Fly - Sugar Ray

What this video is

Released in summer 1997, 'Fly' arrived at the precise moment MTV and modern rock radio were absorbing reggae-fusion and ska-punk influences into the mainstream pop-rock canon. Sugar Ray had emerged from the Southern California Orange County punk-funk scene and this video, shot with the energetic, low-budget theatricality characteristic of McG's early 1990s music video aesthetic, captures a cultural pivot: the…

Why it matters

A landmark artifact of the late-1990s alternative-pop reggae-fusion crossover, 'Fly' helped legitimize dancehall and ska-inflected textures within the mainstream modern rock format. Its music video codified the aesthetic template of high-energy, low-concept California pop-punk videos that would…

The director

Born August 9, 1968, in Kalamazoo, Michigan; raised in Newport Beach, California. Earned a BA in psychology from UC Irvine. Began career as a record producer and music video director in the early 1990s, working with Sugar Ray and other artists. Transitioned…