Music Video
Released in early 2005, the song's video starts with two young boys, one who is white and one who is black, reading a book called "Toy Soldiers," which contains the lyrics of this song. It begins at the hospital where Eminem and other rappers are watching, in despair, the doctors trying to save Bugz. Then Eminem is seen in a series of scenes rapping the song in a deserted alleyway. Then, it goes through a series of scenes showing the various feuds mentioned in this song. They include seeing the news, rappers battling in studios, and street encounters. Near the end, Eminem stands shocked seeing the shooting of Bugz. It switches back to the hospital, where Bugz dies and finishes at his funeral, which has a choir in which the black kid and the white kid from the beginning sing. Cameo appearances in the video include 50 Cent, Luis Resto, Dr. Dre, Obie Trice, and D12. Deceased rappers 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Big L, and Bugz are also shown at the end of the music video to show the fatal consequences of rap wars.
Proof, who played Bugz in the video, would be shot and killed one year later in 2006.
Read more about this topic: Like Toy Soldiers
Famous quotes containing the words music and/or video:
“Your remark that clams will lie quiet if music be played to them, was superfluous—entirely superfluous.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)
“We attempt to remember our collective American childhood, the way it was, but what we often remember is a combination of real past, pieces reshaped by bitterness and love, and, of course, the video past—the portrayals of family life on such television programs as “Leave it to Beaver” and “Father Knows Best” and all the rest.”
—Richard Louv (20th century)