Yes, Jay-Z did in fact invent swag.
And Kanye reinvented it.
If you haven't seen this video yet, prepare for sheer awesomeness.
As if this album alone didn't kill the rest of the hip-hop industry this video is like the icing on the insanely delicious cake (which was probably made by Louis Vuitton or Hermés, covered with Hublot and Rolex watches for kicks)
This album (and this song) has redefined the hip-hop "baller" and changed it, from the pimp fashion faux pas such as Pimp C with large fur coats and canes that look ridiculous, to literal high-fashion of Europe achieving the fashion heights of Marc Jacobs among others.
Kanye definitely led this reshaping over the span of his career much more than Jay-Z. For example, in his song "Champion" from the album Graduation, West says "I don't see why I need a stylist when I shop so much I can speak Italian," (probably the best line in all of Graduation) arguably promoting European fashion even back then and before.
All that aside Kanye and Jay-Z's re-definition of "baller" can be seen here in this video in which they make the sickest frankenstein-car ever, while completely destroying a beautiful $350,000 Maybach.
C o m p l e t e l y redefining hip-hop.
Oh, Aziz Ansari is in this music video too.
I have not been looking closely enough, but when does Aziz show up?
ReplyDeleteHe's the not Jay/Kanye in the dark suit. He drives the car slowly at some point and dances weirdly around it.
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ReplyDeleteYou have very good description of the music video and Kanye West. I also liked how you centered your writing. It made your writing compact and flows well. However, your second to last line bothers me. Isn't materialism a common theme seen throughout hip-hop? They might redefine "baller," but "hip-hop," I think is a stretch.
ReplyDeleteOh, and the Aziz thing. Never noticed that before.