Hip hop declared America’s first black President long before November 4 arrived. So now that the votes have been tallied and what was written is coming into fruition, it was only fitting that VIBE be on the set for what has become Obama’s hood anthem “My President.”
WHEN: Sunday November 23, 11 AM- 6PM
WHERE: Auburn Avenue, Ebenezer Baptist Church
WHO: Young Jeezy, Director Gabriel Hart, Bow Wow, DJ Cassidy, O’Neal McKnight, Kenny Burns, Ghetto Mafia, Akon’s brother Boo Thiam
Folks play the back, waiting to see their hometown star
Director Gabriel Hart has a group of extras lined up on the steps in front of Ebenezer Baptist Church, six rows deep, young and old, all garbed in Obama shirts, and is choreographing them to turn in unison and raise their right fists. Church is still in session so the Ebenezer block of Auburn Avenue won’t be shut down until after 2 p.m. when services are over but the crowd is steadily growing, mostly with children who watch with amazement as an airbrushed “Obama” car drives by.
Airbrushed whips pull up on the set
Even the old-school trucks show support
With no sign of Jeezy on set, VIBE took a moment with video director Gabriel Hart, whose easygoing manner has already won over the kids on set. They gather behind him to provide a backdrop for his photo.
Director Gary Hart on the set of "My President"
Art Attack: Obama supporters show off their work
YES WE DID“The concept for the video is basically that it’s a celebration,” Hart explains. “That’s what Jeezy and I came to the conclusion it was about. Initially when I came up with the idea I wanted to recreate Public Enemy’s "Fight The Power" video, then I had the revelation that this thing is a little bigger than that, so I talked to Jeezy about broadening the the concept from "Fight the Power" to "Yes We Did," not to be exclusive but inclusive. He was all with it, he wasn’t scared of that.”
The hood's new mantra
“The next thing was to get Nas and Jeezy on the same page, because Nas was out of the country,” Gabriel continues. “Nas flew all the way back from Switzerland to be in the video. We shot that on Monday. I am the first director to bring Nas to Summer Hill and if you’re from Atlanta you know Summer Hill, by Turner Field, that’s the hood. It don’t get no hooder than that.”
DJ Cassidy (left) and O'Neal McKnight (right)
GREAT AMERICAN HISTORY
DJ Cassidy and O’Neal McKnight, both appeared at the shoot, and honor
historic ground, posing under the Ebenezer Baptist Church sign.
“They graciously let us use the property. This was the headquarters for the civil rights movement,” Hart said explaining the significance of the setting. “This is where King started the movement, him and his father and Reverend Hosea Williams and Ralph David Abernathy. This is historic because this is [also] where [King's] buried so I want him to feel the vibrations. We’re making noise right here. I want him and Coretta to feel this, because they weren’t able to live to see it. I want them to feel this and I want them to be right there… It’s brilliant from top to bottom, the track is hot, the time is right, Ebenezer is in the background, the people are ready and excited.”
The Lambo's definitely blue
Young Jeezy arrives. A stage has been constructed in the middle of the street (now closed), which he climbs to shoot his performance scene.“It was moreso about the people who voted, the people who wanted the change to happen,” Jeezy says of the video treatment. “I wanted to bring it out on the street where the people could see it, like on some "Fight the Power" Public Enemy, but it’s moreso about the energy. It’s crazy.”
Young Jeezy surveys the crowd on the set of his video
PROPHECY OR FATE?Akon's brother, Boo Thiam, who is mentioned in "My President" (When you're dying with crude oil/that's black as my nigga Boo) dropped by the set, as did Bow Wow, who lives next door to Young Jeezy.
“Jeezy’s my neighbor, I see him every day,” Bow Wow said. “He called me up told me to come thru show some love. It’s a strong record – it’s about the first black president and the problems we’re facing in America, for us it’s history. This is what we wanted, this is the man we voted in office and we represent for him so we just showing the black community we coming out here together and making it happen.”
But don’t expect Young Jeezy to take any credit for predicting the election. “I call it fate, it was meant to be,” Jeezy says of Obama’s presidency. “It was gonna happen anyway, he won by a landslide. It wasn’t a hard battle.”
Akon's brother Boo Thiam (right)
Bow Wow pays a visit to his neighbor
Comments
1.
Just-Truth says:
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hey, this is serious buisness, im glad jezzy making a stand like this, i dont see no runner ups, that be talkin bout gettin ass and degrading women to concider it to be class, and stuff like that, this is real, im from a place called ebeneezer in nc, that has a historical cabin, that they sold slaves out of, and my home estate nearby is older than that, so my peoples been through the struggle, and could not ride no bus, only memorys they have is fields of dreams that took a life time to change, but i give them credit they hung in there till the very end. they should celebrate, and let it all out, and on the remix id act a fool! just for once they will get over it, we did!!! i feel this as evolution once we had no feet to walk, and over trial and tribulation,now we stand tall with hands up high! with a struggle ahead to move on in our lives.
December 19, 2008 at 3:22 am
2.
jamparis456 says:
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November 25, 2008 at 7:30 pm