A few weeks ago, J Cole released the music video for his single G.O.M.D. The video, directed by Lawrence Lamont, depicts an antebellum salve revolt on a plantation in Louisiana. As Cole explained in an interview with SaintHeron.com, the video’s concept pre-dates the song.
“I had that video idea in my head for like two years or so, I always wanted to make that statement.”
But it wasn’t until he finished recording his 2014 album “Forrest Hills Drive” that he finally had a song that could measure up to the video’s premise. (Django vibes, anyone?)
G.O.M.D. samples a field song discovered by Cole while attending a play with his mother. Cole described his experience sitting in the auidence and hearing the song for the first time:
“{in the play} a group of friends and family all start reminiscing on the days when they used to work on the railroad, and they used to sing this song. When I heard them singing it, I’m looking around the theatre like, “Like, yo, this shit sounds amazing!”
After the play, Cole went home, looked up the soundtrack and bought the rights to the song.
A TREND
G.O.M.D. is not an outlier. Cole has made a habit of pairing his music with purposeful short films. The songs Crooked Smile, Power Trip, and She Knows, all off of his masterful 2013 album Born Sinner, are paired with equally powerful videos.
J Cole and his team provide a much needed respite from the majority of hip-hop videos, which continue to stick to the classic “cash + cars + women” formula that has dominated the industry for decades.
Check these out:
Crooked Smile
She Knows
Power Trip