GoldLink – “Got Friends” (Feat. Miguel) Video
Last year, the Washington, DC rapper GoldLink released the introspective and deeply locally rooted At What Cost, one of the year’s best rap albums. He also had his biggest-ever hit with the dreamy party anthem “Crew.” Earlier this year, he teamed up with omnipresent R&B smoothie Miguel on the single “Got Friends.” And now he’s made a fascinating and atmospheric video for the song, one that breaks most of the usual music-video genre guidelines.
GoldLink doesn’t even appear in the “Got Friends” video. Instead, the clip focuses on Miguel and a few friends trying to pick up some girls in a bustling late-night diner, which looks like a pretty fun place to hang out. A few of the video’s actors will look familiar if you watch enough TV. The song itself simply plays in the background, often underneath dialogue, and there are plenty of points where you can barely hear it.
The end credits call director Christian Sutton’s video a “short film,” and while that phrase is usually just a pretentious way to say “music video,” it actually fits here. The narrative takes a cool turn halfway through, and the video will leave you with more questions than answers. Watch it below, via The FADER.
“Got Friends” is out now at the streaming services.