Blackstate Turns the Internet Into a Fever Dream on “#FollowMe”

Blackstate is not here to babysit anyone’s ego. With “#FollowMe,” Filip Tasevski-Fitz throws influencer culture into a blender and hits max speed, serving up an EDM track that feels like a glitchy, neon meltdown in real time. This is the soundtrack for every moment you open your phone and instantly regret it, but still keep scrolling like a hostage. The man spent two decades tearing up hardcore punk stages, and that chaotic DNA is all over this track. It is unhinged in a way EDM wishes it were more often.

The production hits like a boss-level video game you were not ready for. Hyperactive synths, grinding drops, and a rhythm that never sits still. The whole track feels like it is daring you to keep up. Blackstate blends humor with panic, critique with adrenaline, and the result is honestly addictive. This is not a passive listen. This is a full-body experience that grabs you by the face and shouts, “Look at what we’ve become.”

Vocally, Tasevski-Fitz leans into the parody hard. He fully commits to the influencer character, which makes the whole thing hit twice as hard. He captures the hollow confidence, the compulsive need for validation, and the manic energy of someone “living their best life” as they slowly evaporate offscreen. His delivery is sharp enough to cut through the EDM chaos, and every line lands like a jab at anyone who has ever faked a perfect life for content, which is basically all of us at this point.

The music video takes the concept and runs laps with it. Livestream rooms with cheap props, podcast setups for people with nothing to say, fake plants doing their best to look alive, ring lights frying pupils into oblivion. He exposes the smoke and mirrors behind the illusion, then jumps right into it himself. Once he puts on that cheetah print coat, he becomes the monster he is mocking, which is the point. In a plastic world, authenticity has no chance.

“#FollowMe” is for anyone who feels suffocated by the digital circus but still cannot look away. Blackstate weaponizes EDM to call out the absurdity of the era, and the result is loud, clever, and absolutely unforgettable.

When you stepped into the influencer persona for “#FollowMe,” what part of that character felt uncomfortably close to real life?

What felt uncomfortably close was the instinct to perform - to turn even criticism into content. We live in an age of constant internet performance, and even when you think you’re resisting it, you’re still playing a role. Even parody becomes performative. Stepping into that character forced me to confront how easily I slip into self-curation without noticing. Real life still exists, of course - but it’s constantly distorted by algorithms and systems designed to shape behavior.

Hardcore punk and EDM are not exactly neighbors. What element from your punk background shaped the chaos in this track?

Hardcore punk is still my backbone. The form evolved, the attitude didn’t. Sonically, I’ve moved forward, but the core messages remain intact. Seeing society from the outside is one of the blessings of punk.

The video exposes the fakery behind content creation. What moment during filming made you think, “Yeah, this is exactly how ridiculous it actually is”?

The process of writing the script and gathering inspiration for it was quite long - it took more than a year. One documentary that influenced me a lot was “Fake Famous”, which clearly shows that being an influencer isn’t actually that easy. It’s demanding, dedicated work that requires significant effort and energy.

In any case, the point is that people want fame simply because they desire it. Most of them have no substantial message to convey - no message aimed at the common good, at sharing something useful or humane.

They lack empathy and compassion toward their own kind, the planet, and animals. They become human billboards, part of a capitalist machinery, selling their own persona to the algorithm. I think many people are lost. And those who truly do have something to say (artists, educators, intellectuals…) are overshadowed by the stupidity of these other ones. What a time to be alive.

Your production style leans into sensory overload. What is one sound or texture in “#FollowMe” that almost felt too unhinged but ended up being essential?

There are a couple of moments where the piece clearly crosses a line and doesn’t apologize. At the time, it felt almost too unhinged, but the second you make it comfortable, it stops saying anything. For me, overload is the language of the work - it’s how the idea communicates. The video mirrors the mental state of the reality it’s responding to.

If listeners walk away from this track questioning their own online habits, what conversation do you hope they start having with themselves?

Be more real. Get off the internet (for a while). Live your life. Use your (online) powers for good. Be authentic. Enjoy life.

I enjoyed this interview in particular. Thank you for these great questions and for letting me share my thoughts.