What is to you the best music video and why...

[frankster]

These two are my two top choices..... for obvious reasons - The Politics of History Race and Religion.

 

Michael Jackson - Remember The Time (Official Video)

 

Madonna - Like A Prayer (Official Video)

 

 

[ProfD]

MJ's "Remember the Time" is definitely top of the list.  The video dropped like a very short movie.   The song is a straight banger.

[Pioneer1]

One of my favorite music videos is by one of my favorite music groups.

Fight the Power by Public Enemy
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not only the lyrics but the entire atmosphere........
The different hoods with their signs up representing.
Real people from the streets up in the video representing more realness.
Nation of Islam representing adding positivity and consciousness to the atmosphere.
Professor Griff and the S1W's marching and drilling......
So much I love about this video.

[Pioneer1]

I used to LOVE Flava Flav.....lol.

Now I think he's an embarrassment.
He was one even back then, I just didn't realize how silly his antics were to grown folks who were serious about liberation.

PE trying to talk about serious issues and he's on stage and in videos with his eyes bugged out and mouth twisted up acting a fool.
I know he was doing it to hype the people up and add entertainment.....but still.
Chuck's rhymes and messages were so powerful, that foolery really wasn't needed.

[ProfD]

20 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

I used to LOVE Flava Flav.....lol.

Now I think he's an embarrassment.

I know he was doing it to hype the people up and add entertainment.....but still.

Chuck's rhymes and messages were so powerful, that foolery really wasn't needed.

Flavor Flav was a founding member of Public Enemy (PE).  He helped Chuck D to become a better MC.

 

There was also Professor Griff and and the S1W (Security of the First World) standing around too. 

 

There's no shortage of minstrels especially when it comes to entertainment.

 

For whatever reason, PE felt like they needed Flav as hype man and other gimmicks. 

 

Thankfully, the messages in PE's music always cut through the *noise* and *static*.

 

A few Hip-Hop groups and artists had some kind of gimmick or prop. 

 

But, most Hip-Hop acts wanted to be like Rakim. A mic and a message.

[Troy]

I have think about this one… I like the stop  the violence video out of the west coast. 
 

Michael Jason videos were like feature films

 

but it is hard to discuss music videos without talking about Hype Williams very talented… here he demonstrates less is more

 

 

 

 

 

[Pioneer1]

On 9/20/2023 at 2:49 PM, ProfD said:

Flavor Flav was a founding member of Public Enemy (PE).  He helped Chuck D to become a better MC.

 

There was also Professor Griff and and the S1W (Security of the First World) standing around too. 

 

There's no shortage of minstrels especially when it comes to entertainment.

 

For whatever reason, PE felt like they needed Flav as hype man and other gimmicks. 

If anything, they should have kept Professor Griff and ditched Flav.....lol.

I still think it was wrong they way they did Griff.
He didn't say anything that Public Enemy as a group weren't rapping about anyway.

His remarks CERTAINLY weren't nearly as anti-semitic as Ice Cube's were in No Vaseline....yet Ice Cube went on to have a major successful career in Hollywood.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Troy

Are you talking about this video?

 

.....the video and radio version was the EDITED version, lol.

I come to find out later that about a quarter of the actual lyrics were edited out to shorten the song!

Here's the song in it's original totality:


 

 

[Troy]

Yes that is the video.  I liked the spirt of the video and the variety of rappers presented.

 

Professor Griff and Ice Cube are two completely different animals. Ice Cube is an entertainer, motivated by money.  Griff is trying to uplift Black people.

 

East coast riders created a similar video too featuring Ms Melody and KRS1 and others. 

[richardmurray]

@Pioneer1

Your wrong, i speak now as an artist, i know many artists: writers/musicians/dancers who have said what you said, the message is enough. They were all wrongy by their own admission eventually. MEssage don't fill seats like fun, never has and never will . No shame exists in any artist being only about message but I repeat, message don't  fill seats. 

[ProfD]

2 hours ago, richardmurray said:

MEssage don't fill seats like fun, never has and never will .

True that.

 

Music as art still has to be entertaining on some level.

 

Even a legendary rapper like Rakim can drop knowledge but his persona and delivery still have an element of entertainment too.

 

Flavor Flav can actually rap despite his antics.

[Pioneer1]

On 9/25/2023 at 8:42 PM, richardmurray said:

@Pioneer1

Your wrong, i speak now as an artist, i know many artists: writers/musicians/dancers who have said what you said, the message is enough. They were all wrongy by their own admission eventually. MEssage don't fill seats like fun, never has and never will . No shame exists in any artist being only about message but I repeat, message don't  fill seats. 

 

 

No?
 

I would say it depends on:

1.  The message

and

2. Who are the ones filling the seats.


If your target audience are FOOLS...then a message that requires one to THINK wouldn't attract enough of them to fill  a McDonald's lobby.
But if your target audience is made up of INTELLIGENT men and women then you'll have no problem finding an audience.


Religious revivals and political rallies ROUTINELY attract a far bigger audience than music concerts and entertainment shows and have been doing so for centuries.

Look at the MILLION MAN MARCH.

2 million Black men came out to hear a MESSAGE.

Show me a CONCERT where 2 million people came out to bullshit and have "fun"???

Don't tell me messages don't attract crowds and fill seats.

[richardmurray]

fair enough @Pioneer1

[ProfD]

@Pioneer1, the thread is about music.  Messages in music have always been a harder sell. 

 

There's never been a shortage of deep music.  But, it won't be found on the Billboard chart. 

 

Again, from an entertainment perspective, most people like the McDonalds equivalent of music...nice beat and catchy lyrics.

 

If someone was to put a Farrakhan speech over a strong beat, nigglets eyes would glaze over and they would find something else to listen to and/or do.

 

As an aside, the 1st Million Man March message was 28 years ago. 

 

Almost 3 decades ago, most of the brothas who were at the March have probably forgotten the message.

 

From a musician's perspective, I wish that Black music contained  more positive messages and instructions for getting our people on code.

[Pioneer1]

ProfD

Public Enemy and KRS One were pretty popular and people (actually of all races despite their bold pro-Black message) were crowding out their concerts by the tens of thousands.

The White racist executives who CONTROL the entertainment industry pushed them to the back and PROMOTED negative artists like NWA and others.
Ofcourse it's going to sell if it's the only thing available or the only thing you here playing on the radio or on MTv all day long.

20 and 30 years after his death even brother Malcolm X's message was still attracting followers and influencing music and artists.
More so than Tupac or Eazy E or Coltrane or any other deceased entertainer.

Music fads come and go but a powerful message remains through centuries and even millennia.

Like I mentioned earlier, even today entire stadiums and arenas are being filled by Christians of all ages including teens and early 20's jumping up and down and crying over "Jesus dying for their sins"....whether you believe in that message or not.

Muslims of different ages by the thousands continue to make Hajj very year.

Messages outweigh music and entertainment in the long run.
...and for a good and simple reason.
When people have REAL PROBLEMS that they're dealing with in life.....listening to a Jazz tune may not fix it.
They want a MESSAGE in hopes that they'll find SOLUTIONS to what they're going through.

[ProfD]

Sure. There have been a few conscience artists who've had success.

 

Some messages do sell. As you mentioned, religion is a great example of it.

 

Popular music has never been about selling messages. It's all about entertainment. Folks who want to get paid follow suit.

 

Messages may "outweigh music and entertainment in the long run" but it will be hard to find positive messages in popular music. That's not what they're selling.

[Chevdove]

On 9/30/2023 at 2:11 PM, ProfD said:

the thread is about music.  Messages in music have always been a harder sell. 

 

There's never been a shortage of deep music.  But, it won't be found on the Billboard chart. 

 

 

So true! @ProfD

 

On 9/30/2023 at 2:11 PM, ProfD said:

 

 

From a musician's perspective, I wish that Black music contained  more positive messages and instructions for getting our people on code.

 

Again, --So true! 

 

But you know, I wonder if this is not why the late Nipsey Hussle is now resting. 

I do hope that he is in the RIP mode. 

I believe he was awesome on this very wise. He almost won a Grammy for his genious, if I am not mistaken. 

The MARATHON man that he is in his message, I think was designed by him to continue even beyond his life and work. 

Not only was his music great, but I think that his videos were also great too, although, he was rough!--in his language and presentation for all audiences. 

In one of his videos, he featured his grandmother, and that was toned down a bit! 

I remember, as a teacher, one video that was presented across the public schools actually STOLE his very theme! The video featured the very theme in one of his songs where he and 'a blood' stepped across the line onto the 'Cript' side and they two switched sides to show a theme about--ya know!!! 

Well, the public school video used this very theme to present INCLUSITIVITY of LBGT+! 

It still infuriates me when I think about it, because if he was alive, I wouldn't be surprised that he could sue somebody for using his creation. 

 

At any rate, I did not watch a lot of videos but I do have a few that I did watch and believe were great.

Of course, Michael Jackson, IMO is one of the best in the business when it comes to videos. He knew how to create music and also put together an awesome video. 

Some musicians create great music but to feature a video interpretation of their music is a whole different endeavor. 

Some of my favorite that comes to mind are MC HAMMER, Sade, and Debarge. But again, I think, other than the late Michael Jackson, it would also be Nipsey as one of the best when it comes to putting his music to a video. And going back in my day, there are a few others that I like of which I will also post. 

 

 

 

[Chevdove]

 

This was one of the videos that I thought was awesome. 

My Sorors decided to associate me to Debbie Allen and Tina Turner. 

 

 

 

 

This song and video is so stylish! IMO it's a classic. 

The Theme is timeless. 

 

 

 

 

May he RIP! 

 

 

 

 

 

[Pioneer1]

On 9/30/2023 at 10:14 PM, ProfD said:

Sure. There have been a few conscience artists who've had success.

 

Some messages do sell. As you mentioned, religion is a great example of it.

 

Popular music has never been about selling messages. It's all about entertainment. Folks who want to get paid follow suit.

 

Messages may "outweigh music and entertainment in the long run" but it will be hard to find positive messages in popular music. That's not what they're selling.

Pop music was about taking Black music and making it mainstream -but with a White face, lol.

White folks love Black music, even when they don't love Black people.
So if they can find a White artist who can sing and dance as well, they'll promote the hell out of them.

Enter  Madonna.
Enter Michael McDonald.

New Edition is getting too popular.....let's break out with the Back Street Boys.....lol.
Or they'll promote artists where you don't know WHAT race they are.....like Paula Abdul or Mariah Carey.

Lol.....these devils are something else.

[ProfD]

2 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

Pop music was about taking Black music and making it mainstream -but with a White face, lol.

White folks love Black music, even when they don't love Black people.

Lol.....these devils are something else.

Yep. White folks have been repackaging Black music in their own image and likeness for at least 100 years starting with Jazz.

 

They took Blues (Rock & Roll) and Gospel (Country music) and R&B (Pop) to name a few.

 

White folks have even proclaimed Eminem to be the best rapper in Hip-Hop.

 

Saddest part is when n8gglets cosign whatever white folks do. Even worse is black folks begging them for record deals to make music.

 

Insult to injury is white folks determining which Black music can be sold.

 

Black folks' failure to codify anything is the reason we don't own and control our intellectual property. 

[Maurice]

Pretty basic videos I suppose but they certainly do something for ME

 

 

 

Sorry,you will have to click on the links to view the videos. 

Forgot how to post properly,if you know what I mean.

 

 

[Croocked T]

Of course, everyone has a different perspective on this topic. However, the Michael Jackson - Earth Song will always be on the top. 

[Troy]

@Maurice I embedded the videos for you.

 

 I’m very familiar with both songs but never saw the videos.

 

 The one by of Gil Scott was nostalgic for me, because it showed the neighborhood I grew up in during the period I grew up into it. 
 

this image, from the video, shows the video from my window. I was a bit higher almost parallel to the train tracks. That is Park Ave in East Harlem. The same park Avenue where very wealthy New Yorkers live, only the train is underground there.

 

The train was so loud and the windows so  poorly insulated you could here your self think when the train was going by.

@Croocked T any of MJ’s videos are classics, Earth Song was on another level

 

 

[Pioneer1]

 

 

Troy

Well if you grew up in THAT neighborhood during THAT time, I don't know whether to feel sorry for you or be amazed that you made it out....lol.

That 'hood looked hard core and run down even at the beginning of the video with the little boy running through it.....then got progressively WORSE as the video continued, lol.

Not sure how you felt like even going to school and getting an education let alone good grades and going to college coming from a community like that where you could walk down the street and anything could happen to you at any time.

I probably would have either became an outlaw or radical community organizer determined to clean up the place....lol.
Growing up to go to college would be one of the last things on my list to seek.

Another thing I noticed about Heron's video was the sizeable number of Puerto Ricans I saw in it.
I knew New York had a large Puerto Rican population but I thought they lived separately in their own barrios like East Harlem and the Bronx.
The few times I've been to Harlem I barely saw any Puerto Ricans (unless they were Black and I didn't hear them speak) unless they were driving through to get to another neighborhood.
Seems to me that in Harlem at that time they lived pretty integrated in with the AfroAmerican population.

[laurendennis]

This is my best music video because it doesn't romanticize and shows where it all ends up if you choose such a path.