Lily Allen's music video for "The Fear" depicts her leaving a pastoral caravan setting and entering an elaborate mansion representing a lavish lifestyle. Within the mansion, she encounters fanciful elements like ballet-dancing butlers and pastel-colored presents spinning around randomly. Allen appears in control as she exits the mansion, rejecting the unrealistic "fantasy" environment. The video portrays a change in Allen's image from her earlier work by presenting her in a more innocent and feminine way compared to previous portrayals emphasizing a "chav" stereotype.

1. Rosie Burns
Lily Allen – The Fear
“The fear” was one of the first tracks to be released on Lily Allen‟s latest album „It’s Not Me,
It’s You’. The song was released digitally on the 9th
December 2008 and released on CD on
the 26th
January 2009.
The music video starts off with a low angle on a tree and the diegetic sound of birds. The
non-diegetic music then begins as the camera pans across the trees and a large field to
show a mid shot of Lily Allen stood in the window of a pastel coloured caravan. This
peaceful, natural setting is not typical of most Pop videos as they are generally set in a
studio. The unusual location immediately suggests
that perhaps she wants to be portrayed in a different,
more realistic light. However, as her lyrics begin with “I
wanna be rich and I want lots of money” it is clear that
the setting represents how she doesn‟t want to live.
As the music enhances, the clip cuts to a close up and
then a long shot of Lily stepping out of the caravan.
Here we see her wearing thick tights with a short black shift dress which has a printed
design of patterned shapes in different colours. A large black and white bow is attached
around the neckline and her hair is long and straight. Overall, her attire suggests innocence
and femininity unlike many female pop stars that usually portray more of a sexy, provocative
look.
The image that Lily is expressing in this video differs
dramatically from how she was presented in her first album
„Alright, Still’ which was released in July 2006. From the
image on the right you can see that the body language with
her hands on her hips suggests that she had more of a
fierce attitude. The large, gold heart shaped earrings along
with the chain and watch fit into the „chav‟ stereotype and
the graphics surrounding her suggest that she is releasing
rap music, not pop. The music video for „The Fear‟ is therefore used to promote her new
image as it was the first single to be released on her second album. Changing her image
means that there will be more interest in the album as it gives people something to talk
about.
The next part of the video shows Lily turn around and
walk back through the caravan door to find herself in
a large mansion style building. As the music
continues, the clip cuts to Birdseye view of a strip of
blue carpet with men either side dressed in a typical
butler‟s attire. The camera then tracks to follow her

2. walk along the carpet as the men begin to perform a ballet style dance. As she then gets
picked up and swirled around a point of view shot is used to show the impressive building.
This luxurious setting now fits in with where most pop videos are shot and acts as a „fantasy
land‟ for Lily.
The lyrics then stop for a few moments as the camera pans to show her walking up a large
stair case. It then cuts to a mid shot as she is seated at a cream dressing table with large
mirrors so that we can see her reflection. The clip then cuts to a long shot as we see a
typical girly setting with large lamp shades either
side of the dresser, candles made from clear
crystal, a clothing rack with brightly coloured
garments on and cupcakes. This fantasy setting
appeals to the target audience of young females
who listen to Lily Allen‟s music because of the
use of materialistic elements and feminine
colours.
These elements however are fairly random and it is hard to follow any sort of narrative
because we are unsure of what „the fear‟ is and whether it relates to herself or someone
else. This is fairly typical of most pop songs as they are often unserious and don‟t have
much meaning behind them.
The camera then tracks to show Lily walk into
another room which has a black and white
checker floor and is surrounded by a number of
large pastel coloured „presents‟ with ribbons tied
around them. Simple cuts are then continuously
used from different angles to show her leaning
against one of the presents. This gives the video
a sort of „Alice and Wonderland‟ fairytale feel as
it is a random, unrealistic situation. As Lily stands up the music enhances and the „presents‟
begin to move and spin around the room as her lyrics state “I don‟t know what‟s right and
what‟s real anymore”. The fast movement therefore relates to the lyrics as she is unaware of
what‟s happening. High angles are then used to show the „presents‟ spinning around her,
making it look like some sort of illusion. This again distorts what the true meaning of the
song is about and whether the video helps us to follow the narrative.
As she walks out of this room, the camera
tracks backwards to show her push the
presents away from her. At this point she
looks fierce and very much in control.
Perhaps she is fed up with the „fantasy‟ life
style and just wants to leave. We then see a
long shot of her walk back down the carpet
where the butlers are and leave the
mansion through the front door. The pace of the non-diegetic music then slows down as a
close up is used to show her walking away from the building; perhaps this is to signify a
change in narrative. The music however enhances once again as the low angle shows her
walking down some steps, making her look dominant. It then cuts to „dancing balloons‟ along

3. with the butlers and brightly coloured smoke arises from the ground. Lily however stays in
control and walks through all of the chaos with aggressive body language. As the lyrics stop,
she stands still and the camera begins to zoom out and then gradually fade to show a high
angle of the large mansion and „fuss‟ that still surrounds it.