smoker’s cough (afterword)

The idea for a tree made of cigarettes was conceived at Baby’s Alright in Brooklyn. We were discussing the culture of showing up to big music festivals with an offering for the community, and the cigarette tree was born. After Aoun wrote Smoker’s Cough, the idea was re-imagined as a prop piece for the music video.

I welded the tree frame, and hand rolled close to 400 cigarettes (with help from friends) to cover it. Throughout the shoot, we cut away cigarettes or slit them down the middle. Tobacco poured down onto the base leaving the tree mangled and bare.