kelis: new video for "lil star" f/ cee-lo.

I originally objected to posting music videos on this blog, but in this experimental pre-April time...why not?

I've been following Kelis's career ever since the days of Kaleidoscope, when I got a call from my eighth grade girlfriend telling me that I needed to see the video with the crazy rainbow-brite Scary Spice wanna-be yelling a lot. It didn't take me much longer to realize that Kelis was more than that. Can't see beyond "Milkshake"? Check out the videos below, and understand my love. Several of these were not released in the US, so if you're on my side of the pond...they're definitely worth watching. I've starred my favorites.

- Caught Out There* - Good Stuff - Get Along With You* -
- Young, Fresh N' New* -
- Milkshake - Trick Me* - Millionaire -
- Bossy* - Blindfold Me - Lil Star -

• Note the minimalist aesthetic of "Trick Me".
• Note the poodles, ice sculptures, and absurdity of "Bossy".
• Note the Heidi Klum in "Young Fresh N' New".
• Note the oddly dark, gothic mood of "Get Along With You".
• Note the random jungle and polar wonderland scenes in "Blindfold Me".
  

Despite the giant bubble coat, "Lil Star" is probably the most "normal" Kelis video I've ever seen. It is directed by Mark Klasfeld, the same man behind "Bossy" and "Blindfold Me". I'm a little disappointed that the video took the song so literally, but Kelis can get away with it because she's super-cute. "Lil Star" is the single in the UK, so if you're still sick of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy"...don't be too worried about hearing Cee-Lo's voice on your radio too. My secret hopes are that it will do well enough to cross over to the US as Nelly Furtado's "Maneater" did, but I'm not holding my breath. "Trilogy" will be the third single in the US, and a video is not yet recorded.

This post is starting to get way too fanatical and I totally promised that I'd lay off the hip-hop, pop, and R&B for a couple of days, so I'll stop.