St. Lunatics - Midwest Swing

What this video is

Released in 2001 as the lead single from St. Lunatics' debut album Free City on Universal Records, 'Midwest Swing' arrived at a pivotal moment in regional hip-hop identity formation. With mainstream rap dominated by East and West Coast sounds, St. Lunatics — a St. Louis collective built around Nelly's Country Grammar breakthrough — used this video to assert a distinctly Midwestern aesthetic: relaxed cadences,…

Why it matters

A landmark entry in the early-2000s Midwest hip-hop canon, 'Midwest Swing' helped carve out St. Louis as a legitimate hip-hop geography at a moment when the genre's regional map was rapidly expanding. As the lead single of the only St. Lunatics studio album, it documents the collective sound that…

The director

American music video director and NYU Tisch School of the Arts graduate. Founder of Rockhard Films production company. Has directed over 200 music videos for artists including Katy Perry, Jay-Z, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Britney Spears, Nelly, Foo Fighters,…