American rapper Azealia Banks has appeared in twenty-three music videos, two films, one television program and two commercials. As a teenager, Banks studied at the LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts in Manhattan. A film opportunity arose through the school, and at the age of fourteen, Banks featured in the film The American Ruling Class, portraying a singer and a dancer in a cameo role. In 2010, Banks' first music video was released for a demo track titled "L8R", which would go on to be included on her debut mixtape Fantasea two years later. The following year, Banks' second music video was released for her breakout single "212", and has since amassed over two-hundred million views on Banks' official YouTube channel.[1] During the promotional campaign of Banks' debut EP 1991, all songs on the project received a video treatment, including her sophomore single "Liquorice", shot by acclaimed director Rankin. Months after the video for "Liquorice" was released, an alternate version was leaked. In July 2012, Banks released her debut mixtape Fantasea. To promote the mixtape, Banks released three music videos for tracks on the project, "Luxury", "Atlantis", and "Fierce", the latter being shot with clothing company ASOS.
In 2012, Banks starred in two commercials for companies, the first was for Alexander Wang, in which she promoted the T by Alexander Wang clothing line, while the second commercial she appeared in was for Beats Electronics, in which she promoted Beats by Dr. Dre. In 2013, Banks released videos for two singles, "Yung Rapunxel" and "ATM Jam", and videos for collaborations with Shystie and Baauer. Throughout 2014, Banks released videos to promote her debut studio album Broke with Expensive Taste, including videos for "Heavy Metal and Reflective" and "Chasing Time". In March 2015, Banks released an interactive video for the song "Wallace", which received critical acclaim, with Paper ranking it as one of the most underrated videos from the prior year.[2] In 2017, Banks starred in the film Love Beats Rhymes, playing the lead role of Coco, directed by RZA.
List of music videos that Azealia Banks has appeared in
Title
Year
Other performer(s) credited
Description
Ref.
"L8R"
2010
None
Filmed at a pool party, Banks makes hot dogs, plays party games, and is eventually filmed underwater as she performs the song in the company of her friends.
Banks' most successful song to date, the video takes place in a New York City alley, as she struts around in a Mickey Mouse jumper while performing the song.
Set in an outback ranch, Banks plays a cowboy who towards the end of the clip, battles a mirror of herself. She is also seen seductively eating hot dogs and dancing in the woods.
In a lower budgeted, but similar setup to that of the official version, Banks is seen riding horses around a stable and walking through Paris at night.
A video that sees Banks pay homage to things related to the 1990s, including Madonna and Aaliyah, she performs the song in different scenes, one of which sees her backing dancers vogue throughout the video.
Described as "chic" by Spin, Banks walks through New York City and performs on a rooftop, as her backing dancers perform choreography in the background.
ASOS partnered with Banks to produce this video. Shot with a shorter, clean version of the song, Banks seductively lies on a couch while modeling various ASOS stock.
A video that showcases examples of BDSM culture, Shystie and Banks perform the track around a group of men on leashes, as Shystie sports a whip, intermittently striking the men with it.
Filmed in Miami at the Ultra Music Festival, we see Banks behind the scenes of her appearance at the festival, as well as snippets of her performance. Steve Aoki and Diplo make cameos.
Banks plays a witch who endlessly attempts to evade the police, before being confronted and subsequently fighting them. The video includes visual symbolism, including one-eyed motifs, owls and Illuminati imagery.
Banks and her crew pickpocket people in the subway, rob a supermarket and roam the streets in New York before Banks performs at her concert. Meanwhile, Banks dances in front of a NYPD cruiser as the cops are on the hunt for Banks and her crew.
In this artificially colored video, Banks and her backing dancers are seen at various locations having fun. These locations include a rave, a swimming pool, and a penthouse.
An interactive video, Banks' movements depend on the user's actions towards their camera. As the viewer maneuvers their arms across the screen, Banks' positioning changes, and certain reactions take place, including her blinking, smiling, and rotating.
We see Banks as the frozen leader of a robotic ninja army. She leads her CGI army into battle with a volcano that produces multicolored clouds, that eventually end up destroying her.
Banks pays tribute to her NYC roots, which finds her strutting down a fluorescent-lit hallway in a fringe jacket, then dancing ecstatically outside a Manhattan courthouse, then twerking atop an NYPD cruiser.
Banks dances both inside and outside an empty warehouse. Features a montage of scenes including Banks wearing shades in front of a mirror, walking down a catwalk, and using a megaphone.
