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Bun B Reveals André 3000 Didn’t Want to Shoot the “Int’l Players Anthem” Video
On 'The Almanac of Rap,' Bun B shares how he convinced André 3000 to appear in the “Int’l Players Anthem” video.
You’d be surprised how many iconic moments in hip-hop took convincing to happen.
On the latest episode of The Almanac of Rap, Bun B revisits making “Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You)” featuring OutKast, and its now-classic video. Bun revealed to Almanac of Rap host Donwill that André 3000 was initially against appearing in the video altogether.
“André was adamant that he wasn’t going to do a video,” Bun B recalls. “He was like, ‘I’mma rap on this song, and that’s cool, but I’m not doing a video.’”
For a record that would go on to become one of the most celebrated collaborations in Southern hip-hop, bringing together UGK and OutKast at a time when both acts were defining the sound of the region, André’s absence in the video would have been glaring, and sparked questions. Something Bun B understood, and he wasn’t taking no for an answer, knowing the weight of the moment and that the song deserved a visual that matched its energy.
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Determined to make it happen, he turned to director Brian Barber, a longtime OutKast collaborator responsible for some of the duo’s most memorable visuals. The question wasn’t just how to convince Three Stacks to show up. It was how to do it in a way that felt authentic to him.
The answer was pretty straightforward: give him complete creative control.
“We’re like, ‘Look, this is your video. It’s your vision. We just show up and rap,’” Bun explains. That shift in approach ultimately changed André 3000’s mind, giving him full autonomy to shape the visual in a way that aligned with his artistic instincts.
What followed was a video shoot that captured the energy of the song itself: organic, collaborative, and full of unexpected moments and cameos.
Shot in Los Angeles during BET Awards weekend in 2007, the set quickly turned into a reunion, with rappers and celebrities in town pulling up after hearing what was taking place. David Banner showed up dressed in a suit, ready to play his part. T-Pain followed. André even brought comedian Alex Thomas into the fold, adding another layer of character to the wedding-themed concept. And that’s only a handful of the familiar faces who made an appearance that day.
“These things just happen naturally,” Bun says. “We literally didn’t invite anybody over. People found out we were in town and we told them, ‘Yeah, come on through.’”
That spontaneity became part of what made the video feel so alive. It wasn’t overdone or overly curated. It was a reflection of community, perfect timing and the kind of chemistry that can’t be orchestrated.
In hindsight, it’s hard to imagine “Int’l Players Anthem” without its visual — a video that has since become just as beloved as the song itself. But Bun B’s story is a reminder that even the most iconic moments in hip-hop often hinge on small, yet crucial decisions behind the scenes.
Watch the full conversation on 'The Almanac of Rap' below.
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