Hype Williams facts for kids

Harold "Hype" Williams (born August 1, 1970) is a famous American director. He is known for making many popular music videos and films. He also works as a film producer and screenwriter.

Early Life and Creative Beginnings

Hype Williams was born on August 1, 1970, in Queens, New York City. His family background includes both African-American and Honduran roots. He went to Adelphi University to study.

Before becoming a director, Hype showed his artistic talent through graffiti. He would tag billboards and playgrounds with his special "HYPE" tag. Artists like Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat influenced his unique graffiti style.

His big chance came when he started working with Classic Concepts Video Productions. Lionel "Vid Kid" Martin and VJ Ralph McDaniels helped him get started. They created his first video company, called Filmmakers With Attitude (FWA).

Career Highlights

Hype Williams has had a very successful career. He is especially famous for his music videos. He has also directed movies and short films.

Award-Winning Music Videos

Hype Williams has won many awards for his amazing music videos. These awards show how talented he is as a director.

• In 1996, he won the Billboard Music Video Award for Best Director of the Year.
• He won the Jackson Limo Award in 1996 for Busta Rhymes' video "Woo Hah!! Got You All in Check". This was for Best Rap Video of the Year.
• In 1997, he received the NAACP Image Award. He also got the 8th annual Music Video Production Association Award for Black Music Achievement.
• The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video went to him in 1998. This was for Will Smith's hit song "Gettin' Jiggy wit It".
• In 1999, he won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Group Video for TLC's song "No Scrubs".
• He won the BET Award for Best Director in 2006. This was for Kanye West's video "Gold Digger".

In 2006, MTV honored Hype Williams with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. This special award celebrates his great achievements as a filmmaker.

Hype Williams has worked with many top music artists. He directed Kanye West's video for "Heartless" in 2008. He also directed Kanye's video "All of the Lights" in 2011. Kanye West has worked with Hype Williams more than any other artist. They have made 20 music videos together. Their first video was "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" in 2005. Busta Rhymes is another artist who has worked a lot with Hype. They have made 16 music videos together.

Films and Other Projects

In 1998, Hype Williams directed his first full-length movie, called Belly. It starred famous rappers Nas and DMX. The film was released by Artisan Entertainment.

After Belly, Williams signed a deal with New Line Cinema. This deal was to produce and direct more movies. He also worked on other projects. He was going to direct the Warner Bros. film Speed Racer in 2000, but he left the project. The film was later released in 2008 by The Wachowskis.

In 2010, Hype Williams wrote the short film Runaway. This film was directed by Kanye West.

Videography

See also

In Spanish: Hype Williams para niños