Slow news day means time to watch some forgotten classics.

I found this video when reading a list of the most violent rap videos ever made. The last hurrah just before MTV banned guns in music videos.

UPDATE: big Quicktime (sadly no sound effects... which i actually feel make a huge difference in this video) www.markgerard.com

youtube.com

         

Thanks Marc, I can't believe I've never seen that. Truly remarkable.

(Slightly Slanted) Discussion Question: Would hip-hop videos be way cooler today if MTV hadn't decided to nix violent imagery?

         

That was until Dave Meyers broke the taboo. (flv)

..That Geto Boys vid they mention is a classic.

         

Almost forgot Busta..

         

well since videos dont get mtv play anymore anyway, and youtube currently not having a ban on guns in videos, they are slowly coming back. so are X-rated or Uncensored versions of videos that get the viral treatment. i know i have been asked to write treatments that are not-mtv airable as of late and push the envelope in hopes of getting some online buzz. a huge difference from the rules and regs imposed on my writing a few years ago. i welcome it. bang bang.

         

There were guns in JK's Cydonia vid, btw.. As well as Elastica's "Car Song" and, right, 99 Problems and Many Men..

         

i got some guns coming soon...

         

the compositing shots through the barrel or through the holes in the wall are cool, but this video makes random shoplifting, being a gangsta and random killing look cool which is irresponsible. there's no political statement or anything...

         

From what I understand, NWA's mission was to bring what they saw as reality - drive-bys, gangs, murder, drugs and cops in South Central - to national attention. I think rap music, just as it is today still for lots of teens in both the projects and suburbia, was their only way out.

Except today there are safer, less violent, more localized scenes and 'movements' one can attach oneself to. Hyphy, crunk, krumping, etc.. Maybe even emo, for the suburbanites? "Rep your ghetto," says Busta.

That last paragraph was an excerpt from a lecture in Music Video 204: Parenting Tips. Class meets wed and fri 3-5pm

         

"Alwayz Into Somethin'" directed by Mark Gerard.

         

captainhairy I hope you've never watched an R-rated movie like the Matrix or Sin City because those movies make killing people look REALLY cool.

never understood why people took gangsta rap music so seriously. 90% of the lyrics aren't even accurate reflections of the inner city; they're trash-talking and showboatin'. It's all about being outrageous. What better way to say "I'm a better MC than you" than to say "I'll rape your mom and sister and then kill your whole family."

Seriously; gangsta rap has more in common with action movies and comic books than anything else.

         

You have to wonder what some of the video shoots were like, though, especially as gangsta rap became popular. We already know some of that. I'm sure F. Gary Gray, Hype, Paul Hunter, etc have some interesting stories to tell.

Busta's still in some heat for the murder of Israel Ramirez outside the "Touch It (Remix)" video shoot.

         

captainmarc - i disliked sin city for the same reason i dislike this video (beautiful yet glorifies violence), but the matrix is a different story: in addition to looking cool it carries a political & social message about contemporary USA.

i hear your point about likening gangsta videos and comic books from an aesthetic standpoint. But no one looks to comic books for guidance, whereas kids do look up to hip hop stars, especially b/c there's a history of hip hop being the voice of the peeps.

So i personally would rather watch someone goof off in front of camera (not constructive, but not destructive either), or yell the simple political statement "f*** da police" than watch someone randomly shoot an innocent shopteller.

         

I agree with mookie that this is largely academic since videos rarely air on television these days. But the same "standards & practices" issues will probably crop up on YouToogle (or whatever .com) as time goes on. Even on the net someone will ask "What is okay to have in a music video?"

What you can and can't show in videos varies between BET and MTV and also seems to shift by the week. Every video ghets submitted and then approved or re-edited for air on BET or MTV networks. There are often two slightly different edits in circulation - one for Viacom and the other for BET.

The gun "ban" came into effect, but you still had artists putting guns in clips so they would get blurred out later. Like a bleeped curse word, the removed gun was sort of a badge of real-ness. That Busta/Hype clip was never blurred (that I saw) because they selected guns that looked so cartoony, they were not considered "imitatable behavior." You will also see laser pistols or whatever that don't look like guns and therefore won't incite kiddies to violence. But these are not hard and fast "rules" and MTV is free to change their minds whenever they like.

This is off topic a bit, but a few years ago, BET was going to not show any sexy female bodies UNLESS you could also see the girl's face. I guess it is less demeaning to women if her momma knows she is shaking it on TV for $200. This new rule would mean no more gyrating hips - and BET seemed very serious about this. They sent out memos and all that. The labels wanted to comply, so for a month or two, directors shot their hoochie coverage a bit differently. But then, when these videos got edited and some of the "ass only" shots were not rejected by the network, directors realized BET was just posturing. Evereying went back to normal, but BET (especially) rattles their saber every once in a while.

MTV and BET are noted for having a different standard for no-names and "big" artists. Watch what a major player like Eminem has in his clips - it may not seem much racier, but if you knew what other artists had to cut from their videos ...

         

Yeah, on my video for Hoobastank MTV made me remove all shots of women that did not include their faces. We knew this would be the case going into the shoot and edit, so we shot 2 cameras with the intent of cutting an "uncensored" version. It is amazing how with certain artists they completely overlook this rule. I'm guessing that Hoobastank's teen and tween demographic they got a little uncomfortable.

         

captainharry - maybe the shopkeeper was a snitch? maybe the shopkeeper killed Dre's sister.... who knows.

I'm not a parent so I can't really watch something and not enjoy it because 'kids might be watching and getting the wrong idea.'

I'm the only one here watching this and I'm not gonna shoot no shopkeeper. Unless they's a snitch.

         

guns are cool. stay in school.

Is this going to turn into a Grand Theft Auto thread?

         

cap'n marc - now we're on the same page. shoot the snitch.

especially if he likes to play grand theft auto.

         

Fell in love with a glock