Analysis of the representation of American culture in music videos.

To compare how cultural identity is represented in music videos, two different music videos of
different cultures will be analyzed and compared in order to highlight how each portray their specific culture.

Jay Z's lyrics are what he is known and respected for in describing his portrayals of black life, the cultural identity for an African American. Him being an African American star who uses his music as a way of representing his cultural identity. This particular music video by Jay Z (99 Problems) highlights the everyday injustice that ruins the lives of several in the black community, he tells a story of life for a African American man. First of all, this culture is represented as being surrounded by racial injustice and police corruption, always questioned and stereotyped. For example Jay Z's lyrics show this :

This shows the stereotype put towards this culture, being young and black puts them into a category of disobeying the law and generally being up to no good for no particular reason. This shows how the culture is represented as not being taken seriously or being respected in any way but instead being stereotyped. Seeing as he was pulled over for driving 55mph in a 54mph zone this shows the discrimination put towards him which he uses as an example of one of the many incidents which occur on an everyday basis for the black community. The white community are therefore implying that due to the fact that it is an African-American man driving it is unsafe for him to be on the roads and are over cautious of him because of his race. Their culture is represented in this video as thought of being a threat and danger to society and not to be trusted.  In reference to Andrew Goodwin's media theory there is a relationship between lyrics and visuals in this particular scene as the artist is rapping the conversation which is shown to be taking place between him and the police officer. 

His '99 problems' refer to the fact that he has social and political problems and stereotypes facing the black community meaning he has no time for positive things such as romance, and highlights this by using the word bitch when referring to love and compassion. Therefore, the African- American culture is represented through Jay Z as expressing somewhat misogynistic language towards women, stating that it would be weak of him to succumb to women problems as it supposedly diminishes his manhood. Not only does he represent women as being weak and only a problem in someone's life but also he identify's the culture as being masculine and the 'tough guys'.



The representation of culture is shown to be facing poverty and racial discrimination. For example there is a close up of an innocent looking youth shown to have no prospects who soon turns to crime due to having a lack of opportunities. This is shown in the next shot as it shows him pulling the mask over his face which is heavily associated with crime.



The shots in this music video vary in their technique, there are several close up shots of individuals enabling the audience to develop a personal connection with them. Furthermore, establishing shots are used to feel a sense of the location, for example the guetto neighbourhood is strongly portrayed in this video. The shots are unsteady which create a sense of urgency as well as matching the fast pace of the beat, the audience are therefore engaged with the video due to so much that is going on.

References to African culture are displayed in this video, for instance there is a shot of a Native African man in tribal clothing dancing showing the roots of this culture, it then quickly cuts to a shot  of more contemporary street dancing performed by African people.This shows the vast modern change of this culture reflecting social and political influences.

The black community are represented as criminals as shown in this image from the music video, it's almost as if they are trying to kill racism, and instead of them being the criminals the other cultures are really what's wrong with the society.

Goodwin's theory is made evident in this video due to the voyeuristic treatment of the female body,  this already male orientated video includes close ups of women in bikinis focusing on their body parts. This exploits women in the video and represents them as simply being possessed by a man they are merely objects that a man can pick and choose when he wants. The lyrics also connect with the visuals as when the women are shown in the video he says "I got 99 problems but the bitch ain't one.." meaning that he is demeaning the women and showing them off to be a problem he doesn't have to deal with.

Criticisms facing this music video:

The representation of women is somewhat controversial in this video due to the misogynistic lyrics as well as the voyeuristic images objectifying women. Even Jay Z admitted in a recent book of his the extent to which he portrayed women as merely possessions:

 "Some [lyrics] become really profound when you see them in writing. Not 'Big Pimpin.' That's the exception.  It was like, I can't believe I said that. And kept saying it. What kind of animal would say this sort of thing? Reading it is really harsh."  


This video showed that young black men are discriminated as shown by the judgments that the police men of them stopping them for going 1mph over the speed limit. This shows that as young black men are at the bottom of the pecking order, black women therefore have less status and respect. Therefore, this music video represents women as weak and the voyeuristic shots of them give off the impression that the only thing that they are good for is there looks and physique, other than that they are merely a problem in a mans life.


The representation of African Americans in this music video contrasts to the representation shown in the music video by Leftfield, Africa Shox. This is due to the fact that although both the robotic black man in Africa Shox and Jay Z are shown as the victims in the video, Jay Z actually stands up for himself to an extent and rebels against the racial discrimination whereas in Africa Shox the protagonist looking out for help and slowly giving up due to the lack of compassion and respect given to him.

Bat for Lashes- What's a Girl To Do- Music video analysis-

The reason for choosing this specific music video to analyse was due to the connotations of the video and intertextual references shown throughout. The artist's stage name is 'Bat for Lashes' and is an English singer songwriter focusing predominately on the indie pop genre as well as aspects electronica and folk supposedly known as 'Folktronica'. First of all, in reference to Goodwin's theory this music video demonstrates the use of intertextual references to media texts. For example, after researching the importance of the masked men on the bikes in the background I have found the link between them and the horror film Donnie Darko. This film shows a troubled teenager who is plagued by a large threatening bunny rabbit who is believed to be a figment of his imagination. Therefore this is referenced in this video as the bunny is featured with the other masked creatures behind the girl until the chorus connoting that they are all part of her imagination and the different animals could reflect the range of emotions she could be feeling. For instance, the bunny rabbit representing her fear and angst and fact that her emotions may be torturing her which links to the feelings of manipulation of the protagonist in Donnie Darko.
                 In reference to Goodwin's media theory one could argue that there is actually a relationship between lyrics and visuals as in the lyrics of this music video she says "..and when your dreams are on the train to train wreck town..." the visuals being her on her bike travelling down a misty road and the dreams and imaginations of her are the masked creatures following her which pop out from behind her when the chorus begins. Another point of Andrew Goodwin's theory which is contradicted in this music video is the idea that 'There is frequent reference to notion of looking and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body'. This video first of all represents the artist in a different way, instead of her being provocatively dressed which is shown in videos of Beyonce- Single Ladies for example, she is instead shown looking rather girly and young instead of looking ahead of her years. Also, the camera focuses on her face rather than her body meaning that she may not be looked at in a sexual way like other artists. Another main factor of Goodwin's theory which is 'Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics' is made evident in this music video. For instance, the electronica/ dance genre is primarily represented through the bright lights shown in the distance in the forest as well as being on the bikes in the background. They represent the disco lights that would be expected to see at a club connoting the dance genre. Furthermore, close ups of the artist are shown in this video which is another point from Goodwin's theory, the artist is shown at the center of the mise-en-scene showing her importance to the video and to enable the audience to identify with her.


To some extent this video links to aspects of our idea for our own music video due to the fact that it highlights the dream like state that the girl is in conjuring up all of the creatures behind her who are literally and mentally following her which is also shown in our music video which connotes the imaginary world that the protagonist is trapped in- the 'wonderland'.

Also, in reference to the style of music for our music video this artist also uses a variety of instruments in her music meaning that the genre of this music is not completely defined like ours.

Props

Audience Research- Finding Acoustic/Folk

Audience research-finding acoustic on Prezi

First shoot

This is our raw footage which after feedback we have decided that it is in need for some improvement. For example we focused on too many long and mid shots which portray little style and are not interesting enough for our music video. Therefore, we need to focus on creating more extreme low angle tilts of the big buildings aswell as close ups and zooms on the protaginist enabling the audience to see her emotions. Furthermore, after hearing feedback from our teacher we have decided on some new urban looking locations for our main character to walk through, we especially need to create extreme low angle tilts of big industrial buildings, for examples high street shops.

Although there are areas of our first shoot that need improving we have decided to keep the shots where the protaginist is walking out of the underpass and up to the busy street showing cars and buildings. We will also keep the shots of the graffitti due to the fact that they are perfectas a cultural signifier to the urban locations of Britain. 

Location shots

Beginning shots.

This location which is the Plantation Gardens could potentially be used as the protagonists world- where she will wake up and explore as well as being followed by the masked creatures. It gives a 'wonderland' effect to it meaning that it links perfectly to the idea of our main character referencing to Alice in Wonderland.





Straus' theory of binary opposites will be reflected due to the juxtaposition of our locations for our video. The protagonist will begin in the plantation gardens which reflects the idea of  the wonderland due to it being an aesthetically pleasing location full of joy. This dream like location will contrast with the next location which will be the urban city, shots of graffiti on walls and a bleak atmosphere. Furthermore, the contrast between illusion and reality will be represented by the locations as well as the protagonist. This confusion between reality and illusion may lead the audience in questioning which is the reality and which is the illusion.

Storyboard ideas

 

Intertextual references- Alice in Wonderland

This particular clip is the first ever film version of  Lewis Carroll's tale 'Alice in Wonderland', it was filmed in 1903 and shows a perfect example of a silent film which links to the idea for our music video as we have chosen a track which is purely instrumental with no lyrics. As in our music video the main girl will be shown in Alice's style of costume lost in a whole new world it therefore links to this silent film which would work perfectly with instrumental music in the background. The flickered effect on this film is something that would be appealing to use in our music video due to the vintage and out dated feel of it.

This is a screen shot from our music video and shows how our character is influenced by Alice in Wonderland in her costume. Also the idea of their being a burst of colour in the opening to our music video is appealing due to it being aesthetically pleasing as well as drawing the audience's attraction to the character. Furthermore, beginning in black and white and then dissolving into a vivid image references to the oldest color film which dates back to 1901/1902.

The sepia effect is also interesting and could potentially be used in our music video signifying the dream like state that our main character (Annie) will be in. As in reference to this particular video we thought it would be interesting for the young girl in our video to be asleep on a field in one of the shots with the masked creatures looming over her.

Our idea of our main character being followed and taunted by the masked creatures contrasts with this short film as instead of following the creatures like Alice she is trying to get away from them.


The Wicker Man has been somewhat influential when planning our music video, this is due to the masked creatures shown left which we decided to include in our music video. They are interesting due to the fact that they can relate to being evil which links to the fact that they come from Pandora's box and can never be escaped from by the young girl.

Music Festivals

Music festivals have become increasingly popular over the last decade, some becoming more of a social event rather and others purely showing a specific genre of music. There are several reasons that explain the rising popularity of music festivals one being the increased size of media, as nowadays there are many music channels displaying new and old artists as well as websites which promote music. Also their is an increase in communication as social networks such as Facebook increase the popularity of music festivals as if one person went to Latitude for example they may post pictures or write about how great it was influencing others on Facebook to want to go too meaning communication is made easy and effective.
        Another reason why Festivals have become increasingly popular is due to the sense of belonging that someone may feel when attending a festival, being around others who also enjoy the same music and who may have the same image and outlook on life. Although this can be experienced at gigs, gigs don't last as long as a festival meaning that the enjoyment cannot last over a weekend and a variety of music cannot be experienced. Also what is so popular about a festival is the fact that it is like a mini camping holiday with a fun and relaxed vibe as well as a great way to spend time with your friends and meet new friends.  

        Marketing a festival via posters is vital in showing the particular vibe and genres of the festival, a few examples of festival posters promoting contrasting genres are these:

 Latitude: The Indie/alternative/acoustic/folk genre would be best fitting in summing up the music at Latitude, showing some well known artists and other not so well known meaning that it is has a less mainstream feel to it than other festivals. This festival is primitively advertising a fun packed weekend which is not only about the music but is also about the social side, camping with your friends as if you are on a mini holiday. As there is a lot to do at this festival, including watching comedy acts, poetry readings and even exercise classes this festival therefore it proves to be  'more than just a music festival'. Our target audience may attend this festival due to it's less mainstream genre of music showing many independent bands. Also this poster may appeal it's specific audience of due to it's vintage style theme maybe appealing to those with that particular style, people with creativity.




This poster of the Download festival completely contrasts Latitude in every way, the genre in particular and the overall vibe of the festival. Download is primarily advertising it's music as there is little on the poster about the location of the festival like Latitude but only about the big bands and singers who will be there. This poster is appealing to it's audience of metal fans as it's black and gothic style theme may relate to their overall image as well as showing the importance of the bands as it uses their particular font types so there importance stands out. 








The festival that our target audience could potentially go to is Green Man which is an Independent music festival held in Wales. First of all this festival is fitting to the genre of our music video therefore our target audience would like to go see music of that genre, which is folk/alternative/acoustic. This festival is interested in promoting new and upcoming artists which would be appealing to our audience who are interested in finding new music and supporting independent artists.Therefore, as Green man organises an unsigned band online competition online it therefore brings new music to the festival as well as a varied audience of different ages. Also, Green man's main offer isn't just it's music it also provides other entertainment so it would be suitable to our target audience due to the creative feel, as literature readings are shown as well as being able to take part in arts and crafts.


In comparison to the poster on the left which is from 2003's festival the current Green Man festival poster is first of all promoting the bigger artists with a bigger font. This contrasts to the older poster as instead all the artists are shown in pretty much the same size font indicating they are all of equal popularity. This also shows that the Green Man festival may have not been mainstream or popular enough back then to have mainstream artists play there.