It’s been way too long since this blog caught up with the work of rising New Jersey R&B star Jo Rivers and her video producer, my near-namesake DJ Weltch.

So, let’s put that right with a look at her two latest songs, including a collaboration with producer, songwriter, and rapper Don Michael Jr and explore the story behind the two videos.

“Working with Jo Rivers has been an absolute pleasure as she continues to motivate us with her talents, challenging us to raise the bar further and further as we illustrate her vision,” said DJ.

“We connected again last spring to review her latest songs and map out our business strategy for 2023 / 2024.  Jo has been consistently performing live again and has become a social media influencer promoting different brands, so we were looking at ways of increasing her exposure even further and take things to new heights.

“She takes her craft very seriously and has a team of photographers,  make up artists, dance choreographers, wardrobe experts,  managers, and of course us at True Weltch Media as her media team. 

“Narrowing down the songs we were creating videos for has been a challenge since she produces such amazing works.  I was excited to hear that she had a collaboration in the works with South Jersey / Philly area legend Don Michael Jr. who is an artist , engineer and producer that has recently gone viral for his music and skits on social media”.  

“When I heard the beat for the song Summertime featuring those two, I knew it would be a hit with latin influences produced by James Allen,  Don’s lyrics,  and Jo’s unique vocal abilities rapping and singing on the song.  We scoped out a ton of film studios and settled on locations that provided a lot of diversity in the shots and increased the production value of our visual. 

“Jo Rivers mentioned that she wanted to challenge herself even more and step outside of the box by investing in better film locations as we ramp up on the quality of our projects.  The location we settled on had some amazing RGB lighting / different scenes we could utilize to create enough diversity in the shots so that both Don Michael and Jo Rivers would have their own unique backdrops while also having a shared scene together. 

“I also utilized different special FX to create a unique glow during Don Michael’s scenes and implemented an Electrify effect for the scenes Jo did in front of the television almost as if she was powering the televisions through the current produced from her body. 

“The bar scene was my favorite as Don served drinks to Jo as each artist performed their verses.   After this shoot there have been discussions with Don Michael Jr. and True Weltch Media collaborating on future content.” 

And what of Jo’s latest solo single? “We released Messed Up earlier this year.  This was a much more soulful mellow vibe produced by Johnny L Colvin with Jo singing from the heart about a previous failed relationship. 

“We chose a beautiful condo in North Philly with the total décor in pink.  The location had a ball pit, hearts, swings, and more.  Jo was in love with the location and narrowed down this venue after reviewing a list of many other spots. 

“Unlike the other videos, Jo wanted to be solo in this one with no male love interest as this song was more about self-reflection during a post breakup phase.

“I utilized unique Kladeiscope effects, vortex camera movements, and after effects rotoscoping for the first time in one of her videos to make the video standout even further  We have been working with Jo for a little over four years and we continue to raise the bar year over year,  project over project.  Stay tuned as we document her path to stardom!”  

In previous blog posts, we looked at True Weltch Media’s Jo Rivers videos for Create a Vibe in 2020, and Magic in 2021 with Queen Mytus and Raq.

If you’re involved in arts and entertainment, check out the services of Weltch Media.