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It’s amazing what happens when you say yes. When Mateo asked me to direct the video to his remix of Empire State of Mind I didn’t have the slightest bit of hesitation about saying yes. There was no budget and I honestly didn’t know what to expect out of the experience but Mateo is a real talent and a great friend. Plus I’ve been having fun with the concert and behind the scenes videos my team’s been making at www.theQside.com so this seemed like a great opportunity to get deeper into filmmaking. Since the song is basically a love song for New York City it also gave me an excuse to head back east to shoot.

Mateo’s version of the song takes a completely different approach than Jay-Z’s so I wanted to show another perspective on New York than what Hype Williams did for their video. Instead of sweeping aerial shots and landmarks like Times Square- I featured what I think really makes New York special- the people. I approached it like I was doing a documentary about the spirit of the city. We shot it guerilla-style throughout the streets of New York without a permit or a plan. The performance shots, the scene featuring our friend Victor Rasuk (from HBO’s How to Make it in America) involved a bit of coordination but I made a point of shooting that in real time too. It was definitely an inspired shoot and it made going through footage in the edit like a meditation on the greatness of New Yorkers.  
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We just premiered it and the response has been amazing. My favorite sites, folks like Hill Harper and even my ex-girlfriends have shown it love! I put a lot of love into making the video so getting feedback like that means a lot. I’m not gonna buy a new car off this but that’s not what this is about. Obsession about money seems higher than ever but this is an example of how some of the best things in life have nothing to do with money.

Check it out:

-Quddus | follow me @iamquddus