clipping. - “Summertime” (Official Video)

As Tom pointed out when he heralded clipping.’s debut album CLPPNG as Album Of The Week, the fact that the L.A. hip-hop trio had the wherewithal to put the legendary West Coast rapper King Tee on a track is indicative of their extensive knowledge of the genre. In director Carlos Lopez Estrada’s video for “Summertime,” the track that King Tee guests on, they build off that heritage with a futuristic update: Each character in the video regardless of race and gender have the features of one of clipping.’s crew (I’m assuming) cut-and-pasted onto their face. While it’s funny and slightly off-putting when the incongruous eyes, ears and mouth show up on the bikini-clad babes, the treatment works the best when it’s overlaid on a cop. It’s a powerful, subtle way to force us to look at the way we view people. Meanwhile, it’s impossible to listen to this song without feeling the beat all the way through your body. Bonus thought: Is this the only rap song of last year to shout out Fernet?