LAST YEAR, NEWLY SIGNED
Arista Records singer-songwriter
JP Saxe was on a road trip with
friends “talking about how Julia
[Michaels] had revolutionized
pop music,” he recalls. “And as
I’m having this conversation, I
get a notification on my phone
saying, ‘Julia has mentioned
you in her [Instagram] story.’ ”
She had shared a clip of Saxe’s
2018 track “ 25 in Barcelona,” and
within minutes, the two started
direct-messaging to schedule a
writing session. They linked up in
Los Angeles that summer, writ-
ing what became “If the World
Was Ending” — an apocalypticlove song about a past relation-
ship — and recruited FINNEAS
to produce the track, which
arrived last October.
Though the song was written
and released long before the
coronavirus pandemic and the
advent of social distancing (it’s
actually about L.A.’s spate of
earthquakes last summer), it now
has been used in over 300 , 000
TikTok videos, according to the
app, and as the soundtrack to a
front-line-worker appreciation
video that Saxe has seen circulat-
ing online. As a result, the song is
climbing Billboard’s Adult Top 40
and Adult Contemporary airplaycharts. It even hit the Billboard
Hot 100 (now at No. 73 ), earning
Saxe his first entry. Meanwhile,
its music video now boasts com-
ments like “This is the anthem to
the coronavirus pandemic” and
“Update: The world is actually
ending and no you can’t come
over, i don’t want your corona.”
Saxe says, “At first I was con-
flicted to see the song resonating
at this time because it’s terrify-
ing for so many. But ultimately
I realized that it brings people
together.” Adds Michaels: “Now
more than ever I want to be
surrounded by the people that
I love.” —XANDER ZELLNERMichaels (left) and Saxe in a still from
the “If the World Was Ending” video.BEHIND THE HIT“IF THE WORLD WAS ENDING”
This Broadway musical’s big-
screen adaption, directed by
Lin-Manuel Miranda, will feature
a cast including Vanessa Hud-
gens (left), Andrew Garfield and
Judith Light. Tick, Tick... BOOM!
— about an aspiring composer
set in 1990 s New York — is
Heffington’s first foray into choreographing musicals, a
venture he’s interested in specifically because it comes
with so many parameters. “I have to ask myself, ‘What
can I do to still make it thought-provoking, boundary-
pushing and entertaining?’ ” he says. Netflix acquired the
film in 2019 , and production started in February.TICK, TICK... BOOM!
In the midwinter of 2019 , Heff-
ington joined indie-pop auteur
Héloïse Letissier on the roof of
Paris’ Palais Garnier to shoot the
opening scene for the French
singer’s 13 - minute short film,
La Vita Nuova, which released in
February along with a six-song
EP of the same name. “It was super ambitious,” says
Heffington, “because we had no time, no money and three
days to rehearse five songs.” He translated discussions
with Letissier (who performs as Christine and the Queens)
about her life into movement, which she and eight danc-
ers then brought to life throughout the opera house.CHRISTINE AND THE QUEENS
Ryan Heffington’s choreography career started in the clubs: Born in
Northern California, the 46 - year-old grew up “tap dancing my life away”
before leaving his hometown for Los Angeles. There, he threw himself into
the city’s nightlife scene, performing in punk-influenced club shows dur-
ing which he and his fellow dancers would sling fake blood before a big
tap-dance finale. “In the club there weren’t any rules,” says Heffington,
“and we were really great tappers.” Soon enough, he discovered much of
his nightclub audience was yearning for noncompetitive dance classes,
so he started teaching at the venue, with dozens of students clutching
cocktails as they learned routines. By 2010 , he started his own studio, The
Sweat Spot; three years later, his career skyrocketed when Sia saw his
acclaimed dance installation, “KTCHN,” and recruited him to choreograph
her 2014 “Chandelier” video. He has since choreographed for Florence +
The Machine, Fleet Foxes and Arcade Fire, along with commercial and TV
projects including Netflix’s The OA. Now, with live industry and produc-
tion on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, Heffington has become a
viral sensation for his daily livestreamed dance classes on Instagram, oneof which recently included special guest P!nk. (^) —KATIE BAIN
IN DEMAND
RYAN HEFFINGTON
CHOREOGRAPHER
Heffington had 10 days to
direct 13 dances for FKA Twigs’
physically demanding 2015
“Congregata” live show, which
prioritized movement and
featured a dozen dancers, all of
whom vogued and writhed to
a four-piece band. Working on
such a tight timeline pushed Heffington and the English
artist — whom he calls one of the most naturally sen-
sual performers he has ever worked with — to create
a “modern-day dance tapestry” that he describes as
“pure art.” He recalls: “We were working 24 hours a day.
It was the fucking best.”
FKA TWIGS
30 BILLBOARD • APRIL 25 , 2020
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