately. I agree with you, these days we all feel pessimistic I think, and the world in general seems to crave drama and conflict. California itself is a topic that causes a ton of incredibly hateful and negative rhetoric, especially in political discussions (no surprise there lol). But it still gives me hope as well, because while people are spending their time complaining about how "awful and fake" California is, I know there are just as many people there as we speak, enjoying all it has to offer. It's not a perfect place - nowhere is - but it still has plenty of charms for those willing to seek them.

[@brianagee2790]

@@ninja_tony I sincerely appreciate your thoughtful response. Feels like it ends my work week on a high note. Thank you

[@soldierofscience2888]

When RHCP was making their Blood, Sugar, Sex album I had a good friend who was living in a 3 story guest house on the property of an abandoned mansion in Laurel Canyon ,which was said to be haunted. RHCP rented out the mansion to make the album and I got to hang out with the lead singer several times. They had a huge party there once they were finished making it. Good times.

[@tikeyike]

I always enjoy your commentary. It's always very interesting learning about underlying meanings and history of pop music.

[@gloriousphantom7905]

I fell in love with The Beach Boys this year but I have a rule “never live, only visit” because I am well aware of how bad it kinda is

[@noahdavis9018]

I’d love to see you explain the album The Black Parade. An amazing decade defining story

[@SirFooplesTheThird]

I recommend Polyphonics vide on TBP untill Middle's done it

[@uncaringzebra7sevensquad46]

I was expecting the song California Here we Come by Phantom Planet to be in here lol. Still an awesome video!

[@saswatnayak948]

We need a master class of writing scripts from this man. The stories portrayed with so much details still being entertaining and the editing is the cherry on top. Great work.

[@ezra6094]

Honestly the first thing I thought of was “we smell of californication” from Frank Ocean’s “Skyline To”

[@likesunset03]

As a native Southern Californian, the best rep I've seen for the average middle class life in Southern California is Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Some select songs from the show are West Covina, What'll It Be, California Christmastime, and Santa Ana Winds that show this. I think people forget that California is a place where normal people live, too. We're not all surfers and entertainers.

[@GrizrazRex]

Growing up normie in SoCal is one of the surest ways to get induced to eventually leave. I left in 1991, when the crucifixion was still being established. The nails in the hands were the 1983 Olympics and the 1986 amnesty. The nail in the feet was Prop 187 in 1994. California voters actually elected to deny government benefits to illegal aliens. The Hispanic activists just smiled and told everyone to simply wait...and here we are.

[@smilingontime]

Cue up Billy Joel's Los Angelenos too

[@ninja_tony]

Valid, although Billy Joel will always be the QUINTESSENTIAL New Yorker to me and many others.

[@kanishkaralasi7408]

I wrote this comment to appreciate the efforts put to little details in the video. The animations, the media used, the texts, everything is soo awesome! Way to go 🙌🏼

[@dominikcindori3050]

Man, your video editing is next level. Great video as always!

[@danieljdtaylor]

You always make such good content! One of my favourite channels on KZbin, I’m always looking forward to the next video.

[@paynepittman4321]

This is one of my favorite songs, and now I'm seeing it in a whole different light. Thank You

[@8-bitpixel770]

The TV Show Californication truly captures what it’s like to live in LA. Being a LA native, I can assure you that if you know the right people it’s just as crazy/ugly/beautiful as musicians sing about. Great show on Showtime if you haven’t seen it!

[@TheJttv]

You have done it again. Make me think about the lyrics of a song I had heard hundreds of times.

[@oldone3709]

Another incredibly high quality video. It's amazing that you make these videos for free. Thanks for all that you do!

[@animismusworks6237]

Lived in Cali for almost a decade till 2007. Loved it! I'm Californicted...

[@pinkpools]

Your editing and graphic work is astounding man.

[@notnothaze]

wow, i had never read much into Californication but its really interesting to see the way it addresses so many of the problems and history of California. awesome video

[@augustofilippo5310]

Very nice video man. Been hearing this song since I was 10 and I had never thought about it deeply like you just made me do. Greetings from Brazil!

[@ajkelvin]

Mostly what everyone thinks of califronia, they think of So Cal. San Francisco Bay Area is hella different.

[@marmac83]

Really? I think people often think of the Golden Gate BRidge when they think of California... and that's not in SoCal.

[@royedking]

@@marmac83 no

[@bobpobcf9723]

What part is the place with crap on the street and hypodermic needles

[@BreakingBreadcrumbs]

Therefore we saw off So Cal and issue the residents to move to Hawaii or Arizona

[@whathell6t]

@@BreakingBreadcrumbs That's easy for you to say. You're just a transplant. You haven't visited the other SoCal communities such as Long Beach's Cambodian Town, Mission San Juan Capistrano, Victorville desert life, Camp Pendleton, San Luis Obispo mountain agriculture, Ventura Beach surfer evangelicals, Leimert Park jazz hub, Boyle Heights indigenous muralists, etc.

[@vznquest]

I unexpectedly spent 6 months in central LA a few years ago, and it will undoubtedly go down amongst the best times of my life. I both bought into AND lived the dream. Life is what you make it!

[@Sephirothz667]

That's why Under the Silver Lake is such a great movie

[@coojar]

Thought I was the only person that’s seen that movie.

[@Sephirothz667]

@@coojar don't blame ya for thinking that. Literally no one has seen it

[@shaun9901]

I think the entire Appetite for Destruction album by GnR is about the dirt and decadence of 80's LA. Paradise City, My Michelle, Rocket Queen, Jungle, Nightrain, Mr Brownstone. Californa (southern at least) is definitely a place that looks shiny at first appearance but give it a gentle scratch and the grime is apparent.

[@GrizrazRex]

G&R lived that hedonism. I ran across them while setting up for a gig at the Troubadour. The manager pointed to them as they were leaving (apparently getting paid for the prior evening?) and told us that they were going places. That was in early 1987, before Appetite came out. They looked like death warmed over to me, but they had that sound, that album, and the right timing. A year later, my band called it quits. The live tapes sound eerily similar to a band in my new home state that would break it big, just 2 years after I relocated in 1991. That band was the Gin Blossoms. Timing is key, and some things are simply not meant to be.

[@ileanacontreras2146]

I lived for Childish Gambino's song California when I first heard it. So damn true haha you covered a lot of great tracks! Impossible to get em all, but well done for what you did.. The Beach Boys are still some of my favorite artists for Pet Sounds. I'm glad they changed when California tried to

[@yobb1n544]

Yes you guys finally did it!! And I just signed into KZbin at the perfect moment!

[@dwc1964]

As a native of the San Francisco Bay Area I'm always struck by how the rest of the country and the world thinks specifically of Los Angeles as California - the weather, the geography, the entertainment industry at the center of it (the latter of course being the cause of this focus and conflation). Occasionally a thought will be given to San Francisco but people will somehow think it's just a bit to the north of what they're really thinking about - thus the tourists who come here in shorts and flip-flops only to freeze their asses off in the fog.

[@lauramessy]

san francisco and the bay area deserves better tbh

[@MoMn.]

Great production value. Keep it up!

[@Icetaericano]

Great video man. I'm glad someone has explored the themes of this song.

[@thisisnotabox]

Really got crazy with the fonts on this one!

[@macoady]

Someone make a spotify playlist with all these california songs

[@ggchiu7400]

Your editing is so great I just wanna say it the editing is gorg

[@KaylasMusicalDigest545]

Beautiful video! I've always loved the vintage songs about California! It was amazing to go to San Francisco twice with my parents. There are so many crazy stories and conspiracy theories that involve California lol

[@jlstudios8823]

This song really suffers from being played to death by radios, restaurants, PacSun, Abercrombie, hipster taco bars, etc. I could never make the lyrics out until this video so it came off as a lay back song talking about California being chill for me. It’s interesting now knowing the lyrics

[@monauralsnail0669]

I’ve only been to California once on a road trip with my family when I was 15. Before that I always saw California in the idealistic way described in the video. We hopped off the plane in San Diego at around 8:00 am. I loved San Diego but we only got to stay a couple days before we hit the road. After that we hit LA and that was where my idealized version of California died. We only spent about about a day and a half there but something about that place and how the people acted made me sadder than I’d ever been. Things got better once we got of there we probably stopped at all the national parks between LA and San Francisco. The Californian land is beautiful. San Francisco was also pretty amazing but growing up in a tiny Midwestern town the interactions with some of the people there were jarring. They kind of had an arrogance to them anytime we said where we were from, like we were hillbillies trying to conquer the city or something. Our car battery died in our motel just on the other side of the bay in Oakland and the only person that stopped and gave us a jump was a Mexican man and his family who’d immigrated the previous year. TLDR California, at least the cities, is kinda overrated and for the most part is not like it’s portrayed in Hollywood and in music. The land is beautiful but Californians have kinda sabotaged themselves and you have like 3 population centers dictating how the rest of the state lives.

[@danielstreuli7563]

Fantastic Video dude. Very interesting and entertaining. Please keep up the good work

[@FrancescoInfurna]

How could anyone dislike this video? All the work you put into it really shows

[@frozi7711]

California is the land of hope and crushing dreams simultaneously

[@GrizrazRex]

The supply of hopium is boundless; the supply of actual desired outcomes of deluded star-chasers is not.

[@frozi7711]

@@GrizrazRex basically yeah

[@Chinky111987]

I just moved to Los Angeles a little over a month ago so this video came right on time lol

[@alexeyborodavkin3809]

And how is it?

[@Chinky111987]

Alexey Borodavkin I love it 😊

[@EzeICE]

@@Chinky111987 Give it a while lol 😂😂😂

[@Chinky111987]

SUN WARRIOR lol personal preference I guess

[@EzeICE]

@@Chinky111987 Nah just being silly. Enjoy it. 😁😁

[@moonxliqht]

this is such an amazing analysis of california using music . i love this video so much

[@EpicGhostShadow]

Josh a's 'California' dropped today on his 'lonely vibes' album and I think it would fit this video perfectly

[@smilingontime]

...and randy Newman loves L.A. too... O Fergie has that song L.A. L.A. LUV... ... Great vid btw... Love RHCP saw em at lalapooluzza like in the 90s.. dude or was it the kroq weenie roast.. ..