IMVDb Blog

Taped Before A Live Studio Audience: Vol 1

By Chris Black Contributor Post

on August 21, 2014 · Taped Before A Live Studio Audience


Hi IMVDB heads!

It’s your boy Chris Black aka Yung John Coffey aka Gulluh Guluh Island!

The good folks at IMVDB have decided that it would be a good idea to give me a column (send all hate mail to doug@imvdb.com & adam@imvdb.com).

Before I continue, let me give a little background on myself.

I started producing music videos for AG Rojas back in the day and the first video that got us some attention was the Earl Sweatshirt video. Then I produced a few videos for Abteen Bagheri, the first video that really jumpstarted our careers was the ASAP Rocky “Peso” video.

Since then I’ve produced some more videos, most recently for my guy, John Merizalde, and I’ve transitioned to directing. Awesome.

Now a lot of you may not be as familiar with my work as you are with my Twitter account (@theblack). Aside from tweeting random bullshit about hip-hop or when I catch the feels or just general absurdities, I’m usually criticizing music videos and sometimes directors. Here’s a few of my gems:

And this one, which is one of my personal favorites:

So as you can see, I talk a lot and I talk a lot of shit.

You’re probably wondering why? Why do you sit and tweet about directors and music videos?

Well, for starters, I love music videos! I love the whole idea of creating an image to enhance a song or to sell an artist. Shit man, I grew up watching hip-hop videos in the 90s and recording them to VHS. Never did I think I’d be apart of this world. Just because I produced and directed a few cool things, I don’t think I’m an expert in any sense. I do however feel like I have a pulse on what’s cool and interesting and I’ve been fortunate enough to have peers that I’ve been able to learn from to help discern what’s good and what’s bad. I’d even say that I study music videos daily.

The game is saturated with a lot of directors. A LOT of directors! And when an industry is highly saturated, there’s going to be a lot of bad work.

I feel like there’s a misconception about me and it’s that I’m this mean guy sitting behind a computer talking trash. The truth is I’m a really nice guy that’s into goofing and likes music videos.

The reason why I criticize is because I love music videos a lot and want to see the medium explore new heights. I want those making music videos to wow me and wow those who are just casual watchers.

There was a time when music videos died, but with the help of the Internet, they’ve made a strong comeback.

One thing in particular I tweet a lot about is the idea of “tropes”. Now I know, no idea’s original, but I’d like to think that we as creators can come up with new ideas rather than relying on tropes.

I’d post some videos with said tropes, but don’t want to upset anyone. Ironic huh?!

Some common tropes you see in music videos:

  • Smoke bombs 
  • Fireworks 
  • Angsty youth 
  • Floating in a forest 
  • Drug use 
  • Teens doing drugs 
  • Kids walking around aimlessly 
  • Kids looking sad 
  • Music videos set in the hood

Now when you start seeing the same ideas being executed in music videos it’s frustrating. Not only is it uninspiring and derivative, but it also cheapens the form. Music videos should be a culture that’s proactive and not reactive. This is the problem within hip-hop (we’ll discuss that in later posts).

Now what I’ve noticed is that no one speaks up about this. We may talk about it privately with close friends and peers, but no one says, “HEY! This is some bullshit!”, publicly. That’s where I come in.

You’re prolly saying, “well who made you the music video police?!”. The answer is simple…I appointed myself the sheriff. I’m the Tupac of music videos. I do it to push the music videos forward; to push my peers. For all the nonsense I’m tweeting about music videos, I’m also behind the scenes giving advice and mentoring and helping out where I can. I’m not all criticism. I’m out here meeting with young filmmakers who admire my work, which is very humbling because in my mind I’m just a regular dude. I’m connecting people with one another in the hopes to make them better so they can reach their goals.

And I know what it means being a director on the grind. It’s not an easy job!

This particular post was an attempt to explain where ya boy is coming from. It may shed some light or it may make me look like a bigger asshole than I am. ¯\_(?)_/¯

I don’t regret the things I’ve said. I’m just honest!

Chris Black is a music video director and producer. He's got the cool of Zack Morris with Mr. Belding's haircut. He's highly intellexual and hella urban. When he's not talking about rap, he's discussing the music video form. He's got Alfalfa dreams, but Buckwheat realities. Check him out on twitter (@theblack) or peep his website (chrisblack.la).

More Taped Before A Live Studio Audience: