With recent news that Run the Jewels 3 is halfway done, bringing U.S Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders on stage at Coachella, and earlier this week Killer Mike sharing his thoughts on the state of the music industry and free music, Run The Jewels have been in the news almost constantly. Well, today we’ve got some more. Originally only released as part of the New York Times Magazine’s new music issue, Run The Jewels have released the video for Crown, off their second album Run the Jewels 2. Also the first release on their VRTJ smartphone app, the video doubles as an immersive virtual reality experience – both via virtual reality headsets and in a 360° view on Youtube.
Shot in black and white, we’re treated to a cast of characters surrounding us throughout. Killer Mike regrets selling a pregnant mother cocaine, only to meet her years later and find that she’s been reborn through Christ, and El-P gives us a scary insight into the indoctrination of modern-day soldiers. There’s some impressive visual effects going on here, like gunfire and our closeness to each of the characters. As the name of the track suggests too, Killer Mike and El-P don the symbol of the crown at a number of points throughout the clip.
Artists like Björk and The Weeknd have also recently released 360° music videos, and with the rise of VR the number will continue to rise. With access to Virtual Reality headsets becoming easier and easier, immersive music videos will no doubt become an artform all of their own – further blurring the line between music and visual arts.
Image: Run the Jewels