Watch Mark Mothersbaugh Tell DEVO’s Origin Story In A Cool Animated Short

Mark Mothersbaugh was born legally blind. It wasn’t until he was in second grade that he was finally diagnosed with myopia and got his first pair of glasses. In a new animated video made for Google Play, the DEVO member narrates how his discovery of the world led him to want to become an artist. Then, he recounts the first time he saw the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show and how that made him want to become a musician, too. “We decided we weren’t observing evolution, we were observing de-evolution, and we decided to write music about that,” he explains the start of DEVO’s mission.

Josh Webman, the creative director behind the Google Play series, talked to AdWeek about getting Mothersbaugh on board:

Who doesn’t love Devo? We were all fans. But really, Mark is so much more than Devo. He has such a dynamic and varied body of work, and the trajectory of his career has taken so many fascinating and unexpected turns. It felt like, “Why wouldn’t we want to tell that story? It’s riveting.”

In many ways, he embodies what we think of when we think of a multidimensional artist. He just has so many tools in his belt. And his personal story—how he “made it,” how he became who he is—is just as interesting as the art he creates. Mark has influenced whole generations, and in different mediums, too. He just seemed perfect for this project.