Was anyone surprised at the ending of Drake’s video for ‘Find Your Love’? For those of us who have watched music videos over the years, the whole artist-getting-gunned down routine is a tired trope. Really, what’s the big deal other than the opportunity to add some unecessary shock value? Are we supposed to imagine this as a reality because we would rather not.
Then again, the message, whatever it may be, is effective. We may be disturbed and somewhat uncomfortable by the thought of our favorite artists getting gunned down, but if we jump out of our seat and say, ‘WTF!’, the artist has gotten the effect they so desire. And all we can do is throw our hands up and say, ‘They got us!’
Check out the next few pages to see our list of the most shocking ‘character’ assassinations in music video history.
NEXT PAGE: THE ARTIST WHO HAS BEEN SHOT IN FRONT OF A CAMERA MORE THAN ONCE
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Artist: Drake
Video: A scene from Degrassi
The Setup: Before Aubrey Graham got famous off his middle name, he was Wheelchair Jimmy on the cult tv series, Degrassi. Watch the video to see how he got the name.
NEXT PAGE: THE RAPPER WITH A BUNCH OF PROBLEMS, GETS THEM SOLVED
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Artist: Jay-Z
Video: ’99 Problems’
The Setup: One of the more controversial music videos in the days before YouTube, Jay-Z’s black and white vignette ends with the rapper being brutally gunned down. When it first aired, MTV had to do this parental advisory type thing with their MTV VJ John Norris, and to this day we still think that was weirder than Jay getting shot.
NEXT PAGE: THE ASSASSINATION OF ONE OF OUR FAVORITE SINGERS
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Artist: Erykah Badu
Video: ‘Window Seat’
The Setup: Never one to shy away from controversy, Badu went for the gusto in the video for her latest single, ‘Window Seat’. It’s not too difficult to wait for the shocking end, which is what Badu really wanted from us. Stay focused. It’s easy.
