Three potential songs

These are three songs that we think we could make music videos for. They are all concept based which is what my group was looking for. By listing the pros and cons for the songs it has made it easier when making our final decision. This piece of work has been completed by me. 

Song choice 1 – Frank Ocean: Lost

PROS	CONS
The lyrics have meaning and a story behind them, this would make it a lot easier to make a video for it.	There is some inappropriate language in the song and it is also quite slow paced. This could make it harder to make a video.

Song choice 2 – Jaden Smith: Hello

PROS	CONS
This song has a really good beat to it which makes it easier to make a music video, the chorus is also very catchy, and it is a song that a large audience would enjoy. There is also no swearing.	This song is quite slow which could make it more challenging, the lyrics are also quite random which could make it harder to make a video.

Song choice 3 – Jaden smith: pumped up kicks

PROS	CONS
This song is very upbeat which could make it easier to think up ideas for the performance. It would be easier to film and edit and has a catchy chorus. This song would also attract a larger audience.	The rapping part of this song is quite fast which could make it harder for the person performing. It also has random lyrics which could make It harder to think of ideas.

Representation analysis

I have completed an analysis of 50 cents music video to Candy shop. I have spoke mostly about representations in the music video and what they are. By doing this I can start to think about how I want to represent the actors in my music video. 




50 Cent Music Video Analysis

Watch the 50 Cent video ‘Candyshop’ and consider how the women/ men are being represented.

The men in 50 cents ‘candyshop’ video are represented in the typical way that most men are shown as in R&B videos in modern day society. The costumes the 50 cent is wearing is very typical, he is wearing oversized baggy clothing throughout the video. He is also wearing lots of big chains and rings which is meant to show that he obviously has money. This is typical for most music videos for rap music, the men are usually wearing lots of jewellery to represent the fact that they have money. The setting for the video which we see as soon as it starts is a big mansion which again is meant to symbolise how much money he has and how important he is. The women that surround 50 cent in the video is very stereotypical. In many music videos the male artist is surrounded by women, usually wearing minimal clothing. This sends out the message to the audience that if you have money then you will attract young and attractive women. Nearer to the end of the video we see a few more male characters in the house with the artist, they too are surrounded by young beautiful women. This is another convention of this genres video and is very stereotypical. Men are being represented as the dominant gender and the girls will do what they want for them because they have money.

Most of the close up shots we see in the video are focused mainly on 50 cents clothing, for example right at the beginning we see close ups of his trainers as he steps out of his car, this continues throughout the video to highlight the material things that the artist has to the audience. There are quite a few low angle shots where we see 50 cent standing above us, this shows him at being in control and in power, which supports the stereotype of men being the powerful gender.

This video does not contradict any of the typical conventions for representation of men in R&B music videos. It follows all of the conventions as aforementioned men wearing expensive clothes, being surrounded by attractive young women in seductive costumes and living in big expensive houses.

Narrative analysis

I have completed an analysis of Beyonce if i were a boy music video. I have spoke about the narrative and the different roles people play in the video. By doing this I can begin to think about my own music video and what I want the roles to be. 

Beyoncé – if I were a boy.

Beyoncé, the artist plays both the narrator and the protagonist in this video. She is singing the song and also playing the main character. The video portrays an objective character identity. This means that we only see one characters viewpoint and story is told. In this case we are seeing a women’s story and viewpoint on how she feel about her partner’s relationship with another women at work. Todarov’s theory cannot be applied to this video because it does not follow the three steps, although it does include the ‘disruption’ stage. The entire video shows the disruption of this relationship due to another women there is no equilibrium at the beginning or new equilibrium at the end which would have to be included if this video where to follow Todarov’s theory.

In this video I can identify the Hero, which is the protagonist in this case. There is also her partner who plays the villain. In this case you could say that there are ideological values being reinforced and also subverted. In the first half of the video the man is the one being loyal and cooking while his wife is out at work and at parties. This is subverting the stereotype that men are the dishonest one gender that is never loyal and ruins the relationships. In the second half of the video the roles switch and we see the women cooking for and being loyal to the husband which reinforces the stereotype that women are the trustworthy caring gender in relationships.

You can identify a few binary opposites in this video, the first one would obviously me man vs women, they are obviously against each other and are arguing over something. The second would be honesty vs dishonesty, the man is being dishonest and the women is the honest one, this binary opposite also identifies one of the central ideological messages and stereotypes in the video which is that men are dishonest in relationships and women are the more honest gender. Another binary opposite is strong vs weak but in an emotional sense. The women is obviously the more weak character in the video and the man is emotionally stronger than she is, this could also reinforce the stereotype that women are the weaker and more emotional sex. Committed vs disloyal is another opposite in the video, this is similar to honest vs dishonest. The man is portrayed as the dishonest person in the relationship which reinforces the stereotype that men are typically portrayed as the perpetrators of infidelity.

Barthes narrative code ‘’Cultural code’’ is in this video. The Cultural code is when the audience is supposed to know what is happening due to prior knowledge. So for example in this video the audience is supposed to follow what is happening because of the stereotypes of men being unfaithful and dishonest they should know that the video is based around him cheating on her even though we never actually do.

This music video follows a linear passage of time but the end of it is anachronic as we see a flash back to the start and the message behind the song and video then becomes clear to the audience.

Textual analysis

I have analysed Beyonce, Pretty hurts music video, I have looked at many things such as what the concept is behind the video, the message she is trying to get across and wether the lyrics match the video. This helps me understand what happens in the process of making a music video and what I will have to consider. 

Textual analysis – Beyonce, Pretty Hurts

The video that I am analyzing is Beyonce, Pretty hurts which was directed by Melina Matsoukas. This video is about the representation of women and how they can be pressured into looking ‘’perfect’’ in today's society. Beyonce shows this by acting as a women taking part in a beauty pageant. We see the character on stage pretending to be happy with herself but also when she is alone and feeling like she is under pressure.

The genre of the song is pop, the music video follows a lot of the typical conventions of pop music videos. Pop music videos usually have a link between the lyrics and visuals which this video does do. The editing usually matches the pace of the of song which this video does although this video does go against some of the conventions such as pop videos usually having bright lighting and being really positive, this video is portraying quite a negative message and the overall tone is not very happy so the lighting throughout is quite dull.

The lyrics and the video match this in this video. Beyonce is singing about how being pretty in today's society ‘’Hurts’’ which obviously links to the title of the song to. We see shots of Beyonce being measured and weighed in a studio along with many other girls, we then see her making herself sick, the lyrics also say ‘’ when your alone all by yourself, while your lying in your bed, reflection stares right into you, are you happy with yourself?’’ whilst she is singing these lyrics we see her alone in a hotel room wearing her pageant clothes and crown, the lyrics link to the visuals and we understand the message that she is trying to portray about girls not being happy with the way they are forced to look and that they are pretending and putting on a show, the lyrics ‘’you stripped away the masquerade, the illusion has been shed, are you happy with yourself’’ also show this.

The music has a mix of slow and fast pace, when the pace changes the video matches this. In the beginning of the video there is a beat in the music, the video has been edited so that when you hear the beat, there is a cut and we quickly switch to another shot. Also when Beyonce starts to sing faster the videos pace also gets faster. For example when Beyonce is getting to the end of the song and the song becomes much faster we see shots of her smashing up lots of trophies along with other shots which are also fast paced.

Beyonce is a very popular pop artist, she is an artist which many women look up to and see as an inspiration. The video for this song is very inspiring and portrays an extremely important message. Beyonce singing this song and making such an intense video will help to make it sell. She is being very brave and singing about an issue that many people go through and don’t talk about, this will intrigue the audience in to watching it. Beyonce does usually make good videos but this one is talking about a real issue which is going against what she usually does.

There is many parts of the video where the character is on sexual display and usually this would be done to attract the audience, both men and women because of how good the artist looks. In this case however when the artist is on sexual display it does relate to the lyrics and message of the song. The song as aforementioned is about girls feeling pressured in to looking good, so when Beyonce is wearing not many clothes, in this case she is highlighting how girls are ‘’meant’’ to look.

This video is performance and narrative based. We follow the ‘’narrative’’ of the artist taking part in beauty pageants and how she feels going through all of the preparation and how people expect her to look. We also have performance incorporated in to it, we see many different shots of Beyonce performing the song, for example on stage at the pagaent, when she is along in a hotel room and when she is looking in the mirror are just a few examples. The narrative and performance are equal so we see the artist singing and acting throughout the video. 

Andrew Goodwins conventions

These are the conventions of music videos that were made by Andrew Goodwin, these are all things that should be or are included in music videos to make them successful.

Codes and conventions

I have made a power point about the codes and conventions of music videos from different genres. This helps me because when it comes to me making my music video I know what the codes and conventions will be no matter what the genre is of the song I choose. 

Introduction;Brief and aims

The Brief: During this year my coursework requires me to create a promotion package for the release of an album and to include a music promo video.
Furthermore I will need to design a cover for its release as part of a digipak (CD/DVD package)
and a magazine advertisement for the digipak (CD/DVD package).


My aims: Whilst making the music video I am aiming to gain many skills in both editing and filming the video.
I want to make sure the video me and my group create looks as professional as possible.