These days, it seems everyone and their grandmother has an HD camera on their smartphone. The result? A sea of music videos, the vast majority of which follow the same couple of formulas, featuring a hard emphasis on the purported luxurious lifestyle of the musician. Thankfully, there are plenty of artists in the hip-hop game making moves to put an end to the mediocre-whack-ass-video, so from the endless sea of shitty yacht/stripper videos, we’ve curated a list of some of the finest visuals 2012 had to offer.
#1. ‘Mercy’ – Kanye West ft. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz
One of the biggest hip-hop hits of the year, the video takes a relatively limited style and runs with it, creating a minimalist and visually striking video. Real A+ energy on the performances from the rappers on this one, considering they exist in a world where so many performers opt to pull a Gucci Mane and stand around like they’re waiting for the bus.
#2. ‘Untitled’ – Killer Mike
Armed with some off-white lighting, a camera, and a studio, Killer Mike’s video team put together one of the dopest videos of the last couple of years, interpreting famous works of art throughout history. Top it off with copious fog and slow mo shots, and you’ve got one dramatic-ass video.
#3. ‘Live Love A$AP’ – A$AP Rocky
Another artsy black and white video? Another artsy black and white video…this time courtesy of A$AP Rocky and affiliated Mob. This track is a certifiable banger, which certainly helps its cause, but the cinematography and set design alone are striking enough to clock it in as one of the dopest videos of the year.
#4. ‘Swimming Pools (Drank)’ – Kendrick Lamar
What kind of 2012 recap would this be without at least one mention of K-Dot? While this isn’t the dopest track off the album, the stellar video features surreal party scenes, bottles falling (the wrong way), and Kendrick dropping through space in a red Michael Jackson suit.
#5. ‘Birthday Song’ – 2 Chainz ft. Kanye West
One of my absolute favorites of the year, thanks to its sheer lunacy. Old Southeast Asian man pouring out a 40 and dancing? Check. A bunch of dudes whoopin’ ass on a little person clown? Check. Kanye wearing a leather tank top and riding a scraper bike down the street? You better believe that’s a god-damned check plus.
#6. ‘Baddest Man Alive’ – The Black Keys & RZA
Inspired by/for RZA’s kung fu flick from this year, this video probably wound up being the film’s best contribution to society. Building on their previous hip-hop collabs as Blackroc, this video lives up to the standard set by some of the Keys’ finest earlier videos. Standout scenes include RZA smacking up members of the band with a fresh fish.
#7. ‘Wut’ – Le1f
This is not a complicated video, but it achieves what it set out to with flying colors. Le1f demonstrates dope dance moves, along with considerable mic skills, but the video really comes together around the one-minute mark, at which point he gives a lapdance to a greased-up shirtless dude wearing a Pikachu mask. I’ll just leave it at that.
#8. ‘Whistle Dixie’ – Yelawolf & Travis Barker
A best videos list on a hip-hop blog is one of the last places you’d expect to find Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, but the video for his collab with madman MC Yelawolf is impossible to ignore. If you give me zombie Danny Trejo, I give you a spot on this list, it’s as simple as that. Doesn’t hurt that Travis’ drumming is off the chains.
#9. ‘Motto’ – Drake ft. Lil’ Wayne
A real workmanlike video overall, it makes its way onto the list thanks to a subtle ’80s aesthetic, overall polish, and all of the stupid shit it has gotten teenagers on the internet to do in the six short months since release. A bored-looking performance by Lil’ Wayne really keeps it from reaching its full potential.
#10. ‘Self Medication Chant’ – Open Mike Eagle
On from one of this list’s most standard videos to the most bizarre, as Open Mike Eagle comes out swinging (visually) with a heavy acid-tinged look. By using a kinect, or similar low-budget 3D camera system, the director creates some insane optical effects, with Open Mic Eagle appearing out of the sides of walls and melding into furniture.
#11. ‘That’s Hard’ – Pete Rock & Smif N’ Wessun ft. Sean Price & Styles P
Easily the most minimal video on the list, the overlaying of the two cameras turns what could be another boring photo-studio performance into an energetic banger. Notice how the smaller frame stays entirely stable while the larger one doesn’t stop moving, creating energy in what could easily have been a very sterile video.
#12. ‘Exodus 23:1’ – Pusha T
Not all of the best videos this year were either outrageous or intensely minimal. Some, like the video for ‘Exodus’ above, are just damn well made. This cut uses a gritty cinema verité look, creating an incredibly raw atmosphere and underscoring Pusha T’s lines calling out unnamed people for their sleazy business tactics. This track gets some bonus points for making Lil’ Wayne look like a fool on Twitter when he (and everyone else in the world) realized Pusha T was shitting on him, Drake, and Young Money.
#13. ‘Ten Jesus Pieces’ – Rick Ross ft. Stalley
Another very ornate and dramatic track, this time featuring beautiful church visuals contrasted with gritty prison and street looks. The slow editing detracts a bit, but the set design and overall production quality make up for it. Add Rick Ross in a white tuxedo and a fur coat? Game over.
#14. ‘Fuckin’ Problems’ – A$AP Rocky ft. 2 Chainz, Drake & Kendrick Lamar
Another track that follows a standard video formula, this one is saved by its all-star lineup, as well as utterly dope, frenetic camera work and editing that takes it to the next level. One thing that does hurt is Drake’s inability to lip sync convincingly for any real length of time, an odd achilles heel for a man with as much experience as him.
#15. ‘Remember You’ – Wiz Khalifa ft. The Weeknd
Wiz Khalifa makes his way onto the back end of the list with an aggressively strange video that subverts most expectations regarding the use of so-called ‘video hos.’ Maybe it was the inclusion of The Weeknd on the track that led him down such strange territory, but getting tailored in a room full of gorgeous women is certainly not standard video material. The pacing on the video is a bit slow, but it does match the pace of the song itself.
Honorable Mentions
‘FromDaTomb’ – Joey Bada$$ ft. Chuck Strangers
This video, along with several others from Joey Bada$$, while dope, couldn’t quite make the list, though hopefully he’ll make it next year. This faux VHS vid really knocks it out the park while embracing his old school style.
‘Atlantis’ – Azealia Banks
A green screen video with ample references to Bollywood, the video for Funkytown, and Michael Jackson’s ‘Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough’ vid from the early ’80s.
‘Freedom’ – Nicki Minaj
Ms. Minaj’s best shot at artistry fell just a bit short of making the list.
‘Money’ – 50 Cent
In this video, 50 seems pretty determined to re-stage the hotel party/robbery scene from the film ‘Wildstyle,’ though lounging around on a bed covered in cash wasn’t enough to make the list, since I’m pretty sure this is pretty much what 50 Cent’s life is like most of the time anyways.
This is a dope list! I really admire and respect what you guys do. You should check out our list of the 10 best hip hop videos of 2012 too! We got some overlaps and we highlighted some stuff that you may have missed as well. Leave a comment and let us know what you think! All feedback is appreciated. Thanks in advance and Happy New Year!
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