Rick Ross Mugs, Blazes Trash Cans in ‘The Devil Is a Lie’ Video
In the mysterious new video for the horn-driven Mastermind cut “The Devil Is a Lie,” Rick Ross mugs aggressively into the camera as vague, nefarious-looking deeds happen in the background. The rapper tweeted a link to the video on Friday, but made no mention of collaborator Jay Z – who doesn’t appear anywhere in the brief clip.
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Compared to Ross’ usual blinged-out video spectacles, the new clip is surprisingly moody – filled with burning trash cans, ominous men exiting a parade of SUVs and song lyrics transcribed in an array of languages (including Arabic and Chinese).
Ross released Mastermind, his sixth studio album, earlier this month, but it’s been a particularly weird year for the beefy rapper: In January, he sued party-rappers LMFAO for copyright infringement, claiming the “Everday I’m shufflin'” chorus from their 2010 track “Party Rock Anthem” ripped off his own lyric, “Everday I’m hustlin'” from 2006’s “Hustlin’.” He also faced criticism for a controversial Trayvon Martin reference in his new song “Black and White.”
Meanwhile, Ross also addressed the frequent rumors of association with the Illuminati in a recent issue of Rolling Stone: “Man, there’s a part of me that laughs when I hear that,” he said. “It’s a compliment. Like, ‘Wow, I made it, I’m in the Illuminati!’ But people who say shit like that, to me, are like people who believe in fucking magic.”