Travel Deep Into the Heart of India with Just Blaze & Baauer’s “Higher” feat. Jay-Z (Video)

THUMP, a new electronic channel on VICE, has just premiered this short film for Just Blaze and Baauer’s track “Higher” featuring Jay-Z. The song was one of the first tracks released off of the re-launched Priority Records. The name might ring a bell because it was home to some of the top names in hip-hop including NWA, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube, just to name a few. The short film was directed by none-other than the award-winning, Nabil, who has brought the music video industry to a higher standard with his artistically profound pieces.

This short film for “Higher” boosts this standard yet again one step higher. We are taken into the depths of  the Kerala region in India where the men train to be elite fighters of ancient martial arts. In the first few minutes, a man stumbles in drunk practicing his sword skills. His son watches in the darkness, and we can see from the curious expression on his face that he envies his father’s talents. The next day, the young boys watch the men train vigorously with their sharp, pointed weapons and proud demeanor. You’ve got to see the ending for yourself, because it really brings the point the directors and producers were trying to portray home.

On first watch, I really didn’t think the song and short film matched up together. After thinking on it a bit though, I believe this film represents the struggle of new artists trying to make a name for themselves. It’s interesting that Jay-Z does the vocals on this track, because he is one of the last successful artists to still be making music. Are Just Blaze and Baauer sending a message to the “old-school” artists that its name to make way for the new age?

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