S. Samuel
Days after Grammy-winning rap duo Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild" music video premiered, a variety of directors have stepped up with their reactions to the artsy visual.
Maybach Music Group rapper Wale’s “My Sweetie” director Tabi Bonney took note of the visual’s emphasis on offering messages.
“When I was watching it, I was wondering if they were going to switch it up during Kanye’s part,” said Tabi Bonney, an artist who directs his own videos as well as those for fellow artists, such as Wale’s “My Sweetie.” “But they kept right with it. They obviously wanted to make a point which is relavant to today’s society. They didn’t want to tell the same story in the club that’s being told all the time.” (CBS Local)
In renowned director Chris Robinson‘s perspective, Yeezy is always looking to up the ante with his videos.
“He doesn’t shoot the videos that you think might go along with the song,” Robinson said. “As a director, sometimes you gotta go left to make your point. But the hook to me is, the ‘wild’ is not what you think it is, not the forest, not the woods, it’s the streets, it’s the world, people marching for Trayvon Martin. The big machine the little man is struggling against.” (CBS Local)
Rapper 2 Chainz‘s “Riot” director, Decatur Dan, took to Twitter and drew comparisons to their music video.
“‘Ye ran to Romain like you knew he would,” he tweeted May 30th.
“No church in the wild was the og treatment for RIOT. Plus performances tho.” (Decatur Dan’s Twitter)
The Romain Gavras-directed video officially premiered online Tuesday (May 29).
The new clip, directed Romain Gavras, was shot in Prague and offers up scenes of police in riot gear beating down protestors. Later in the video, the mob runs wild, toppling cars, setting them on fire, and challenging law enforcement officials on horseback. It concludes with lasers, a seemingly enraged elephant, and people on fire. Somehow, despite the chaos, it’s all very danceable. What does it all mean? Is it Occupy Wall Street gone wild? The Zombie Apocalypse? Or folks looking to get tickets for a Jay-Z/Kanye West tour? Take a look and decide for yourself. (Wall Street Journal)
Check out “No Church in the Wild” below:
