Vibe & MTV also caught up with Producer Swizz Beats and Director of The Music Video “On To the Next” Sam Brown. Here is what they had to say:


Swizz Beatz In An Interview With MTV

“I don’t think about that. I know that’s a billion percent not true. The video displays another level of art and creativity from two great minds: the director and Jay — and myself, bringing the collaboration together. It’s no satanic ways around me and that’s for sure. I’m with Jay — I never see none of that stuff around him unless he’s hiding something, which I doubt. C’mon, man. That’s silly stuff. That stuff you don’t even comment on; we on to the next one.”

Video Director Sam Brown In An Interview With Vibe.com

I’m aware of the stir the video has caused and what people are saying. I think when you’re dealing in abstract imagery people are going to want to draw lines between things and make sense of it. However, I’ve always felt that the viewing public was, in general, extremely visually literate. They don’t always want or need things to be spelt out for them. One of the great things about music videos are they can be enjoyed purely visually—it doesn’t need to mean anything or make any sense. Conspiracy theory is another thing entirely, and seems to me to be about projecting pre-existing beliefs and desperately looking for things that confirm them. There is imagery in this video that is drawn from all over the place. None of it is owned by any one culture or belief system. You can connect anything if you try hard enough, and make it mean anything you want it to.

Vibe: So what was the overall direction Jay was looking for?

He gave me a very loose brief, and made it clear that we should be progressive with the video. All the imagery was thought up by me and was a response to the track itself. For those interested, the idea is actually about a funeral for old imagery and ideas, hence all the gothic and oppressive stuff. I was also trying to contradict the excess of hip-hop videos by making something brutally simple and claustrophobic.

I bet Jay had no idea his video would be this big of a deal. Or maybe he did….

So Angie Martinez FINALLY got Jay Z to speak on this whole free mason, devil worshiping, and illuminati thing. But with that to me she honestly got nowhere lol, he gave a bunch of comical safe answers. Check out the interview:

“I don’t know where it started. I don’t know where it came from. I really think it’s really silly. For the record, I of course believe in God, but I believe in one God. If people must know my religious beliefs, I believe in one God. I don’t believe in religion. I don’t believe in Christians or Muslims. I think all that separates people. I think it’s one God. I think it’s all the same God, and I don’t believe in Hell. But as far as God, of course I believe in God. Am I a part of some sect or cult? That sounds stupid to me. It’s like ignorant to even say, and umm… I guess that’ll be the last time I address that. It’s ignorant to me”


I can’t even get in a golf club in Palm Springs. I’m from Marcy Projects. Just think about that? People that control the world?

Do you believe that those sort of organizations exist?

I think there are cliques of friends that control things. I don’t if there is a devil worshipping sect. That’s a little Tom hanks. I believe there are cliques of people that control the world…but that’s just natural process. I’m sure Obama has his people and everything is good but as far as how far people are taking it…

So you don’t intentionally do this to put people in a frenzy?

I’m an entertainer at the end of the day. Maybe I’ll push your buttons but you know…