Dave In Charge: Feminist egalitarian rapper?

Hold My Hand, the eagerly awaited music video from conscious rap artist, Dave In Charge, is now live on YouTube. The single is available to pre-order from iTunes and will be officially released on Friday 21 November 2014.

Dave In Charge is back in the limelight, following the media frenzy surrounding his last music video, Habitat. Dave has been interviewed by CNN, received airplay from Capital FM, and featured in newspapers, on radio and TV around the world.

Hold My Hand inspires us to cherish experiences that we share together, while the video follows the narrative of a young couple on a fun night out, but with subtle and unexpected twists.

As expected from Dave In Charge, this ingenious video delivers deadpan humour throughout and still presents a serious message. Dave guides us through a visual journey that brings out deeper meanings of the song.

Our culture often still discriminates against women, sexuality and skin colour. Like fellow rapper Macklemore’s take on normalising same-sex relationships in Same Love, Dave In Charge provokes us to open our minds and accept people for who they are. In contrast with some music videos, such as Robin Thicke’s infamous Blurred Lines that portrays the objectification of women, Dave In Charge makes a point by challenging stereotypes of male/female relationships through clever role reversal. The video also highlights the social stigma of mixed-race relationships.

Filmed in Finchley, the Hold My Hand music video offers a glimpse of what suburban life in London looks like. Nightclub scenes were shot inside Ahir Lorenzo’s Bar, a local establishment, on a regular Saturday night.

The Hold My Hand video is more polished than Habitat, thanks to Dave recruiting a team of professionals to help him realise his vision. Hold My Hand is directed by Joshua Kahan and filmed/edited by Fahd Hashmey. Playing the couple, the featured actors are Irena Kiseleva and Xavier Dawes.