The Best Music Video category for this year's Grammys features an array of talent and some striking visual clips. These aren't necessarily the best songs of the year, or even the most well-known. These tunes stand out merely because a director was able to pair the melody with meaningful images. No, "Anaconda" did not make the cut. Neither did "Booty." Instead we have videos from Arcade Fire, Sia and Pharrell Williams that concentrate on shots above the belt.
NOMINEES:
"We Exist" - Arcade Fire
David Wilson, video director; Sue Yeon Ahn & Jason Baum, video producers
"Turn Down For What" - DJ Snake & Lil Jon
Daniels, video directors; Judy Craig, Candice Ouaknine, Jonathan Wang & Bryan Younce, video producers
"Chandelier" - Sia
Daniel Askill & Sia, video directors; Jennifer Heath & Jack Hogan, video producers
"Happy" - Pharrell Williams
We Are From LA, video director; Kathleen Heffernan, Solal Micenmacher, Jett Steiger, video producers
"The Golden Age" - Woodkid Featuring Max Richter
Yoann Lemoine, video director; Kathleen Heffernan, Roman Pichon Herrera, Christine Miller & Annabel Rosier, video producers
David Wilson directed the clip for "We Exist," a single that dropped in May from Arcade Fire's 2013 Reflektor album. The director recruited actor Andrew Garfield (The Social Network, The Amazing Spider-Man) to portray a crossdresser struggling to find acceptance. A brawl breaks out in a small town bar before Garfield goes full Footloose, dancing to release increasing stress. The video ends with the actor joining Arcade Fire for more dance moves before "WE EXIST" covers the screen.
"Turn Down for What" was a club favorite this year, thanks to the frantic energy DJ Snake brought to the track alongside hypeman/rapper Lil Jon. The video, directed by Daniels, is a tribute to all those people in the club dancing to the song. It follows a pumped up dancer who looks like he just drank a case of Red Bull. He ends up destroying an entire building by jumping and thrusting his way from floor to floor, spreading the dancing disease to all he encounters. It's wild.
Sia and Daniel Askill took the reigns for the "Chandelier" video, producing something similar to "Turn Down for What." Instead of a horny young adult crushing things with his pelvis, Maddie Ziegler (from Dance Moms) wearing a Sia wig does an interpretive dance in an empty room. There are some dramatic moments, but the video isn't too exciting. It managed to bring the song down with it as well.
Pharrell's video for the mega hit "Happy" is probably the only instance of a music video being as well known as the song. We Are From LA opted for simplicity in the video, showing people dancing along to the celebratory track. Pharrell is the main focus, while Odd Future and a Minion from Despicable Me also pop up. There's no discrimination here either — fat, black, young, famous, white or old, everyone can be happy. And apparently everyone can dance about it too.
Yoann Lemoine produced the most visually stimulating video of the bunch "The Golden Age" by Woodkid. It's a crazy cool 10-minute mini-movie that opens with some impressive effects. The mood of the song fits perfectly with the black-and-white scenes of families who live in poverty interacting with one another. There are a lot of shots that concentrate on the human form and natural world. The climax comes at the 8:20 mark as a big soccer game starts and the music boils over.
WHO SHOULD WIN: "The Golden Age" or "We Exist"
It's a toss up here. Both deal with issues beyond dancing for emotional reasons, although Garfield still has a few moments in the Arcade Fire video. We'll go with "We Exist" for the star power and traditional length. "The Golden Age" is wonderful, but it can lose the attention of viewers.
WHO WILL WIN: "Happy"
The tune is infectious and will make you want to dance. The video will give you that extra encouragement to actually bust a move. It's a less sexual version of "Turn Down for What."
