Young Jeezy’s video for “Circulate” surfaced yesterday. Though the Don Cannon-produced track was a standout on The Recession featuring Jeezy’s take on our current economic woes, the Belvedere Vodka sponsored video is pure Terry Richardson high-fashion porn.
To illustrate the vast inconsistencies, I have juxtaposed Jeezy’s lyrics with Richardson’s visuals. I present my case below.
Exhibit A: At the 0:54 mark, the above footage of girl-on-girl knife licking plays while the singer on the chorus laments that “Unemployment’s on the rise, gasoline issues full of lies. Rent being paid late…” You get the picture.
Exhibit B: At the 2:23 mark Jeezy says “I got to be the one to say I told ya/ Lord knows I can’t wait till this recession’s over,” while he has a lingerie clad model in his hotel suite bed with heels on.
Exhibit C: From 1:48- 1:52 Jeezy warns us, “I’ll tell you what, this is what I’ll tell you/ When shit gets rough there’s no telling what they’ll sell you,” while he dangles a bottle of Belvi in front of us.
Video cuts this lovely showgirl. Chorus continues on to say “…interest rates are going up…” And that’s not all.
Exhibit D: Finally, at the 3:32 mark, Jeezy, acting like the new president throughout the vid, holds up a newspaper with a headline that declares “America Reborn” after a campaign that consisted of cavorting with models in his hotel suite at New York’s five-star Plaza Athenee
Note to Jeezy: “Circulate” deserves an introspective Rik Cordero video or something, not this corporate sponsored Terry Richardson craziness. The album is titled The Recession, and I know we all gotta eat, but is this what it’s come to? Sip the Belvedere, save the music.
Note to Belvedere: The bruised economy is nothing to make light of and a Black man as president is nothing to mock. Want to hear something really funny: Folks can no longer afford your overpriced liquor.
- Lukas Brekke-Miesner
