Kanye West seems to go one of two directions for his videos. Either he reaches out to Chris Milk or Michel Gondry for something arty and unexpected, or he picks Hype Williams when he wants to go big. The first single off Kanye's new CD Graduation is an instance where the artist knew he had to get images that were simple, yet larger than life, so Hype got the call. Mr. Williams gets incredible mileage out of just two performance set-ups — one day, the other night — and two, tiny b-roll moments that involve a dusty Lambo and a beautiful girl in a fly away burka by way of Madonna’s "Frozen." That's it. Four shots on the El Mirage dry lake bed and Hype makes it into a surprisingly watchable video. Kanye has delivered another memorable song and the clip's epic scope makes sure we can't take our eyes off him — except, perhaps, to scan the horizon for Chris Tucker leading a motorcade of post-apocalyptic vehicles. (review by Doug Stern) --> watch "Can't Tell Me Nothing"
Kanye West "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam)
Hype Williams, director/producer | Naaila, production co | John Perez, DP | Peter Johnson/Consulate Editorial , editor
