5 Genius “Verified” Videos to Watch Right Now
Pass the time by watching some of the most memorable Genius “Verified” videos of all time.
Written by Delaney Davis
Photo courtesy of Genius
It’s happened to all of us. You’re hanging out with a friend, singing along to one of your favorite jams, and suddenly, your friend gives you that face. It can only mean one thing — you’ve misheard one of the song’s lyrics.
If you often find yourself in this situation, don’t stress. Genius, a digital media company, invites artists to sit down and run through the lyrics of their songs in their “Verified” video series. In these videos, artists perform broken down, a capella versions of their songs and give you a peek at the inspirations behind different lyrics.
If you’ve never watched a Genius “Verified” video before, the age of social distancing and quarantine is the perfect time to start.
“G.O.A.T.” — Princess Nokia
In perhaps the most hilarious Genius “Verified” video of all time, New York rapper Princess Nokia runs through their song “G.O.A.T.” from their debut album 1992 Deluxe. The song’s lyrics perfectly embody the rapper’s aura of bravado and witchiness, especially in the lyric “I ain’t the best / But damn I’m the best / You might get hexed / Or you might get checked.” But, the absolute highlight of the video is 2:38 — yes, skip to it right now. Princess Nokia launches into a ridiculous monologue about their physical allure: “My small breasts. And my little frame. And my sweet, little girl voice. It exudes something in people that is extremely passionate and tantalizing. I swear to God all of your men fantasize about me and probably wonder what it is like to be with someone that is as small as I am.” Just fertile. Absolutely fertile.
“Rare” — Selena Gomez
In the next video on our list, Selena Gomez cements her spot as the most “chill” Genius “Verified” guest ever. The former Disney Channel star talks through her song “Rare,” the titular song of her third solo album. Emphasis on “talks through.” Instead of singing the song’s lyrics, Gomez opts to simply read through them instead. To be fair, Gomez isn’t the first to just speak her lyrics on the show, but she does have a uniquely “over-it” attitude. Throughout the entire video, you can’t help but think the star would rather be somewhere else. Still, we have the honor of watching her read the song’s most thought-provoking line, “Saw us getting older / Burning toast in the toaster.” Who cares if she just read through the lyrics? Such an intellectual, deep songwriter can do whatever she wants.
“Mooo!” — Doja Cat
Before she was creating TikTok anthems or getting dragged by the Queen of Brooklyn on Instagram live, Doja Cat first reached virality with her hit single “Mooo!” And with such a lyrically complex song, a Genius “Verified” was certainly in order. There is no better way to spend five minutes and 59 seconds than listening to Doja Cat sing, “Bitch, I’m a cow!” while eating a cheeseburger. Through her breakdown of the song, she lets us in on some of its more political aspects. “Got the methane / I’m a farter,” she explains, is obviously commentary on how cow farming is destroying the earth’s o-zone layer. Her jokes about vegans and nursery rhymes give an inside look at how she became one of the music industry’s most whimsical songwriters. The video is a must-watch.
“Did it Again” — Lil Tecca
This episode shows you that you can’t take what musicians say too seriously. Seventeen-year-old rapper Lil Tecca goes through the verses of his single “Did it Again,” from his debut mixtape We Love You Tecca, and the video soon takes a hilarious turn. Immediately after the lyrics “I got a pack / Hit ‘em and do it again / F--- it, I’m f---ing her friend,” he makes sure to set the record straight: “I have a girlfriend. I don’t have no young ladies. Don’t DM me. Y’all is dogs.” The contradictions continue. After rapping “I got bands / One day I’m flying to France / Juggin’ till a n---a land,” he follows with “Nah, I never went to France.” The funniest moment, though, is in the middle of the video, once he breaks down the lyrics “Took an L / I ain’t took one again / Crashed a Rari so I hopped in the Benz.” “I don’t even drive. I don’t even know how to drive,” he counters.
One Twitter user made a mashup of the funniest moments from this clip and Lil Tecca’s other Genius “Verified” feature on his smash hit-single, “Ransom.” Watch it now for an instant boost in serotonin.
Gabbie Hanna — “Monster”
Gabbie Hanna originally found internet fame on the now defunct video-sharing app Vine. Once the app shut down, she became a YouTuber and naturally started a singing career. Ironically, this video is a must-have for your queue not because of the video itself, but rather the memes that it inspired. While singing the lyrics, “So what if I’m the monster that’s been here all along,” the singer belts the word ‘monster’ very loudly and not quite in tune. The moment inspired an onslaught of memes that inserted a wide variety of funny sounds into the clip, including the Wii opening theme and Facetime loading sound. Hanna was a good sport though, explaining the reason for her vocal flub and reacting to the memes in a video uploaded to her channel.
Although everyone loves a good quaran-tunes playlist, sometimes you might prefer to find your favorite artists on screen instead of in your earbuds. Sit back, maybe take a note from Doja Cat and eat a cheeseburger, and add some Genius “Verified” videos to your queue.