WATCH: Dasha Unveils Cinematic Music Video For Breakout Hit ‘Austin’

Breakout star Dasha brings her hit single, “Austin,” to life in a cinematic music video that perfectly depicts the song’s dramatic storyline about a breakup and the feeling of betrayal that accompanies it.

The Hunter Moreno-directed clip stars Dasha in the lead role alongside guest star jxdn, who portrays the boyfriend in the toxic on-screen relationship. Filmed at Rebel Ranch, about 35 minutes from Nashville, the video takes viewers on an intense ride through the demise of the relationship and includes flashbacks to a time when they were happily in love.   

“Did your boots stop workin’? Did your truck break down? Did you burn through money? Did your ex find out?,” Dasha questions as she sits on the porch and realizes that her lover essentially disappeared without a trace. “Where there’s a will, then there’s a way/ And I’m damn sure you lost it/ Didn’t even say goodbye/ Just wish I knew what caused it…”    

“There’s such a visual story in the song that it made it really easy to have this vision come to life. When we were casting the lead role, I knew I wanted someone that I already knew but that it needed to be someone who could play that drunk, messed up asshole boyfriend and jxdn was so excited to play that role,” Dasha tells Country Now. 

The filming experience was quite surreal for the singer/songwriter, who made her acting debut in the clip. 

“When we were filming the bathroom scenes, jxdn and I were screaming at each other and it all felt so real – like my heart was beating so fast during that because it just felt like we were in that moment,” she recalls. 

Amid the intense narrative, Dasha gave s subtle nod to the “Austin” line dance, which exploded on TikTok and has raked in nearly 9 billion views to date.

“Austin” maintains its status as a streaming powerhouse, boasting over 157 million global streams and counting. The track, which appears on Dasha’s 2024 album, What Happens Now?, officially ships to country radio on April 29. Destined to be the country song of summer, the success of “Austin” is showing no signs of slowing down. 

The release of the music video follows Dasha’s appearance at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, where she performed “Austin” in Austin, Texas, marking her awards show debut. The performance was one of the most talked about performances of the night and was complete with a team of dancers joining the rising star for the “Austin” line dance. 

This marked Dasha’s first time in the ATX, which may have come a surprise to many.       

“People are probably caught off guard by that a little bit,” she explained ahead of her CMT Music Awards performance. “It’s funny because when I wrote the song, it was so from a real place of anger and disappointment and I wanted to make, I’d written about the same situation so many times I’m like, I have to make something fun, like a story out of this. And obviously, I’ve heard so much about Austin, Texas and I was like, let’s just make it leaving Austin. And we made the whole storyline around it and now we’re playing the CMTs, so worked out perfectly.” 

Fans can catch Dasha on the road throughout the spring and summer. She’s set to appear at a number of notable festivals, including CMA Fest, Stagecoach, Bonnaroo, Calgary Stampede, Country Calling, and more.