Bun B has credited JAY-Z with having the first rap music video to officially be given a budget of $1 million.
During an appearance on The Residency Podcast, the UGK rapper said that “Big Pimpin” was the first to achieve the feat, and clarified that rap music videos had gone over a million prior to the release of Hov’s 1999 hit single that he and the late Pimp C appeared on, but that the Vol. 3 cut was the first song to ever be handed a million dollar budget to start with.
“This was the first million-dollar budgeted rap video ever,” Bun said. “Now, rap videos had budgets that went over that [and] ended up costing a million dollars, but blocked one million dollars just for this music video.”
He continued: “I had never seen anything like it. It was the first rap video I think on ‘Making a Video’ on MTV. It accelerated so quickly, and then within I wanna say three months it was the number one record on the planet.”
Kanye West has also accrued an expensive tab with music videos during the span of his career. A 2018 article on Music Crowns that breaks down the most expensive rap videos ever shows that Ye’s 2007 video for “Stronger” also hit the million-dollar mark, and the “Touch the Sky” music video came close, hitting $996,000.
However, the most expensive music video on record is Diddy’s “Victory,” which purposefully strived to become the most expensive visual of all time. Despite features from Busta Rhymes and The Notorious B.I.G., the song itself merely peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The visual, which featured Hollywood stars like Dennis Hopper and Danny Devito, ran up a tab of around $2,500,000, which in 2018 translated out to around $4.3 million.
In other JAY-Z news, the Roc Nation mogul is still currently embroiled in his multi-billion dollar lawsuit against Bacardi involving D’USSE. According to a report from AllHipHop, Hov is attempting to move the $2.5 billion suit to Bacardi’s headquarters in Bermuda.
“SC is now preparing to bring litigation against Bacardi in Bermuda, where Bacardi is incorporated and headquartered (the ‘Bermuda Action’), for procuring a breach of D’Usse’s Operating Agreement under Bermudian law,” case documents read. “In aid of that contemplated case, SC seeks this Court’s assistance to obtain relevant evidence from certain investors in Bacardi and/or its affiliates that are found within this Court’s jurisdiction.
“SC therefore respectfully requests that this Court approve the application and permit service of the proposed subpoenas seeking documents to aid its anticipated Bermuda Action.”
JAY-Z is accusing Bacardi of intentionally mismanaging D’USSÉ in an effort to purchase his 50 percent share at a discount. According to court documents, SC Liquor exercised its right to demand a buyout a year before the lawsuit was filed – which means Bacardi was obliged to come up with a fair price.
However, the 4:44 rapper is accusing Bacardi’s subsidiary Empire Investments Inc. of attempting to “stall and stonewall” efforts that would reveal an accurate valuation of D’USSÉ. The figure that Bacardi brought to the table was reportedly “well below” what JAY-Z had in mind.
Mc Hammer was the 1st Rapper Bun-B.
I’m pretty sure Triumph was the 1st million $ video
I’m pretty sure Triumph was the 1st million $ video
MC Hammer, then Busta and Janet
Wu-tang??????
C’mon, Bun…
Jay-Z wins again!
Biz’s What goes around video was 1 mill
Ready or not by the Fugees
Sorry Bun but this is just a bunch of BS. According to Wikipedia MC Hammer, Will Smith, Busta, Missy Elliot, Puff & Big, TLC & Fugees all did it before and there may even be more. You really believe that all those 90s rap videos costing 1.5M, 2M or even 2.7M were just so poorly mismanaged and planned that they went over their allocated budget two or three-fold and that they were also not originally given a milli or more to work with? Come on now bruh..
Pretty sure that’s not true. That California Love shoot was legendarily like a movie set with Hype Williams doing it, and it was mentioned at that time that the budget was over a million. Everybody knew how flossy Death Row and Interscope were at that time in promoting their artists. This one is cap.
Bruh, Too Legit 2 Quit cost mil….what are we really talking about?
I think even Here comes the hammer was over a mil
Bruh, Too Legit 2 Quit cost 2 mil….what are we really talking about?