Just this week, the original video for the house-y Crookers remix of KiD CuDi’s hit “Day N Nite” finally leaked. Shot some time last year before a bigger-budget version, it amazingly only cost $250. To directors BBGUN’s credit, it isn’t all that bad-I mean, it could pass for about a $2,500 video-and it surely isn’t alone in offering solid entertainment at a fraction of the cost of some formulaic Little X booty and rims joint. Thus, here are some of GIANT’s picks for the best cheap-ass videos in recent memory.

Fat Joe, “Hey Joe”

Another recent cut, the Gabriel Hart-helmed clip is just a clean, black-and-white, ride through a grimy BX.

Kanye West, “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” (Oldham/Galifianakis Version)

Zach G’s spoof didn’t require anything other than himself, his suspect-looking homey, and some shit you can rent at Home Depot.

Kanye West, “Flashing Lights”

Assuming Kanye probably got Spike Jonze to direct this on a friend discount and they didn’t, in fact, burn a real fur coat, the only expensive thing was probably Rita G’s breast implants-if she didn’t get them done in Brazil.

DMX, “Get At Me Dog”

Hype Williams’s epilepsy-inducing visuals didn’t show much other than DMX in some Tim boots at The Tunnel. So the video itself probably didn’t cost much-only to have Hype’s name attached to it. Or maybe Hype did it on the free because of the Belly link. Who knows, but we do know that crack is cheap, at least.

The Roots, “Birthday Girl”

The Patrick Stump singing easily made the track god-awful but the clip is probably best known for introducing Sasha Grey to non-fapping hip-hop heads (and in turn making them fapping hip-hop heads). Practically any other video from director and cheap-video extraordinaire Rik Cordero could make this last.

Continuing on last week’s post on the best low-budget clips, GIANT has decided to also give you a quick rundown on the worst offenders in straight-to-World Star exploits. After all, it’s a lot more fun goin’ off on craptasticness than it is to give props, right?

Busta Rhymes, “Arab Money”

Rik Cordero might be the master of the cheap video, but here he decided to go a bit bigger, with green-screen overkill, resulting in the most ridiculous looking trip to Arabia since Aladdin’s stereotype-filled journey.

French Montana’s Videography (minus “New York Minute”)

“Welcome To The Breadshop” featuring various weedcarriers

It’s hard to decide whether this is the worst video ever… or the greatest. The concept was simple: stick Frenchie and the homies in a kitchen and let them throw flour on each other. Yet, they still find a way to raise the bar for ignorance, with Hennessey coming out of the papas fritas fryer and Frenchie rockin’ stove mittens. Even Jiffy gets some shine.

“Plenty Money”

Take “Plenty Money,” for instance which passes off some dude filming Frenchie, Dame Grease, and the rest of the Coke Wave doing much of nothing, with some stupid scribble flashing across the screen to give it that grimey effect.

Oh yeah, Free Max B.

Charles Hamilton, “November 10^th“

If you want proof of why Charles Hamilton is the lamest rapper since ever, well here it is, with this made-for-Disney ode to Sonic and friends.

Juelz Santana and Skull Gang, “What You Reppin’”

The textbook shitty rap video:  cats walking around, waving money with their leased whips. Jordan Tower at his best.

THROWBACK: 50 Cent, “Heat”

Classic track, cool concept. But I guess this was made before the money started piling in for Fif.

Here we go again. Rick Ross is apparently still intent on pushing the drug life despite his confirmed history as a Corrections Officer. I guess it’s kinda cute how stubbornly he’s toeing this line, but it’s also a little sad. At least this time around he enlisted Rik Cordero to produce Deeper Than Rap, a short film that shares the same title as his new album.

Rik is the hot ticket in “real” hip-hop circles these days as he brings a dark film-noir feel to a genre that was getting a bit too pop. Needless to say, this style is a pretty good fit for Mr. Ross’s fictional fascinations. Unfortunately Rik’s production can’t save Rick’s career. The film is well shot, but the story—executive produced by Ross—lacks depth, clear continuity and strangely, Officer Rawse himself.

I don’t think Rick Ross is as lame as he’s looked in recent weeks (thanks 50), but if he keeps traveling down this path of make-believe crime and excess he’ll be irrelevant in the near future.

That makes his decision to shoot his next music video in the drug-war-ravaged country of Columbia that much more questionable.

Rick, you are not an international made man, you can’t run willy-nilly through Latin America with a Carol City hood pass.

Oh wait, what? You know Noriega? The real Noriega? Well why didn’t you say so? Word is he owes you a hundred favors. Good luck with that.

-Lukas Brekke-Miesner

See… CNN does more than just make hilarious videos with The Real. Three/21 Media, Thugged Out Militainment, and SMC Recordings recently debuted Capone-N-Noreaga’s new NSFW video, “Talk To Me (Big Tyme).” Watch it below:

Capone-N-Noreaga – “Talk To Me (Big Tyme)” from Three/21 Films on Vimeo.

I gotta give it to CNN. They keep on keeping on… As an added bonus, watch the star-studded video (if you consider Busta Rhymes and Ron Browz stars) for “Rotate,” the first single from their new album, Channel 10 below. It is also NSFW:

This Q-Tip guy is one hell of an MC. I wonder why no one has ever heard of him before.

All jokes aside, I am really feeling (pause) both this song and the Rik Cordero-directed clip. Hip-Hop might have a savior after all. No offense, ‘Ye.

Q-Tip – “Renaissance Rap” from Three/21 Films on Vimeo.

If the domain of music videos were to have a ruling monarch, then it was surely Hype Williams who laid claim to the throne during the late 90s. In the era of flash and booties that followed, the natural heir was Hype’s understudy, Little X.  Now, the one rockin’ the crown is Filipino filmmaker Rik Cordero. Creating visuals for the likes of legends such as The Roots and indies including Joell Ortiz, the versatility of his vision has been comprehensive to say the least. GIANT caught up with the director as he shot his latest project and one of his biggest singles yet, “Arab Money,” by the equally prolific Busta Rhymes.

GIANT:  What do you make of the “Arab Money” dance?

Rik Cordero:  I didn’t really know too much about the dance—I just knew how they invented it on the Tim Westwood show. Then I went on Youtube and I saw instructional videos to really teach you how to do it.  It’s funny—it’s a craze. I think Busta has always been known to push the boundaries of creativity and I think this is the first time there is a full-blown dance that he created. He didn’t do it as a gimmick—he was just vibin’ out and it happened. I think it’s dope that a guy who’s been in the game so long is able to generate something fresh and just have fun with it.

GIANT:  What is the concept of the video?

RC: The concept is basically Busta and Spliff Star walking through this lost, deserted city, and they come upon a really wealthy prince who lives in this mansion. As soon as they walk in, the prince showers them with gifts and brings them into his world. The prince and all his friends are these wealthy people from somewhere like Dubai.

GIANT: How will the concept come together?

RC:  (Pointing to the green screen) There’s a mansion right there (laughs). I’m not known for a lot of effects work, so this is my first official stab at doing something like this. I think it works for what the resources are.  We’re not doing it because we’re lazy—this is what we have. For me, it’s not gonna look like something you’ve probably seen before because I’ve never done it (laughs). It’s definitely gonna have a different kind of feel. I think it’s gonna be surprising to a lot of people how we pull this off.

GIANT: How are you staying respectful of the Arabic community?

RC: What we’ve done is really stayed away from any stereotypical Arabic influences. Obviously, there are lyrics that can be taken offensively, but I think in hip-hop, it’s more metaphorical. You’re always making metaphors for things in other cultures. You’re not making fun of it but just identifying it, and that’s what Busta does.

It’s not trying to go over the top with a bunch of people in turbans, trying to offend the Arabic people or Islam. It’s similar to how we approached Nas’s “Be A N***** Too” video. We could have easily just went over the top with it, but it became more than that—it became a visual metaphor of people united. For this, it’s just celebrating how well the Middle Eastern culture is doing in places like Dubai where there’s also a heavy Western influence. And what’s cool is Busta does have ties to the Arab community who support him and know him personally. He’s really respectful of the culture. The guy has met the King and Prince of Saudi Arabia.  It’s just cultures coming together. He just made a song identifying—not mocking—the culture.  It’s celebrating what some of these guys actually do, like being great businessmen.

GIANT:  How have you been able to elevate yourself to the top of the music video game?

RC: I don’t know about that, but give me a couple years. It’s really about being able to contribute something to the culture and being a hip-hop head who really has been inspired by these artists—whether it’s the artists that are coming out now or artists that I grew up on like Nas, Busta, Q-Tip, The Roots, or KRS-One. These are guys that I’ve shot and just been like, “I can’t believe it.” And they know they’re in good hands because it’s more than just a job for me—this is what I do, this is what I think about, this is what I feel. This is more than just a job, so I’m always gonna do more than what’s expected because I really do care about these artists.

When I was a kid, they did so much with their music and made me feel a certain way when I was at home DJing, trying to rock a party, or in the car with a bunch of friends. There’s nothing like that feeling.  When you get in the business, you lose that sometimes because it just becomes about work. But whenever you meet these guys, it all comes flowing back to you.

Some of these guys, like Nas, are good friends.  He invited me to dinner a couple weeks ago and I met Kelis. He didn’t have to do that—he didn’t want anything from me. I wasn’t like, “Yo, when are we gonna do your next video?” It was just straight up respect. I didn’t say anything the whole time, and I was like. “Yo sorry, I’m not much of a talker.” He said something like “A good man listens before he speaks”—just some real insightful shit. It’s cool because when you respect an artist like that and try to just be real cool individuals, it makes everything worth it. It makes going that extra mile when you don’t have a whole lot of money to work with worth it. And the smart ones know that. They stick with you and do things like take you out to dinner (laughs).

-Devin Chanda