2. Corinne Bailey Rae’s music background
• You’ll possibly know her or her tunes, but may well not..
• That’s because back in 2006 she was this rising star, full of promise and
excitement. That’s when she released this, which you probably do know:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjOhZZyn30k
• She was a bright young thing, like Kate Nash/Emile Sande, etc.
• Music was a hybrid of soul/pop, with a strong British vibe. She’s from
Leeds.
• Bailey Rae was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of
2006. She released her debut album, Corinne Bailey Rae, in February 2006,
and became the fourth female British act in history to have her first album
debut at number one.[In 2007, Bailey Rae was nominated for three
Grammy Awards and three Brit Awards, and won two MOBO Awards.
3. SO what happened to her? Where has she
been?
• In 2008, her husband died of an accidental overdose of methadone
and alcohol. It was totally unexpected, and it took her a long time to
emerge from the grieving process.
• She channelled her emotion into her music, and much of her work
has been influenced by this experience.
• Stop Where You Are was released in 2016 as a single from the album
‘The Heart Speaks in Whispers’.
4. Tender is the light that
shines on you
Gentle is the morning made
anew
Delicate, the grace we’ve
come into
My love
Wonder why you wish your
life away
Waiting for the perfect boat
to take
Waiting for the perfect wind
to sail away
Life’s shining around you
Don’t miss a day
If you’re caught up in the
chase
You hold your happiness
away from you
Everything glitters around
you
Don’t miss a day
The moon on the lake
The smell in the air when it
rains
The people you can share
with
The feeling you get when
you’re almost there
Stop where you are
Under fading stars
This is the world we’ve
made
There is no better place, it’s
true
Light a fire where you are
You can’t stop the wild wind
roaring
But you can stop my poor
heart from calling out
Light a fire where you are
Stop where you are
Under fading stars
This is the world we’ve made
There is no better place, it’s
true
Light a fire where you are
Stop where you are
Under fading stars
This is the world we’ve
made
There is no better place,
it’s true
Light a fire where you are
Underneath a blanket of
the cold
Lying in the dark, your
seed will grow
Miracles just like a winter
rose will be
Give up all the things you
can’t control
Still yourself and watch
them come and go
Wherever you are, you’ll
find you’re home at last
What expectations would you have from these lyrics?
5. This is what CBR said about the song on her
website when she released it:
Sometimes we hold our happiness away from ourselves because we’re
waiting for the perfect moment and we say, ‘When I get this job, I’ll be
happy. When I lose this weight, I’ll be happy. When I get a partner, I’ll
be happy. So I really wanted to write this song, which is about being in
the moment and being present, and stopping and ritualising the
moment, celebrating it. I love the image of being in darkness and
lighting a fire and saying, ‘Here we are together. This is life with all its
pain, all its agony, all its beauty, all of its joy. This is it, this is what we
have, this is the world that we’ve made!
"Stop Where You Are" is about being present, stopping and celebrating
what's happening right at this very moment.
6. The first time you watch this, make notes on
WHAT you see represented:
• DRCAGES
• The artist
• The setting
• The themes
• Intertextuality
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmFMwGycBd0
7. Now focus in on those representations, and try to
explore HOW the representation is being
constructed
• Make notes on mise en scene and camera first
• Then on the next viewing, note down editing and sound.
8. For each representation, you need to be able to
explain how it is reinforced by the media language
• Teenagers are represented as lonely/misunderstood figures
• The framing of the teenage girl 20 seconds in
• The wide angle shot enhances the ‘smallness’ of the teenager
• Makes her look overwhelmed and insignificant in the shot.
• Reinforced by her being left of the centre third
• Back to you, faceless.
• creates a sense of her being insignificant in the world – powerless, meaningless, voiceless.
(Why? What is CBR saying? Message?)
• BUT, jump cut brings her closer.
• Editing physically pulls you up and asks you to think again.
• Now a mid shot – facing you. Still off to the side, but hints that the representation
will change; her voice and status and importance will grow – she will fill the space
more. FWD to 3min52, and look at the change.
• WHY is this? What is CBR asking her audience to think about?
9. Ideally, you need to have a variety of
representations…
…each with Media Language to illustrate.
Group work:
- Class
- Gender
- Race
- Artist
- Setting
10. Create your presentation
• Pull together all your notes from your analysis of the video
• Remember to include background to the song etc.
• Embed the video
• Aim for a SLIDE FOR EACH REPRESENTATION with screen shots etc –
one or two examples for each category:
• Class, Age, Gender, Race, Artist, Setting
• For each representation remember to note down how the media
language helps convey the representation.
