Frsh Aire’s “I Gotta Eat: The Movie” Is a Refreshing, Tense, Story-Telling Music Video

I recently read more than one article about the resurgence of a once-heralded artform. An artform that drastically changed the landscape of popular culture, and by extension, entertainment business DNA, from the day it first became popular, but one whose novelty had somewhat worn off in recent years.

Until recently.

The long-form music video, once held to almost mythical status — recall the national event the first airing of Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” video, simultaneously broadcast on MTV, VH1, BET and Fox (!) — rose to celebrated heights before the internet granted music a speed of distribution that made it unnecessary, if not impossible, for music videos to continue to thrive.

Still, in recent years, with the barrier to entry cut down significantly by affordable, high-quality video equipment and editing software, the idea of music-video-as-artistic-counterpart is once again taking flight.

We’ve seen artists at every level, across all genres, take advantage of these technologies, and while not every entrant into the mix is a creative or emotive masterpiece, there are many gems to be found, as artists seek to connect with their audience in ways that audio-only can’t provide.

Such is the case with veteran New York wordsmith Frsh Aire, who recently dropped the nine minute long visual, “I Gotta Eat: The Movie.” A bit of an homage to movies like Silence of the Lambs, “I Gotta Eat” tells the story of Frsh Aire, a “cannibal serial killer” who escaped from a “maximum security mental facility” (with, presumably, a penchant for killing lesser MCs).

With a dramatic storyline and cinematography, “I Gotta Eat: The Movie” sets the scene for the aggressive verbal onslaught to follow as Frsh Aire spits over a frenetic track produced by JAM3 Productions’ Manny D Rosa.

The video itself was co-directed by Rosa and Nex Tic Morales, and blends a variety of visual treatments with a score that nicely matches the intensity of the track, while locations, props and set design all come together to compliment the upbeat, boom-bap styled soundscape.

“I Gotta Eat: The Movie” takes what would have been a hard-hitting song on its own and adds a new dimension, emphasizing the idea that the music video is not only not dead, but can be significantly resurrected with just a bit of creativity and a respectful passion for the craft.

Catch the video above, and swing by the Soundcloud to download the actual song.