From Drake To Janelle Monáe, We Break Down The VMA 'Video With A Message' Nominees

1. 
   
   Janelle Monáe – "PYNK"
   
   
   
   
   
   Monáe's queer-as-hell self-love anthem is an ode to femininity, nevertheless you identify with it. The female-centric visual (think neon "Pussy Power" signs, desert dancing, and many booties) includes a diverse cast, including Tessa Thompson and then some female dancers wearing voluminous, vagina-shaped pants. Because the video’s description puts it: "'Pynk' is a brash celebration of creation, self love, sexuality, and pussy power!"
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   "Love and let love!" Director Emma Westenberg told MTV News. "Sexual liberation and celebrating womanhood are strong themes throughout."
   
   
   What the director says:
   
   
   "'PYNK' is all about female sexuality," Westenberg explained. "The detail shots were particularly essential to bring to life the lyrics of the song and make it a visual exploration of female sexuality. Some days in a key way (such because the shot with the underwear that says "sex sells" on it) and show how pretty womanhood is: sweet, celebratory and funny."
   
   
   And as for those "vagina pants"? Westenberg mentioned Monáe was inspired by a photo she had of David Bowie wearing something similar. "Everybody on set was rolling over the ground laughing the initial time she popped her legs and the movement made the pants come to life. Goosebumps."
   
   
   How Janelle embodies that message:
   
   
   "That’s exactly who she is as an artist: She fights for what she believes in, as an artist and as a human," Westenberg mentioned. "She stays true to herself and her beliefs, whilst making the world dance."
   
   
   
   
   



2. 
   
   Jessie Reyez – "Gatekeeper"
   
   
   
   
   
   "Gatekeeper" is Reyez's chilling account of an incident in which a high-profile producer attempted to force himself on her. She sent director Peter Huang an email detailing what had happened, and he translated it into a video treatment that serves as her direct recollection — some of the context between Reyez and the producer, he mentioned, is word for word. In the video, that confrontation is reenacted to chilling results, shining a light on the sexism and misogyny that pervades the music industry.
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   "At the time, I was attempting to shine light on something that nobody had seen, so it was more like exposing how somebody who has a lot of power can attempt to manipulate people who think that if they didn't do what they mentioned, that their careers might be over. That was really the in general objective of it: to expose it," Huang told MTV News.
   
   
   What the director says:
   
   
   The video was released in April 2017, months before the #MeToo movement went viral. It was serendipitous timing, plus it helped give Reyez the courage to out producer Detail because the man who inspired the track. Right now, Huang mentioned the reaction he gets the most from people is, "How do we actively work to change this?"
   
   
   How Jessie embodies that message:
   
   
   "She's a very, very strong woman," Huang mentioned. "I think it's incredibly brave of her to actually put herself through this whole situation again. I'm not sure if people who are watching it notice that she's sort of reliving something that was really hard on her." He added, "I think she can carry herself in a way that inspires other young girls to be bold and to really dig their heels in, in whichever situation comes to them," Huang said.
   
   
   
   
   



3. 
   
   Drake – "God’s Plan"
   
   
   
   
   
   Working with director and frequent collaborator Karena Evans, Drizzy distributed the video's nearly million-dollar production financial range to people in need around Miami — by paying for strangers' groceries, handing over stacks of money to struggling families, giving a deserving college student a tuition check, and donating to a women's homeless shelter and also a fire department. His current tour with Migos is exhilarating and all, nevertheless this tour of good deeds may be his finest work yet.
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   The clear message here's that generosity rules, however Drake expanded upon that theme by calling for a "God's Plan" challenge on Instagram. In his call to action, he hoped his do-good message would have a ripple effect so that usual people would follow his lead with acts of kindness. Most of us don't have $1 million to give away, although you don't have to be prosperous to donate kindness and love, because the "God's Plan" challenge proves.
   
   
   What the director says:
   
   
   On Instagram, Evans called making the video "the most extraordinary experience of my life. No words to correctly describe the honour to have done this with you @champagnepapi."
   
   
   
   
   



4. 
   
   Logic ft. Alessia Cara & Khalid – "1-800-273-8255"
   
   
   
   
   
   Logic set out with a crucial mission for "1-800-273-8255," named soon following the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The cinematic video stars Coy Stewart as a young boy who develops a crush on a boy (Noulan Gould) at school, and returns residence to a unaccepting father (Don Cheadle). The vid hits its emotional peak once the boy contemplates suicide, although he decides to call someone alternatively, and the video flashes ahead to him marrying another man and raising a child of his own — while his father looks on proudly.
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   "1-800-273-8255" encourages people to seek help any time while they require it and reminds them that they're not alone. The message clearly came through — according to The Chicago Tribune, the Lifeline saw "record numbers in call volume and social media engagement" after the song's premiere.
   
   
   Director Andy Hines told MTV News, "The message is that of unity and compassion and hopefully leaves the viewer with a sense of empathy for what they've watched. ... Our intention was to show people that feel invisible that we have their voice and best interests in this instance and that we would go to bat for them as individuals and as a piece of our community."
   
   
   What the director says:
   
   
   Hines mentioned that the video's message isn't just for people contemplating suicide — it's also for the people around them who are in a position to help. "The story is meant to connect with an assortment of people, from the bully to the parents to the teacher and all the individual students," he explained. "I wanted to prepare something that could have the power to change the perspective a couple of people's points of view."
   
   
   How Logic embodies that message:
   
   
   "He lives his intentions — his willingness to speak out on the behalf of others is a good quality very few, if any, other artists have today," Hines said.
   
   
   
   
   



5. 
   
   Dej Loaf and Leon Bridges – "Liberated"
   
   
   
   
   
   In June, just in time for Pride Month, the title track from Loaf's latest album got a joyful video featuring a diverse cast of culture-movers (including co-writer Teddy Geiger) discussing what liberation means to them. To promote the single, Loaf even covered the cost of marriage licenses at New York City Hall on June 8, keeping with the inclusiveness-celebrating theme of the song.
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   "Liberation is already within you, you just have the ability to recognize it," director Calmatic told MTV News. "It's all within your own power to find your freedom, find your liberation, no matter what circumstances you come from. You could do it."
   
   
   What the director says
   
   
   In the video, we visualize a little bit girl admiring an audience of Black Lives Matter activists, a gay couple getting wedded, a transgender woman building a dress, a teen celebrating his college acceptance letter, and more. Calmatic says the typical thread among all of those is that "they all thought it was impossible, and then whenever they get a glimpse of possibility, they find their true liberation. As soon as you visualize the little girl in the window looking at the protestors, it's a sign that the protest is reaching the correct person. The fight can continue on."
   
   
   How Dej embodies that message:
   
   
   "To visualize her step out of the box and make a song personalized and thus different than the songs we're used to hearing, I just feel like it was pretty brave of her," Calmatic mentioned. "She was all in."
   
   
   
   
   



6. 
   
   Childish Gambino – "This Is America"
   
   
   
   
   
   Donald Glover's hip-hop fine-tune ego earned his first No. 1 hit in May with "This Is America." That's largely due to its stunning single-take video, which has racked up a whopping 369 million views since its release. Piece of the video's mystique is Glover's insistence on letting the art speak for itself — he told Jimmy Kimmel that he's avoided the internet's reaction to it, saying, "I'm really sensitive. So I was like, 'I’ll just let it be.'" It worked — in the days and weeks following its release, there were numerous think pieces from fans and critics dissecting its symbols and debating its meaning.
   
   
   The message:
   
   
   The consensus is that "This Is America" illustrates metaphors about race and gun violence in America; for much of the clip, Gambino dances in the foreground while chaos erupts beyond him.
   
   
   Guthrie Ramsey, a professor of music history at the University of Pennsylvania, mentioned in an interview with Time, "The central message is about guns and violence In the United States and the fact that we deal with them and consume them as segment of entertainment on one hand, and on the other hand, is a piece of our national conversation. You’re not supposed to feel as if this is the common fare opulence of the music industry. It’s about a counter-narrative plus it really leaves you with chills."
   
   
   What the director says:
   
   
   In May, director Hiro Murai, Glover's longtime Atlanta collaborator, talked to The New York Times about "This Is America," saying that the video boils down to "a really crazy confluence of tone changes — that's the premise of the entire video and the song, in a way." The "harrowing" yet "cartoony" violence also plays an enormous role: "There's Looney Tunes logic in there somewhere. Certainly we're dealing with very provocative images, so it's a total tightrope walk," Murai said.