25 best music video looks of the year (so far)

“Level Up” – Ciara

Who said you need costume change after costume change to make a good video? Okay, in an earlier entry I may have said “There can never be enough costume changes,” and that’s true. But there are exceptions to the rule. Sometimes, one simple look and killer choreography is enough to take your video from plain to iconic (just ask Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies”).

Ciara only wears one outfit in “Level Up,” but she slays so hard that we couldn’t not include her on this list. She rocks a simple bodysuit with “LEVEL UP” bedazzled on the front and thigh-high boots. Frankly, she doesn’t need anything else to slow her down. She throws us some high-intensity choreography for the entire video that seriously makes us catch our breaths, and we’re not even the ones dancing!

Ciara looks confident and badass, and so do all her dancers, who are in matching red cropped sweaters (which say “LEVEL UP,” of course) and track pants. Ciara doesn’t miss a beat as she shakes, does the splits, and gyrates with her girl gang. If she had any outfit changes, it would just distract from all that masterful choreo. If you’re owning the steps like these ladies are, you don’t need all that extra stuff!

It’s been a while since we’ve seen anything like this from Ciara, but we are here for it! If this is a preview of what else is to come from her new music, we are super excited to be slayed again and again.