The Pharcyde - Drop (Music Video)

This video is a classic.  If you aren't familiar with the alternative rap group, The Pharcyde, they rose to prominence in the early 90's with hits such as "Drop" that strayed away from the aggressive gangsta rap of the day.  The song is great; it was produced by J Dilla, and features a familiar sample from the Beastie Boys.  Ad Rock and Mike D even make an appearance in the video.  The video itself is what I want to draw attention to, anyway.  The guys from The Pharcyde enlisted Spike Jonze to direct it.  He was already making a name for himself by shooting creative videos for bands like Weezer,  Dinosaur Jr., and the Beasties.  Spike would ultimately go on to direct movies like Being John Malkovich and Where The Wild Things Are as well as produce for the Jackass series.

Back in 1996, though, Spike gave The Pharcyde a straightforward video premise: they take a reversed version of their track, shoot the music video backwards, and then reverse it again to give the final product.  It was brilliant because the band would appear to be doing impossible things because of a simple camera trick, but creative types rarely settle for the easiest route.  In order to make it seem more realistic, Spike wanted the guys to memorize the words to their song backwards so that their lip synching would still match up when the video was played forward.  One of the reasons I enjoy hip-hop so much is the linguistic word play.  I almost never care about what is being said, but rather how it is being said.  So I am very appreciative of the effort The Pharcyde put forth just to make the video work.  Essentially, they memorized a totally foreign song and performed that instead.

Hit the jump for Jonze's proposal and a couple of videos that give more insight.

Nujabes & J Dilla

On February 7th, 1974 the world was blessed with the birth of two men who would go on to help redefine the boundaries of hip-hop production and inspire fans around the world.  Detroit based J Dilla brought neo-soul stylings to the forefront of hip-hop during the late 90's.  Meanwhile, Nujabes was incorporating classical and jazz music into his productions from Japan.  James Yancey battled lupus and ultimately succumbed to his disease in 2006.  A few years later, in 2010, a car crash claimed the life of Seba Jun.

Both DJ's were true crate diggers; they made an art form out of selecting the perfect records for their tracks.  Even before their untimely deaths, they were gathering support and acclaim from across the hip-hop community for their works.  Their productions were well respected by both fans and fellow artists, and they were recognized for their progressiveness and creativity.

We have a fascination with dead icons, especially those that are gone too soon.  What's great about artists is that they leave behind a physical embodiment of their person within their works.  The emotions, feelings, and souls of J Dilla and Nujabes are captured in their music; forever accessible to us.  Even with their passing, their gifts and talents are preserved in the medium they loved.

Rest In Beats and Happy Birthday to you both.

A couple of my favorites: