WATCH: Malta’s Singing Priest Teams Up With Ira Losco For New ‘Dominoes’ Music Video
In between a record deal with Sony, an appearance on X Factor Australia and a book deal, Malta’s singing priest Fr. Rob Galea has been steadily making waves over the last couple of years. Now, he’s released the music video of a new pop song, Dominoes, and it features none other than Ira Losco herself.
As Fr. Galea had promised in an interview with Lovin Malta last month, the song strays away from his typical acoustic sound, but he said the whole experience was so enjoyable, he’d be releasing an alt-pop fusion album next.
“Ira’s wonderful, lovely, and generous,” he said, impressed at the fact that she woke up at 4am to film the music video for the song, which sees the Maltese diva walking on a beautiful Maltese beach just after sunrise and down the quiet streets of Valletta.
“While working with her, I think we came up with a common message: the recognition that we’re all messed up,” Fr. Galea said of his experience working with Losco. “I’m a priest and I’m messed up. She’s a mum and she’s messed up, too – she doesn’t have it all together. We all have a million pieces; we’re broken.”
“But when this brokenness comes together in love – with love – and when we look after each other and take care of each other, and look up to the transcendent – then it becomes a work of art. These billions of pieces become a work of art,” he said, echoing the song’s lyrics.
The music video to the song, which sounds more like something The Chainsmokers would release than a priest, is also set in an urban environment covered in graffiti, continuing to help shatter any preconceptions that this is going to be a standard song of worship you’ve heard of before.
Last month, we found out that film producers had bought the rights to Fr. Rob Galea’s book and will be adopting it for the big screen. What’s more, they’re reportedly trying to convince Hollywood superstar Ryan Gosling to take the leading role.
“It’s based on my story of conversion, coming from a place of depression and anxiety to a place where I work with people with depression and anxiety,” the priest told Lovin Malta of his book. “It also talks about my experiences travelling, and stories from when I was bullied as a school kid. It’s more of a reflection book. So it’s not just my story, it’s to help others reflect on their own story”.
So with all this exposure, is Fr. Galea set to be Malta’s new pop sensation?
“I’m not a pop star,” he told Lovin Malta. See, I was on the X-Factor but I didn’t ask to be on. They asked me to audition, so I auditioned and I did well. At the end of the day I’m not interested in fame, I’m interested in leaving a message. First I’m a Christian –that’s the most important thing. Then I’m priest. Then after that I’m a musician, a film-maker, and author. I have a Hollywood film coming out, working with a whole Hollywood team. But these are all by-products of my relationship with God and my call to give hope.”