Subscribe

* indicates required
Okayplayer News

To continue reading

Create a free account or sign in to unlock more free articles.

By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy

Bilal Satellites Video Square
Bilal Satellites Video Square

Bilal Takes A Political Stand In The Dazzling New Video For "Satellites"

Lenny Kravitz, Grace Jones, Lauryn Hill, Lion Babe, Thundercat, SZA & More Rock The Afropunk Festival 2015 in Brooklyn, NY.

In the new video for recent single "Satellites," Bilal has released what may be the finest artistic statement of his career. In the new work, we watch as the free-spirited vocalist plays a number of near-mystic characters--one caped man in green, another adorned in jewelry and, perhaps, an animalistic figure wielding a sword.

"Satellites" is a song that speaks to the role(s) a person can play in the life of a stranger, and in the video we watch as Bilal does a good turn by those who he has never met. Each shot is beautifully composed and drenched in either brilliant sunlight or captivating shadow; the colors of Bilal's clothing and skin are a masterpiece unto themselves. Signs reading "I am not an animal" and "Black Lives Matter" are impossible to miss. Then, as the caped man wanders the streets of Los Angeles, looking on as others help people in dire need, a dread begins to creep in through the edges of each frame. "Satellites" tells of struggle, and things appear to be a little too rosy.

And then things do suddenly change. Just as the music ends, Bilal's mercy-giving figure is confronted by two upset policemen. A scuffle ensues, bodies fall to the ground, and a new, much more aggressive track begins to play--something else from Bilal's upcoming In Another Life LP, perhaps? At the end of it all we're left with a vision of the artist's soul--a small patch of light that floats and flickers until...

Watch the brilliant video for Bilal's "Satellites" below.