In T.I’s powerful new visual “Warzone” the Atlanta native wanted to ensure that the other side “had the least amount of ammunition to oppose our message.” And by “other side” Tip means anyone who deems the concerns of African-Americans as unimportant and not based in fact.
The message T.I. conveyed, with the help of director Laureal Richardson, was to show just how far racism has come in this country. Tip illustrates the unjust killings of Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and Philando Castile in the nearly four minute clip, but instead of depicting the victims true to form, T.I. showed Tamir, Garner and Castile as white and the officers as African-American.
While speaking with NBCBlK, the 35-year-old rapper said ‘Warzone” is a direct response to those who chant “All Lives Matter.”
“We wanted to give them the least amount of ammunition to oppose our message. And the way to do that, we thought, was to go with the most atrocious of all of the travesties. And don’t get me wrong, there are still more that are equally atrocious, but for the purposes of our video … those were the ones that seemed most effective.”
The video, first premiered on the artist-owned streaming service Tidal on Sept. 8, but was later featured on other sites Friday (Sept. 16) Check out the gripping clip below.