Glenn Bruno Is a 60-Year-Old Internet Hero

One warm evening along a quiet street on Los Angeles’ east side, Glenn Bruno sits in his bedroom and reads comments from a YouTube page.

“Thank you so very much,” one comment says. “I am a 75-year-old with depression and limited mobility, but after watching your video, my soul pumped up. I will dance to my own beat.”

While this remark would warm the heart of anyone who isn’t dead inside, the sentiment is especially profound for Bruno, because it is about him.

Bruno, 60, is the unlikely star of the music video for Alex Metric’s “Heart Weighs a Ton.” The documentary-style clip, released in August, depicts Bruno’s mission to honor his late wife by pursuing his dreams of dancing. This video has not only fulfilled Bruno’s goals in a wide-reaching way (113,000+ views on YouTube), it has helped him rebound from the emotional aftermath of his wife’s death.

Robin Bruno was a pretty blonde interested in Egyptology and female empowerment. Although the couple didn’t have kids, Bruno says his wife mentored many young women, most of whom called her “Mama Robin.” She passed away in 2009 at the age of 51. Bruno became seriously depressed, lost his job, and was about to be evicted from the modest house where we sit this evening.

“All of a sudden one night,” Bruno says, “I heard this voice in my head—whether you want to call it the voice of God, or inspiration, or the universe—that said, ‘Get up and go for a walk.’”

Bruno walked around the corner to a coffee shop, where he saw a sign looking for people to perform spoken-word poetry. A longtime actor and performer, Bruno auditioned and got the job. It was a transformative experience that pulled him back from the lonely fringes of heartbreak. He soon booked another gig, and then another. He began performing with the Los Angeles Hip Hop Choir (Bruno is the group’s oldest member and performs under the name Granddaddy G). His depression subsided, and he got a job at a company that repairs commercial jet parts. He’s performed in 20 projects since 2011 and says his managers at work are supportive of his performing career, letting him keep a flexible schedule so he can go on auditions.

Bruno submitted an audition tape for the “Heart Weighs a Ton” project after seeing a casting call for people passionate about dancing. At the live audition, he danced to James Brown’s “Sex Machine.” He got the job. Although the video was originally supposed to feature three storylines, director Jack Wagner says he quickly realized Bruno’s story was compelling enough to carry the video on its own.

The video portrays Bruno’s daily life at home and at work (he was worried his managers might not let them film at the office, but they did) and includes footage of him talking about Robin, and how he dances for her. He immediately connected to the song, a slick, ‘80s-inspired anthem with a feel-good chorus promising, “I’ll carry you when your heart weighs a ton.” Bruno says filming was emotional and that his moves for the song came naturally. At the end of the video, he dances on a sound stage in a performance so triumphant and earnest that it’ll give you goosebumps.

“It was so nice to be able to do a video for a dance track that wasn’t as disposable as they so often are,” says Alex Metric. “You can find yourself wading through treatments relying heavily on a random comedy element or scantily clad girls. They rarely feel like they relate directly to the song. I’m so pleased we could do a video that was not just an engaging visual for the music, but something that told a real story, felt linked to the song, and, in a way, helped somebody turn a negative experience into some positivity and joy.”

Bruno was in a Monday morning work meeting when he got a text that the video had debuted online. He and his colleagues (some of whom appear in the background of the video) went straight to Bruno’s desk to watch. He was nervous, but after it was done, everyone applauded. “It was a miracle,” Bruno says. “It lit me up.”

On the desk in Bruno’s bedroom, there is a stack of email printouts containing messages of gratitude from as far away as the Philippines. Casual acquaintances have told him that his story has lifted their spirits and inspired them to follow their dreams (his roommate, for example, has started a painting class). He’s most proud that this entire project extends the legacy of his wife, who is in the video in ways both clear and subtle. There is a momentary closeup of a blinking keychain that says “Robin” on it. The battery in that keychain was long dead, Bruno says, and the thing hadn’t blinked for years. On the day of filming, however, it turned on and, as Wagner recalls, flashed like crazy.

In a situation serendipitously similar to the message of the song, Bruno says his heavy heart has been consoled through this project. “It has healed me,” he says, smiling widely. “That’s something I hadn’t even thought of until right now.”