This is my favorite video of 2018. Darnell Williams manages to present issues of suicide, depression, medication, and feeling lost in your own life in a creative and highly entertaining manner. Unlike so much music nowadays, Williams produces a product that is substantive and relatable and presents several very serious issues in an approachable manner.

Several facets of this visual and song stuck with me after only my first watch. The skit before the video is very impactful portrayal of therapy and the general public’s views on the ideas of artists. Williams talks to his therapist about a television program where Jewish children are given free trips to Israel on the government’s dime, and he wonders why he couldn’t have been afforded a trip to Africa as a young man, and ponders on how this would have affected his life. While he explains this, his therapist could not be more unbothered with is musings and writes a recipe for “organic spicy  Mexican avocado spread” on her notecard that is supposed to be filled with observations on her patient. Instead of engaging in the conversation presented by Darnell, she cuts him off to ask why he titled his album “Porno.” To me, this was commentary on the media asking questions about artist’s mental states because of the degrees of edginess their expression travels to, rather than actually giving a shit about what they care about most.

Another poignant image is the one of Williams with a noose on his neck, hanging over a crowd of screaming fans. In a lighter scene, Williams is pictured in the notorious H&M sweatshirt donning the phrase “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle.” Darnell Williams is unapologetically black, but refuses to go along with the black community, specifically in older sects, refusal to acknowledge mental health problems. He is committed to presenting these issues in a fresh and welcoming manner, not attempting to scare listeners like other artists who concentrate on these matters, but rather in a way that fellow sufferers can relate to. Singer Elohim provides the chorus to the track. Her tone is drastically different from Darnell’s punchy style. Her lines float and their high pitch naturally caters to painting a poignant picture.

Now don’t get me wrong, this isn’t some woke bullshit with a fake deep video. Darnell’s flow is energetic and has a great breadth of vocabulary at his disposal. His lyrics are clever and often plays off of double-entendre. You can hear the pain in his voice as it tends to crack and crescendo on more passionate lines.

Darnell Williams is whip-smart and makes powerful music. I am thoroughly impressed. Don’t get me wrong, the auto-tuned, melodic “Soundcloud” rap is cool, but art like this makes me feel excited for the future of rap music.

Stream Darnell Williams brand new visual for “Porno” here: