Artist:
WILL VILL
Label:
BARRIO JAMZ RECORDINGS
Video:
“COP SHOT” & “WORD WARRIOR”
Director:
Sofian Khan & Manny Toro
Add Date:
January 15, 2010

Greetings, everybody! It’s Andy Gesner and the staff from HIP Video Promo, here to ring in 2010 with a bang, compliments of a pair of vivid rap tracks from the uncompromising Will Vill. Early in spring ’09, we sent you the imaginative clip for the poetic “Man Listen”; you’ll recall that in that video, graffiti projections of Will Vill’s face rapped the lyrics from the sides of buildings all over New York City. Sofian Khan of Capital K Pictures shot “Man Listen” — and now he’s resumed his creative partnership with Will Vill on the similarly-inspired clip for the blistering “Cop Shot”.

These new songs by Will Vill bear the distinctive hallmarks of the Upper Manhattan rapper’s style: they’re forthright depictions of life on the streets, spiked with clever turns of phrase and startling metaphors. His narratives are as emotional as Raekwon’s, and his eye for telling detail is as sharp as Ghostface’s. Even in a gritty tale of law enforcement gone wrong like “Cop Shot”, he never forgets to set the scene — he gives you the sublimated violence and confiscated narcotics, but also the “throwback James Worthy jersey” on the back of the drug dealer getting shaken down. As always, Will Vill’s flow is energetic, yet butter-smooth; it’s a perfect match for the cinematic, propulsive beat.

Capital K Pictures shoots more than just music videos — Sofian Khan recently completed a brilliant, probing documentary about a Pakistani boy sold into servitude in the United Arab Emirates. Rendered, an upcoming sci-fi full-length set in a Philip Dick-like techno-surveillance state, is a candid examination of the ethics of government interrogation techniques. But there’s no denying that Khan has a peculiar talent for incendiary rap clips. With “Cop Shot”, Khan turns his skills toward wide-screen storytelling. Characters are introduced and developed, crime scenes are explored (and returned to!), and there’s even a plot twist toward the end. Expect an utterly convincing performance by the crooked cop, gorgeous-gritty footage of uptown Manhattan, and a wholly satisfying conclusion to the story. Think of it as a four minute crime drama, and one as succinct, visceral, and affecting as anything you’re likely to see on network television.

We’ve also appended the clip for Will Vill’s dextrous “Word Warrior”, a fierce battle rhyme that finds the emcee at his most brash and confident. The song itself is brought to life courtesy of the pairing of Will with the legendary production team of Sly & Robbie once again. The rapper has always been proud of his Dominican heritage (he represents the predominantly Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights), and the “Word Warrior” video, finds him at play amidst some spectacular island scenery. Riding on the back of a truck, he cruises through small towns in the Dominican Republic and beneath verdant island hills; he’s completely at home, as comfortable here as he is on the streets of New York. The beat matches the visuals: “Word Warrior” introduces spare Latin percussion and Caribbean bass to Will Vill’s sound. Now a video veteran, the young emcee addresses the camera with an ease that can’t be faked — he looks terrific, and sounds even better.

It’s our greatest pleasure to be working once again with Steven Smith at Barrio Jamz Recordings to bring you these fiercely dominant new clips. If you need more info, call Andy Gesner at 732-613-1779 or e-mail us at info@HIPVideoPromo.com.

For info about Will Vill’s previous videos, “Confuzed” & “Man Listen” click HERE