“Lost Ones” is off Cole World and the video has received an official release a few days ago. So it’s timely due to that even if the album came out a while ago. Here’s the interesting part, the video was shot back in 2008 before Cole had a record deal and it’s arguably one of the best hip-hop videos I’ve seen in a long time. As was the case with the Air Review post two fridays ago, the song and the video for “Lost Ones” work perfectly together. They don’t distract from one another. You can be completely engrossed in the video and not be taken out of the story the song it’s telling. That is also to the strength of the song. According to the company that produced the video, BAM (By All Means) the video was made with “no budget, no label backing, and really no experience.”

While I found Cole World a little disappointing “Lost Ones” shows why Cole was the first signee Jay-Z made. He tells a story with honesty, openness, and cleverness that many rappers would avoid or don’t have the technical skill to execute. Much like Eminem’s “Stan”, “Lost Ones” tells a story from different perspectives. Like Em’, Cole changes pitch in his voice when switching to his counterpart. It is that counterpart that is perhaps the most interesting aspect of the song and video. His female character seems well thought out with a voice just as strong as his own and arguments that are just as compelling. Cole presents a real life situation without giving himself a grandiose sense of self or importance.

Sure the topic of “Lost Ones” (which I have purposefully avoided so you will watch the video)  isn’t my typical weekend-party time-get rowdy-good mood Friday post, but it strikes me as a good Friday post for a different reason. The fact that Cole made a video of this quality, and wrote a song of this quality, with no deal in place should act as inspiration to those who think they need a budget or excessive resources to do something of quality. We all need a little inspiration sometimes. Have a good weekend.