Music videos often try to tell a compelling story, trying to keep the viewer interested. They are basically short movies, some even trying to be cinematic. Sometimes that cinematic look is heavily inspired by the movies. I’ve collected 10 examples of hip hop/R&B videos (in another post I will look at other examples) where that inspiration is very obvious. It actually is so obvious that I started wondering if this can be seen as a tribute or just a lazy remake of the original work.
What is your opinion about music videos based on movies? How far can a music video go in replicating something from a film?
Nas – Street Dreams (inspired by Casino)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4NtdEuJ75k]
2Pac/Dr.Dre – California Love (inspired by Mad Max)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWOsbGP5Ox4]
Kanye West – All of the Lights (inspired by Enter The Void)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAfFfqiYLp0]
Lil Wayne – 6 Foot 7 (inspired by Inception)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tOAGY59uQ]
Ja Rule/Ashanti – Mesmerize (inspired by Grease)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcP96KbFIIU]
Busta Rhymes – Put Your Hands Wher My Eyes Can See (inspired by Coming to America)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_5z2yap8E4]
Redman – Whateva Man (inspired by Blues Brothers)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdx6Z7qujIA]
De La Soul f. Redman – Oooh! (inspired by Wizard of Oz)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W0tA9kuYPs]
Wale – The Break Up Song (inspired by 500 Days of Summer)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Mx1BCdxSrw]
Ashanti – Foolish (inspired by Goodfellas)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUPrnu3BEU8]
What’s your opinion about these videos?
Not a hip hop fan so all of these are new to me. Interesting to see the attraction these guys have to movies.
Well, other genres have these type of videos as well, which I will take a look at in a next installment
Oh man, I remember that Nas/Ashanti video. So fucking bad. Ja Rule becomes a total pussy and he definitely lost a lot of his cred after being destroyed by 50 Cent.
Oh, there was also a remix video Mariah Carey did for “Heartbreaker” that featured Jay-Z that included a great homage to Scarface where Jay-Z is in the tub rapping and Mariah plays the Michelle Pfeiffer character.
Yeah, Ja Rule did lose his cred, but 50 Cent lost quite a lot as well after his thing with Kanye.
But what do you think of music videos copying movies?
Sometimes, it can work if it’s done in the right way. Yet, it can be done badly like that Nas/Ashanti video.
Yeah, that was not very good.
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