P.S. I Love(d) You...

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©7

Soon.

SKI!

Berghain 7777777777 de NOV

(By the way, it is much more difficult than one could ever imagine to get not only studios but directors on board to do one-shot ideas. The most you achieve is an agreement to shoot projects edited to appear as "one shot." The best you can secure is a "long-take." The reason? It is an arduous technique to pull off. But the results are always worth the enhancement in storytelling.)

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I turned this one down so many times before agreeing to do it. I was down to do anything Kanye was a part of (since the Patchwerk days). I had known Game before he signed with Dre and 50, and while I knew everything he was saying was true, it did not feel "right." Kanye kept coming back to me, and I originally went with a highly conceptualized piece that was anti-the-song, but the label did not want to release the budget to shoot, so I came up with this. I took from The Roots concept and merely updated it. I took so many shots at the industry that I was sure they would not approve it. I also was surprised when Gloria (Velez) chose to appear in the video. While Game said nothing negative about her in the song, I remember presuming it was not something she would want to be a part of. Still, she was kind (and intelligent) enough to understand the vision (and that none of what was said applied to her, so shout out to Gloria). There are a ton of cameos in this one, but I will leave it up to the viewer to spot them all. Unfortunately, they cut my ending (which had a relatively strong lesson/message). It took me years to watch this one (or tell my family or friends about it). I cried each time I watched it because of the removed ending. It was vital because I needed to make a point with all that was said (lyrically) and shown (visually), but I regrettably never made it. Such is life. "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be…" Video Vixens ©7, Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson. The industry can be filled with misfortune as much as it brings fortune (and fame). I survived it because of the people around me who love me. If you do not have that, you will be the subject of a Greek tragedy (or an E! True Hollywood Story). Thank God I am unscathed.

For you, baby, I'd find you

I was just a kid when I did this one. The original (the one with the titles) ran on all MV networks. Then suddenly, they said it had to be reedited without them, which destroyed the message. If you look at it without titles, it becomes another mindless Hip-Hop video (which is what it was making light of). The original edit never ran again on television; the band and label only revived it on YouTube (and even that took nearly a decade to achieve). Sadly, I always had two concepts prepared when doing Hip-Hop/Rap videos. One made the viewer think; the other was stereotypical (women, jewelry, money, cars, mansions, etc.). The budgets were massive and could accommodate the storytelling I did in Rock, Country, and Pop, but the labels always chose the clichéd concept. The funny thing is, I used all of those setups I was making fun of in my other urban videos. People would always assume the artists wanted the passé conceptual MVs and how wrong they were, but the record companies had the final say. Regardless, there was a hidden message I would always convey. You merely had to watch with eyes open to catch it.