'A Beautiful Mine,' by RJD2

It's a 'Volare' kind of world, the libertine yet weirdly repressed early-1960s ad agency in the critical hit show 'Mad Men,' back for its second season. Rampant smoking, shtupping and three-martini lunches make it abundantly clear we're being ushered into an entirely different era. Yet 'A Beautiful Mine,' the beats-and-strings RJD2 snippet that accompanies the show's opening title sequence, roots us squarely in the present day, when all that suppressed psychological baggage can be viewed through our latter-day dysfunctionality X-ray machines.

Post hip-hop troubadour RJD2 teamed with dance and media artist Bill Shannon for the 'Work It Out' video. Shannon, born with a degenerative hip condition, developed a way to express himself through dance (and even skateboarding) on crutches. Director Joey Garfield took to the streets of New York and captured one continuous shot of Shannon, injecting RJD2 into random roles throughout the video.

Keep reading to see a behind-the-scenes clip and photos from the shoot.

'Ghostwriter,' RJD2
From 2002's 'Dead Ringer'

I love coincidences. To me, they're just a quick shout out from the cosmos saying that you're in the right place at the right time. So imagine: It's September 2004. My then-boyfriend had just made me a mix CD. 'Ghostwriter' was track six. We were on our way to the movies to see 'Wimbledon' (no, I'm not ashamed to admit it), and I turned to him and said something about how amazing it is. He nodded and we drove on in silence with the windows down, just enjoying the building horns and zigzagging grooves.

Here's every free MP3 we posted this week. Pack up your iPod for the long weekend!

• Field Music, 'Closer at Hand' [Download]


• Harlem Shakes, 'Old Flames' [Download]


• Antibalas, 'I.C.E.' [Download]


• Cortney Tidwell, 'Eyes Are at the Billions' [Download]


• RJD2, 'Beyond the Beyond' [Download]


• RJD2, 'Get It' [Download]


• Cloud Cult, 'Take Your Medicine' [Download]


• Lusine, 'Still Frame' [Download]

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