Videos

Roga Raph Pays Homage To A Classic Pharcyde Video In “Stand Up”

blame it on JES7 April 12, 2017

Around the time that Pharcyde released their groundbreaking video for “Drop,” director Spike Jonze had already been a few years removed from filming a few indie skateboard flicks (Video Days for Blind! and Goldfish for Girl Skateboards; both which are now considered classic relics), along with a few music videos for Weezer and the Beastie Boys.

Always one to look ahead of the curve, Spike approached Delicious Vinyl and Pharcyde and pitched an innovative idea for the “Drop” music video, and according to this making of documentary, it can be presumed that Spike was partially (if not wholly) inspired by J Dilla’s genius reverse loop (h/t Music Is My Sanctuary). The rest, as they say, is history.

Fast forward 22 years later, New York native Roga Raph had a sudden jolt of inspiration (I like to play it out in my mind that Roga was sitting down eating a fresh bowl of cereal while binge-watching music videos on Vintage Hip-Hop Seattle) and decided to head out to Coney Island for some fun in the sun.

Taking cues from “Drop,” the visual for “Stand Up” plays in reverse, where everything seems wonderful on the surface. However, as the video progresses and nears the end, things get a bit gloomy as Roga is seen leaving his home (or reentering if you choose to view it that way) and facing a harsh reality, and one that could happen to any of us: being evicted from his home.

The video couldn’t arrive at a better time, as President Mango Mussolini plays his sixteenth round of golf in 11 weeks as our the sitting POTUS, and on the verge of spending “an estimated $20 million in his first 80 days as president,” much more than what Barack Obama spent during his eight years as sitting President, according to CNN. Meanwhile, nearly 43 million people are living in poverty according to a 2016 U.S. Census poll.

Watch the video below and pre-order Roga’s upcoming album, Nostalgiks (out April 28th) on iTunes.