Artiste: LA Lewis and Rashida Rose

Genre: Reggae/Dancehall

Rating:

LA Lewis with the support of unicef has released his latest music video promoting non-violent resolution in the song, We Can Work Things Out.

For years Lewis has been trying to get his name from off the walls, bus stops and other surfaces around Kingston to the ears of listeners. Under the tagline "together we can make peace increase" Lewis, alongside Rashida Rose, who is heard as back up on the track, advocates for peaceful ways of working out situations. A somewhat slow 'reggae-ish' song, Lewis deejays about persons who can easily resolve conflicts by talking through them.

Giving advice from someone who has been there, Lewis states "me LA Lewis was once a very bad man", yet Lewis says now he has changed.

While the message is a much-needed one, the song itself lacks that hit factor. The beat is boring and Lewis deejaying on the beat leaves much to be desired.

The quality of the video is poor even as it depicts scenes with persons arguing. There are clips of people involved in a traffic accident, a bar battle, a female attacking her lover and of course LA Lewis, wearing a straw hat, dancing and singing in front of a black screen. At the end of the video, Lewis and Rose make a presentation of the DVD to former Governor General Sir Howard Cooke.

A music video should put more than an image to the words of a song, but also tell a mini story. However, the concept is very simplistic, lacking true imagination and doesn't capture the true violent aspects of our society that would truly benefit from a peaceful outlook. The video doesn't encourage a viewer to watch, and could, arguably, lessen the effectiveness of the song.