Synopsis

Lauryn Hill moves through a surreal version of New York City that has been pressed onto a giant vinyl record. As the record spins beneath a turntable needle, she races through the streets and repeatedly avoids its path as it scratches across the city. The visual concept transforms the urban landscape into a playable object, connecting the song's reflections on hardship, injustice, and perseverance with an imaginative image of society moving in cycles.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was filmed at Method Studios in Los Angeles, rather than on location in New York City.

• Its central visual device turns New York into a giant record on a turntable, with the needle physically moving through the city.

• The clip made its television debut on BET and VH1 during the week ending June 20, 1999. It appeared on MTV and The Box the following week.

• "Everything Is Everything" received three MTV Video Music Award nominations, including Best Hip-Hop Video, Best Direction, and Best Special Effects.

• The video was also nominated for Best Short Form Music Video at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2000.

• The song features piano by John Legend, then 19 years old, marking one of his earliest notable appearances on a major recording.

• Pitchfork later included the video in its list of the top 50 music videos of the 1990s.