Every week, a slew of new music videos hits the web. Watching them at your desk is not time theft because you deserve it; think of it as a nice reward for surviving another work week. But what if you don’t have time to watch every video — maybe you have a deadline, a hungry pet, or other grown-up concerns. In consideration of your schedule, Lizzie and Kaitlyn bring you a series called One Video. Each week we’ll tell you “one video” you need to watch, why, and for how long.
This week’s video: “Motorsport” by Migos, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B
Kaitlyn: Congratulations to everyone on all the money they made this week! If you made some, that is — I don’t want to assume. But I know for a fact that Migos, Nicki Minaj, and Cardi B made a whole bunch, so, at the very least, congratulations to them. What I mean to say is: the video for “Motorsport” is here and it is full of brands, which you could call tacky but I would call “Honestly, go for it, you guys.”
Lizzie: This video looks like an ad for a juicy new calorie-free Sprite, or a moisture-wicking line of Nike athletic wear, due mostly to the fact that it’s lit like a rave planetarium. In reality, it’s probably closer to an ad for Hype, an energy drink company run by a former Formula One racing driver. Around 30 seconds in, there’s a slow-motion shot of a model drinking a can of Hype while Quavo struts around a shiny car. Synergy!
What kind of motorsports?
Kaitlyn: Lizzie originally identified every car in this video as a Honda Accord, describing it to me with the plot summary “And then Quavo leans against a Honda Accord, and then Cardi B leans against a Honda Accord.” I usually trust all the information she presents to me, but I did — this time and this time only — ask The Verge’s transportation section to fact-check her. (Lizzie, I love you!) According to our colleagues Sean O’Kane and Andy Hawkins, the cars you see in this video are: flying Lyft, red Ferrari Testarossa, silver Lamborghini Diablo, red Lamborghini Countach, white Lamborghini Countach, another flying Lyft. Though this is uncomfortable to point out, Lizzie was wrong.
She’s in good company though! The lyrics of “Motorsport” discuss a green Lamborghini, a Ferrari 488, a Porsche, and a pink Bugatti, none of which appear in the video.
Lizzie: The Honda Accord is in the eye of the beholder, as they say. As for the “motorsports” in this video, I think we can also check off motocross, as Offset and Cardi B both seem to be wearing motocross outfits. I think we can assume that, outside the narrative of this video, they went on a motocross ride together before making a joint pit stop at the Honda showroom.
What’s special about “Motorsport” by Migos, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B:
Kaitlyn: Have you seen a flying Lyft yet? In real life? “Motorsport” is special because it squeezes in product placement for headphones, an energy drink, four luxury vehicles, and a hypothetical neon future that looks very unsettling.
Lizzie: “Motorsport” is special because I have no idea what the plot is. Cars are a big part of it, but also maybe a vape pen (1:17) and kneepads (4:15)? What are these objects, and are they meant to convince me to buy a car, or an energy drink?
How long everyone should watch “Motorsport” by Migos, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B:
Kaitlyn: I rarely suggest skipping any pieces of any music video, because I believe strongly that music videos are the only important art form and that you should do whatever you want at work, as it’s likely that nobody is paying attention. However, in this particular case, I’d say skip through all of the boys, who are very boring, and get to the good stuff: Cardi B makes her first appearance at 1:46 and starts her verse at 1:50. Nicki Minaj makes her first appearance at 2:34 and starts her verse at 2:45. I accidentally cheered a little bit during this part:
Lizzie: Gotta agree. Nicki Minaj appears midway through the video in some kind of car mall / airplane hangar with floor-length pink hair. The rest is just visual stimuli that will, from here on out, make you thirsty for Hype energy.