Again and Again: Lupe Fiasco "He Say, She Say"

Lupe Fiasco "He Say, She Say"
dir. by Christopher Adams and Hana McDowell
Lupe's Food & Liquor was officially released in September of last year, but unofficially it's been circulating iPod's longer than that. Either way it seems a bit late to be commissioning videos for his critically acclaimed Grammy-nominated debut. Yet when you realize the public service announcement-nature of "He Say, She Say," you can see the justification behind it.

The track uses a creative narrative approach in telling its tale of absent fathers, and the video doesn't veer too far from that model. The use of longish takes in the first-person perspective is an adept way of focusing attention on the words, and reveals new sides to Lupe's story. The performance of the pained mother is compelling as well, but her counterpart has a harder time conveying real feeling. And while the video begins strong, it sputters out with a redundant series of images. Which could suggest a lack of ideas, but also (whether it's intentional or not) reflects the anti-climactic nature of real life situations with neglectful dads.