What’s current, folks? In an era where the conventional music video has arguably decreased in significance to artists and record companies alike in marketing a single to the masses, there still exist recording artists, directors, and other cast and crew members on the front line to keep the cameras rolling. Yet, sometimes rappers, singers, and video teams attempt to project a sense of euphoria in a striking way, ironically thinking they have visualized a new element as far as the respective music genre is concerned.
Recently, the trendy technique has been seemingly paranormal as female leads float over dance floors, furniture such as sofas, and especially, beds. While the following videos boast angelic faces and heavenly bodies suspended in air, I’m sure it won’t be long before some deranged rapper attempting to revive horrorcore shoots a video starring a demoness (similar to the infamous scene from The Exorcist pictured above).
I now present for your consideration Hip-Hop and R&B’s best music videos that showcase levitation. Float on, folks! Scream at me!
Video: “I Know” (2008)
Hangtime: Shots of a hovering hologram and a supine starlet begin at 3:25 and end at 3:34
Skylerized States: Jay-Z changes the game again (first and only pun, I swear!) by not appearing in this clip and lets the offspring of Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet, actress and singer Zoe Kravitz, get some shine. While her time off of the ground may be limited, I credit the ingenue for playing quadruple parts.
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Video: “Paranoid” (2009)
Hangtime: 0:29-0:50 and 3:05-3:20
Skylerized States: ‘Ye and Rih Rih collaborate in Nabil Elderkin’s eerie portrait of scary dreams and disorder. Kudos go to Kanye for keeping his dark vision alive and Rihanna for continuing her “Disturbia” theme.
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Video: “Pretty Wings” (2009)
Hangtime: Liftoff of the lady trio begins around 2:54 and, interspersed with shots of a conceited Maxwell, ends at 4:09
Skylerized States: I actually had to enlist my sister to help recall Maxwell’s creepily suave role as an incubus preying on three separate, sleeping beauties.
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Video: “Sweet Dreams” (2009)
Hangtime: 0:18-0:24
Skylerized States: Even though I’ve chided the overload that is “Sasha Fierce” in the past couple of years, I must acknowledge the hardest working woman in the music business, as far as this video is concerned. Beyonce outshines them all as she displays torment, joy, and a twisted glee set to a noirish, spacey groove. Not to mention, the drifting diva effortlessly makes the uber-expressiveness of krumping, the nerdiness of the C-3POesque suit, and the slow-motion flying dove enticing.
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This article was originally posted in the nappyafro Forums. You can also check out Skylerized in his own web series, Skylerized: The Web Series