photography, styling, & text ALEX KESSLER
There’s a moment, usually sometime after midnight, when a creative project reveals its true personality. For Sebastian Croft, that moment arrived in the rain. Picture it: A freezing February night at Château de Feÿ, a centuries-old manor tucked into the countryside outside Villecien, France. Inside, an artist commune is blurring the line between dinner party and performance art.
Outside, Bash is running across wet grass in a white Chanel jacket and little else, while I’m standing ankle-deep in a pond with a disposable camera insisting we need one more shot. It’s freezing. It’s ridiculous. It’s kind of perfect. “This is the kind of thing you don’t do unless you’re really committed,” Bash says later, laughing. “I think we both had this feeling of, like, okay… we’re actually doing this.”
If you know Sebastian Croft, you probably know him first as an actor. Millions met him as Ben Hope in Netflix’s Heartstopper, where he played the show’s complicated antagonist with unnerving charm. But long before the internet started dissecting his character, music had already been quietly threading through his life. “I’ve written songs since I was about 10,” he tells me. “Music was always the thing I went to when I needed to process something.”
Late last year he released his first single, “Tokyo,” a dreamy introduction to that side of himself. Now comes “Better than ever,” his second release and a louder step into pop. “In this day and age, if you go through a breakup, you can literally log on and see what your ex is doing,” he says. “I remember feeling like a scrunched-up piece of paper on the floor while it looked like they were out living their best life. Writing the song was kind of a release.”
The vibe, according to Bash? “It’s like the song you’d hear in a 2000s coming-of-age movie,” he grins. “Except it’s 2026 and I’m a twink.” Scream.
Below, Bash and I talk heartbreak songs, last-minute creative trips, and stepping into his pop era.
Alex Kessler: Let’s start with the video. How did we end up shooting it in a French château?
Sebastian Croft: It was honestly so random. I was on FaceTime with Diana [Olifirova] talking about the video and she happened to be staying at this incredible château in the French countryside. She was like, “Well… I could ask if you could come shoot here.”
At first it sounded completely insane. But when she showed me around on FaceTime I was like, okay, this place has the exact energy of the song.
You two originally met working on Heartstopper.
I loved working with Diana. She was the director of photography on the show and she’s such an incredible ball of creative energy. When I did a little screening for my first music video, “Tokyo,” she actually came along, which was so sweet. She heard some of the new songs and the idea kind of started there. Then a couple months later I was like, wait… what if we actually do this?
Tell me about writing “Better than ever.”
It came from that very specific feeling of going through a breakup in the age of social media. You can literally check in on someone whenever you want. I remember feeling completely broken and then opening Instagram and seeing them out with our friends at all the places we used to go. Writing the song was basically a way of letting that go.
We should tell the people how we actually met! Lol!
At a Miu Miu party in Cannes.
Head-to-toe Miu Miu, obviously.
Obviously. It was very glamorous. But I remember thinking you were just really easy to talk to. It wasn’t some huge moment. Just like, oh, this person is great. Then when I started thinking about releasing music and building that world, I kept thinking about who I wanted to work with. And I had this instinct like, what if Alex would get it?
Which was funny because you didn’t even know I wanted to style people.
Exactly. It was just a gut feeling.
How did it feel seeing the fashion world for the video come together?
Honestly incredible. I loved that we worked with young British designers. It mirrored how I feel about the music. I’m at the beginning of something. When I first put on the Oscar Ouyang look with the sunglasses I genuinely felt different, like stepping into a more confident version of myself. Almost like a preview of Pop Star Bash, a glimpse of the future version. I also loved the Geordie Campbell wallpaper moment. But obviously the new-season Prada and vintage Chanel were fab too—very The Little Prince goes pop star.
The location itself was totally surreal, no?
Totally. You have this insane French chateau, but it’s filled with artists living there like it’s a dorm. Clothes hanging everywhere, people lounging around. And then we arrive with two suitcases and a dream… and disposable cameras. Buying those was one of the best decisions of the trip. One of those photos literally became the single cover, which you shot.
What’s the memory you think you’ll still be talking about ten years from now?
The shoot in the rain will stay with me forever. Me in a Chanel jacket and boxers at 1 a.m. while you’re standing in a pond in your jeans trying to get the right angle. It just felt like… we’re really going for this.
For you, is music a pivot away from acting?
It doesn’t feel like a pivot. It feels like an expansion. I’ve always written songs. When I was younger, when I was being bullied and figuring out my sexuality, music was the thing that helped me process everything. So it’s not new. I’m just finally sharing it publicly.
What scares you more: The first day on set or the first live show?
First live show. On set you’re playing a character. On stage it’s just you. No second take. That level of vulnerability is terrifying. But the adrenaline is incredible. When I finished my first show I was like, okay… I could do this forever.
What does this song represent for you?
Confidence. With “Tokyo” I felt like I was introducing myself politely. Now I’m like, okay, I’m doing music. I love doing music. Let’s go for it.
What’s next, my king?
More songs. More gay pop songs. And hopefully graduating from “pop girl pending”… to just pop girl.
