Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass

What this video is

Released in 2007 on Definitive Jux — one of the most critically regarded underground hip-hop labels of the 2000s — 'None Shall Pass' arrived at a moment when the alternative hip-hop scene was consolidating around dense lyricism, independent visual art, and DIY web distribution. The video's decision to animate Jeremy Fish's existing album illustrations rather than shoot live footage was itself a statement of the…

Why it matters

A landmark of the animated hip-hop music video form, 'None Shall Pass' demonstrated that underground rap could command high-concept visual direction without major-label budgets. The video's integration of a fine artist's existing body of work into a purpose-built moving-image piece was influential…

The director

Ordinary Kids is a San Francisco-based digital design collective. They directed the 'None Shall Pass' music video in collaboration with Aesop Rock, animating the existing fine-art illustrations of Jeremy Fish. The collective is identified in multiple…