SEEING DOUBLE. Emm K recently released a music video for her single "Duplicates."  (Photo by Derek Bonney Media)

Eau Claire’s Water Street has a reputation for being a spot where you’ll catch more than a few college-aged folks enjoying a night on the town. Chippewa Falls native and musician Emmalia Kline (a.k.a. Emm K) recently released a new music video along the familiar street for her latest single, “Duplicates.”

Inspiration for “Duplicates” and its music video stems from Kline’s own experience at many of the Water Street watering holes and how she decided she wanted a change. The chorus reads, “I’ve never been on a bender/ ’Cause I've never sober,” followed shortly by, “duplicates like her on Water Street.” The video was shot by photographer Derek Bonney and was filmed in several spots including The Joynt, Brothers Bar, The Grand Illusion, and UW-Eau Claire’s Foster Art Gallery.

The pop-punk song plays with the personification of chaos, and how Kline only finds her – and duplicates like her – when out drinking on Water Street. The video portrays the same message, as many of the extras (mostly consisting of Kline’s friends) have on the same blue-stained white shirt as her, though Kline’s shirt only gets stained at the end of the video as she falls  – literally – for her friends’ portrayed peer pressure to drink. After falling backward into a faux “blackout,” she arises in the Foster Art Gallery for the remainder of the song.

“That was my favorite scene because it had a lot of moving aspects,” Kline said. “My friends had to splash me with blue Gatorade in a parking lot by Water Street while it was raining and it was just really chaotic and fun. It’s probably one of my favorite scenes of the music video and it’s maybe five seconds, but filming probably took us two hours to do.”

“Duplicates” was released on all streaming platforms on Oct. 20, and the music video was posted on Emm K’s YouTube page on Jan. 5. The song was engineered and mixed by Greg Smith of Tiny Giant Studios. 

Kline has been writing music and playing her guitar since she was 9 years old, saying that music became an outlet for her when times got tough. “I think music became a way to express myself without having to be articulate with words,” Kline said. “I'm only able to express my feelings if I have a guitar in my hand.”

When not working on her solo career – which has taken her to Nashville and the stage at the Northern Wisconsin State Fair – Kline is also a member of the Bear Creek Band, who plays at Wisconsin bars, casinos, and festivals. You can hear Kline perform live on Jan. 9 for an installment of  The Lakely’s Fireside Tunes.

Learn more about Emm K and her music on her Facebook. Her music video for “Duplicates” can be found on YouTube.