Microsoft finally pulled the plug on the Zune. While a pretty ambitious piece of hardware, it could never really get a foothold in a marketplace that was dominated by the ever-present Apple iPod. So while Bill Gates ponders the future of digital music for Microsoft, the company connects with the future of hip-hop music, Kendrick Lamar.

As a part of the Windows Me series, we get a snapshot of how technology informs Kendrick’s creative process. In the video, he collaborates with producer Nosaj Thing on “Cloud 10,” an addictively spacey digital dream sequence tempered with the Compton boy’s decidedly analog emotional gravitas. Creativity and technology: It’s what Hip-Hop’s all about.

Kendrick Lamar – “Cloud 10″ (Prod. By Nosaj Thing)