It wasn’t that long ago that the rollout cycle for new singles included the lyrics video, then the official music video, but in recent months, the lines between the two styles of video have blurred. Rappers have begun incorporating lyrics subtitles into their actual music videos, while lyrics videos have become more and more cinematic. The lyric video for Lil Durk‘s “Stay Down” from his December album The Voice falls into the latter category, splashing the bars against the backdrop of a black-and-white video of various pretty women dancing to and reciting the song on various devices, with the viewer implied to be Durk himself.
Durk is joined on “Stay Down” by Atlanta rappers 6lack and Young Thug, who provide the hook and the third verse, respectively. The song overall addresses a potential paramour from whom the three men demand a modicum of loyalty — although not much, as Durk notes his interest has already been involved with the track’s producers DY Krazy and Metro Boomin. Meanwhile, Thug warns his potential mate that he lives a dangerous life, wondering, “Keep it gangsta, would you die for me?”
Intriguingly, the lyric video arrives several months after the official music video, which dropped back in October.
Watch the lyric video for “Stay Down” above.