Video Killed the Radio Star

VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STARAN INTRODUCTION TO MUSIC VIDEO

A2 INDUCTION 2014

FOR YOUR A2 COURSEWORK YOU WILL PRODUCE:

A MEDIA PORTFOLIO, COMPROMISING A MAIN AND TWO ANCILLARY TEXTS 60 MARKS

RESEARCH AND PLANNING 20 MARKS

EVALUATION 20 MARKS

MAIN TASK

A PROMOTION PACKAGE FOR THE RELEASE OF AN ALBUM, TO INCLUDE:

A MUSIC PROMO VIDEO – 40 MARKS

PLUS:

A DIGIPAK CONSISTING OF AT LEAST SIX PANELS (CD PACKAGE) 10 MARKS

A MAGAZINE ADVERT FOR THE DIGIPAK (CD PACKAGE) 10 MARKS

YOU WILL THEN BE REQUIRED TO ANSWER TWO QUESTIONS IN YOUR 2015 EXAM ON YOUR COURSEWORK.

QUESTION 1A (25 MARKS) WILL FOCUS ON YOUR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT FROM AS TO A2. YOU HAVE ALREADY BEGUN PREPARATION FOR THIS DURING YOUR A2 INDUCTION LESSONS

QUESTION 1B (25 MARKS) WILL ASK YOU TO ANALYSE ONE OF YOUR PRODUCTS IN RELATION TO ONE OF THE FOLLOWING KEY CONCEPTS

NARRATIVE

AUDIENCE

GENRE

REPRESENTATION

MEDIA LANGUAGE

THE PURPOSE OF A MUSIC VIDEO

A music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music/song. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a [marketing] device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. Although the origins of music videos go back much further, they came into their own in the 1980s, when MTV based their format around the medium, and later with the launch of VH1. The term "music video" first came into popular usage in the early 1980s. Prior to that time, these works were described by various terms including "filmed insert", "promotional (promo) film", "promotional (promo) clip" or "film clip" (Wikipedia)

TASK 1

1. WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE MAJOR ELEMENTS OF AN ALBUM MARKETING CAMPAIGN (THE DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH A BAND/ARTISTS IDENTITY IS MEDIATED TO AN AUDIENCE)?

The major elements of an album marketing campaign, for me, are the way the band/artist dresses. Their style of dress reflects the type of music that they do. For example, Green Day have a punky look hence their genre of music will be rocky/punky. The style of the band/artist may dictate what audience they will receive. Another element would be how the band/artist portrays themselves as individuals and as a group. In most cases, the band/artists personality may dictate what audience they will receive; again their personalities and experiences will reflect the type of songs/music they will produce. Many will not want to listen to their music, due to the type of people they are.

2. WHERE HAVE YOU ENCOUNTERED THESE ELEMENTS IN YOUR DAILY LIFE?

I have encountered these elements in my daily life, by watching their interviews. From their interviews, you can have a good idea on what the band/artist is like and whether their music is worth listening to. How someone may dress can dictate what genre of music they listen to. For example, if someone is dressed in a punky/rocky style, they listen to that genre of music. Stereotypes play heavily in what I have encountered.

3. WHAT FACTORS MAKE YOU ‘LIKE’ A BAND AND THEREFORE DOWNLOAD THEIR MUSIC, BUY THEIR ALBUMS OR ATTEND THEIR CONCERTS? HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHICH BAND IS ‘COOL’ AND WHICH IS NOT?

The factors that make me ‘like’ a band is their personality. Their music/songs reflect their personal experiences, if they are likeable, and write about songs that are relevant; I will listen to their music and buy their album. If the band/artist receives respect for the music that they create, I will listen to their music, due to its respect.

WHAT MAKES THE MUSIC VIDEO UNIQUE?

A storyline of its own, is what makes a music video unique.

THE MUSIC VIDEO IS DESIGNED FOR MULTIPLE VIEWINGS; IT HAS TO BE INSTANTLY MEMORABLE YET INTERESTING ENOUGH TO WARRANT WATCHING AGAIN AND AGAIN. UNLIKE THE FILM TRAILER IT IS NOT DESIGNED TO BE VIEWED ON A LARGE SCREEN NOR IS ITS AUDIENCE CAPTIVE.

1. WHERE AND WHEN DO YOU WATCH MUSIC VIDEOS?

I watch music videos when I’m watching TV and happen to be on a music channel. I watch them in my home.

TASK 2

IN THE SPACE BELOW LIST AS MANY FEATURES/CONVENTIONS OF MUSIC VIDEOS THAT YOU CAN THINK OF.

Performance video. Narrative. Mixture of performance and narrative. Animation.

Seeing the instruments being played. A chorus/verse/bridge to the song and music video. Shots of the lead singer singing the lyrics. Repetition of shots and lyrics. Most shots are on the lead singer. Quick varied shots, close ups, mid shots, panning shot. Seeing the whole band/artist. The video and lyrics in songs have to be linked. Order with start, middle and ending to music video. Choreographed dance routine. Editing gives impression of jumping from scene to scene in video. The scenery gives the genre, style of mood of the song.

Illustration.

Amplification.

Disjuncture.

Analysing Music Videos :

1. Genre Categories:

Illustration – either a straightforward performance video or a simple narrative video (or mixture of the two) that illustrates the meaning of the lyrics and visualizes the music in a straightforward way. It could be called music video ‘denotation’. A good example of a classic mixed narrative/performance video is Pulp’s ‘Babies’.

Amplification – the conventions demonstrated by the music video ‘auteur’ or creative director. S/he may use both performance and narrative, however, rather than simply illustrate the lyrics or sounds this director will ‘amplify’ both with creative interpretation, unusual ideas and surrealistic approaches. There is still a direct link to the song, whether it be the beat, sound or ‘connotative’ link to part of the lyrics or song title. See Spike Jones’ video for Fat Boy Slim’s ‘Praise You’ or Michel Gondry’s video for Kylie Minogue’s ‘Come Into My Life’.

Disjuncture – also created by ‘auteur’ directors these videos are completely abstract and have no obvious link to the music, lyrics, song title or artist. In this sense they are a point of ‘disjuncture’ from the song. See Spike Jones’ video for Daft Punk’s ‘Da Funk’ or any Radiohead video.

2. The Narrative Video Codes and the Performance Video Codes:

Narrative Video:

Narratives are rarely complex for two reasons:

1. They need to market or advertise the band/artist and song so must feature ‘repeatability’ In other words the narrative code must be ‘loose’ or simply ‘suggestive’ rather than ‘realistic’ or ‘detailed’. This is because music video audiences need to be able to watch videos repeatedly and a tight realist narrative would prove too boring after the first couple of viewings. Musical Synaesthesia only requires the musical or lyrical ‘mood’ to latch onto to develop a narrative concept.

2. Musical Synaesthesia – the two elements of the song which determine the visual subject matter or overall concept

a) Roland Barthes theory of “the grain of voice” whereby the vocal sounds can be understood as music in themselves eg Michael Jackson’s ‘yelp’ or Fantasia’s ‘yeh, yeh, yeh..” or the tone of voice of the words which are the song title themselves e.g Bjork’s ‘It’s Oh So Quiet’

b) The dominant musical arrangement that dictates the overall mood. This could be a key guitar sound(the bassline in ‘Sabotage’ The Beastie Boys) or a particular beat (‘Weapon of Choice’ Fatboy Slim)

Once the director has identified what he/she thinks is the key vocal or musical element then this may be used to tap into the audience’s sense of shared cultural history or intertextuality e.g.

The steel guitar=the American Deep South and desert plains

A r’n’b beat or bass line=an urban environment

A group of choral voices=a place of religious significance e.g.: church or graveside etc.

Performance Video:

1. Conventions of the band performance : a degree of authenticity of the performance is sought by the band and the director so we find lip-sync close-up, mimed playing of instruments, repetition of chorus shots to enhance ‘repeatability’, unusual camera shots and angles e.g. the micro camera shots attached to the neck of a guitar, sweeping crane shots to film audience reaction to the band playing etc (see number 4)

2. Conventions of solo artist performance : many of the above plus choreographed dance routines to enhance ‘repeatability’, a first person mode of address directly engaging the viewer through the camera which involves many close up shots of eyes rolling and gesturing (see how these conventions have been adopted by ‘Pop Idol’ contestants in a bid to appear professional and authentic)and if the video is a hybrid form cutting between performance and narrative then the solo artist or band lead

singer often becomes part of the narrative story, acting as narrator and participant at the same time (see Jarvis Cocker in Pulp’s video for ‘Babies’)

3. Star Image – only 1 in 10 artists promoted by a major record company will actually make that company any substantial profit. This is why certain select profit making stars are manufactured, manipulated and marketed by the record label’s ‘artist and repertoire’ (A&R) division so aggressively. The star image of individuals such as Michael Jackson and Madonna through their videos is a vital component of this process. This is why we can identify the ‘meta-narrative’ of stars through their videos whereby the record label manipulates and changes the artist’s image with each new video release to increase sales, consolidate target audiences and broaden appeal to new fan bases. The best case studies are ‘Madonna’ and ‘Michael Jackson’. Trace their image manipulation through videos over the past 30 years.

3. Audio-Visual Technical Codes Needed for Analyzing a Music Video:

Speed is the Essence:

Camera Shots: jumping directly between long shots, close ups and extreme close ups. Primarily the close up on the singer’s face is the main generic convention for music videos. Also the extreme close up on the lips for lip synching.

Camera Movement: whip pans, fast dolly track shots and fast overhead crane shots to follow the running, walking or dancing of performers. Also fast vertical tilts and horizontal pans.

Editing: various terms: jump cutting, MTV style editing or montage editing. Creating the visually de-centred experience of ‘jumping’ from location to person to instrument without any normal narrative continuity. Instead it is often the beat or the rhythm of the track which provides the organising principle for editing movement. The editing moves so fast it creates the need for viewing ‘repeatedly’. There are exceptions though. Some ‘continuity editing’ used such as atmospheric ‘dissolve shots’ such as in Sinead O’Connor’s ‘Nothing Compare to You’

Post-production digital effects: see ‘i-movie’ for ‘split screens’ (see Michel Gondry’s video for Kylie Minogue’s ‘Come Into My World’ for split screens seamlessly ‘bled’ into each other)

‘colourisation’ ‘slow motion’ etc These are now conventional for music videos. Please look out for other innovative effects.

Lighting: Expressive lighting a key feature of music videos. Extreme artificial light to create the ‘bleaching’ effect on pop stars faces (making them seem ageless). Also the use of switching from colour to black & white or sepia to indicate a shift from chorus to verse. Also lighting effects such as strobes or flashing needs to be identified. This obviously links into the use of CGI in dance music videos to enhance the atmosphere.

Mise-en-scene: look for the overall artistic concept in a video. Is there a theme such as the historical period e.g. the sixties (Madonna’s ‘Beautiful Stranger’ with its intertextual link to the Austin Powers film) or the seventies (The Beastie Boys ‘Sabotage’ video which parodies the ‘Starsky & Hutch’ 70s TV Cop genre...also an intertextual link). Does the video’s mise en scene follow the need for authenticity in performance videos by using the concert hall or rehearsal studio setting. Or is there an intentional ‘parodic’ setting to exaggerate star image as in many rap and r&b videos with a focus on glamorous icons such as exotic locations, beautiful cocktail bars and stunning beachside houses with infinity pools (see Rick Ross ‘Here I Am’).

TASK 3

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF MUSIC VIDEOS

NAME OF TRACK: LOVERS ON THE SUN

ARTIST: DAVID GUETTA FEAT SAM MARTIN

FEATURES OBSERVATIONS EXAMPLES

GENRECHARACTERISTICS

EDM (ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC), POP

WILD WEST THEME

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LYRICS AND VISUALS?

ILLUSTRATION. ‘LOVERS ON THE SUN’ MID SHOT OF THE GIRL ON HORSE, GRABBING THE SUN AND PUTTING IT IN HER POCKET. THE GIRL IS ‘THE GOODS’ LOVE INTEREST.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MUSIC AND VISUALS?

AMPLIFICATION. THE PACE OF THE MUSIC VIDEO PICKS UP TOWARDS THE CHORUS AS THE BEAT REFLECTS THE URGENCY PORTRAYED THROUGH THE HORSES GALLOPING.CHASE SCENE BETWEEN VILLAIN AND GOOD.

ARE THERE CLOSE-UPS OF THE ARTIST AND STAR IMAGE MOTIFS?

‘THE SEXY’ AND ‘THE GOOD’ HOLD THE MOST TIME IN THE MUSIC VIDEO, INDICATING THAT THEY ARE THE MAIN STARS.

CLOSE UP OF THEIR EYES, SHOWING THE INTENSITY.

IS THERE REFERENCE TO THE NOTION OF LOOKING?

THE MALE GAZE TAKING HER TOP OF, BRA AND PANTS.

ARE THERE INTERTEXTUAL REFERENCES?

WILD WEST DUAL EYE CONTACT BETWEEN WHAT SEEMS TO BE FATHER AND DAUGHTER, FORESHADOWING A DUAL BETWEEN THE TWO.

AMBIENT SOUND OF CRICKETS AND SCENERY FROM A WILD WEST MOVIE.

IS THE VIDEO CATEGORY ILLUSTRATION, DISJUNCTURE OR AMPLIFICATION? HOW MUCH OF EACH?

MOSTLY DISJUNCTURE. HOWEVER IN THE CHORUS THEIR SEEMS TO BE ILLUSTRATION AND AMPLIFICATION. MOSTLY ‘LOVERS ON THE SUN’ AND REFLECTING THE BEAT OF THE SUN.

TASK 3




INDIE POP DANCING TO THE MUSICINSTRUMENTSEAST COAST


ILLUSTRATION-KARATE KID REFERENCE

ACTING AS A ‘HAPPY’ RELATIONSHIP WITH THE MALE SINGING THE CHORUS


AMPLIFICATION TAPPING TO THE BEATMALES SMUDGES LIPSTICK – METAPHOR IN RUINING THE RELATIONSHIP


STARS OF THE MUSIC VIDEOOBTAIN THE MOST SPOTLIGHT


MALE GAZE BRA AND PANTS


ROMANTICS STANDING OUTSIDE HER HOUSE IN THE RAIN


MOSTLY AMPLIFICATION AND ILLUSTRATION

NAME OF TRACK: CARRIED AWAY

ARTIST: PASSION POT

TASK 3


TEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF MUSIC VIDEOSNAME OF TRACK: BUDAPEST

ARTIST: GEORGE EZRA



FOLKBLUESROCK

ARTIST PLAYING A GUITARSIMPLE VIDEO


ILLUSTRATION SINGING/MIMING THE SONG

‘MY MANY ARTEFACTS’ SOMEONE IN THE CROWD IS HOLDING AN ANTIQUE VASE


AMPLIFICATION THE SOUND OF GUITARS, EZRA IS PLAYING THE GUITAR


IN A CROWD, THEY ARE ALL STOOD STILL AND HE IS THE ONLY ONE MOVING FREELY AND SINGING


NONE


HIGH SCHOOL MOVIE THE WHOLE CROWD COMING TOGETHER DUE TO ONE SONG/PERSON


THERE ARE ELEMENTS OF ALL THREE IN THE MUSIC VIDEO

ILLUSTRATION – ARTEFACTS, MIMING SONGAMPLIFICATION – STRUMMING THE GUITAR WHEN YOU CAN HEAR GUITARDISJUNCTURE – THE VIDEO AS A WHOLE

TASK 4 – ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS BELOW – THIS IS EXACTLY THE SORT OF THING YOU’LL NEED TO DO WHEN EVALUATING YOUR OWN COURSEWORK.

1. Why did you choose the text you are analysing? I chose the text because I like the song.

2. In what context did you encounter it? I just was listening to the radio and the song came on.

3. What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?

It didn’t have much influence on me, as the song was unique and stood out for me due to its simplicity.

4. Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text? The one instrument, guitar, playing suggests that is a folk’s genre as they are famous

for the music videos/songs to consist of guitars and the artist playing it in the video.5. To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?

This text matches the conventions of its genre; however it has implicated new ways in portraying it by involving a simple set and a crowd of people.

6. Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre? This text doesn’t depart from the convention of the genre.

7. What sort of audience did you feel that the video was aimed at (and how typical was this of the genre/style of music)?

I think that the type of audience this video was aimed at is 16-25 year olds. This is typical of this particular genre/style of music.

8. What sort of person does it assume you are? It assumed that I’m a person in the crowd, just blending it with everyone else.

9. What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity? From the class, it looks as if the crowd is waiting for a train, which consist of different

classes. Casual clothes, to formal attire. Also it suggests that they are 16-25 as they may be waiting to meet up with a friend or go to work. There are both genders and all ethnicities in this video, which suggests that everyone is equal.

10. What interests does it assume you have? The interests it assumes I have, is going about my daily life like a normal person. That

you can find a friend in the most peculiar places.11. What relevance does the text actually have for you?

It just shows that when you’ve spent as much time together, you will make friends and get to know people.

12. What knowledge does it take for granted? I don’t think it takes any knowledge for granted. The music video portrays different

aspect of everybody.13. To what extent do you resemble the 'ideal reader' that the video seeks to position

you as? I don’t think that I resemble the ‘ideal reader’, just someone who likes the song; so

therefore will watch the music video.

14. Are there any notable shifts in the video's style (and if so, what do they involve)? No, there aren’t.

15. What responses does the video seem to expect from you? Just that the video is portraying a normal crowd, where everyone blends it with each

other and we may not acknowledge each other. Only until we are put into a social gathering that expects us to socialise.

16. How open to negotiation is your response (are you invited, instructed or coerced to respond in particular ways)?

The negotiation in my response is that I think this music video in inviting.17. Is there any penalty for not responding in the expected ways?

No, this video doesn’t seem to give one if you don’t respond in the way they expect you. I don’t think there any specific expectations in how you respond to this music video.

18. To what extent do you find yourself 'reading against the grain' of the text and the genre?

I don’t find myself doing that at all. I just enjoy the song and music video along with it.19. How typical do you think this video is of Music Videos?

Not very. I think that every music video is different in many different ways. They will all receive a variety of criticism from a whole diverse range of people, as everyone is entitled to their own opinion and will react differently. They all have their own story to tell and can appeal to different types of people.

Documents

Video Killed the Radio Star