I’m starting with the man in the mirror,” Lil Wayne says in his new ‘Mirror’ video with Bruno Mars. “MJ taught me that.

The video opens with close ups of a shirtless, venting Weezy, but focuses mainly on his numerous tattoos and symbolic red bandanna. Eventually the shot pans out and you see ladders, red and black paint and simple lighting. The juxtaposition of Wayne’s body art with the painting motif is an effective one.

Bruno Mars makes his appearance in the choruses and never appears in the same frame as Wayne. It’s unclear whether this was an artistic decision or due to a scheduling issue, but it doesn’t detriment the clip at all. Unfortunately for the ladies, Mars is fully clothed, from head (donning his signature fedora) to toe. Eventually his hands are covered in red and black paint, as he and Weezy separately strew it all over the place, resulting in a red, black and deep burgundy Jackson Pollock-esque mess on the floor.

Zooming in once more on Weezy, the camera focuses on his tear drop tats and the scar on his back. A bit later, he drops the bandanna. While there’s a lot of loaded imagery here, it seems the main theme is symbolic of leaving his past behind and moving forward to create art.

Eventually we see the end result of Mars and Wayne’s sprays and splashes: a darkly gorgeous mural, representing the masterpieces one can make if we learn to simultaneously embrace and move forward from his or her past.

Watch Lil Wayne ‘Mirror’ Video Feat. Bruno Mars

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