music video research for media coursework

1. MUSIC VIDEO RESEARCH
By Joe Newman

2. KENDRICK LAMAR - ‘ALRIGHT’

3. EXPLORE CAMERA
ANGLES, MISE-EN-SCENE,
LIGHTING, SHOT
DISTANCES, ETC.
 The lighting throughout the entirety of the music video is a
continuous contrast between black and white due to the songs
meaning of stating black people will be ‘alright’ against
discrimination. This resembles the on going rivalry between
policeman in America and its black citizens. At the end of the
video, this contrast is confirmed when Kendrick is shot by a police
officer. Additionally, the policeman is seen with a gun, yet he
doesn't actually use it to kill Kendrick, instead he shapes his hand
into a gun shape and 'shoots', suggesting that black people are
not even worth the bullets to be killed.
 Mise-en-scene includes objects like guns to represent the violence
between the police and black people. On one occasion, a gun is
used by a policeman to shoot a black man who was running away.
This clearly exemplifies the way police deal with problems in
America. Cars and money also present the luxury lifestyle a rapper
lives. Kendrick and the rest of the cast drive around recklessly
throwing money out of the windows in sport-like cars, showing
that they have too much money for their own good, allowing them
to just waste it by 'making it rain'.

4. EXPLORE CAMERA ANGLES,
MISE-EN-SCENE, LIGHTING,
SHOT DISTANCES, ETC.
 Shot distances vary a lot throughout this music
video. However, regardless of the shot distance, it
is done with a purpose. In this example, Kendrick
Lamar appears in a long shot where his entire body
is visible, as well as the main city of Los Angeles
(where he is from). This suggests that he is a God
like figure of LA as he watches over it from a
distance. At the same time, an extreme long shot is
used in relation to LA as it is in the far distance.
From this example, it is clear the director (Colin
Tilley) have manipulated shot distance in order to
portray specific meanings.
 A front focus shot is also used here. The focus is on
Kendrick Lamar's feet where it is obvious that he is
flying. Despite the lack of focus, you can clearly see
the man in the background reaching his arm out
trying to touch Lamar, suggesting that he is
superior, which is indicated by his flying. Yet again
this appears to show that the people of LA aspire
to be like Lamar. The use of this shot highlights his
importance and his uniqueness.

5. WHAT ARE THE
CONVENTIONS FOUND IN
THIS MUSIC VIDEO?
 Conventions found in this music video consist of a whole
group of people singing and dancing to the music. This is
a well known convention in rap music, thus 'Alright' is
conforming to the stereotype of rap music videos. It
displays a united community as they are all stood with
each other having a good time.
 Another convention is the appearance of police cars.
These are also common conventions in rappers music
videos due to their on going conflict with one another. It
is very well known that there is constant uproar in
America in relation to the police poorly treating black
people (hence why the video is in black and white). Also,
this convention helps the storyline progress as police
have a key role in this music video, seeing as a policeman
ends up killing Kendrick Lamar. Also, guns, cars and
money are included as part of the mise-en-scene. These
are very frequent conventions found in rapper music
videos.

6. HOW IS THE BAND/ARTIST
BEING REPRESENTED?
(DENOTATION AND
CONNOTATION) Kendrick Lamar is being positively presented as
a result of images showing his ability to fly and
how people look up at him. This illustrates how
they aspire to be like him. In relation to his God
like figure, they could be interpreted as his
disciples as they follow him. This idea arrives
from the connotations of him flying. Throughout
the video, people turn their heads to look at him
on several occasions. Based on this, it could be
argued that Kendrick Lamar plays the role of the
villain from Propp's theory as he is murdered by
the police (arguably the hero).

7. WHO IS THE AUDIENCE FOR THIS VIDEO?
The audience for this music video is likely to be for teenagers
and young adults (18-23 year olds). This is due to the mise-en-
scene of guns and violence, therefore it isn't suitable for child
viewing. Furthermore, Lamar is shot in 'Alright', which
highlights my point. His hip-hop genre of music also contains
multiple expletives and the use of racial insults. For this reason,
a mature age group is likely to be this songs audience.

8. WHAT GENRE IS THIS
MUSIC VIDEO? HOW IS
THIS SHOWN?
 This music video has the genre of hip-hop/rap.
This is shown due to Kendrick Lamar's way of
expressing his lyrics. In combination with all the
mise-en-scene, it is clear that the music video is
hip-hop as it conforms to all the stereotypes of a
black rappers music video. Evidence of this is
highlighted by the images already presented
above. Hip-hop is defined as music of US origin
featuring rap, and based on this definition,
'Alright' comes under the genre hip-hop.

9. WHAT FEATURES OF THE
SHOTS YOU HAVE CHOSEN
TO EXPLORE WILL YOU
USE/NOT USE IN YOUR
OWN VIDEO?
 We are likely to incorporate this shot because of its
diversity and its a wide shot so multiple aspects are
included in the shot. For this reason the shot is able to
display various different meanings and it offers a wider
range of things to look at, thus making the video even
more entertaining because it is very different to a usual
shot e.g. a close up. The shot shows silhouettes standing
on a police car with the sky and a bridge in the
background, which is quite a lot to take in.
 However, we are unlikely to use this type of shot due to
its pointlessness. It doesn't really convey much and it has
a short duration as well. Due to the darkness, it is difficult
to label the shot too.
 From this music video, we will deeply consider the dark
lighting portrayed in this video. This will help accurately
display the gloomy atmosphere we want to our video to
show. Also, we will consider including cars in our video as
this is a regular theme in hip-hop videos, making it
relevant to our video.

10. DRAKE – ‘CHILDS PLAY’

11. EXPLORE CAMERA ANGLES,
MISE-EN-SCENE, LIGHTING,
SHOT DISTANCES, ETC.
 The lighting in this music video is quite dark to begin
with where Drake and his girlfriend have their break up.
For this reason, it is interpreted that the lighting is
reflecting the atmosphere as a negative event occurs. His
face is in a worse light than hers, demonstrating that he
has done wrong and that he should be ashamed for his
actions. This dark lighting is consistent when Drake is on
set in the rest of the video, clearly showing a theme to
suggest that his unfaithfulness is routine. The dark
lighting further enables the video to subvert Vladimir
Propp's theory as Drake doesn't end up with the
'Princess' as she storms out.
 Mise-en-scene in this music video conforms to the
expectations of a hip-hop video as a result of all women
and money involved. Thus, the video is also conforming
to Laura Mulvey's theory of the 'Male Gaze' as the
women in this video are presented as passive objects of
men due to the location of multiple shots being in a strip
club. In addition, rappers often like to flaunt how much
money they possess, and Drake conforms to this via
mise-en-scene. Lots of alcohol is also present, another
prop that is consistently seen in this genres music video.

12. EXPLORE CAMERA ANGLES,
MISE-EN-SCENE, LIGHTING,
SHOT DISTANCES, ETC.
 Shot distances differ consistently throughout this video in
order to achieve a variety. The different shots allow more
mise-en-scene to be involved in the shot, depending on the
directors (Drake and Carlos 'Spiff TV' Suarez) intention. For
example, a long two shot is used in the restaurant to display
Drake and his girlfriend on two separate sides. For this
particular event of the video, this shot dominates it, which
emphasises the focus is on these two. Hence displaying that
this shot was incorporated for this specific reason. From this I
have learnt that long shots allow you to portray multiple
meanings and also have the ability to place emphasis if the
shot is consistent enough.
 Camera angles in 'Childs Play' provides a unique low angle
close up that is close in resemblance to an over the
shoulder/point-of-view shot to allow the audience to
experience what she is seeing too. This makes the audience
more involved and in addition, it is a different way to express
the story line. The Laura Mulvey concept could be
considered here too as this demonstrates how Drake has
been seeing other women, showing that he considers this
female as passive as he attempts to get away from the
consequence.

13. WHAT ARE THE
CONVENTIONS FOUND IN
THIS MUSIC VIDEO?
 Conventions in this music video consist of the inclusion
of a story line. Drakes girlfriend breaks up with him when
she discovers that he has cheated, then the story line
shifts to a strip club which is where we could perceive as
Drakes perceived preferred location as he doesn't appear
fazed by the break up. This story line thus conforms to
Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze concept, but diverts Propp's
theory that the hero gets the princess. Based on this,
another convention is how Drake is a stereotypical rapper
who has multiple women to turn to when in need and
that he does what he wants when he wants regardless of
other people's views.
 Yet again in a hip-hop video, the main artist (Drake)
appears singing whilst surrounded my a group of people.
This is an extremely frequent convention in music videos
in general and Drake conforms to this in Childs Play. It
also demonstrates how Drake is part of a group of
friends and that they're united in supporting and
enjoying his music.

14. HOW IS THE ARTIST/BAND
BEING PRESENTED?
(DENOTATION AND
CONNOTATION)
 Drake is being negatively presented in this
music video as it denotes him as someone who's
unfaithful. Furthermore, the large amounts of
money on screen connotes that he spends his
money on strippers, which is a bad
representation as this action dehumanises
women as you pay money to watch them.
Therefore, Drake is shown as untrue and
disrespectful, however some men aspire to have
their life surrounded by money and women.
Thus, some people will consider this a positive
representation.

15. WHO IS THE AUDIENCE
FOR THIS VIDEO?
 The audience for Childs Play is going to be male
young adults (18-23 years old) because of the
conventions included in the video e.g. naked
women. It is unlikely to have an adult to take an
interest in this music as they are generically
more old fashioned, and this genre of music
isn't. Moreover, it is illegal to be in a strip club
under the age of 18 and it would be
inappropriate for Drake to provide this insight to
a youthful age group.

16. WHAT GENRE IS THIS MUSIC VIDEO? HOW IS THIS SHOWN?
 The genre shown is hip-hop/rap. This is resembled via the stereotypes that
are consistent throughout most hip-hop videos including multiple women
being the focal point of several shots and that there is lots of money
present. We also know this because of the tempo of the lyrics sung by
Drake, it clearly shows rap music. Hip-hop consists of rap too with an
electronic background. Both these feature in Childs Play, clearly
highlighting the genre. Rap/hip-hop videos also include the convention of
a group of people singing and dancing to the song, which is presented in
Childs Play, providing another reason why the genre is hip-hop.

17. WHAT FEATURES OF THE
SHOTS YOU HAVE CHOSEN
TO EXPLORE WILL YOU
USE/NOT USE IN YOUR
OWN VIDEO?
 We are likely to use this type of shot because it enables
the audience to experience the events of the video in a
unique way rather than to just see things head on with
standard shots. A type of point-of-view shot allows the
audience to feel as if they are in the music video. Ideally,
this will enable them to develop an emotional
attachment to the characters and really feel engaged in
the story. As a result, the audience will have a more
positive experience and it offers something different to
the standard shots seen in many music videos.
 In addition, the idea of a tracking shot intrigues me
because it displays the actors mood as the events
progress. Yet again, this makes the video seem realistic
as it makes it seem as if the event is occurring as they are
watching it. This extracts more emotion from the
audience and is hence more entertaining. In this video, it
helps build tension too, so with inspiration from Childs
Play, hopefully we can pull off the same effect that this
had.

18. VINCE STAPLES – ‘SEÑORITA’

19. EXPLORE CAMERA ANGLES, MISE-
EN-SCENE, LIGHTING, SHOT
DISTANCES, ETC. Lighting is black and white throughout the whole music video, which in itself
exhibits a subdued atmosphere. It heavily effects the message being
portrayed as it makes the video seem more sinister and serious, especially
considering the content. This lighting restricts the director (Ian Pons Jewell)
from trying to portray anything via light as it is all the same. For this reason,
all the focus is now placed upon the actual actors and their actions.
 Mise-en-scene in Senorita is manipulated to intentionally make Staples seem
as if he is holy like. His initials appear to cover a book that could be
interpreted as the bible considering its structure. In addition, the people are
following the book whilst one man is holding it up. Once again, a holy
connotation is shown as these could be his disciples. Other mise-en-scene
consists of two women approaching Staples, however he ignores them. This
conforms to the Male Gaze concept and a stereotypical rappers attitude to
women; they are just possessions. Additionally, money is used in a position
where it isn't necessary, thus conforming to the stereotype that rappers have
too much money for their own good as the money is being wasted to part
someones toes.

20. EXPLORE CAMERA ANGLES,
MISE-EN-SCENE, LIGHTING,
SHOT DISTANCES, ETC.
 Shot distances in this music video are quite consistent as
they are very open so there are multiple things in the
background visible as well as the main focus in front of
the camera. The open background allows everything to
fit it into the shot. This provides the audience with more
to look at and consider, which is likely to make the video
more entertaining. It is crucial to have the right balance
too because if the shot is too far, everything is too small,
yet the director has perfected it as everything in the shot
is clearly visible.
 Camera angles use close ups in order to show what the
main focus is. This directs the audiences attention to
what the director believes is most important as close ups
place special emphasis. Also, close ups enable the
audience to see more emotion as their facial expressions
are clearly define on close ups/extreme close ups.
Overall, camera angles allow the viewer to become more
involved in the video.

21. WHAT ARE THE
CONVENTIONS FOUND IN
THIS MUSIC VIDEO?
 Conventions in this music video consist of how
women are incorporated as just an object to
Staples, hence conforming to Laura Mulvey's
narrative theory where women are merely just
passive objects. This convention is common in
hip-hop videos, so Staples is conforming to the
expectations of this type of genres music video.
 In addition, another convention is the inclusion
of a meaningful appearing book. Potentially, it
could be a bible and this would be another
theme that is quite consistent throughout hip-
hop videos seeing as many rappers are very
religious. This convention provides the video
with a deeper meaning due to the complexity of
religion.

22. HOW IS THE ARTIST/BAND
BEING PRESENTED?
(DENOTATION AND
CONNOTATION)
 Staples is presented as a holy figure as a result
of his initials appearing on that book. This is a
positive representation as he is portrayed as
someone who is looked up at by others,
connoting a Jesus/God-like figure. The people
following the book could also be his disciples,
displaying that he has support. However, these
people drop dead throughout the video,
suggesting that he is sacrificing them for his
own good, which is a negative aspect.
 Alternatively, as a result of Staples costume he
could be considered quite ordinary. He simply
wears a hoodie with a jacket, jeans and a
backpack, thus implying his appearance as a
college student. This denotation isn't negative,
yet it isn't extremely special or positive either.

23. WHO IS THE AUDIENCE FOR THIS VIDEO?
The audience for Senorita is likely to be teenagers and
young adults (17-23 year olds) due to Vince Staples usual
fan base and due to the actual genre. In addition, the
whole context of the video appears to be too serious and
mature for a youthful audience as the story line is quite
complex. A lot of Staples lyrics consist of expletives too,
making it inappropriate for youthful viewers. This is
applicable to almost all rappers and hip-hop artists.

24. WHAT GENRE IS THIS
MUSIC VIDEO? HOW IS
THIS SHOWN?
 The genre of this music video is hip-hop
because of the rap incorporated as well as the
electronic backing, which is the definition of hip-
hop. Also, women are consistently featuring in
hip-hop videos, so their appearance is an
indication of the genre via stereotype. Multiple
artists have tattoos too and the main actor in
this video is covered in them. This signifies that
the genre is hip-hop due to connotations.

25. WHAT FEATURES OF THE
SHOTS YOU HAVE CHOSEN
TO EXPLORE WILL YOU
USE/NOT USE IN YOUR
OWN VIDEO?
 A tracking shot is featured in this video and i
think this would be good for our music video
because it makes the audience feel more
involved and they can see the actors reaction as
the event occurs. Furthermore, tracking shots
make the video more fluent as it minimises the
amount of transitions used. This will also aid the
entertainment of the audience which is
obviously a positive.