No Spike Lee and No Spike Jonze.

By popular request, I’ll be resurrecting some old posts that I wrote for that other site in this new series, Posse Revival. To continue our never-forget-Rap-City day, I’ve decided to start with this pretty arbitrarily complied list of rap videos. Now upgraded with embeddable links. Originally posted 5/17/06, so forgive any glaring errors or omissions.

I was recently knee deep in blogosphere detritus and I encountered an arbitrary list of circa 1997 stoner college dorm rap city video hits masquerading as the best rap videos. As nice of a gesture as that was, “California Love” just isn’t the best rap video of all time. It isn’t even the best Pac video. But it’s a difficult task taking any sort of a comprehensive look at rap videos. It’s a mainly disposable form, both literally and figuratively. From bubble gooses to bubble lenses to bubble asses to bubble eyed whips, artistry has rarely been a priority for the rap video director, and perhaps rightfully so. Prior to about six months ago most rap videos would never be seen after the three month of BET rotation. That’s why they’re usually jam packed with hot cameos and hotter ladies, and low on content. Not to say that I don’t have love for the ignant rap video, but once in a rare while a video goes beyond that.

There were so many videos that I thought I’d only see again in frustratingly short clips on VH1 retrospectives or during the three times a year the mayor hands over the keys to rap city for old school wednesday throwback thursday. But now thanks to the beauty of Youtube, I can see them all again whenever I want (how is this still legal?) It’s like The Box, only slightly grainer and without your Mom inevitably yelling at you about the phone bill.

Here are a few videos that transcended the trend chasing rap video bullshit. Or maybe I just really really like them because they remind me of bong rips from my dorm room. In no particularly order, of course (the rap videos, not the bong rips, which were taken in a very specific order).

1. Public Enemy – “Black Steel In The Hour of Chaos“
Dir: ???
Picking the best PE video is like picking your favorite child. Or your favorite Outkast Album. But I did it anyway. Specifically two scenes stand out – Flav getting all up in the wardens grill and when the noose drops at the end.

2. Busta Rhymes – “Woo-Hah“
3. Missy Elliott – “Supa Dupa Fly“
Dir: Hype Williams
Busta and Missy may have gone on to become the two most annoyingrappers on the planet, but there was a brief time where they both were filled with such awkward energy that you sincerely thought they’d step off the set and back onto a spaceship. And Hype was able to capture (create?) that energy in these buzzworthy clips. It’s easy to forget how mind blowing these videos were when you first saw them because everybody jacked his style – Fish eye lenses, garbage bag wardrobe, heavy fluorescents. And because Hype went on to be so redundant and boring. The “Snap Yo Fingers” video may just look like an itunes ad on acid, but it’s nice to see Hype once again playing with conventions instead of just playing into them.

4. A Tribe Called Quest – “Scenario“
Dir: Jim Swaffield
The all too prophetic computer dorkist favorite. When this video aired I don’t think anybody seriously thought there’d be a point where we were watching videos on computers (although there was Kris Kross: Make My Video). But now it’s hard to tell where the fake video compression effects ends and where the real youtube compression begins. I can only hope that the next generation of online videos will continue down this path and we’ll be able to style rappers hair (i ain’t got none but i’m planning on growing some…) or insert a Redman eating chicken cameo in real time.

5. Juvenile – “Ha” ; “Get Ya Hustle On“
Dir: Marc Klasfeld; Ben Mor
What “Ha” did more than anything was provide a context for the looming southern rap takeover. I don’t know if that song would’ve made any sense had it not been set to the Nolia projects. Plus it was a perfectly timed counter to all that shiny suit shit. It might be flippant for us rap nerd bloggers to throw around insensitive and stupid concepts like “hood-as-art” from behind our computer monitors. One viewing of “Hustle,” the most emotionally and physically affecting rap video I’ve ever seen, and suddenly da hood doesn’t seem quite as chic. Reality is a little harder to wrap your head around than reality rap.

6. Common – “I Used to Love H.E.R.“
Dir: Chris Halliburton
Yes, in retrospect, the video (like the song) is a little heavy handed in it’s four elements keep it realism but at the same time it taps into a certain tenderness of being a rap fan. Pause tapes and big headphones and staring at EPMD covers and all that.

7. Xzibit – “What U See Is What U Get“
Dir: Gregory Dark
Xzibit’s (perhaps you know him from Pimp My Ride?) trip for milk is not even slightly affected by the riots, exploding cars, and swarming swat teams while Rope-esque segues pointlessly try to trick the viewer into thinking it’s a seamless cut. Keep an eye out for Flava Flav arbitrarily wandering back into frame after his cameo and going Praying Mantis on telephone pole. (Youtube doesn’t exactly do this video justice).

8. Ultramagnetic MCs – “Poppa Large“
Dir: ??
Has a rapper’s persona ever been more appropriately visualized than Kool Keith hanging upside down in a straightjacket? I think Red took a few cues from this with “Time 4 Sum Aksion” and Hype recycled the set for “Woo-Hah.”

9. Scarface – “My Block”
Dir: Mark Klasfeld
Klasfeld refines the “Ha” concept by not just showing the artist in their natural environment, but by making the community the star of the video, with Face only briefly showing up to slang Uncut Dope out the trunk of his car. This is nicely capped with life cycle imagery- opening with a birth and closing with a death.

10. Boogie Down Productions – “My Philosophy“
Dir: Fab 5 Freddie
Acappella Kris. And for once he’s not even screaming. ‘Nuff said.

Honorable Mentions:- “The Vapors“; “Follow The Leader“; “Ego Trippin’ Pt. 2“; “Mind Playing Tricks On Me“; “I Got It Made“^*; “Black Ice“^$; “Elevators“; “You Got Me“⁺; “Drop“^%; “Flava In Ya Ear (Remix)“; “Stress“; “Protect Ya Neck.”

*: For the potato alligator soufflé.
$: For the Astros jersey.
+: For the pea coat, mostly, but the dead people, too.
% Because it’s like, in reverse, and shit.

Tags: Boogie Down Productions, Busta Rhymes, Common, Juvenile, Missy Elliott, Public Enemy, Ultramagnetic MCs, Videos, Xzibit

This entry was posted on Monday, November 10th, 2008 at 5:03 pm and is filed under Posse Revival, Videos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.