Best Music Videos of the Month

Director: Adam Daniel (A.K.A. Aminé)

Portland rapper Aminé’s got it bad in his self-directed video for “Caroline,” a sunny, tongue-in-cheek track that chronicles a heady crush. The video follows Aminé and his crew as they dance through Portland’s parking lots, chow down on some Big Kahuna burgers, play video games, and pause to consider why their car is filled with so many bananas.

Miming lyrics in a Pulp Fiction t-shirt (there's also a Quentin Tarantino shout-out in the song’s chorus), the rapper seems to be having a genuine blast. Unlike the flashy cars-and-blunts visuals that often appear in videos, “Caroline” doesn’t take itself too seriously.

It’s fun, simple, and easy to relate to—we’ve all got a Caroline. Stick around for the blooper reel that runs after the video to see Aminé and company goof off in the backseat, test the cameras, and crack cheesy jokes.

Director: Cody LaPlant

Roses are associated with romance. But on his track “Stupid Rose,” Evanston's Kweku Collins turns the ubiquitous symbol for love on its head with a hook that’s as funny as it is instantly understandable: “You stupid fucking roses.”

It’s hard to tell the story behind the roses Collins carries throughout the video—maybe he got stood up, maybe the entire video is him trying to deliver them, maybe they’re a symbol for his inability to let go of a crush, and maybe it’s none of those things. But regardless, Collins’ bouquet never makes it to its destination. Instead, he spends the day skateboarding with friends, eating tacos, and playing football in the park before inexplicably floating into space. Something about the video and its song feels familiar and friendly, like Collins is a close friend trading relationship stories.

Director: SpiffTV

We’re not sure why French Montana’s “Lockjaw” is so good, but we know it has a lot to do with Kodak Black. His perplexingly simple flow on the hook reportedly began as a freestyle, and the laid-back energy established by those opening lines comes to life in its video.

Across two cities (Port au Prince, Haiti, and Broward County, Florida), French and Kodak interact with and rap alongside the locals. Kodak’s facial contortions are utterly charming and French Montana looks thrilled to be back in front of the camera amongst music's next wave.

Director: Kamau Agyeman

KAMAU is back with the third installment in his series of self-directed music videos, which began with “JAMBO” and “JUSFAYU.” This time, our protagonist Bo wakes up determined to win the heart of his crush—who appears to be the same girl he loses to his best friend, Magua, in the “JUSFAYU” video.

While Bo appears theatrically positive at the start of the video, dancing and skipping his way out of his brownstone, things quickly take a turn when he finds that Magua has stolen his girl’s heart again. It’s impressive to see an artist put so much thought into his visuals, and the piecemeal storyline format KAMAU uses is a clever way to keep viewers invested in his character. We won’t spoil the ending for this one, but let’s just say KAMAU’s evolution could also be described as a transformation.

Director: Jayme Lemperle & Evan Borja

"3 Stories" is taken from Wiki's 2015 tape Lil Me. The album is filled with day-in-the-life tales from Wiki's NYC digs, so it's only fitting that the "3 Stories" video, complete with its Kaytranada production, brings those stories onscreen.

As Wiki narrates the happenings of what seems like a usual day in his life, his city comes to life in beautiful color animation. He leaves a girl's apartment to face a city full of weed, booze, and crazy cab drivers. Wiki name-drops locations all across Manhattan, locations whose architectural and graffiti-decorated quirks are recreated faithfully in the video. With “3 Stories,” Wiki once again demonstrates his dedication to the city that shaped him and reminds his neighbors that New York hip-hop is alive and well.

Director: Jacob Chavez

St. Louis rapper Smino made a fantastic debut last December with his EP blkjuptr. Now, as the project finally hits Spotify and Apple Music, the artist has an equally fantastic music video debut to match.

Like the track’s title—which references the thought that being a black man in America can feel like being on another planet—the video for “blkjuptr” is visually dark and intergalactic. In it, Smino wanders through a forest dreamland under purple skies, where an enchanting seductress leads him through an abandoned house to a leafless tree bearing only black apples.

With its distinct archetypes (the tree, the black apples, the half-built home), the complex visual feels meticulously thought-out and unavoidably symbolic. Who or what does Smino’s nymph lover represent? And what’s up with the camouflaged dancer who pops up throughout? It’s a video that will leave you thinking, just like Smino’s music.

Director: Joe Alexander

Mabel's voice is incredible, and she let's it fly on "Thinking Of You." The video is similarly grandiose, with sun flares galore and a gleeful '90s vibe that makes every frame pop.

There's a loose romantic narrative featured, but this video is really about the colors and the music—the whole thing is beautifully done, and the camera loves Mabel.

Director: Mimi Cave

Danny Brown has largely stuck to features and documentaries since 2013’s highly-lauded project, Old.

But the Detroit rapper broke his three-year silence—or rather, shattered it completely—with the uproarious, frenetic “When It Rains” and its equally rowdy video. Vaporwave-like visuals combine fuzzy VHS footage, cartoons, game show clips, and overlays of Danny dancing, all washed in grainy static. The psychedelic video is visually exhausting yet mesmerizing: press play, and you won’t even notice the three-and-a-half minutes go by.

It’s the type of video you could watch dozens of times, and still discover something new with each replay. After a stretch of silence, Danny has no problem getting our attention.

Director: Ryan Staake

Clams Casino and Vince Staples have both been killing the music video game as of late, putting out abstract, mesmerizing visuals that are often as mysteriously beautiful as they are eerie.

So when the duo released their recent collab, “All Nite,” it was almost inevitable that the accompanying visuals would be stellar. The kaleidoscope-esque video layers footage of the same scenes shot during different times of day, resulting in a trippy time-lapse that unfolds in overlapping geometric panels. The whole thing is set in Staples’ native Long Beach, where he raps in desolate, industrial settings that look like parts of a shipping yard. The visual’s somewhat sinister beauty accentuates the eerie sound of the track itself, which chronicles Staples’ earlier gang life in the Long Beach area.

Director: Jack Begert & Dave Free of tHe little Homies

This is ScHoolboy Q's most ambitious video yet. It runs for nearly nine minutes and is mostly dialogue—we follow Q and his friends through a day in the life, from cops breaking up dice games to heated negotiations in the pawn shop.

When the song finally kicks in around the six-minute mark, we are fully enmeshed in the Hoover Street happenings. Colors start to fade and disappear, but the energy stays up. Beautifully shot and pretty damn funny, "By Any Means" signals a new age for ScHoolboy's videos. Can't wait to see what's in store for "Part (2)."