When Music Videos Ruled the World

The other day a random television commercial for a concert performance ended up taking me off on a trip down music video memory lane. The commercial was actually quite sad... because it was an advertisement letting me know that Keith Sweat (yes, your boy, Keith Sweat) would be performing at a casino somewhere on February 8. A casino. Ugh, Keith. What happened buddy? And somewhere in the world, a member of Total dies.

Dave asked me who Keith Sweat was (or maybe that was in my head and I simply imagined Dave asking me to tell him everything about Keith Sweat and list all of his hits and sing through a few lines of Twisted and describe his goatee and reflect on the year 1996 in general), so I obviously ended up pulling up Twisted on YouTube and playing it. Totally for Dave... I swear.

UM. Have YOU watched the video for Twisted recently?? #YOUKIDDINME?? It's action-packed with an actual story line of some sort. It's got murder, luxurious parties, Keith Sweat as the handsome and mysterious detective, a passionate love scene and the unexpected shootout at the end. And of course the strong 90s motifs of all-white outfits, R&B girl groups and torso-dancing on couches.

Well don't just take my word for it!



So the video really got me thinking... music videos used to be so good. SO good. MTV, BET and VH1 used to all take music videos so seriously. Do you remember when a VMA actually meant something, because everyone had actually SEEN the VM's the artists were receiving the A's for??

DO YOU?

Before any of these absolute effin' gems go fading any further from your memory, let's take a moment to reflect on epic music videos of yore:

{If any of these don't play on this site, just click them to watch them on YouTube. Or live with regret for the rest of your life. Totally your choice.}

R. Kelly - Down Low (1995):



And of course, Down Low's sequel of sorts - the lesser-known-but-still-as-boss Isley Brother's Contagious (2001) - also featuring your boy R. Kelly:



Puff Daddy - Victory (1998):



Mariah Carey - Honey (1997):



 Celine Dion - It's All Coming Back to Me Now (1998):



Can't mention awesome, epic music videos without mentioning your boy MJ. You probably think I'd be gushing about Thriller, but all I'm sayin issssss don't sleep on Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal (1987):



Or what about any of the number of insane-o adventures that Alicia Silverstone was going on in all those Aerosmith videos in the mid-90s??





Did you think I was kidding?? And why the crap was it OK for Liv Tyler do be doing any of that stuff in her dad's music video?? BECAUSE IT WAS. Music videos used to make their own rules!

Here are a few more things to reflect on:  Making the Video. Pop-Up Video. TRL.

*Le sigh.*

What were some of your favorite epic music videos? I'd really love to hear them!