Too Much Joy - That's a Lie

What this video is

Released in 1990 as a Giant Records single, 'That's a Lie' represents a notable early instance of genre-bridging between white suburban punk-pop and hip-hop, at a moment when such crossovers were rare enough to generate genuine MTV novelty. Too Much Joy's cover of an LL Cool J track, produced with the original artist's involvement in the video, anticipated the rap-rock fusion wave that would dominate the…

Why it matters

Documents a pivotal early-90s moment of hip-hop and alternative rock cross-pollination on MTV. As a punk-pop band covering and visually collaborating with a major hip-hop artist, the video is an artifact of genre boundary dissolution that preceded the mainstream rap-rock movement by nearly a…