The 25 Best Music Videos of 2012

Whether you watched them on YouTube or TV, these are the greatest visuals of the year.

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Image via Complex Original
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Over the past few years, the Internet has become the preferred medium for watching and distributing music videos. Artists know this, and as a result, visuals are released with the intent of impacting online from the very beginning. From clips stacked with stars like Drake and Lil Wayne's "HYFR" to indie favorites like Grimes' "Oblivion," it was a great year for music videos, and they were dissected on Twitter timelines and YouTube comments ad nauseam.

Four minutes is an increasingly substantial amount of time, but for some clips, it's worth it. These are the 25 best music videos of 2012.

RELATED: The 50 Best Songs of 2012
RELATED: The 50 Best Albums of 2012

RELATED: Pigeons & Planes - The Best Music Videos of 2013

Joey Bada$$ f/ Capital STEEZ "Survival Tactics"

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25. Joey Bada$$ f/ Capital STEEZ "Survival Tactics"

Director: Creative Control

With grimy shots of broken bottles, bare light bulbs, abandoned buildings, subways, and masked entourage members carrying shovels, this simple but effective video seems more at home on an old VHS of vintage Rap City episodes than on YouTube in 2012.

The distinctly analog throwback vibe made the video stand out even more, along with Joey and the late Capital's precocious rhyme skills, of course. '90s babies ('90s teenagers, really) couldn't help but smile—in between breathlessly naming Joey the next Nas. Call it the power of a dope video.

Chairlift "Met Before"

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24. Chairlift "Met Before"

Director: Jordan Fish

It's the future and while we don't have flying cars, we do have interactive music videos. Chairlift's clip for "Met Before" is a choose-your-own-adventure narrative that gives you a different ending every time. Because it's not overly ambitious like interactive videos before it, the execution is much smoother.

Wiki "Wikispeaks"

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23. Wiki "Wikispeaks"

Director: Eric Yue

Besides being an up-and-coming rapper, Wiki is a teenager living in New York City. That second fact is the inspiration behind the beautifully simple video for his song "Wikispeaks." With no need for a crazy concept or fake displays of wealth, the video just focuses on Wiki and his boys messing around in NYC. The honesty is much appreciated.

Kanye West & Jay-Z f/ Frank Ocean "No Church In The Wild"

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22. Kanye West & Jay-Z f/ Frank Ocean "No Church in the Wild"

Director: Romain Gavras

On the heels of Occupy Wall Street, the Arab Spring and austerity riots in Europe, two of the richest rap capitalists fanned the flames with this incendiary video, another win for director Romain Garvais. The shots of street combat, a labyrinth of police lasers, and Old World sculptures aghast at the battles on the streets below are mesmerizing. Straight-up violence has rarely looked this fantastic.

Diplo f/ Nicky Da B "Express Yourself"

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21. Diplo f/ Nicky Da B "Express Yourself"

Director: Lil Internet

Who knew watching big girls shake it could be so entertaining? The best part is how disinterested Diplo seems throughout the whole thing, playing the background as Nicky Da B screams into the camera. Consider it proof that you don't need "vixens" for a great video.

Psy "Gangnam Style"

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20. Psy "Gangnam Style"

One billion views—and counting—can't be wrong. That's a seventh of the world doing that epileptic horse-riding dance when no one's looking. And we can't blame them: The video's surreal K-pop bombast—bursting with overzealous fan machines, man boobs, and fluorescent booty shorts—is infectiously over-the-top.

Mac Miller f/ Casey Veggies & Joey Bada$$ "America"

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19. Mac Miller f/ Casey Veggies & Joey Bada$$ "America"

Director: Mike Waxx & Mike Carson

Sometimes, it's the little things that take a music video to the next level. Mac Miller's visual is pretty straightforward in regards to the footage, but the post-production touches of a seemingly hand-drawn cartoon make this visual stick out way more than many others that dropped this year.

Rick Ross "Hold Me Back"

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18. Rick Ross "Hold Me Back"

Director: Taj

Say what you want about his past; Rikc Ross has the streets on lock. Maybe that's why he can walk into one of the roughest hoods and shoot a video that's soaking in grit like this one. This song didn't take off initially, but after the video dropped we all had to reconsider the power of the song. Like DMX once said, "Let my man and them stay pretty, I'ma stay shitty."

Trinidad James "All Gold Everything"

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17. Trinidad James "All Gold Everything"

Director: Motion Family

The power of this video can't be denied. Just ask Def Jam, who coughed up beaucoup bucks to lock down Trinidad James less than two months after the clip's three-plus minutes hit YouTube. If James can match the quality of this clip—which boasts left-field sartorial choices, a zeitgeist-y blend of hood and hipster, and the cutest puppy to ever a grace a rap video—he'll prove to be a worthy investment.

Nicki Minaj "Beez in the Trap"

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16. Nicki Minaj f/ 2 Chainz "Beez in the Trap"

Director: Benny Boom

We've all seen the million and one rap videos that take place at a club. But a music video, much like a feature film, isn't as good as it's setting or content, but instead, how it presents those two elements. Case in point: This video isn't all that original but it's shot so stylishly, and it's so in tune with the song itself. The cinematography is perfect, Nicki's ass looks awesome, and 2 Chainz does 2 Chainz-y things throughout. It's nonstop fun, from beginning to end.

Grimes "Oblivion"

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15. Grimes "Oblivion"

Director: Emily Kai Bock

Like most things Grimes does, the airy video for "Oblivion" is strangely spellbinding. Maybe it's the oddball juxtaposition of her delicate, almost elfin features and North Americana at its manliest—motocross, Friday night football, mosh pits—shot in such a beautiful, dreamy way. Either way, it's impossible to take your eyes off of her, dancing oblivious to the bedlam and mayhem on all sides.

Chief Keef f/ Lil Reese "I Don't Like"

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14. Chief Keef f/ Lil Reese "I Don't Like"

Director: DGainz

"I Don't Like" is a song filled with hostility. Lil Reese warns that his homeboy would rather use a 30-round semi-automatic gun than fistfight, and that their comrade Fredo is "a scary sight." As such, you'd figure the video would be equally as threatening, but that's not the case. Save the gang signs and weapons, Keef and his clique look like average teenagers in the video. He's dancing with the crew, smoking blunts, and just having fun. Despite being trapped in the war zone that is modern inner city Chicago, bromance prevails once again.

Danny Brown "Grown Up"

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13. Danny Brown "Grown Up"

Director: Greg Brunkalla

This clip from everyone's favorite Adderall-addled Detroit rapper took the concept from Biggie's classic, Spike Jonze–directed "Sky's the Limit" to the next level. That video showed tween Biggie and Diddy clones rapping, flossing, and whipping Jeeps. But young Danny, much like the current one, has a bit more energy than that, trashing libraries, raging in his toddler-size tiger hoody, and simply causing trouble. There's even an X-Men-like origin tale, showing how Danny got his chip-toothed special powers when he took a mean spill off his training wheels.

Action Bronson "The Symbol"

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12. Action Bronson "The Symbol"

Director: Rik Cordero

Action Bronson's cinematic clip for the first single from Rare Chandeliers, his banging mixtape with the Alchemist, is a modern-day white-sploitation classic. It's got everything you could ever want in a video: pimps being poisoned with ammonia, an old cowboy beating up Action, Santa ambushing cops with a shotgun. Someone get this guy a SAG card, please?

Jack White "Sixteen Saltines"

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11. Jack White "Sixteen Saltines"

Director: AG Rojas

This video is painful to watch, and that's why it's awesome. Cringe-worthy scenes of kids being tattooed, a vomit-worthy kiss, attempted suicide, bloody hopscotch, and a finale scene of Jack White presumably perishing in a car set on fire is disturbing, yes, but the video brilliantly captures the adolescent nihilism of the song. If there's ever a wonder as to how White remains so relevant as a rock star, look to his gripping, visceral visuals like this one.

Nas "Daughters"

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10. Nas "Daughters"

Director: Chris Robinson

This year is widely regarded as a comeback of sorts for Nas, and "Daughters"—with its accompanying music video—has a lot to do with it. On Life Is Good, Nas gets more personal than he has in years, and despite openly addressing his failed marriage to Kelis and status as a rap veteran, nothing hits harder than talk of the conflicted relationship with his daughter.

When Destiny Jones got caught acting up on social media earlier in th year, Nas didn't shy away from the scandal in embarrassment. He tackled the issue head-on in song and even re-enacted it in the music video for "Daughters," which even stars his real-life daughter. The clip was timely, fearless, and ultimately, one of the best of the year.

Flying Lotus "Until the Quiet Comes"

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9. Flying Lotus "Until the Quiet Comes"

Director: Kahlil Joseph

The video for Flying Lotus' "Until the Quiet Comes" isn't just a music video, it's a transcendent experience. The video is visually stunning—the image of the child bleeding out is haunting as it is beautiful—and open for interpretation. The most amazing part might be watching the gun shot victim with the "J Dilla Changed My Life" T-shirt get up after getting shot because we're not totally sure if he actually did that or the footage is just playing backwards.

Either way, with this video alone Flying Lotus went from being an underground mainstay to being selected by the Sundance Film Festival for its 2013 Short Film Program.

El-P "The Full Retard"

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8. El-P "The Full Retard"

Director: Timothy Saccenti

Forget Ted, forget Wilbur. When it comes to furry animal sidekicks, the eye-patched squirrel in El-P's "The Full Retard" goes hardest in the plush. He's practically like Wayne Brady on Chapelle's Show, taking Producto (along with Killer Mike and Mr. MFN eXquire) on a bloody bender adventure filled with piles of pills, stabby prostitutes, mounds of yayo, and assault-prone moms with strollers.

2 Chainz f/ Kanye West "Birthday Song"

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7. 2 Chainz f/ Kanye West "Birthday Song"

Director: Andreas Nilsson

2 Chainz and Kanye make their birthday wishes come true with this video, which features a bevy of big-booty ladies unleashed on an unsuspecting family get-together. There's plenty of surreal eye candy—a clown catching a beatdown, someone's uncle drinking 40s, and krumping. But in the end, it's the real eye candy that steals the show.

Killer Mike f/ T.I. & Bun-B "Big Beast"

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6. Killer Mike f/ T.I. & Bun-B "Big Beast"

Director: Thomas C. Bingham

We're not totally sure what's happening in this video. It goes from car chase to cannibalistic strip club to bloody bodega heist in the blink of an eye. But it features nudity, over-the-top gore and violence, and it's shot in gritty feature-film fashion. Rick Grimes is cool and all, but when the inevitable zombie apocalypse goes down, we're rolling with Killer Mike and company.

A$AP Rocky "Goldie"

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5. A$AP Rocky "Goldie"

Director: Rakim Mayers

The gratuitous eye candy—nipples, luxe Louboutin loafers, piles of gold that would make Trinidad James blush—are the first thing that catch your attention in the video for the lead single from A$AP Rocky's much-anticipated studio debut. But then you realize just how beautifully it was shot: the Paris panoramas look gorgeous, and the frequent nudity looks downright, dare we say, classy.

Drake f/ Lil Wayne "HYFR"

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4. Drake f/ Lil Wayne "HYFR"

Director: Director X

Drake's hilarious video for this Take Care standout had gentiles everywhere wondering if they're too old to convert. The clip showed Drizzy, hip-hop's illest Hebrew, getting re-bar-mitzvah'd, complete with plenty of non-Manischevitz alcohol, fine women and Drake and his mensches going totally meshugunah. The video most likely inspired Rick Ross to drop his Black Bar Mitzvah mixtape. We can only hope he didn't have to do a black bris first.

M.I.A. "Bad Girls"

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3. M.I.A. "Bad Girls"

Director: Romain Gavras

Even after a panned sophomore album and her infamous, truffle-fries-fueled takedown by the New York Times, M.I.A. re-emerged to drop the coolest, most subversive video of 2012. The jaw-dropping feats of Arab car drifting were previously confined to shabby YouTube videos; director Romain Gavras immortalized the controversial sport's skill, and deadly danger, beautifully.

MIA's backup dancers, gyrating with AK-47s and covered in funky, high-fashion takes on traditional Middle Eastern garb, are, quite simply, badass. With its undercurrents of female empowerment, Third World revolution, and pan-global cultural collisions, the video's basically a mission statement for M.I.A.'s career.

G.O.O.D. Music "Mercy"

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2. G.O.O.D. Music "Mercy"

Director: Nabil Elderkin

The song of the year also got the dope visual treatment it deserved. The minimalist, black-and-white widescreen shots match the beat's mysterious grandiosity, while simple but head-turning effects emphasize just how deep Kanye and company roll. Altogether, it's awesome enough to make you forgive the fact that the car in the video is a Lamborghini Gallardo, not the Murcielago we all expected.

Lana Del Rey "National Anthem"

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1. Lana Del Rey "National Anthem"

Director: Anthony Mandler

Let's face it: It's impossible to resist watching Lana and A$AP Rocky, the video casting coup of the year, snog. That they're channeling JFK, Jackie O, and Marilyn Monroe, with pitch-perfect period styling and warm super-8 cinematography, is just the icing on the cake. Never before have Harlem, downtown, and Hyannis Port blended so seamlessly.

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