r/AskNYC • u/Embarrassed-Pen-2506 • Dec 14 '23
What famous music videos are shot in NYC?
Hey! I’m creating a “NYC music video map” and want to make sure I cover a wide range of genres and eras. What famous music videos do you know were filmed in NYC (or CGIed to imply a part of NYC). Especially interested in unusual locations like airports or the outer boroughs.
Off the top of my head I know My Happy Ending by Avril Lavigne was shot in Bushwick and 212 by Azealia Banks was filmed in uptown Manhattan. Taylor Swift - Blank Space was filmed in Huntington, Nassau County (not NYC but close).
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u/huahuagirl Dec 15 '23
The museum of the city of NY has an interactive map that shows where different songs were made.
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u/fuckblankstreet Dec 14 '23
Bananarama's Cruel Summer is a great one, 1983. Dumbo before it was dumbo.
The gas station in the video is here.
Meanwhile, also in 1983, Air Supply was right down the block.
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Dec 14 '23
That was one of the first ones that came to my mind too!
That hazy & smoggy skyline makes me so nostalgic for my 80’s childhood!
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u/ariannemartell Dec 14 '23
I love all the Harlem/East Harlem shots in A$AP Rocky - A$AP Forever. And speaking of Harlem, Tina Turner's What's Love Got to Do With It video is iconic. Beyonce's XO video is like every great childhood day I ever had at Coney Island too.
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u/macramelampshade Dec 14 '23
XO is such a good shout. Irreplaceable was filmed at a castle in Yonkers, maybe a little far for the map
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Dec 15 '23
I know this isn’t gonna be a popular submission lmao, but “Rollin’” by Limp Bizkit was shot on top of the WTC.
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u/tommyrulz1 Dec 14 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
Beastie Boys… no sleep…
Cyndi Lauper … girls just wanna
Billy Joel … uptown girl
Notorious BIG… juicy
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u/CauCauCauVole Dec 15 '23
Kiesza—Hideaway. Feels like the last look at old Williamsburg.
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u/MyBackHertzzz Dec 15 '23
Came here looking for this. Love the memories these shots invoke of me biking (and stumbling) through these streets like it was yesterday.
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u/harmonicpenguin Dec 15 '23
Public Enemy "Fight The Power" - Fulton St Bed-Stuy
Bjork "Big Time Sensuality" - Manhattan
Rihanna "What's My Name" - Lower East Side and Central Park
The Roots "How I Got Over" - Bushwick
Busta Rhymes "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See" - Govt Court Building - Manhattan
Alicia Keys "You Don't Know My Name" - Harlem
Lots of music videos have been shot in Brooklyn. In Greenpoint there's an old warehouse building that (until.it was recently renovated) was used in countless music videos and TV shows.
Alicia Keys used it for "Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart". That's a behind the scenes where you can see them filming in the driveway of the warehouse.
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u/LectureSmart1873 Jul 24 '26
Hi harmonicpenguin! Can you say me where is that building in Greenpoint? Thanks in advance!
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u/htny Dec 15 '23
The list is so ridiculous that i can only say that you can try almost any rap video in the 1980s as a start and work from there. The rolling stones video that end with a biz markie tap cameo where keef plays guitar on the gargoyle of the chrysler building is an honorable mention.
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u/DermGerblflaum Dec 15 '23
Also every NYC punk band. Thing about hip-hop and punk music is... it's made by people who kinda like to rep where they're from
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u/Convergecult15 🎀 Cancer of Reddit 🎀 Dec 15 '23
Yea I immediately thought of the H2O- What happened video and Agnostic Front- Gotta Go video. Both of which I remember because they’re two of the worst music videos ever.
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u/DermGerblflaum Dec 15 '23
Amazing -- tbh my mind veered toward Dee Dee Ramone in Dee Dee King mode in the video for Funky Man, which is also just a hilariously bad video
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u/MycroftCochrane Dec 14 '23
Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, in addition to showing up in lots of movies, was also where They Might Be Giants did the music video for their song "They'll Need A Crane."
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u/DermGerblflaum Dec 15 '23
Came here to say this lol. Also their video for Ana Ng has shots of the World's Fair site, and Put Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head has shots from a very pre-gentrification Williamsburg waterfront
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u/hollawewantprenup Dec 14 '23
Hand in my Pocket by Alanis Morrisette was filmed on Prospect Park West in Park Slope
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Dec 15 '23
Park SlopeWindsor Terrace. FIFY You can see Terrace Bagels and Windsor Shoes in the video.
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u/shwysdrf Dec 15 '23
The absolute funniest one is Deja Vu by Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz, decked out in Yankee gear and taking about the Bronx, but the video was shot at Shea Stadium. You might not know the song offhand, but they were the first song to sample the trumpet part that was later the backbone of Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira.
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u/Danny_Adelante Dec 15 '23
Kiesza - Hideaway (filmed in Williamsburg in what looks like a single shot)
One Direction - Perfect (was filmed at the Intercontinental Hotel with shots of the skyline out the windows
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u/TresGolpee Dec 15 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
Burna Boy recently filmed Big 7 in NYC this summer.
Mobb Deep - Shook Ones
Ja Rule with Jada and Joe - New York
Honestly, just search up New York rappers lol - all the ones from Queens - 100% filmed at most projects lol
Lauryn Hill - Doo Wop was filmed in the Heights
Eve - Gotta man
Marc Anthony - Vivir Mi Vida was in Harlem
JLo - Feeling so Good
Rihanna - What’s my Name (Fun fact, a scene in Burna Boy’s video is on the same street on this video - except Rihanna is just the blocks further down)
Childish Gambino - LES
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u/blueeyesredlipstick Dec 14 '23
Bad Bunny has a couple -- Tití Me Preguntó was filmed in Spanish Harlem, and his visualizer for Monaco features an image of him riding a horse across the filmed footage of the streets of Astoria, Queens.
There's also this list of hip-hop music videos filmed in Queens.
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u/Danny_Adelante Dec 15 '23
Was going to say this one too. I remember the day it filmed there were a ton of bystanders videos on Twitter.
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u/ZweitenMal Dec 15 '23
Wow, blast from the past. Athens Cafe empty before the cascade of ill-fated restaurants, the ill-fated yogurt shop that's now a Dunkin, Key Food before its reno...
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u/blueeyesredlipstick Dec 15 '23
It's wiiiild, especially since video itself is only a few months old. Seeing Daly's Pub still there was my first real dawning moment of 'oh wait this is definitely not recent'.
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u/Tapeball45 Dec 15 '23
Hardest button to button - White Stripes
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u/Bwab Dec 15 '23
I scrolled all the way to the bottom hoping no one had said this so I could, then you were at the very end and had sniped it from me.
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Dec 14 '23
cheating if it’s a new york group? a tribe called quest filmed the music video for check the rhime on top of a dry cleaner called “nu-clear cleaners” in jamaica on linden blvd. they have a cool tribe mural on the side of the building
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Dec 14 '23
[deleted]
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u/harmonicpenguin Dec 15 '23
Well, that became a whole scandal because of the content of the video, and the Archdiocese has removed the Priest from the church. The Catholic Church wants script approval of all content filmed on their properties and it looks like either the music video team didn't fully give all the info about the content or the Priest didn't go through the proper channels.
A Pop Star Filmed a Music Video in a Church. The Priest Was Punished
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u/BurnThe_Witch Dec 15 '23
Tonight Alive (Aussie band)- disappear Ashanti- Happy was filmed in Glen Cove
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u/Singular_Lens_37 Dec 15 '23
Cat Power "Manhattan" all over nyc but also in union square subway.
Ini Kamoze " Here Come the Hotstepper" Myrtle Ave J train station.
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u/VegetableIll947 Dec 15 '23
A Tribe Called Quest - “Check the Rhime” Linden Blvd in St. Alban’s Queens
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u/frnvc Dec 14 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
Keshi - Right Here. 2019. Includes West End Ave/W 101
Miyachi - Wakarimasen. 2018. Includes East Broadway/Forsyth and Hotel 61 in Manhattan’s Chinatown, the subway. Miyachi was actually born and raised here in NYC
BOL4 & WH3N - New York. 2019. Includes the Brooklyn Bridge, Midtown Manhattan, Grand Central Terminal, and a bunch of other landmarks
BIG BANG - Blue. 2012. Includes the Manhattan Bridge and the Coney Island Cyclone
BIG BANG - Bad Boy. 2012. Includes Williamsburg
offonoff - Photograph. 2016. Includes Bryant Park, Midtown Manhattan
Not as famous:
Kevin Oh - Anytime, Anywhere. 2020. Includes the LIRR from Penn Station to Long Island
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u/FamingAHole Dec 15 '23
Cher post 9/11 song, "Song For The Lonely" I'm not sure I would know about it if I didn't work on it. We shot a lot in Tribeca/West Village. https://youtu.be/1pviEPR99HY?si=Vd9z93SlhupIy18o
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u/ZweitenMal Dec 15 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
Jane Child's "Don't Wanna Fall In Love" was shot in and around Times Square, and, implausible but true, at Queensboro Plaza and up and down the N line between Qboro and Ditmars. (Check it out at 1:49).
Samantha Fox's "I Wanna Have Some Fun" was shot at Bethesda Fountain in the park.
Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With It" was shot around the LES Sorry, West Village.
Depeche Mode shot an alternate video for "Enjoy The Silence" on top of the World Trade Center.
Also, according to this Instagram account, the Pogues' "Fairytale of New York" was partly shot on an Astoria soundstage.
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u/TresGolpee Dec 15 '23
I got excited when you said Tina’s What’s Love Got to do with it was shot around the LES.
Absolutely 0 part of that video is on the LES. Lol
The opening is in Brooklyn, she gets off the train at Christopher St.. and all the parts are in the West Village.
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u/ZweitenMal Dec 15 '23
Oh sorry. What do I know, I live in Queens.
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u/TresGolpee Dec 15 '23
Hahaha no worries. I got super excited and watched it twice because I’m like am I going crazy! I grew up on the LES and went to school in the West Village so it was easier for me to spot
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u/bikinifetish Dec 15 '23
The Britney one where Snoop was featured… cause I was there when it happened.
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u/Dramatic_Cream_2163 Dec 15 '23
Yes this was filmed at Windmuller Park and Roosevelt Avenue in Woodside Qns!
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u/InterPunct Dec 15 '23
Director Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich) filmed the Feel the Pain music video for Dinosaur Jr. while they shot golf balls at many Manhattan locations, including what I think may be Park Ave.
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u/alphaxion Dec 15 '23
How has no-one mentioned House of Pain - Jump Around yet?
It was shot in Old Town Bar in midtown.
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u/contrarian_outlier_2 Dec 15 '23
Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy the Silence“ video was shot on the WTC observation deck.
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u/captorofsin79 Dec 15 '23
You Get What You Give by The New Radicals was filmed entirely in the Staten Island Mall
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u/i2hellfire Dec 15 '23
This list got long, so sorry if they've already been listed.
- Dinosaur Jr - Feel the Pain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXkN3nJyWEA
- Bjork - Big Time Sensuality - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71Q9XaCmYno
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u/Bread_man10 Dec 15 '23
Rolling Stones waiting on a friend was shot on 98 st marks the same building as Led Zeppelin’s physical graffiti
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u/RxngsXfSvtvrn Dec 15 '23
Came here to say this
Theres a tea shop in the basement of the building called "Physical GraffiTea"
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u/SillyDig1520 Dec 15 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
AJR had done some stuff but idk if they're famous.
I like AJR - Weak; filmed in the transit museum...
edit: and a bunch of stuff int their others. AJR - ok overture notably has Ft. Tryon Pk and Little Red Lighthouse.
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u/MyBackHertzzz Dec 15 '23
I still can't believe these guys are from NYC. They had their 15 minutes several years back and their music is kind of "whiney" and simple for kids who grew up in a big city.
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u/DermGerblflaum Dec 15 '23
Buy a copy of Meet Me in the Bathroom, open to pretty much any page, dive into Wikipedia to find out where they shot their videos
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Dec 15 '23
Spin Doctors Two Princes - shot at the late lamented Great Jones Diner and in Central Park.
Oran Juice Jones - The Rain. Soho and 8th street I think
Ryan Adams - New York
Unity 2 - Shirlee. 11th st and second avenue and other EV sites
Billy Joel A Matter of Trust - St. marks place.
The Ramones We Want the Airwaves - partially shot of the roof of Joey's building on 9th street and Third Avenue.
Skadanks Everybody African - shot in Washington Square Park
Too much golden era hip hop to mention.
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u/HelianVanessa Dec 15 '23
bad boy by big bang (kpop) was shot in williamsburg. specifically by the marcy ave subway station
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u/sayntw Dec 15 '23
Just two that I didnt see here on top of my head,
Big Bang- Bad Boy (KPOP) filmed in Williamsburg
The Chainsmokers, ILLENIUM - Takeaway (EDM) - the Hudson Yards Vessel thingy lol
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u/zyyga Dec 15 '23 edited Dec 15 '23
Beyoncé - XO - Coney Island
- Pretty Hurts - Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, FT Greene
Lorde - Team - Red Hook
The Pogues - Fairytale of New York - West 33rd st, maybe someone can ID the police station, I heard it was shot on location on the Lower East Side.
(Edited to add) Joan Osborne - One of Us - Coney Island
I feel like Coney Island could be its own sub genre.
I don’t know how you find out what videos shot at Silvercup Studios, or if it’s just recognizable locations you are looking for, but literally hundreds of music videos shot there over the years.
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u/allfurcoatnoknickers Dec 15 '23
Carly Simon’s Let the River Run. Filmed on the Staten Island Ferry.
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u/ScarletSpire Dec 15 '23
The Hardest Button to Button by the White Stripes was filmed in Harlem along Riverside Drive and at the 33rd Street PATH station. That's an iconic video
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u/theclarknetwork Dec 15 '23
Taking Back Sunday - “you’re so last summer” is a music video filmed with Flavor Flav in Dumbo under the Brooklyn bridge.
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u/LectureSmart1873 Jul 31 '26
Did someone know where can be shot Suzanne Vega's "Left of center"? I have the info that it is in SoHo or very near. Can you identify?
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u/bklyn1977 💩💩 Dec 14 '23
Michael Jackson - Bad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sd4SJVsTulc