Jay-Z's video for "Moonlight" has definitely been a conversation starter online and, today, his production team is adding to that dialogue with a behind-the-scenes video of the shoot.
Featuring an all-start cast that includes comedians Jerrod Carmichael and Tiffany Haddish, the video was an attempt for Jay-Z and his team to get people talking about diversity in a pointed and decisive fashion. Carmichael called the experience "subversive in the truest sense of the word," while Haddish was stoked about the opportunity to play a "white woman." Billed a "black Friends," the video was shot on remarkably similar sets (that were modernized slightly from the originals) and the result was something that Jay's core audience may not have been expecting.
The actors also praised each other, speaking at length about the talent that the cast possessed as a whole and, in some cases, how nice it was to be working with certain individuals again after not doing so for a while. There was also an interesting theory that was floated out by a cast member who talked about meeting Hov: apparently, you call him "Jay" when you meet him, but you have to call him "Jay-Z" before you do so, to keep the reverence going no doubt.
Check out the full version of the behind-the-scenes video for "Moonlight" below.