Janelle Monae is one of the rare artists out there who is able to create a vivid, fully-fleshed out world for her music to live in. A visionary, Janelle's music, outfits and performances nearly always have a visual aesthetic in mind, tying it all together - and if they don't? She creates one that's unforgettable.
After slaying the Golden Globes red carpet in an amazing Chanel number, Janelle's now gifted us with the newest video from 2018's Dirty Computer.
Screwed, featuring Zoe Kravitz, has finally landed a long-awaited music video and its colourful, gripping storyline doesn't disappoint. She and her girl gang are chased by a drone, they explore an artfully abandoned warehouse and we even catch Janelle rocking a guitar in an underground bunker.
It made us think about Janelle's other amazing music videos, so we've picked our faves here - lest you ever forget just how amazing Miss Monae really is.
pynk
This list would be horribly wrong without the mention of PYNK. The pastel-hued Palm Springs aesthetic of this clip has just the right hint of cyberpunk in it and it's the sort of apocalyptic world we'd love to live in. The video's cinematography is absolutely top notch and let's not forget the costume design, giving us the iconic pink vagina pants.
make me feel
From a baby pink wonderland in PYNK to the gritty underbelly of the most exclusive underground club in town, Make Me Feel features an uber-cool Janelle doppelganger performing in a dive bar that Janelle and Tessa Thompson attend. It's got a strong '80s aesthetic to match the Prince-led funky guitar line and people have even noted that the video's colours and staging offer a perfect metaphor for bisexuality (the bisexual flag colours pink and blue feature heavily in the video).
tightrope
It may not be all neon colours of the rainbow like her videos from the Dirty Computer era, but Tightrope is a monochrome classic. There's no getting past its simplicity - the impeccably tailored black-and-white tuxes, striped loafers and those insane dance moves. The video just looks like such a good time... except for those creepy hooded figures of course.
crazy, classic, life
One less than half a million views (sinful!), Crazy, Classic, Life is one of the strongest looks into Dirty Computer's futuristic world. The Afropunk vibe is strong from the start with Janelle and her gang's black leather studded outfits, and they roll into town in a floating Mustang no less. The video soon breaks into a neon carnival of misfits and the outfits here are incredible. From multicoloured mohawks to chic '60s outfits, fishnets, African tribal paints and some truly incredible hats, Crazy, Classic, Life has it all.
yoga
While not strictly a Janelle Monae song (it was released as part of a Wondaland Records EP in 2015), Yoga is a sick track with cool visuals that don't follow the aesthetics of her usual cyberpunk world. It's removed from her usual hip hop/soul/funk style too and leans towards EDM pretty heavily, but we dig the yoga class she's running. If all yoga classes were run by a crown-wearing Janelle, we'd probably show up more.
