98Priest - Stuck In My Ways (Video)

Taken from his impeccable “Lost Kid” album, 98Priest blesses us with another visual treatment from the album & it’s for my personal favorite off the tape! “Stuck In My Ways” is a very vulnerable number that is sure to have stricken chords in a good majority of the men who hear it. A lot of us struggle with these exact things he’s discussing here. He’s not entirely sure what it is, though he’s trying to pinpoint why he refuses to change his ways. He like most of us, probably has been conditioned to be the way he is. For once it seems in their relationship, he’s finally being honest with himself, therefore he’s able to be with her, as much as it may hurt. All he’s ever done is take from this person, no reciprocity whatsoever & now they’re left wondering if they’re the cause of him walking away but he needs her to know that it’s not her, it’s him. She’s unfortunately not the woman he’s willing to change for & frankly, he’s not even entirely sure if such a woman exists.

That internal battle he’s having is laid out impeccably on this record. He does want this person but knows he’s probably not equipped to give her what she needs so rather than continue wasting both of their times, it’s best they just go their separate ways. He says he hates being lonely but doesn’t wanna be locked down, those wedding bands are known to be the world’s smallest handcuffs & he’d much rather enjoy his freedom fore he feels nothing needs to be fixed about him, it’s either all of him or nothing, though he’s aware of how unhealthy his behaviors can get. He shouldn’t feel the need to apologize for not having the same vision as this person, though the sincerity is hopefully appreciated on the other end, it seems they were both just speeding towards an uneven path so this crash & burn was inevitable. That’s why it’s urgent we make sure our morals & values, all of that good stuff, lines up before we get too deeply involved with one another, it’ll save us a lot of heartbreak in the future.

The visuals off rip showcases the unhealthy dynamic between the two. Clearly he’s entertaining other women & she ain’t having it & he ain’t having it either, not having enough time to explain himself after being woken up so abruptly cause she’s just right with that energy, that same energy that makes it impossible to get a word in so he’d rather just avoid it all together & dip. Where to, only she can surmise. Unfortunately, she’s the one who’s actually leaving, he just left the room to breathe but she’s leaving for good & he’s surely not having that. He of course chases after her, begging her to stay, possibly vowing to change his ways, knowing damn well he’s only manipulating her to stay, therefore rendering the toxicity cyclical until one of them finally breaks the cycle. Trent Owens does a beautiful job at catching both sides of Priest, the happy go lucky man in the mirror, confident & ready to take on the world, unphased by her leaving like there’s the door, I’ll gladly hold it open as you walk out my life & the saddened & distraught young man who’s yearning for intimacy yet wouldn’t know what to do with it if he got it so he’d rather just let her go, as much as he don’t want that but he knows it’s for the best, she deserves better. He goes through the motions of the split before he decides to be the bigger man & make the first move to reconciliation. The love they have for each other is clearly too strong so hopefully they can learn to love one another correctly & have the healthiest relationship they possibly can.