Today, GRAMMY® Award-winning rapper, singer, songwriter and producer BEAM has unveiled the official music video for his acclaimed track “UNDA ARMOR.” Premiered earlier today via The FADER, the video is directed by PDL. Watch it now below.
About the song, BEAM says, “’UNDA ARMOR’ is about the Holy Spirit to me, but it can mean anything to anyone who listens to the song. It can be what you feel literally protects you when you walk outside of your house. Every day is a battlefield.”
The black-and-white clip opens on BEAM trying to hock mixtapes to passersby to no avail. After encountering a light in the sky, he dons a black vest, hops on his bike, and takes to the streets as a throng of followers rush behind him. With glassy eyes and a raven flying above, the tripped-out video reflects his shadowy sonic spirit. Meanwhile, he captivates with the hook, “I had the UNDA ARMOR vest to protect myself, still got the city on my back to protect myself.”
Of the video, he explains to The FADER that it is about “transitioning from a point in my life where I was grinding and hustling, from rock bottom, to a place where I want to be. At the same time, that comes with the people who treated me like shit and doubted me during that experience. Now I have people hitting me, calling me, DMing me saying how they believe in me. They only see the music and the progress, but they still don’t really believe in me. The video is painting a vivid picture of that.”
“UNDA ARMOR,” which is produced by ChaseTheMoney, can be found on his critically lauded debut EP, 95. Get it HERE via Epic Records.
Released at the end of 2019, 95 cements BEAM as a new kind of artist to be reckoned with. Seamlessly mixing Dancehall with Hip-Hop, Trap, Electronics and Pop, the project showcases a masterful songwriter and producer who takes the idea of genre, obliterates it and builds something new. He effortlessly switches between Jamaican Patois and English, and rapping and singing, with an intoxicatingly robust and adaptable voice. The result is jarring-yet-melodic, a direct-yet-diverse cohesion of colors and textures. Executive produced by BEAM and Cardo [Drake, Travis Scott] with additional production contributions from Frank Dukes, ChaseTheMoney, Al Cres and Blake$ale, the EP has brought the artist an onslaught of buzz.
NPR touted him among their “Favorite Discoveries of 2019” for All Songs Considered’s Heat Check, commending his “synth-bridging dancehall.” Pigeons & Planes named him one of 2020’s biggest Artists to Watch, describing 95 as “a sound that is decidedly modern and subtly forward-thinking, and designed to move bodies.” EP highlight “Mad Gaal” received major love from Soulection while LA Weekly spotlighted “UNDA ARMOR” and his genre-bending aesthetic, exclaiming that he is “bridging multiple sounds, creating his own lane of sonically-appealing hip-hop and R&B.” Highsnobiety perhaps put it best,“BEAM’s light shines bright.” Additionally, he appeared on COLORS for a scorching tour de force performance of the track “2X2.” View it HERE.
Recently, he collaborated with Major Lazer, Anitta and MC Lan on the track “Rave De Favela.” Next, he graces a stacked bill headlined by A$AP Rocky, Travis Scott, and Post Malone at Rolling Loud in Miami, FL on May 8-10.
BEAM’s light will only grow in 2020. Get ready for more soon.