Nas & Dave East Show How They Wrote Their Way Out In The Video For Their Hamilton Collabo

It’s been nearly 3 years since the seminal musical Hamilton took Broadway and the world by storm, and the play’s cultural impact continues. While it still plays to sold out shows in New York City, the Hamilton wave will now flow through multiple locales, including Los Angeles, Houston, Atlanta, Washington, D.C. and more.

Much like the show’s success that allowed it to breakout and tour cities around the world, Nas and Dave East used their pens to write themselves out of their surroundings. They detailed their journeys as part of a collaboration for the 2016 Hamilton Mixtape project, curated by Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and The Roots’ Questlove. “Wrote My Way Out” features Nas, East, Miranda and Aloe Blacc. It is an inspirational ode to the power of words to change circumstances and even, in the case of the founding fathers on which the play is based, build a country.

Now, all four artists join forces in the video for “Wrote My Way Out,” and while it is simple, it is filled with symbolism. Nas, East, Miranda and Blacc are shown standing on a rooftop, seemingly on top of the world, while the visual cuts back and forth to show flashes of the worlds from whence they came. The crisp black and white visual also carries a message of hope for the next generation, with multiple shots of youths poised to start writing their own destinies.

Although it’s still early in 2018, Nas is off to a fast start. Earlier this month, the Queensbridge MC announced that his performance of his album, Illmatic, with the National Symphony orchestra at the Kennedy Center, is the subject of a documentary that will air on PBS February 2.