The 50 Best Rap Videos of the '00s

It was a glorious decade for hip-hop visuals. These were the very greatest.

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Image via Getty/Shareif Ziyadat

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This feature was originally published on March 7, 2013.

When the calendar finally flipped from the ‘90s to the ‘00s, hip-hop was nearing its commercial peak. The decade began with some of the biggest budgets for a few of the genre’s most successful stars in history. The first decade of the 2000s were defined by a variety of shifts. The rise of regional scenes, particularly the dominance of Atlanta and the South in general, had a major impact on the genre. There was also the arrival of some of the genre’s biggest stars: 50 CentKanye West, Ludacris et al.

Video equipment became less expensive, and stars were soon minted from the comfort of their own living rooms. The decade began with TRL and 106 and Park, and ended with the all-consuming crowdsourcing of YouTube and WorldStarHipHop. We’ve looked at all the major hip-hop clips of the Aughts, from Jay-Z's smashes to Missy Elliott's breakthroughs, from the big budgets to rising amateurs, and everyone in between.

These are The 50 Best Rap Videos of the '00s.

RELATED: The 50 Best Rap Videos of the '90s

RELATED: The 100 Best Music Videos of the 2000s

RELATED: 15 Actors Who've Directed Music Videos

RELATED: Do Androids Dance? - The Best Videos of 2013

50. T.I. "What Up What's Haapnin'" (2008)

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Director: Kai Crawford

Album: Paper Trail


A response track to Shawty Lo's "Dunn Dunn," the video for "What Up What's Happnin'" was T.I.'s proof that he really did represent for the Bankhead neighborhood in Atlanta. Shawty Lo, offended that T.I. had been representing for Bankhead without mentioning him, argued otherwise. T.I.'s response was to film an entire video in front of Bankhead's Bowen Homes housing projects. Flanked by Alfamega and joined by pre-haircut era comedian Lil Duval and pre-haircut era rapper Meek Mill, Tip even did Lo's "Dey Know" dance at the end of the video. The beef was ultimately squashed before T.I. began his sentence, and Shawty Lo would ultimately detail his side of the story in the Coldplay-sampling "Roll the Dice."

49. Slim Thug "I Ain't Heard of That" (2005)

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Director: Hype Williams

Album: Already Platinum


Slim Thug was putting on for Texas in a big way when he came out and he was sure to show folks exactly what his version of Houston was all about in the I Ain't Heard of That video. The Boss of all Bosses is showing viewers around his stomping grounds as he sits pretty behind a classic Caddy with his platinum grill shining. Pharrell makes a cameo appearance early on as we hear the infamous "Star Trak riders" line vibrate during the chorus of the song.

48. Ghostface f/ Jadakiss & Comp "Run" (2004)

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Director: Rick Mordecon

Album: The Pretty Toney Album


Imagine some of your favorite New York rappers in an episode of Oz and you've basically got the video for "Run." Ghostface takes us along a detailed story about how he ended up in the pin after a suspicious encounter with the cops. The moral of the story here is to run-no matter what. Innocent or guilty just book it.

47. E-40 f/ Keak Da Sneak "Tell Me When to Go" (2006)

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Director: Bernard Gourley

Album: My Ghetto Report Card


As the "hyphy" movement made its slow bubble to the mainstream music scene, "Tell Me When to Go" became the scene's signature anthem. Not only did it need to (re)introduce E-40 and guest rapper Keak da Sneak as a figures on the national scene, but introduce a cultural movement as well. With guest appearances from Too $hort, producer Lil Jon, The Federation, Turf Talk and Mistah F.A.B., the video was a who's who of mid-2000s hip-hop, all celebrating Oakland's coming-out party. The unusual peculiarities of Bay Area culture, from hyphy's ecstasy-derived thizz faces to the dread-shaking dances, from the reckless automotive behavior to the very texture of the city itself, was perfectly captured in a flurry of black and white images.

46. J5 "Quality Control" (2000)

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Director: Jeff Richter

Album: Quality Control


J5 makes hip-hop fantasies come true in this one, where DJ Nu-Mark drives an ice cream truck that doubles as a vinyl distributor. Then the crew shows up in children's Viewfinders and record bins, as Chali2Na holds a small town in his hands. It's a journey into all things analog, and makes you miss the days when everything was that simple.

45. Birdman & Lil Wayne "Leather So Soft" (2006)

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Director: Aaron Courseault, D. Carter

Album: Like Father, Like Son


Birdman and his protege are offering fans a lot of things in this video. The song alone is a topic of discussion but once you add an ASL interpreter, a full band, pint size ballerinas, and Lil Wayne attempting to play the guitar you've got one of the best rap videos during the 2k. Okay, we admit it's a bit ridiculous but Weezy and Baby continue to establish themselves as trendsetters and not followers. What other rapper do you know does all of the above mentioned and still remains a complete G? Weezy F Baby.

44. Snoop Dogg "Sensual Seduction" (2007)

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Director: Melina

Album: Ego Trippin'


Somehow, someway, Snoop makes holding a keytar look gangster. In his video for "Sensual Seduction," he gets retro and pays homage to Prince's "When Doves Cry" video. Watching Snoop in his elaborate suits, gloves, hats, and rap-singing with a talkbox is incredible, but for the more x-rated viewers, Snoop came out with a raunchier video showing explicit sex scenes. The choice is yours, but there's nothing like seeing Snoop backed by retro visuals.

43. Three 6 Mafia f/ Young Buck, 8Ball & MJG "Stay Fly" (2005)

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Director: Bernard Gourley

Album: Most Known Unknown


The best part about this video is at the beginning when Juicy J is leaving his girl in a South Beach hotel room, and as he walks out he slips his gold fronts back in. It's like the equivalent of Clark Kent going into a phone booth to turn into Superman, only Juicy J becomes Super Pimp. They pack an entire night at the club into one concise video, where at the end they're bringing some girls back to the hotel to do it all again the next night.

42. Eminem "Without Me" (2002)

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Director: Joseph Kahn

Album: The Eminem Show


Shady wakes up in a silk robe in bed with "Kiana" and "Jenna" at the start of this video, where it erupts into an animated comic book strip. Em plays the awkward superhero that vaguely resembles Robin (with a wedgie). He thrusts his pelvis, climbs buildings, and saves the day with Dr. Dre by his side as the brains behind the operation. Don't blink or else you'll miss the part where Eminem is in drag. My how times have changed.

41. Nelly "Ride Wit Me" (2000)

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Director: Marc Klasfeld

Album: Country Grammar


When Nelly first set foot on the scene, he was heavy into promoting this notion of "Country Grammar." The idea of being "country" varies within cultures in the U.S., and in the video for "Ride Wit Me," Nelly brings them both together. He rocks a cowboy hat as he guides two tractor trailors filled with dance parties along a highway. They eventually land at a rest stop where they open the party up to a bunch or rednecks. What an awkward but effective way to promote unity.

40. Prodigy "Mac 10 Handle" (2007)

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Director: DanTheMan

Album: Return of the Mac


You don't need a high budget or a ton of flash to communicate the dark, lonely thoughts that provoke paranoia. Prodigy's clip for "Mac 10 Handle" captures the feeling in the spot-on portrayal of what isolation and a few untreated demons can do to a guy. P pulls from a handle of liquor, smokes endless cigs, and loads his handgun before he finds a foe and uses it. If you ever wanted to know what it feels like to hide out in your apartment, "high on drugs," dealing with homicidal thoughts, this video portrays it in brilliant fashion.

39. Gorillaz "Clint Eastwood" (2001)

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Director: Jamie Hewlett, Pete Candeland

Album: Gorillaz


Chances are if you've ever seen a Blur video, then you know what David Albarn looks like. He's one of the masterminds behind the creation of the Gorillaz along with Jamie Hewlett. The Gorillaz are their cartooned band, freakish members (including one that loosely resembles Albarn). "Clint Eastwood" was their big debut, showing the band fighting against gorillas in the rain. It's like a distorted graphic novel set to cool music.

38. Rich Boy f/ Polow Da Don "Throw Some D's" (2006)

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Director: Bernard Gourley

Album: Rich Boy


The visuals for Rich Boy's big debut are totally dedicated to trickin' out whips, with the rims being the obvious focal point. There are just Dayton rims (or D's) all over the place - ones that spin, ones that don't. There are even rims on the kiddie Caddies. Everybody's sittin' on chrome in Rich Boy's world.

37. UGK f/ OutKast "International Players Anthem" (2007)

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Director: Bryan Barber

Album: Underground Kingz


This video is perhaps the perfect depiction of what happens when a crew of players loses their king. Andre 3000 plays the role of the pimp who leaves his pack, while cameos from Bun B, Pimp C, Fonzworth Bentley and (strangely) Lukas Haas add to the allure of this wedding where the fellas mourn losing one of their own to marriage. Three Stacks even proudly dons a kilt to his nuptials. We wonder if he'd do that in real life? Probably.

36. Pharrell f/ Jay-Z "Frontin'" (2003)

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Director: Paul Hunter

Album: Clones


There are few things better than Pharrell singing in falsetto except Pharrell singing in falsetto while undressing from his coveted BBC in this video. This video serves as the backdrop to one of Pharrell's most popular songs in the 2000s and we get a cameo from the then new-comer Lauren London who plays one of his many love interests in the visual. We get classic Pharrell in this video with a chill house party, indoor skateboarding and lots of well dressed attendees. A performance piece with a quick few bars from Jay-Z and this video was a hit for the summer of '03.

35. Ludacris "Area Codes" (2001)

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Director: Marc Klasfeld

Album: Word of Mouf


So, the basic premise of this Luda track is that no matter where he travels, he always has a girl (or two) waiting for him there. In the video, Ludacris takes it a step further and hires a plane to bring all of the girls to him. They each arrive wearing their area code across their chests. It's a novel idea, but someone should inform Ludacris that the point of having someone in every city is so they all don't run into each other.

34. Bonecrusher "Never Scared" (2003)

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Director: Bryan Barber

Album: AttenCHUN!


If there was every a song that needed a massive visual, it was Bonecrusher's titanic "Never Scared," an epic beat that, naturally, required Bonecrusher to take on Godzilla-like scale in the Bryan Barber-directed video. As the speakers behind Killer Mike distort the very air they breath with rippling soundwaves, Bonecrusher strides through the Atlanta skyline, dragging his hand through buildings while T.I. raps from inside comic book-like frames.

33. Petey Pablo "Freek-A-Leek" (2003)

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Director: Erik White

Album: Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry


So, we have Petey Pablo as the dirty old man hosting the local radio program, references to Belly, and some of the hottest video vixens of the time? Yeah, this one was a winner, and the video had so much to do with it. No longer relegated to the gimmick of swinging shirts around like helicopters, Pablo was just a guy making jams about what he wants to do with beautiful women. He proceeded to put a lot of those beautiful women in the video for "Freek-A-Leek," and America ate it up.

32. Kanye West "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (2007)

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Director: Hype Williams

Album: Graduation


"Laaaaaa, la, la, wait 'til I get my money right," and in drops the beat, and thus, drops you right into the middle of what appears to be the Utah salt flats, and there's Kanye, a dark presence in the middle of blinding brightness (a brilliant visual interpretation of the track's aesthetic). It's just him rapping as viewed through an epic crane shot, and nothing else. And sure, there are colored smoke bombs at night later, and a model in a flowing black cape-dress, and Kanye doing doughnuts in a gulfwing Benz, but it's the first half of this video that sears an image into your brain, of Kanye surrounded by nothing, doing whatever the fuck he'd like. Rappers (let alone Hype Williams, who's directed the most blinged-out videos in rap, period) aren't known for brilliant minimalism. This video was Kanye's statement that he can master any and all aesthetics gracefully, and it was the beginning of his foray into more abstract ideas that diverged wildly from anything rap had been before it. In that, he has a classic.

31. Shyne f/ Barrington Levy "Bad Boys" (2000)

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Director: Marc Klasfeld

Album: Shyne


Shyne heads to Jamaica in his introductory video to visit Barrington Levy, and the two spend the video frequenting the yard. The video does an adequate job of depicting life in Jamaica, from the streets to the dancehall. Makes sense given the Caribbean vibe of the former Bad Boy's first single. It's crazy to remember Shyne as a hungry young MC in a t-shirt. Now he rocks a Borsalino hat most days.

30. Jay-Z "99 Problems" (2004)

Jay Z

29. Eminem f/ Dido "Stan" (2000)

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Director: Philip Atwell, Dr. Dre

Album: The Marshall Mathers LP


They did a bang up job of making actor Devon Sawa (aka "Stan") look like a total psycho slash Eminem clone in this video. Dido's on the hook to the song (it was her song first, after all) and she makes a guest appearance in the video as the pregnant girlfriend of Stan. The video shows the twisted effects of fanatical behavior, as Stan bleaches his hair like Eminem, then writes a letter to him. He puts Dido gagged in the trunk of his car and drives it off a cliff into a river. It's dark and morbid, and totally appropriate for the track.

28. Freeway f/ Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel "What We Do" (2003)

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Director: Nzingha Stewart

Album: Philadelphia Freeway


From the moment this video begins - with the leather couch outside on the pier - it's clear Freeway juxtaposes the ideals of living the good life while keeping it street. With Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel on the assist (imagine that) Free moves weight on that pier, ducks infrared beams and ultimately gets found out by the cops. Does he get caught though? Rewatch the video to find out.

27. Missy Elliott "Work It" (2002)

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Director: Dave Meyers

Album: Under Construction


Timbaland looks legitimately crazy in the first 10 seconds of "Work It" that is, until you see the rest of the video complete with bees (Yes, those were real), crazy dance moves, and Missy in a denim get-up with Aaliyah's face on the back of it. Watching the dancers infiltrated throughout Missy's video is mesmerizing, but Missy's performance is career-defining. So is the performance by the little white girl breakdancing. You can tell Missy had fun on set-and we can assure you she did: director David Myers forgot to replace the glass of wine with a glass of water during the restaurant scene and Missy ended up speaking damn near gibberish when she met Janet Jackson on set that day.

26. Styles P "Good Times (I Get High)" (2002)

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Director: Jessy Terrero

Album: A Gangster and a Gentleman


The Freda Payne sample on this Styles P track is used to punctuate the D-Block member's love of the bud. As the visuals for that track open, Styles is stoned on the floor of a public bathroom. He doesn't know where he is, but then emerges into a trippy club scene, where director Jesse Terrero takes a nod from Hype Williams' "Belly" and gives Styles P black light sensitive eyes as he navigates through the club. We could all use a pair of those.

25. Lil Jon f/ Mystikal & Krayzie Bone "I Don't Give A F**k" (2002)

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Director: Gil Green

Album: Kings of Crunk


Lil Jon's earlly 00s terrain was the Club. Not as a specific place, although that was often where his music was heard; but as a kind of escapist paradise, a liminal space where inhibitions were loosed in a visceral, gutteral yell. Each video he created would aim for a variation on a club theme; but "I Don't Give A F**K" was one of his most creative, transforming irreverent energy into cartoonish chaos. People are shoved, Mystikal raps while wrestling with bouncers, and the camera follows Lil Jon around as he leads viewers on a tour of a surprisingly well-lit party full of TVs, flashing lights and the occasional bit of nudity.

24. 50 Cent "Wanksta" (2002)

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Director: Jessy Terrero

Album: Get Rich Or Die Tryin'


Everybody knows a "Wanksta," and the one in 50 Cent's video is portrayed perfectly. Going to the car dealer and pretending to buy (but never quite closing the deal), acting hard on the boulevard, you know the drill. The only cool part about the wanksta in this video is that he has his own toy doll. He gets accidental awesome points for that.

23. Nas "One Mic" (2002)

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Director: Chris Robinson

Album: Stillmatic


In this clip, Nas is a rebel leader-when he's not sitting in a room rapping deep thoughts to himself. Honestly, the juxtaposition is what makes this clip, just like it does for the song. You have the contrast of loud, brash rhymes from Nasty, set right against quiet, introspective ones. The visual does an excellent job shifting between those perspectives, from Nas, literally wth one mic, to him on the streets rallying the people. Well done.

22. Kanye West "Flashing Lights" (2008)

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Director: Spike Jonze, Kanye West

Album: Graduation


As you've noticed up to this point, Kanye has a ton of avant garde, off-beat videos. He's not necessarily rapping in any of them, and he's not necessarily present in the videos either. "Flashing Lights" is one of those videos, but it executes that style on the highest level. It's such a simple video in essence, but every detail pops. A car pulls up with looming red taillights, a woman with unreal proportions, Rita G, exits, disrobes, and proceeds to murder Kanye with a shovel. It's so suspenseful and calculated and perfectly time. The first emotions you feel after a viewing are amusement and shock. Kanye tries to bring the worlds of rap, pop, and art together and the official, final visual for "Flashing Lights" accomplishes that on the highest level he's ever done it. When asked about the video, vixen Rita G said, "Kanye is just on another level." She knows what she's talking about.

21. OutKast "Hey Ya!" (2003)

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Director: Bryan Barber

Album: Speakerboxxx/The Love Below


By the time Andre 3000 reached the "Hey Ya" era of his career, not a single fuck was a given over whether or not he was acting "Hip-Hop" enough. In this 60s-inspired video Dre's hair is pressed and straightened, and the video shows 3-Stacks in his own rock band, where each member is inadvertently a version of himself throughout his career. It's a total reflection of how much Andre Benjamin has reinvented himself throughout the tenure of Outkast. Imagine how many more personalities could be added to this video now?

20. Missy Elliott "Gossip Folks" (2003)

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Director: Dave Meyers

Album: Under Construction


Missy addresses the high school gossip mill in her video for the appropriately titled "Gossip Folks" but we already knew that, what we didn't know is what the hell Missy was rapping about, at first. But it's all a response to rumors that surrounded Missy in 2003. But everyone wanted to go to a school where Missy was dancing in the courtyard, the school uniform looked to be an ADIDAS tracksuit, Eve, Tweet and Trina hanging in the cafeteria, and Ludacris was a principle.

19. Snoop Dogg f/ Pharrell "Drop It Like It's Hot" (2004)

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Director: Paul Hunter

Album: R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece


Not even a full minute into the video and we see Snoop Dogg crip walking and doing a choreographed dance with two back up dancers. This has the making of a fantastic 4 minute and 25 second video. A fairly simplistic video with most of the performances taking place in front of a white and black background we get to enjoy both the intoxicating Neptunes beat and a plethora of ladies twerking what their momma's gave them.

18. Jim Jones f/ The Game & Cam'ron "Certified Gangstas" (2004)

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Director: Jim Jones

Album: On My Way to Church


"I feel sorry for your mother" was all the old Asian man had to say to set off this west coast inspired thug melody by Jim Jones featuring The Game and Cam'ron. Jim went all the way gangster on this video with cameos from notorious west coast bad boys, stereotypical hood front yard shenanigans, and a grave yard performance sequence. It should also be noted the Jim is rocking both pig tails and a press and curl in this video but it's okay because well-he's a certified gangster.

17. Trick Daddy "I'm a Thug" (2001)

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Director: Nick Quested

Album: Thugs Are Us


There's so much thug goodness going on in this video it's hard for us to wrap around minds around it. In this video Trick Daddy is portrayed to be a parents worst nightmare-a less than desirable mate for their daughter. His money is as green as the next and he has no problem splurging on his lady. And buying ice cream for children because we all know-Trick loves da kids.

16. Jay-Z "Girls, Girls, Girls" (2001)

Jay Z

15. Kanye West f/ Syleena Johnson "All Falls Down" (2004)

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Director: Chris Milk

Album: The College Dropout


Yes, it was disappointing that while Kanye initially used a Lauryn Hill sample on the hook (replacing her with Syleena Johnson), we expected her to somehow pop up on the formal release. And even better appear in the video. That didn't happen. Stacey Dash showed up in the video instead - running through an airport while Kanye chases her, raps through an X-ray and watches her fly away. It spoke volumes about chasing a mixed up love, without having to explain anything at all.

14. Eminem "The Real Slim Shady" (2000)

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Director: Philip Atwell, Dr. Dre

Album: The Marshall Mathers LP


When Eminem came out with The Marshall Mathers LP in 2000 he took the hip hop world by storm with his unorthadox and often vulgar style that rap had never previously seen. In keeping up with his bizarre persona Eminem released the video for his hit "Real Slim Shady" and did an exceptional job of continuing ruffle everyones feathers. Much of the video takes place in a psychiatric ward and a factory where clones of the rapper are made. Not weird enough yet? Don't forget Em prances around in a superhero costume attacking boy bands with an artificial butt on. As strange as the video was, Slim Shady definitely made a memorable visual for the community.

RELATED: 50 Things You Didn't Know About Eminem

13. Mystikal f/ Pharrell "Shake Ya Ass" (2000)

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Director: Director X

Album: Let's Get Ready


Driving down a country road, Mystikal runs across a group of women; one passes him a slip of paper about a party at some kind of mansion. When he arrives later that night, a New Orleans-style masquerade ball is in full effect, and yes, asses are shaking-albeit in slow motion. The entire video has an unreal, dreamlike quality, as if occurring at a different tempo from the music.

12. Jay-Z f/ UGK "Big Pimpin'" (2000)

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Director: Hype Williams

Album: Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter


"Big Pimpin'" wasn't just a song; it was a lifestyle. And nothing communicated that lifestyle quite like its big-budget, Hype WIlliams-directed video, filmed on a tropical yacht. Shot in Trinidad during the Carnival street parade, the video was a lavish spectacle of conspicuous hedonism. The definition of "pimping" became something you could buy into, a strange mutation from the world's second-oldest occupation to a wider escapist fantasy about power and absent consequence.

11. Mike Jones f/ Slim Thug & Paul Wall "Still Tippin'" (2004)

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Director: Dr. Teeth

Album: Who Is Mike Jones?


Forget Slim Thug riding around like the Boss Hogg Outlaw that he is. Forget Paul Wall and the disco ball in his mouth. Forget the chicks in the video flanking Mike Jones like he owes them money. Forget it all. Remember this: 281-330-8004. That's Mike Jones' phone number, brandished on his T-shirt in the video. It made him famous. That is, until his Nextel phone got shut down.

10. 50 Cent "Window Shopper" (2005)

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Director: Benny Boom

Album: Get Rich or Die Tryin' Soundtrack


What's funny about the "Window Shopper" video is that not once does 50 Cent have to "window shop" at all during it. He and Ma$e go on a shopping spree, eating $400 cheeseburgers, while friends (and G-Unit signees) like Young Buck, Mobb Deep and Olivia all partake in living in the lap of luxury set in Monaco on the French Riviera. Must be nice.

9. Outkast "B.O.B" (2000)

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Director: Bryan Barber

Album: Stankonia


There's a lot going in the video for "B.O.B." From the green streets and purple shrubbery to a Big Gipp cameo as Big Boi jumps from moving vehicles, it's just a crazy ride into Stankonia. The coolest part about it though is that the video moves as fast as the beat, which is a rare occurrence in the world of cinematography. Also, shout out to Andre 3000 for having the coolest bedroom in the beginning of the video.

8. Ludacris "Southern Hospitality" (2000)

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Director: Jeremy Rall

Album: Back for the First Time


Most people envision "southern hospitality" as debutantes and mint juleps. Well, Luda has a different party in mind. With thick girls "throwin' bows," Cadillacs galore, and Luda hanging upside down, sliding through the streets of Atlanta, he delivers an entirely different visual to life in the South. Book a flight and come on down.

7. Kanye West "Stronger" (2007)

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Director: Hype Williams

Album: Graduation


The period of time between Late Registration and Graduation was a strange one, in that no artist could've recieved the kind of heavy 'What will he do next?'-type expectations throw at Kanye. And when he did, in fact, release a song with one of the most important electorock songs ever as the primary sample, there was a question of audacity that the video was crucial in shutting down. There's the incredibly elusive Daft Punk, right there-right there in Kanye's video!-holding it down for 'Ye, a sampled co-sign if there ever was one. The concept, of Kanye being re-engineered in some kind of space pod to be harder, better, faster, stronger, got the perfect and earthbound visual accompanyment in Tokyo-night aesthetics, and what might still be 'Ye's most memorable accessory: The cut-line shades. Then there's Cassie as the object of Yeezy's affection. You never doubt why this clip cost millions to make. The entire thing took everyone by surprise, but more importantly, right into the future of 'Ye's music.

6. Dr. Dre f/ Eminem "Forgot About Dre" (2000)

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Director: Philip Atwell

Album: 2001


Dr. Dre dropped this track at a pivotal point in his career: when he was introducing his greatest co-sign a.k.a. Eminem. At the same, he was reintroducing himself to the rap world. With mansions, Newsweek covers, and a fisheye lens in the studio amidst his scores of platinum plaques, Dre does a fantastic job of reminding you exactly who he is in this video. Eminem tumbling over garbage cans was an added treat.

5. The Diplomats "Dipset Anthem" (2003)

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Director: Jim Jones

Album: Diplomatic Immunity


One of the greatest things to happen to New York (and the Tri-State for that matter) was Dipset and the "Dipset Anthem"-it was like an east coast gangster hymn. Juelz Santana is calling shots to his comrades and taking over new territory in the first half of the video but during the second half we find him spitting the entire second verse on the front of a cop car in what has since been declared the longest pat down in police history. We get loads of oversized clothing and Cam'ron's infamous pink get-up as he raps to the shuffled feet of his fellow Uptown friends.

4. P. Diddy & the Bad Boy Family "Bad Boy For Life" (2002)

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Director: Chris Robinson

Album: The Saga Continues...


There goes the neighborhood,' says the old white folks in Perfectown U.S.A. when the Bad Boy bus unloads its crew. Like, this woman really faints when Diddy ascends down those stairs. The video is the triumphant anthem for Diddy and his crew, and as he sits atop his house, he's truly taken the throne. Diddy jams out with Dave Navarro and Travis Barker in the garage, there's a party in the backyard and eventually, all of his curmudgeon neighbors join in on the fun-only after seeing the crew cruising on scooters down the street which leads Diddy to give absolutely no fucks and hit a few golfballs off his roof-Mr. Bentley of course, supplies him with the club and custom BB golfballs. Unfortunately, Ben Stiller comes to break up "Mr. Daddy's" party. Unfortunately, Crazy Town moves in across the street and Diddy will probably end up moving to another crib shortly after.

3. Missy Elliott "Get Ur Freak On" (2001)

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Director: Dave Meyers

Album: Miss E... So Addictive


Missy's never been at a loss for creating abstract visuals to match her slightly off style of music. This video takes place in this odd, dank haunted jungle of a basement, where choreographed dance sequences and a Ludacris cameo make everything awesomely confusing. By the end of the video, we get a car scene with Missy and her girls rocking out to the follow-up single "Lick Shots." The entire thing is a ride of pure insanity that you never want to end.

2. Snoop Dogg f/ Pharrell "Beautiful" (2003)

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Director: Chris Robinson

Album: Paid Tha Cost to be Da Bo$$


The ultimate spring break track of 2003 got the perfect visuals to go with the exotic, relaxing, and banging Neptunes beat on Snoop's "Beautiful" featuring Charlie Wilson and Pharrell. Besides the beautiful women on the beach, the drum scene around the pool, and the gorgeous mansion the men take their ladies too, the video actually had some historic significance in Rio de Janeiro. Snoop and Pharrell are sitting on the Escadaria Selarón-a set of world famous steps renovated by Chilean-born artist Jorge Selarón. The steps weren't finished until the day the music video was shot. But enough about the stairs, will we ever forget that female Snoop was with? Her name is Luciana Malavasi. You're welcome.

1. Jay-Z f/ Pharrell "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" (2000)

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Director: Dave Meyers

Album: The Dynasty: Roc La Familia


Sure, this looks like a typical Jay-Z video from the early 2000s—girls everywhere, nice weather, loud music—but considering the run Hov was on at the time, that's why it's awesome. Plus, there are some minor modifications. For one, Lil' Kim is by Jay-Z's side while he's inviting girls into the crib. The best part about this video, though, is John Witherspoon playing the annoyed neighbor. Eventually he caves and gets invited to the party. No complaints after that.

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