Quick Facts
Biography
American rapper Azealia Banks has appeared in twenty 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 one-hundred million views on Banks' official YouTube channel. 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 she 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. In 2016, Banks will star in the film Coco, playing the lead role of Coco, being directed by RZA.
Music videos
| Title | Year | Other performer(s) credited | Director(s) | Description | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "L8R" | 2010 | None | BBGUN | 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. | |
| "212" | 2011 | Lazy Jay | Vincent Tsang | 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. | |
| "Liquorice" | 2012 | None | Rankin | 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. | |
| "Liquorice" (Alternate version) | 2012 | None | Unknown | 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. | |
| "Van Vogue" | 2012 | None | Rankin | Banks floats in the water while performing this song. She is also seen dancing while waving a cane around in the air. | |
| "1991" | 2012 | None | Justin Mitchell | 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. | |
| "Luxury" | 2012 | None | Clarence Fuller | 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. | |
| "Atlantis" | 2012 | None | Fafi | Shot in front of a green screen, Banks rides CGI swordfish, sits on an underwater CGI throne and sports an array of seapunk outfits. | |
| "Fierce" | 2012 | None | Luke Monaghan | 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. | |
| "Harlem Shake" (Remix) | 2013 | Baauer | Rony Alwin | Filmed in a recording studio, Banks dances, poses and flips her hair to the camera as she performs to her remix of the Baauer song. | |
| "Control It" | 2013 | Shystie | Oliver Whitehouse | 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. | |
| "No Problems" | 2013 | None | Rony Alwin | 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. | |
| "Yung Rapunxel" | 2013 | None | Jam Sutton | 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. | |
| "ATM Jam" | 2013 | Pharrell | Rony Alwin | 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. | |
| "Heavy Metal and Reflective" | 2014 | None | Rob Soucy Nick Ace | Banks escapes from being kidnapped and left in the desert, before leading a motorcycle gang through the terrain, arming herself with rottweilers. | |
| "Chasing Time" | 2014 | None | Marc Klasfeld | Filmed in black-and-white, Banks incorporates various CGI effects in the video, as she dances to the track in leather and sheet outfits. | |
| "Wallace" | 2015 | None | Rob Soucy Nick Ace | 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. | |
| "Blown Away" | 2015 | GypjaQ | Rob Soucy Nick Ace | In this minimalist video, Banks and GypjaQ are alternatively seen via jump cuts, posing to the camera, using people as furniture and vomiting flowers. | |
| "Ice Princess" | 2015 | None | We Were Monkeys (Mihai Wilson and Marcella Moser) | 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. | |
| "Count Contessa" | 2015 | None | Rony Alwin | In this tropical-themed video, Banks dances on the beach after being told by a voodoo priestess that she will find true love. | |
| "The Big Big Beat" | 2016 | None | Matt Sukkar | 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. |
Films
| Title | Year | Role | Director | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The American Ruling Class | 2005 | Empire Falls Singer and Dancer | John Kirby | Cameo | |
| Coco | 2016 | Coco | RZA | Lead role |
Television
| Title | Year | Role | Channel | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NewNowNext Awards | 2013 | Herself | LOGO | Performer |
Commercials
| Company | Product | Year | Description | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander Wang | T by Alexander Wang | 2012 | Banks' song "Van Vogue" plays as jump cuts of her dancing and spinning through the air play, with a superimposed T in the middle of the screen. | |
| Beats Electronics | Beats by Dr. Dre | 2012 | The advertisement consists of a montage of celebrities dancing to "Scream & Shout" by will.i.am and Britney Spears. Other celebrities seen in the ad include Lil Wayne, Zedd, 2 Chainz and Ellie Goulding. |