During today's lesson, we finalised the brief we wanted to follow and the song we want to make a music video for. We decided we wanted to follow the brief of DJ magma as we thought it would be an exciting and challenging video and to make.
Our final song choice:
We listened to this song and as a group decided we would like to use this one as it was quite upbeat and from listening to it a couple of times we already had ideas running into our heads of what we would like to do within our music video.
The next step was to come up with a name for the artist we were going to be promoting, we chose to name the artist DJ DES.
By the end of the lesson, we had to create a mood board of the type of things we would like in our music video. We looked at influences, locations and costumes we would like.
During today's lesson we acted as the X factor. We looked at the different auditions form different age groups and people and judged on how we thought they would do in the market from their first audition as if we were professionals in the music industry. We were learning about Adorno and Horkheimer and how they adopted the term 'culture industry' to argue that the way in which cultural items were produced was analogous (comparable) to how other industries manufactured vast quantities of consumer goods. We used the X factor as a way to understand this term as much as possible. We learnt that the X factor is a capitalist show which changes the artist to get more money. It helped me understand a bit more about why Adorno and Horkheimer fought against the idea of the 'culture industry'. We learnt about the process that The X Factor takes people through and how they change them to fit in with what they want the artist to be like and so they fit in with the area of music that they want them to. This can be attached to how the 'culture industry' operated. Acting as judges in the X factor whilst looking at the unique auditions from each person made us realise how the X Factor changes all the contestants to how they want them to be after looking at the first auditions and seeing how the presvious winners turn out the same with similar types of songs, we also looked at examples of previous contestants that are now making songs in the music industry and are still making successes from being on the show.
The Brief 'You have been asked to devise and make a promotional music video for the new act detailed below. As a new act, the record label is keen that this first release appeal to a wide audience and establish an image that is both recognisably unique and appealing to their target audience. With this in mind, their first release will be a cover version and will be used as a platform for future original releases. The record label is happy for this release to be any of the three songs listed below and would like you to choose whichever one you can make a dynamic promo for, as the key thing is to get them exposed'.
The brief we have been given can be applied to any of the following new acts:
-Magma (DJ )
-Good Girlz Bad (Girl band)
-Black Hole (Rock band)
-Smooth Criminals (Boy band)
-Tom Spencer (Solo Male Artist)
-Tonic (Boy band)
-Lucy Star (Solo Female Artist)
For this Music Video production I will be working with Emily Neil and Daisy Westlotorn as we know we can work cooporatively in a team and can take on each others ideas well. At the moment we are deciding between two of the brief groups: - Good Girlz Bad (Girl band) - Magma (DJ)
I think we are looking at the Good Girlz Bad as an option because as an all girl group we have inspiration from girl bands we have previously listened to but also would find it easier to decide what would appeal in a music video to the target audience.
However, we are still deciding whether we want to look at making a music video based upon the Magma (DJ) choice. Which would be really good to make as there are a variety of Dance music videos and a vast amount of codes and conventions so you could alter the brief to your own taste. However, I think it may be harder to make this type of music video look really good.
In todays lesson we got given the briefs for our music video.
Brief - 'You have been asked to devise and make a promotional music video for the new act detailed below. As a new act, the record label is keen that this first release appeal to a wide audience and establish an image that is both recognisably unique and appealing to their target audience. With this in mind, their first release will be a cover version and will be used as a platform for future original releases. The record label is happy for this release to be any of the three songs listed below and would like you to choose whichever one you can make a dynamic promo for, as the key thing is to get them exposed.
There were a few different styles as to the type of brief we want to look at, there are some for girl bands, boy bands and solo artists so as a group, Daisy, Emily and myself are still trying to decide which one we want to go for. During the lesson we looked at example of songs we could use and other examples that are not given in the brief.
Rough Trade started out as a small but hip record shop, opening 20 February 1976 when a man called Geoff Travis
bought loads of record back over from America and opened an independent shop in West London. At the time the Punk genre and Rock music were very popular, Rock music dominated the music industry which led to the 'Punk Rock' era.'In the heat of the west - Punks formed alliances with the West-indian culture which then formed a collaboration of the Punk and Reggae genres. Rough Trade stood for the ‘intellectual political wing of punk’; Communism and Marxism heavily influenced them. Rough Trade were an independent company so this made them different from the larger corporate companies as they looked at and took on artists that were over-looked and ignored by the major companies. Also, Rough Trade seemed to cut out the middle man by pressing the records for artists themselves, this cut out a major part of the process which showed people that you don't need the major record labels, you could 'Do it yourself'. Records and sleeves etc.The band ‘Desperate Bicycles’ had the idea of turning record sleeves into instructions of how to make records. ‘Scritti Polliti’ carried on this trend as they printed the production budget on the record cover, showing just how cheap producing a record with Rough Trade could be. The larger companies often frowned this upon, Rough Trade had become ‘the headquarters of a revolt’ against the commercialised music industry. all being homemade which saves the cost of being under a label. This led to the expansion of the company as they were pressing records for the artist, punk magazines were being shipped over from New York. The distribution department of the company were doing well in the expansion of the company and became to mimic the major labels as they started to distribute nationwide. However, the record label decided they didn't want to become like the major labels by being so commercialised as Rough Trade had two clauses, the first was that the company and the artist would keep making records together until the relationship wasn't working any longer, (one or both of the participants weren't happy) then they would end the deal. The second statement would be that any profits made on the record sale would be split equally between the artist and the company. This ensured that the artist would have equal benefits as the company and this made Rough Trade different from the major labels as with the major labels you wouldn't have that kind of trust or relationship and you would be signed in a contract unlike with Rough Trade.
1980's Rough Trade had a different approach to contracting artists, they didn't believe in signing the artist on hence why they decided to make their two clauses with the artists as they believed they wanted them to be equal. Without having this 'contract' Rough Trade were starting to lose artists to bigger record labels as the artists wanted to make it bigger and knew they could with the help of the major labels. This nearly happened with the likes of The Smiths as they were making a shot at fame and wanted to sign with the major label EMI but couldn't as they had signed the clauses with Rough Trade and still owed them an album worth of work. However, this After this led to the idea that The Smiths were starting to break down as a group and soon released 'Strange ways here we come' which reflected on how the band were feeling and what they were going through. ‘Strange ways here we come’ turned out to be their last album for Rough Trade and their last ever album as a band. By 1989, Rough Trade had its largest amount of artists in its history.
The Smiths 'This charming man'
The Smiths 'Strange ways here we come'
Towards the end of the 1980s techno made its mark on the music industry and was soon to be taking over, this is when rave clubs started to appear. This was seen as the most revolutionary movement since punk. Rough Trade was a record label but also dealt with the distribution and finances themselves.Around 90% of the £40 million turnover came from the distribution which shows that the company could run as an independent company.
1990's In the 1990's Rough Trade had a major change within the business, on the 1st of June 1990 Rough Trade ceased trading and shortly after Rough Trade crashed to the ground at their financial peak. By December of the same year Rough Trades cash flow halted, around two thirds of their staff had been axed as a result of bad finances. Rough Trade had set the bar for Independent companies and became the most successful independent company around. Rough Trade was the inspiration of many other independent companies starting out. They were so unique and own 40% of the music industry at one point. However, the financial fall down caused the company to be sold off to others. The major companies started to look at signing artists associated with independent companies to form a relationship with the music company which led to smaller, independent companies to join together. After Rough Trade had stopped trading, Geoff Travis, the founder of Rough Trade, had joined forces with Jeannette Lee and tried to regenerate the company and began in their new office, taking on the band Pulp. The new duo were doing well managing the band as the single 'Common People' hit the charts at number two. The new Rough Trade were doing better than ever by having 5 consecutive top 10 singles which was the most that Rough Trade had ever gained.
The profit they gained from these chart topping singles allowed Travis and Lee to regain 'Rough Trade' and in 2001 after 25 years of Rough Trade being around it was brought back to life.
21st Century After Rough Trade being revived and back in business, the management team (Geoff Travis and Jeannette Lee) had to show the expertise from working with Pulp to keep the company working well. They also took a slightly different approach to the way they worked. With the new team they had Travis and Lee were more lean and efficient with the way they worked. 'The Strokes' were the next band signed by Rough Trade and little did they know it was the kickstart to Rough Trades future.
For the second video of the lesson we analysed, we once again applied Goodwin's Theory to our analysis, looking at relationships between lyrics, music and visuals.
Genre characteristics
- pop with a british feel
Lyrics and visuals
- 'start over again' at end when the boy comes back home
- "take me away" when carton gets on motorbike
- talking about going to countryside and they are in the countryside
- 'Coffee and TV', obvious link, making coffee with milk and its a milk carton.
Music and visuals
- music gets darker and so does the image
- song mellow and the videos cut slowly
- images of little carton
Notion of looking and voyeurism
- carton looking through window at band
- looking through door at the girl
- seeing face on milk carton
Intertextual references
- when carton fell through window bit like an action film
- in alley - green monster looks like its from a sci-fi film
- a bit like american beauty when family are sitting at the table
During today's lesson we watched a documentary about Rough Trade which went through the life of Rough Trade and the eras it went through. It was really interesting to see how the company expanded and sometimes suffered as an independent company. After watching the documentary we had to answer certain questions about Rough Trade and what it incurred as a company.
We analysed this music video and applied Goodwin's theory to our analysis, looking at factors such as genre characteristics, record label demands, intertextual references etc.
Genre Characteristics
- costumes: gangster/street look
- getting in trouble with Police/criminal activity
- hip-hop/street dance
- dog fighting
- violence
- lacking representation of wealth - cars are normal, clothing scruffy, images of bling minimal (seems like he hasnt got it but looking at it)
- some images of sexualised women (gold bikinis, looking like prostitutes) but not as you might expect
- setting - urban - Brooklyn NY - run down neighbourhood and some shots of the bridge
- images of underground, rough looking clubs adding to the gangster lifestyle
- stereotypical race conventions - policemen white, bad guys black/jailbirds/on the streets
- shooting at the end - reflects image of gangster cool
Lyrics and visuals
- song is about being a gangster/lifestyle and video images illustrate this
- sychronous relationship - thoroughout song, images reflect the lyrics sometimes generally and sometimes more specifically/literally e.g: 'God' = image of crucifix, 'bitch' = image of woman/dog etc.
- story about getting pulled over by police is literally illustrated in visuals - very narrative style
- "from the hood" - pulls hood down
- "paparazzi" - images of criminals (camera flash)
- visuals show some of the 99 problems and the pinnacle one being him getting shot
Music and visuals
- camera movements are jerky and constant which matches the rise and fall of the beat
- cuts are in sync with the bass, especially at the beginning
- lots of cuts and many different images making it hard to see everything at first viewing - similar to song, which is also dense with themes/imagery/narrative
Demand of the record label
- lots of (worms eye) low angle shots and close ups of Jay-Z makes him appear powerful - desirable image to promote within the hip-hop industry
- fewer shots of him than you might expect - seems like hes being modest or that hes the topdog/elusive on the streets. Also, reflects face that he is a well-established artist and doesnt need his face all over the video
1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics 9 e.g stage performance in a rock video)
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals.
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals.
4. Demands of the record label e.g the need for lots of close-ups.
5. Frequently reference to notions (screens within screens) and particular voyueristic treatment of the female body.
6. There is often intertextual reference (to films/ tv programmes)
- Advertisers use it all the time, the orange adverts being a prime example Examples and styles of intertextuality: Current popular music is often also used within adverts to increase scope for audiences to 'remember' a product.
Stylistically - By imitating the style of a film or tv genre video game like the Beastie Boys music video Sabotage where they are imitating a 'cop show' but also trying to make it humorous at the same time.
Theme/Narrative - George Michael's 'Outside' uses intertextuality both stylistically in parts and through narrative. He is also bringing another media in by highlighting the stories in the tabloids of when and why he got sent to prison and trying to defend himself in a way.
Content - Some videos contain more subtle intertextual references within their content, A nod to a person or character can add another dimension of meaning to a text as well as fulfilling an important role as a viewer.
For example Shania Twain's Man I Feel Like A Woman music video largely referenced Robert Palmer's Addicted to Love. As Robert Palmer's video makes reference to fashion photography through his mannequin-styled models as his band. The reference is clearly shown in Shania Twains video later released.
1920s Music videos were surprisingly around in the 1920s with artists such as the jazz musician Bessie Smith making short films to accompany popular songs at the time
1965 Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues
The video has some of the lyrics written on the cards the man is dropping but only some like the ends of the song line and this shows there are subtle word meanings like some words are purposely misspelt like 'man wholes' and 'suckcess'. These are to show a deeper meaning within the music video and to ensure multiple viewings.
1970 The record industry discovers discovers TV shows as a great oppourtunity to promote their artists.
1975 Bohmemian Rhapsody a ground breaking music video
For the time and era that this music video was produced it was becoming more popular to promote songs with a music video and it used quite a few technical factors like the cross-fading so this video has clearly been edited but it was a very good music video for when it had been brought out.
1990 Fast-cut montage became common for music videos as it guaranteed multiple viewings.
OKGO This too shall pass
This music video is a prime example of a video that has no cutting in it so it is shot all on one take. I really like this music video as I like the idea that everything has to be so precise and in the video you can actually see that it has taken many times to shoot the music video by the smashed tvs and extra objects in the background that have been used. Also, I think it is really clever how it is literally a domino effect but it is a very good technique as the viewer is drawn to watching more as they want to see what the outcome is and you can see that each object gets bigger and the effect gets more dramatic e.g the hammer smashing the television and the car rolling backwards. This technique also ensures more views of the video promoting the song each time.
Codes and conventions:
Camera work The camera work has quite a big impact upon the meaning of what it being shot, the way it moves and how the moving text is sequenced has an effect on how it is perceived.
Closeups Close ups predominate partly because of the size of the screen and partly because of the desire to create a sense of intimacy for the viewer.
Editing The most common form of editing associated with music promo is fast cut montage, rendering many of the images impossible to grasp on the first viewing which then ensures multiple viewing and promotes the song being shown.
Enhanced editing Enchancing the editing is using digital effects such as split screens, colourisation etc.
You can see that in the music video 'Viva la vida' by Coldplay there has been enhanced editing as the colour has clearly been adjusted but the people in the band in the video don't look very realistic which entices the viewer as to how it has been made and the intricate details on everything makes it look more interesting. I personally think this video is quite interesting as it has had a lot of editing done to it to make it look more interesting.
