Santi's Raw Dinner Visual Is A Cinematic Passage To The Dark Side

We are all aware of the importance visuals have to how we respond to a song, they often become clips we playback in our minds when listening to the audio of a particular song. Visuals are something that Santi, a rapidly rising afro-fusion artist, continues to do to a high standard alongside his talented production company 'Candles'. From his entrance into the music scene, Santi has continued to not only show his artistic prowess in a musical form but also as a visual director and screenwriter. His growth in music has allowed him to progressively explore more elaborate ideas from a visual standpoint.

Being an influential part in the outcome of his videos for songs such as Freaky, Rapid Fire, and Sparky, it is clear that Santi has a very intriguing perspective when it comes to his visual representation. These cinematic concepts, however, do seem to have a constant source of inspiration and reference, this is most evident in his visuals for songs such as Freaky and Rapid Fire which seem to have a dark mystic about them with highlights of beautiful cinematography and set/costume design. Santi's videos have been known to take direct inspiration from Nollywood horror films he watched growing up, he told ID;

"Being raised in a Nigerian household, watching movies was one of our main pastimes and over the years I started to develop a certain passion for horror flicks"

His visuals later hit a new plateau with the creation of his 'Sparky' video where he continued to take his ideas towards the direction of a Thiller. The visual has a somber storyline and Santi continued to show the realities of life in his surroundings while taking the viewer on a strange and twisted but beautiful ride. The music which acts as the soundtrack never fails to disappoint also.

Listen to Mandy and the Jungle here

Santi Is back with his latest visual supported by fellow rising star Kida Kudz titled 'Raw Dinner'. The song has been a fan favorite and it is only right that a haunting visual supports the eerie record with a smooth bounce. Santi makes Raw Dinner a short film, written and directed by himself with the help of the Candles team. Raw Dinner is an exhilarating visual, seemingly once again paying homage to Nollywood horror films, evident from the sound design to specific scenes that tell similar stories. The Raw Dinner visual seems to be another step toward Santi cementing himself as not only an artist to watch but a director with an impressive resume.

The film is divided into 6 chapters, the 4th chapter begins with a voice-over by Moyosore Briggs, the narrator's solemn tone adds another layer to the already uncomfortable but intriguing visual. Chapter 4 continues with one of the more shocking scenes in the film, establishing an old witch's domain as she stands by her boiling cauldron, she also keeps two young children by her side, bound by chains struggling to be free. These scenes begin to tie the narrative of the film together as the viewer is met with a bulletin board with a missing poster of a young boy. Shots of two separate scenes come thereafter, a young lady, seen in the very first scene, meets with the old witch. Meanwhile, Santi and his confidants seem to be deliberating on a plan to free the missing child.

Santi's co-star in the film, Deberechi, meets with the old witch in chapter 5. The witch then proceeds to tell her of the evil she sees within the actress, dressed in garments created by Nigerian designer Mowalola. Santi's co-star screams at the witch, rejecting her claims but then falls into the darkness. The final scene closes out the visual with Santi's verse, showcasing a certain beauty in darkness, which is a common theme in both Santi's music and his films.

Santi enters the last scene, dressed in a black hoodie much like the 'guardians of the darkness' that now surround Santi's former Allie, Debarachi, who is now the 'Queen' of the darkness. He rushes in swiftly but calmly to get to her but is quickly grasped by her guardians as he struggles for freedom. His anger continues to be expressed in his attempt to confront her. The guardians bring him to his knees as she caresses his face, with a burning rage in his facial expression. Shortly after, he is carried out as his one-time friend takes a seat on her throne of darkness.

Santi's film, Raw Dinner is a layered expression of human emotion, fantasy, and horror. The use of the song as a score to the film is also very well deconstructed to flow with the narrative of the visual. Raw Dinner is truly more than a music video, teaching lessons of betrayal and the power darkness can have on the purest of people, a scary but true concept. We look forward to more visual productions from Santi, scheduled to direct the new visual for Goldlink's 'U Say' featuring Jay Prince & Tyler the Creator

Watch the full video below now.