Vince Staples Releases New Short Film

(Radio.com) Hot on the heels of releasing his new EP Prima Donna last Friday (August 26), Vince Staples has released a short film to accompany that project. The film explores the dichotomy Staples feels between the flash of the music industry and the reality of the world that created him. It's something he channeled on his 2015 studio album Summertime '06 and which resurfaces on Prima Donna.

At nearly ten minutes long, the short film opens on Staples filming a music video before a director calls cut and he leaves for the night. Outside the studio, things are very different. Staples thinks he encounters a racist taxi driver, has visions of Africa and the tribal rhythms that inform rap, and passes through the ghetto streets that still call to him. It's part-dream, part-reality and an entirely strong statement from one of rap's most original thinkers.

Directed by Nabil, the short film is a powerful visual, up there with the more politically-motivated work Kendrick Lamar and Beyonce have been releasing of late. Watch the film here.