Red light, green light! Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar, and Future join forces in the video for “King’s Dead,” the James Blake-assisted collaboration off Black Panther: The Album.
Directed by TDE President Dave Free (of the little homies) and Jack Begert, the electrifying visual is a dazzling juxtaposition of the street world and the corporate world, allowing the guys to make moves Wolf of Wall Street style through creative zooming effects.
Shot in Los Angeles, the clip also features several West Coast motifs. Compton’s K-Dot kicks it off eating elote (grilled corn) in a palm tree. Later, Watts representer Rock is shown getting his hair cut at M Barbering in La Pico Plaza. ATL’s own Future visits the city, making an appearance at the legendary Bradbury Building.
Danger lurks around every corner in the dramatic visual. Not only are Kendrick, Rock, and Hndrxx standing dangerously high on the rooftops of different buildings, but K-Dot also shows off his traffic controller skills in death-defying scenes. Later, he gets into a violent fight that ends with a gunshot.
“King’s Dead” follows the video for “All the Stars” from Black Panther: The Album. Curated by Lamar and featuring The Weeknd, 2 Chainz, ScHoolboy Q, and Khalid, the soundtrack was made to promote Marvel’s superhero film, which hits theaters at midnight.