Rappers love talking about money, and they love lavish music videos, so it’s no surprise that sometimes millions of dollars can be spent on rap videos. But is it always worth it? We think not. Have a look through the list and see what you think.
In today’s world, looks are everything. So, some artists think about the buy Spotify plays service. It’s cheaper than spending a fortune on flashy music videos to get noticed.
Here are the 10 most expensive rap videos of all time.
10. Drake – ‘God’s Plan’
Drake gets a lot of bad press. He’s often being called self-centred or materialistic, but earlier this year, the Canadian rapper gave away the entire budget for his ‘God’s Plan’ video. What a nice guy. Watch him give away almost a million dollars below.
Cost: $996,631.90
Was it worth it? Definitely.
9. Kanye West ft. Lupe Fiasco – ‘Touch The Sky’
Kanye’s 2006 video for ‘Touch The Sky’ told the story of Evel Kanyevel and his attempt to fly a rocket over the Grand Canyon. Sounds expensive, doesn’t it? Well, it almost cost a lot more when Evel Knievel filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against West. Knievel and West amicably resolved the lawsuit shortly before Knievel’s death in 2007. After West visited him, Knievel said: “I thought he was a wonderful guy and quite a gentlemen”.
Cost: $1,000,000 ($1.2 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Hell yeah!
8: Kanye West – ‘Stronger’
Mr West again. It’s hard to imagine how this video could be very expensive seeing as there’s not really much going on. It turns out that after nine days of filming a video about biker gangs in Tokyo, Kanye wasn’t happy with the results. He spent ten weeks editing the video himself in expensive film studios before going to New York for additional filming. He reportedly ran well over budget during the production of the video.
Cost: $1,200,000 (Over $1.4 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Not really.
7. Fugees – ‘Ready or Not’
For their blockbuster 1996 ‘Ready or Not’ video, Fugees went all out. In just four minutes, they manage to squeeze in war scenes, loads of helicopters, motorbike chases, jet skis, boats, submarines, scuba diving and sharks, all shot in some costly looking filming locations. Why? According to Pras: “people want to see drama, man”.
Cost: $1,300,000 (Over $2 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Yes.
6. MC Hammer – ‘Here Comes The Hammer’
Following the astronomical success of ‘U Can’t Touch This’, MC Hammer’s record company would have been stupid not to invest in more videos. Unfortunately, this garishly expensive video (for an album track) wasn’t much of a hit.
Cost: $1,300,000 (Over $2.4 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Not at all.
5. Missy Elliott – ‘She’s A Bitch’
Missy Elliott’s 1999 video for ‘She’s a Bitch’ ran up quite a bill. It featured a lot of unusual and specially designed costumes, fancy effects and expensive lighting. The set Elliott used was so rare, experts had to be flown in from Germany to construct it.
Cost: $2,000,000 (almost $3 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Not really.
4. Will Smith – ‘Miami’
He had to be on here, didn’t he? Will Smith is well known for enjoying some of the finer things in life, which is why it’s no surprise for his 1998 ‘Miami’ video he roped in a huge cast of extras, expensive cars, a speedboat and hosted an elaborate waterside party.
Cost: $2,000,000 ($3 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Sort of. It looked like fun.
3: Busta Rhymes & Janet Jackson – ‘What’s It Gonna Be’
We’re not sure what’s worse here, the song or the video. Busta Rhymes and Janet Jackson’s 1999 single ‘What’s It Gonna Be’ boasts one of the most expensive music videos ever made, yet it looks terrible. It seems like they spent all of the money on strange outfits and flashy visual effects that haven’t aged well at all.
Cost: $2,400,000 (Almost $4.2 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Absolutely not.
2. MC Hammer – ‘2 Legit 2 Quit’
It seems like in the ’90s MC Hammer was being handed blank cheques left, right and centre. Hammer’s second appearance in this list is the 15-minute epic video for his 1991 single ‘2 Legit 2 Quit’. It features James Brown, cameos from numerous high profile musicians and athletes, fancy visual effects and a seriously extravagant stage show. Sadly for Hammer, nothing would ever prove to be as successful as ‘U Can’t Touch This’, no matter how much money they threw at it.
Cost: $2,500,000 (Over $4.3 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? No way.
1. Puff Daddy ft. The Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes – ‘Victory’
You probably haven’t even heard of Puff Daddy’s ‘Victory’ – the most expensive rap video of all time. That’s because, despite its blockbuster budget video, it proved to be a commercial flop. It peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard charts and failed to make an impact anywhere else around the world. This just goes to show that you can’t stick Dennis Hopper and Danny Devito in a video that looks like a very ’90s James Bond film and have a hit.
Cost: $2,700,000 ($4 million in 2018)
Was it worth it? Should have done a Drake.
