Life After Death

J Dilla "Won't Do"
from The Shining (2006)

Excuse my insensitivity, but I swore to never watch another posthumous video after the unbearable “Pac’s Life.” Very few of them commemorate, while most simply try to profit from death. At least J Dilla’s video for “Won’t Stop” helped me see the light. Unlike “Pac’s Life,” the performance by Dilla’s brother (spitting image) John Yancey actually commemorates the late producer’s memory without having to recycle a horde of “exclusive, never-before-seen footage.” I give the young weed carrier in the making a pass simply for repping his bro right, instead of leaving it up to corny will.i.am to rap his lyrics. We’ll continue to miss the likes of Dilla, 2Pac, Biggie, Big L and Big Pun, and thankfully there are a few postumous videos that begin to do their memory justice. Check out some of these great moments, after death:

Notorious B.I.G feat. 112 “Sky’s the Limit” (1997)
Spike Jonze portrays B.I.G and the Bad Boy family’s age of innocence through a cast of kids.

2Pac “Changes” (1998)
2Pac’s tumultuous life is captured in a collage of iconic photos, movie clips and historic interviews.

2Pac feat. The Outlawz “Hail Mary” (1996)
Rumors of Pac’s resurrection become urban legend with this horror core classic.

2Pac feat. Nas “Thugz Mansion” (2002)
Pac’s former enemy bridges the gap by appearing in the artsy video from Better Dayz.

Big Pun feat. Donnell Jones “It’s So Hard” 2000
Fat Joe, Nas, Diddy and even J. Lo put their lighters up for rap’s Puerto Rican pioneer.

Big L feat. Miss Jones, Stan Spit and AG “Holdin’ It Down” (2000)
Harlem fills the courts at Harlem’s Rucker Park for ballin’ in Big L’s memory.