Still DRE - Dr. Dre Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground By Saeed Moulai, for Year 13 A2 Media

1. Goodwin’s Theory applied to
three music videos
Saeed Moulai

2. 3 Music Videos
• Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• Dr Dre – Still Dre
• Bon Jovi – Livin’ On A Prayer
Goodwin’s Theory
Goodwin's theory states that there are six main conventions to a
music video. These conventions are a thought beat, a link between
audio and visual, star image, technical aspects to a music video
and narrative and performance.

3. Thought Beat

4. Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• Girls Aloud's Sound Of The Underground uses a
good range of aspects of thought beat.
• Firstly, during choruses the use of layering of
voices is applied, especially to Cheryl's which ties
in with Star Image.
• The song is describing a party of the “sound of
the underground”. This ties in well because of the
tone of voices used and the way in which the
song is sung, its hectic and fast paced which is
much like a party.

5. Dr Dre – Still Dre
• This song has a constant beat throughout the whole
song, although it is taken up and down a notch at
certain points the tune is quite constant. This creates a
good beat for the rap and for dance moves.
• The song includes layering during the chorus which
gives a greater and makes the lyrics stand out more.
• The tone of Dre’s voice fits in well with his star image
as well as the visuals that are being presented in the
video

6. Bon Jovi – Livin On A Prayer
• There are three members of the
band who sing, and in chorus’ there
is using of layering to give it a bigger
and more powerful effect
• The use of holding words for
prolonged periods is a trademark of
Bon Jovi and links in with their
recognisable look and star image
• The tone of the bands members
voices fit in well with the look as
well as the meaning of the lyrics
that are being sung
• Cut to beat adds a bigger effect
which is looked for

7. Relation Between Music and Visuals

8. Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• There is a strong relation between the lyrics
and visuals here, in fact the name of the
song is the “sound of the underground” and
they are seemingly filming the music video
underground which links well.
• There is a part where the lyrics are “the girls
get down to the sound of the radio” and it
shows all five members of the band dancing
• Another example of the link between visuals
and lyrics is where the lyrics are “disco
dancing with the lights down low, beats are
pumping on my stereo” and whilst those
lyrics are being sung the camera focuses on
both the flashing lights and the band that is
playing which links in with the “beats on my
stereo”.

9. Dr Dre – Still Dre
• I think that the relation between lyrics and visuals in this video are
strong. This can be seen from the first 5 seconds where the lyrics go
“It’s Snoop D.O.G.G and Dre” and at the same time a shot of Dre
and Snoop Dogg sitting in a car together comes on the screen.
• Another example of the strong relationship between visuals and
lyrics are when Dre raps “And I’m still on the block” and at the same
time there is a crane shot of Dre riding around a block of
apartments in a car.
• A third example to reinforce this is when the lyrics go “Still hitting
them corners in them lo-lo's, girl” and there is a shot of two women
dressed in bikinis on the back of a car. This shot showcases Laura
Mulvey’s theory of Male Gaze.

10. Bon Jovi – Livin On A Prayer
• This is a performance music video, so there is no
narrative between the lyrics and visuals, so for that
reason there is no obvious link between them, unlike
others with narratives
• There is some link between them though, for example,
when the lyrics read “We’ve got to hold on to what
we’ve got” the band members grab and embrace each
other implying they’re ‘holding on to what they’ve got’.
There are many other examples of subliminal links
between lyrics and visuals in these videos

11. Star Image

12. Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• Although there are 5 singers in Girls Aloud the main one is Cheryl Cole.
She is the star of this band in its clear to see in the music video, here are
a few examples of how she can be portrayed as the main singer. Here we
can see that she is in the middle of the two being the centre of attention,
and here is a shot of her on her own, which is frequent throughout the
music video, she gets more camera time than any of the others.
• Girls Aloud are stereotypically feminine, and this can be seen through the
use of costume. They are all wearing typically female clothing with the
colour pink, which is a stereotype that Girls Aloud have conformed to,
this is part of their star image and what has made them so successful.

13. Dr Dre – Still Dre
• Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg are both
stereotyped as gangsters and pimps. This
video matches the stereotype through
the use of costume, they're dressed in
sports tracksuits and dark clothing, as
well as the use of dark and neon lighting.
Conforming to this stereotype has made
their fans enjoy the music more and
making Dre and Snoop Dogg more
identifiable and recognised.
• This music is aged at young people and
this can be seen through the use of
background actors who are actually part
of the target audience, this makes it
relevant to the audience.

14. Bon Jovi – Livin On A Prayer
• Bon Jovi clearly have a very strong star image,
they are still to this day one of the most
recognisable bands around. Their star image is
recognisable in many ways, firstly just through
the sheer use of crazy hair, crazy costumes and
crazy make up. This isn't even to mention their
distinct recognisable voice and style of music,
which fits in perfectly with their costume and
look.
• The lyrics of this stereotype also live up to this,
and many other things link in and match the
stereotype and star image that Bon Jovi are
trying to give off. By having this stereotype it
makes them more recognisable and therefore
popular, making them more successful.

15. Narrative And Performance

16. Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• This video is solely a performance video, and it conforms to
Goodwin’s theory due to the fact that all 5 band members
are not only featuring in the video but they are performing
in the video too. Goodwin says that by doing this it
promotes the band and people would want to watch their
live performances, as well as giving a special connection
between the performer and the fans.
• The use of miming is also frequent throughout the video,
and this adds onto the point of making the video look like a
real performance, miming is one of the most common
tactics used when performing in a music video

17. Dr Dre – Still Dre
• Most of this video is performance by showing Dr Dre
and Snoop Dogg rapping in random locations.
• The video contains no real narrative theory but has
elements of narrative because it shows them driving
around in what seems to be a slight chronological
order.
• Use of props to portray star image is frequently used in
this music video, including the use of cars and
apartments.

18. Bon Jovi – Livin On A Prayer
• There is very little to no narrative in this video, but the
lyrics do tell a story which shows aspects of narrative
throughout the video as previously mentioned.
• Most of the video is performance based and it even
shows the band warming up and getting ready which
makes the audience feel closer to the stars as well as
making them want to see them live.
• The use of props and mise-en-scene in this video link in
well with the characters star image and persona that
they are trying to portray

19. Technical Aspects Of Music Videos

20. Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground
• One way in which technical aspects are used in this video is through the use of
slow motion, this links in with Laura Mulvey’s male gaze
• The band can be seen dancing in time with the music and dancing together, this
creates a sense of togetherness in the band and creates an effect.
• The song has lots of beats and drops which has created opportunities for the
visual image to cut when the beat drops, this creates a professional look.
• There is a black, white, and pink colour scheme throughout the video, this can
be seen through the use of costume, make up, lighting and camera angles.

21. Dr Dre – Still Dre
• Constantly throughout the song there is a cut to when the beat
changes, which is frequent throughout rap videos with a heavy beat
like this.
• There is strong evidence that Mulvey’s male gaze theory exists in
this video. This can be seen on many occasions when women are
almost being objectified and presented like an asset through the
video, these visuals also match lyrics which talk about females in
this way. The women in this music video are also dressed in minimal
clothing and the use of shots focus on the woman’s curves and
breasts which is also a common trend in Mulvey’s theory.

22. Bon Jovi – Livin On A Prayer
• There is a use of ropes and
strings which propel the lead
singer above and into the
audience, this creates a big effect
and was seen as very impressive
back when this music video was
shot in the 1980s, this absurd
daredevil antics link in well with
the star image and persona the
band try to give off
• To add to the effect through the
use of editing the shots cut to
beat and there are many low
angle shots which portray the
band as powerful and successful.