In "Otis," the first video from the Kanye West and Jay-Z (a.k.a the Throne) joint album Watch the Throne, the two hip-hop moguls oversee some unconventional body work to what appears to be a brand-new Maybach: The German luxury car -- base sticker price approximately $373,000 for the cheapest model -- gets sliced and diced with a blowtorch and power saw. In the first 30 seconds of the clip, the automobile loses its roof and doors and gets remixed into an open-air Jeep-style vehicle perfect for joyriding around a parking lot with a quartet of young ladies in the back seat while fireworks blast off, which is exactly what Jay and Kanye proceed to do in the Spike Jonze-directed video.
MTV News asked an expert to appraise the cost of the damage (or improvements, depending on your take) to the car, and the price ranged from $20,000 for a quickie job -- just the welding and painting -- to $150,000 for a fully reinforced frame. Expensive? Sure, but Jay allegedy spent $250K on a bar tab last night, so it probably didn't break his bank. "The thing is, the value of that car is nothing now, you couldn't drive it on the street," DUB magazine's Myles Kovacs told MTV. "It would start malfunctioning bigtime."
Jay-Z and Kanye West are certainly presuming the car is worth far more than "nothing," however -- according to a note posted at the end of the video, they're planning to auction the Frankenbach off for charity: "The vehicle used in this video will be offered up for auction. Proceeds will be donated towards the East African drought disaster." AllHipHop confirmed the auction is legit with the rappers' reps. (The group's publicist hasn't yet responded to The Amp's request to confirm the Maybach is the real deal.) No word how or when the vehicle will be sold off, but potential buyers should presumably plan to host lavish Watch the Throne listening sessions in the car rather than go cruising in it.
See Also:
• Everything You Need to Know About Jay-Z and Kanye's #ThroneDay
• Who Would Boo Beyonce and Jay-Z?