On Valentine's Day, we recognize not only the relationships that have blossomed into something beautiful, but we also pay respects to those that have wilted throughout the year, regardless of which partner is at fault. Lil Baby's new video for "Close Friends," ironically released the day before the anti-single holiday, is about just that – a toxic relationship spurred in luxury and fatally wounded by infidelity. Check out the bleak video below.
Things start off nice enough; Lil Baby and his girlfriend, Jayda Cheaves, dine in Paris under the Eiffel Tower and a sea of shimmering stars. Their smiles become the viewer's over time, staying even after they transition from the dining table to the bedroom. Instead of a steamy sexual encounter, we follow these smiles as they become grander, escalating to wide-eyed grins as the blossoming lovers become enraptured in each other's very presence. Reality quickly sets in over the course of a couple frames; what we've seen is Lil Baby's memory of better times. Now, he's miserable, getting screamed at by Cheaves until her face is blue. Her hands point and prod at his cheeks as he glances off the frustration because, as the song reveals, the situation is his fault. The song and video end in sorrow, with Lil Baby hoping that things can return to the way that they were.
While the video for "Close Friends" is about as close of a middle finger to Valentine's Day as ever, Lil Baby actually isn't the Ebenezer Scrooge of the holiday. The rapper is wrapping up a contest for special women to receive a complimentary dinner at restaurants in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and Atlanta. Check here for more details about Lil Baby's attempt at holiday spirit.
"Close Friends" appears on his 2018 collaboration with Gunna, Drip Harder. In March, he'll be embarking on a trek across the United States with City Girls, Blueface, among others, for the New Generation Tour. A few weeks ago, he dropped the video for "Global" from his 2018 EP Street Gossip.