Powerman 5000 - Nobody's Real

What this video is

Released in November 1999 at the apex of nu-metal's mainstream breakthrough, 'Nobody's Real' arrived during a period of profound millennial cultural anxiety surrounding technology, authenticity, and identity. The video's sci-fi superhero narrative — a child empowered by a robotic mask — directly mirrors the band's overarching 'Tonight the Stars Revolt!' concept, which fused science fiction iconography with hard…

Why it matters

A key artifact of nu-metal's late-1990s commercial zenith, 'Nobody's Real' demonstrates the genre's capacity to absorb sci-fi and industrial aesthetics into mainstream MTV presentation. The Tonight the Stars Revolt! album went platinum, and this video — with its superhero narrative and futuristic…

The director

Dave Meyers is a Berkeley, California-born director who attended Loyola Marymount University studying Film Production and Philosophy. Active in music video direction since the 1990s, he has directed over 200 videos across genres. He won the Grammy Award for…