Nicki Minaj 'Pink Friday' album cover

This is the album cover for rap artist Nicki Minaj', 'Pink Friday'. The language on the cover consists of the name of the artist and the title of the album. The colour scheme of the cover is light pink, white and silver which interlinks with the title as it is called 'Pink Friday'. Her name is in silver, very bold font, it appears to be simple but effective. The word 'pink' is in pink and a more handwritten font which emphasises the iconic connotations of the colour; femininity and girliness. The title of the actual album 'Pink Friday' suggests that the artist is very feminine, and the use of the word friday could possibly indicate, that as it is the last day of the working week, the artist could like going out or partying. The medium shot of Nicki Minaj appears to be very staged, its almost like a ballet pose which is reinforced in the costume. Her shimmer tights and pink boots suggest a ballet theme but a more trendy and tough version of a ballet dancer because of her big heels. Her dress is very revealing but also has a balletic and icy feel to it because of the chiffon material, however, its slightly more dramatic and over the top. Her hair is a silvery pink wig which suggests that she is slightly angelic but the blunt fringe has a 60's style feel to it, she looks almost doll like. It also matches the colour scheme of pink, silver and white. The white mountain in the background supports the colour scheme aswell but also it suggests that this album cover is set in an icy, mountainous place. The floor is also bright white which supports this idea. Due to Nicki Minaj's image on this cover, she could be taking on an 'ice queen' role which is a fairytale character often associated with icy places in films such as, 'The chronicles of Narnia', but she is more fashionable and portrays an edgy attitude. The lines at the top of the cover have an ideology of 60's televisions as they used to have the lines at the bottom of them, this reinforces a 60's theme from her wig. Her genre is hip-hop/pop which would predominantly attract a young adult or a teenage audience. The audience would also be a bit funky and quirky as her lyrics and her attitude in her songs come across as very individual and different to most other artists on the market. The parental guidance logo placed at the bottom right of the cover tells us that this album is not advised for kids or children, but teenagers and young adults would probably be targeted.

The songs on this album consist of:
01. I’m The Best
02. Roman’s Revenge (Feat. Eminem)
03. Did It On’em
04. Right Thru Me
05. Fly (Feat. Rihanna)
06. Save Me
07. Moment 4 Life (Feat. Drake)
08. Check It Out (Feat. will.i.am)
09. Blazin’ (Feat. Kanye West)
10. Here I Am
11. Dear Old Nicki
12. Your Love
13. Last Chance (Feat. Natasha Bedingfield)
14. Super Bass
15. Blow Ya Mind
16. Muny
17. Girls Fall Like Dominoes
The songs featured on the album also contain popular rap and r'n'b artists which would again refuel the teenage and young adult audience.

Katy Perry 'One of the Boys' album cover

This is the album cover for Katy Perry's first album 'One of the Boys'. It consists of just her name and the title of the album. The font used for her name is a bubble gum pink with a thick white outer line and it's larger than the album title which immediately stands out to the audience by introducing her name. Pink is also a feminine colour which shows us as an audience that she is very girly and appearance is important. However, as her album is named 'One of the boys' this suggests that she also has a fun nature and her personality fits in with the boys which introduces her persona to the audience. The font of the title is also in blue which is an iconic colour that represents boys. The fact that she has used a reference to girls and boys invites a target audience of both genders, more likely to be teenagers. However, her music is more likely to be aimed at girls as it is pop but the boys would be attracted to her image rather than her music. Teenagers from more stable backgrounds are more likely to buy Katy Perrys album as they can relate to her more, but also teenagers from less stable backgrounds would be inspired by her talent and her image which is portrayed on this album cover. Katy Perry would also attract 'the gay scene' as she is very over the top as seen in this picture and most of her videos. Also, due to the fact that she is showing off her figure in skimpy clothing; this screams male attention. The mise en scene in this picture gives off an ideology of the 50's with the use of the old record player, her blue 50's style straw hat, the white picket fence, and the old style garden lounger with the blanket. The record player is an iconic item of the 50's but the fact that it is pink gives us a modern but retro feel. Her clothing also portrays a vintage style from Katy, Her pink crop top with blue high waisted shorts, red wedges and blue sunhat are all retro fashion but it has been modernised in order to fit in with todays modern society. The colour scheme on this front cover is very bright and over the top and it appears very staged for the camera. The shot is a medium shot and her pose is very seductive and very set up to look dramatic. There is no viewing of the institution on the front cover.

The back of the album cover portrays the same theme as the front cover, although the colours in the sky are slightly darker suggesting it's night time. The ideology of the 50's still runs throughout the digipak as the white picket fence still remains in the shot and Katy is wearing high waisted shorts and a pink crop top reinforcing retro fashion. She is also holding a red love heart lolly and there is a small pool with two rubber ducks inside which gives off a 'funfair in the 50's' theme as 'hook-a-duck' was a popular game at funfairs at this time. Her bright red lipstick shows her feminity. The back has a list of the song titles, it has a very girly handwritten font and there are two love hearts, one seperating the main songs from the remixes; this adds to the theme of girliness.

The songs consist of:

01. One Of The Boys

02. I Kissed A Girl

03. Waking Up In Vegas

04. Thinking Of You

05. Mannequin

06. Ur So Gay

07. Hot N Cold

08. If You Can Afford Me

09. Lost

10. Self Inflicted

11. I'm Still Breathing

12. Fingerprints

To the bottom right of the album there is a bar code and it tells us all the legal information like who the producers are. To the bottom left it shows us the record company/institute where the album was produced. When I carry on my research, I can see that these could be conventions of album covers and it will help me to create my own digipak.

Test Shots

Location: Hessle foreshore/Humber Bridge

We took some test shots before we actually filmed our music video to see how it went and to experiment with the camera.

This video was the first shot we took. Seen as we have had no previous experience with cameras, I believe that this shot was okay and could actually be used in my music video. The mediumn shot portrays the feelings of romanticism and happiness, which is what I was trying to create. I may use this shot in my final music video.

This is the second test shot that we took. I believe that the actual shot is well positioned and at a good angle, however, the actors needed to look like they were laughing and talking more in order to create a blissful atmosphere, instead the shot looks awkward. To improve this shot the actors need to get into character more, but I could however use it as a still image.

This is the third shot we took at Hessle Foreshore. We tried to create a handheld camera vision but as they are walking it cuts their heads off a number off times. Although, this shot could be used for montage editing if I decide to use it, therefore I will keep all of my shots just incase.

This is the fourth shot we tested before shooting the actual video. I tried to create a pan from side to side to include the River and the Humber Bridge. When I watched it back I realised that the camera was wobbly and uneven and the shot just looked rushed and messy. However, I will still keep this shot as it could be used for a still image or montage editing as the setting is very peaceful and romantic.

1st shoot

Today we did our first shoot at the Humber Bridge/Hessle Foreshore. At first, I didn't feel too confident using the camera as I had never really used one before, but I did a number of different test shots including close ups, medium shots, pans and handheld camera shots. For a first go I thought I did quite well and further on during the day I became more confident using it. The actors performed very well and created a romantic atmosphere, which I wanted. I have done a range of different camera shots today and I think my footage could be used in my final video. There were a few mistakes with the camera but we picked it back up and got on filming. We filmed them on the foreshore doing piggy backs, throwing stones into the river, holding hands walking and much more which referred to the storyboard. We filmed a fight with leaves in the wood, the leaves falling on the girl, them chasing eachother and much more which again, referred back to the storyboard. We also filmed the dining room scene which will be the openiong scene in the video where they will break out into the argument. I'm not sure that this will work as the actors couldn't seem to get into character too well but once I upload it onto the editing suite I will soon find out.

I hope to do two more shoots, at the park and in a living room which will done soon, but I feel I had a very productive day at the foreshore and I hope that my footage can be edited and used for my final video.

Final choice song lyrics

Bruno Mars- Just the way you are

Oh, her eyes, her eyes, make the stars look like they're not shining
Her hair, her hair, falls perfectly without her trying
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Yeah, I know, I know, when I compliment her she won't believe me
And it's so, it's so, sad to think that she don't see what I see
But every time she asks me do I look ok, I say

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are

Her lips, her lips, I could kiss them all day if she let me
Her laugh, her laugh, she hates but I think it's so sexy
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Oh, you know, you know, you know, I'd never ask you to change
If perfect's what you're searching for then just stay the sameS
o, don't even bother asking if you look ok
You know I'll say

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you
The way you are, the way you are
Girl you're amazing, just the way you are

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are.
Yeah

My Idea

My initial idea for my music video was to do an all performance video to lively pop song, Lady Gaga's 'Bad romance'. I was going to use this idea with use of one female actor and five dancers. This was going to be set in a theatre based area with the dancers wearing all black leotards and leggings and the 'artist' wearing a red dress in order for her to stand out. I gathered up many ideas on this music video such as, the performance genre, costume, number of performers, predominant shot (medium long shot) and setting and props being used. However, I realised that this idea would not work for me due to time management and finding the right actors. I wouldn't of had time to choreograph a 2 minute peice of choreography which would be upto a high standard and I would not have enough dancers to make the video look realistic and professional, therefore, I scrapped this idea.

I then thought of creating a 'stereotypical couple in love' idea with creativity behind it, which is often used in slower pop music videos. I found the perfect actors to be used in my video, a male actor who will act as the singer wearing fashionable clothing and a pretty female who will also be wearing fashionable clothing but will look 'cute' to the audience to help create more of a connection. The locations I have chosen are the woods, a park, a foreshore, a bedroom and a lounge, these locations are all soft and 'good mood' locations. There will be elements of performance by the male actor, singing to the camera in a series of close ups and medium shots. We brainstormed a few ideas of how the locations could fit together to create a narrative structure. We decided to begin the music video with the male preparing a dinner for the female and instead of it being really happy they start to argue, and as she leaves angrily he goes straight to bed and it starts to go into his dream were he remembers some of the happy times they spent together. We will use soft focus to make the video more 'romantic' and special effects to emphasise the feeling of a 'dream'. When his dream is coming to an end we decided to create a 'summary' of previous shots getting faster like flashbacks. However, we chose to end the video with more of a twist as when he wakes up and looks at his pillow, she is not there and the audience would expect her to be because at this time they will not have realised that it was all a dream.


We both selected a few songs each and shared our ideas on each one.


These were the songs we thought about using:


Beyonce- Broken Hearted girl lyrics
You’re everything I thought you never were
And nothing like I thought you could’ve been
But still you live inside of me
So tell me how is that?
You’re the only one I wish I could forget
The only one I’d love enough to not forgive
And though you break my heart, you’re the only one
And though there are times when I hate you
Cause I can’t erase
The times that you hurt me and put tears on my face
And even now while I hate you
It pains me to sayI know I’ll be there at the end of the day

I don’t wanna be without you babe
I don’t want a broken heart
Don’t wanna take a breath with out you babe
I don’t wanna play that part
I know that I love you
But let me just say
I don’t want to love you in no kind of way no no
I don’t want a broken heart
And I don’t wanna play the broken-hearted girl...No...NoNo broken-hearted girl
I’m no broken-hearted girl

Something that I feel I need to say
But up to now I’ve always been afraid
That you would never come around
And still I want to put this out
You say you’ve got the most respect for me
But sometimes I feel you’re not deserving me
And still you’re in my heart
But you’re the only one and yes
There are times when I hate you
But I don’t complain
Cause I’ve been afraid that you would've walk away
Oh but now I don’t hate you
I’m happy to say
That I will be there at the end of the day

I don’t wanna be without you babe
I don’t want a broken heart
Don’t wanna take a breath with out you babe
I don’t wanna play that part
I know that I love you
But let me just say
I don’t want to love you in no kind of way no no
I don’t want a broken heart
And I don’t wanna play the broken-hearted girl...No…NoNo broken-hearted girl

Now I’m at a place I thought I’d never be…Oooo
I’m living in a world that’s all about you and me…yeah
Ain't gotta be afraid my broken heart is free
To spread my wings and fly away
Away With you yeah yeah yeah, ohh ohh ohh
I don’t wanna be without my baby
I don’t wanna a broken heart
Don’t want to take a breath with out my baby
I don’t wanna play that part
I know that I love you
But let me just sayI don’t want to love you in no kind of way..No..NoI don’t want a broken heart I don’t wanna play the broken-hearted girl..No..No..No broken-hearted girl
Broken-hearted girl No…no… No broken-hearted girl
No broken-hearted girl

I decided this song could be an option as it is a slow paced pop song but I took a closer look at the lyrics and I realised that the emphasis is more on the female with an unhappy mind set on her relationship, and this isn't what I wanted as I wanted the male to sing because hes a good actor and I wanted it to consist of happier scenes.

Alesha Dixon- Breathe Slow Lyrics
I’m running out of patience coz I can’t believe
What the hell I’m hearin’ (hearing, hearing)
And speaking of hell
It don’t compare to this heat that I am feeling
I love you too much It shows,
all my emotions go out of control

When I can hardly see from the tears that flow
Can’t forget to breathe slow count from one to ten
With my eyes closed
Coz ladies take it in And get comp oh oh oh sure
Before I lose it get comp oh oh oh sure
I am gonna breathe slow
Count from one to ten with my eyes closed
Coz ladies take it in And get comp oh oh oh sure
Ladies never lose comp oh oh oh sure

Not gonna lie or even try you’ve got my wheel spinning (spinning, spinning)
And I ain’t the one to shoot the gun,
‘coz that means you will be winning oh yeah
I love you too much it shows, all my emotions go out of control
Good for you bad for me
When I can hardly see from the tears that flow

Can’t forget to breathe slow
Count from one to ten with my eyes closed
I lose it get comp oh oh oh sure
I am gonna breathe slow count from one to ten
With my eyes closed coz ladies take it in And get comp oh oh oh sure
Ladies never lose comp oh oh oh sure

Somebody better hold me back
You’re lucky I know how to act(so lucky ain’t gonna attack)
I’m being calm and cool
But believe me you It’s taking everything to just breathe
Breathe, breathe

Can’t forget to breathe slow
Count from one to ten with my eyes closed
Coz ladies take it in and get comp oh oh oh sure
Before I lose it get comp oh oh oh sure
I am gonna breathe slow
Count from one to ten with my eyes closed
Coz ladies take it in and get comp oh oh oh sure
Ladies never lose comp oh oh oh sure
Uhhh uuuhhhcomp oh oh oh sure

I thought this song could be quite good to go with the video because its pop music but its slow paced and has a relevance to couples, however, it would be more angry issues than happy therefore i didn't think it would quite work how i wanted it to.

Bruno Mars- Just the way you are
Oh, her eyes, her eyes, make the stars look like they're not shining
Her hair, her hair, falls perfectly without her trying
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Yeah, I know, I know, when I compliment her she won't believe me
And it's so, it's so, sad to think that she don't see what I see
But every time she asks me do I look ok, I say

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are

Her lips, her lips, I could kiss them all day if she let me
Her laugh, her laugh, she hates but I think it's so sexy
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Oh, you know, you know, you know, I'd never ask you to change
If perfect's what you're searching for then just stay the same
So, don't even bother asking if you look ok
You know I'll say

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you
The way you are, the way you are
Girl you're amazing, just the way you are

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Because you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are.
Yeah

I decided to use this song for my music video as its has a very romantic theme and its slightly more upbeat than the other two. I figured you could have more of a happy narrative running throughout this song where as the other two are more sad and upsetting.

Animatic

An animatic is a filmed, taped or computer-animated version of the storyboard that runs the same length as the finished film product. We took photographs of each picture from our 21 pages of storyboard, uploaded it onto the computer and edited it on Adobe Premier. We then uploaded our music onto the computer from a memory stick. However, when we uploaded the music onto the computer it wouldn't play, so we had to change the properties to mp3 in order for it to play successfully. Once we put the pictures with the music we realised that 2 shots at the beginning of the sequence were slightly out of time, therefore, we decided to make them longer in order for the lyrics of the song to match the mise-en-scene involved in the shots. We then saved the animatic and uploaded it onto blogger. I am pleased with the animatic as it really creates an clear idea of what the music video will look like and it has also made me aware that things may need to be changed in the real thing in case some shots don't give off the effect I wished for.

Conventions of the 'pop' music genre

Bruno Mars predominantly fits in with the pop music genre. Pop music being an abbreviation of ‘popular’ is understood to be commercially recorded music, often targeted towards a youth market and often reaching high chart positions. This genre of music is portrayed through music videos, mainly shown by use of editing, cinematography and mise-en-scene. Bruno Mars could also be seen as an R’n’B artist to some people as his video for ‘Just the way you are’ shows a variation between the conventions of pop music and R’n’B music videos. However, pop music is the main genre for this artist.

Pop music videos often consist of a lot of colour variation through use of the mise-en-scene, things such as the lighting, set, costume, hair and makeup and just generally the way the artist or characters are presented. For example, in popular artist ‘Katy Perry’s’ video for ‘Hot n Cold’ a lot of colour is used in the dancing section towards the end of the video. The lighting is bright to emphasise that it is day time and also to benefit the visibility of the dancers movements, the clothing the dancers are wearing show a lot of bright colours and ‘Katy’ wears bright yellow shorts, trainers and eye shadow which helps to attract the youth targeted audience. Also, the use of the yellow man prop placed at the back brings a sense of good and fun spirit to the pop video.

Pop videos usually consist of a narrative that runs through out. The type of narrative depends on the lyrics and type of song but a popular choice of narrative is a ‘teenage scenario’, for example, some sort of ‘crush’ or a love themed plot. An example of this convention being used is in the video for ‘Justin Bieber’s’ ‘Baby’ as he is trying to please a girl at the bowling alley and it ends up with them leaving together. This example also fits in with the younger generation of teenagers and tweenagers as its target audience as ‘Justin Bieber’ is a teenager himself and they will be able to relate to him and be inspired by him and the other teenage characters in the video.
Another convention of pop music videos are the use of dance routines with the band or artist included. This isn’t always the case, although in the more happy and upbeat music tracks it is quite common. For example, in ‘Alexandra Burkes’ music video for ‘Broken Heels’ she performs in a group dance routine with other girls behind her and her placed at the front singing. They are all wearing the provocative female equivalent of a rugby kit and are performing on a rugby pitch to give a fun vibe to the music video as well as an idea of ‘girl power’ relating to the lyrics of the song and targeting a predominant audience of teenage girls.

Performance narrative often occurs in music videos and a close up of the artists face to show their emotions and to emphasise themselves as the artist is a very popular convention in pop music videos. A close up is a very intimate camera shot and could make the audience feel closer to the artist. For example, in ‘Ke$has’ video for ‘TiK ToK’ she was a brand new artist being introduced into the music industry, therefore, a lot of close ups are used of her singing which really shows her ‘rebellious’ attitude towards life and it also shows her piercings indicating that she is a tough character.
Medium close ups and medium shots of the artist are also a very common of pop music videos as seen in many.

In most pop music videos a happy, fun and light hearted atmosphere runs throughout, depending on the mood of the song. For example, in the ‘Everybody in Love’ video by ‘JLS’ the atmosphere is very happy as they perform to cheering people on stage. Pop music videos usually have ‘happy’ or peaceful locations, such as, a beach, a home or their friend’s home for example. This is a common convention and is shown in ‘Rihanna’s’ video ‘If its lovin’ that you want’ when she is happily socialising with her friends on the beach.






Popular editing techniques used in this genre of music videos are jump cuts. Its purpose is to jump from a scene of the location to the artist to instruments and vice versa for example. Editing to the beat of the music is also very often used, for example, this is very clear in ‘Rihanna’s’ video for ‘Only Girl in the World’. Fade edits are also a common convention for pop music videos, an example of this is in the ‘Everybody in Love’ video by ‘JLS’, when the shot fades from the group dancing on stage to a close up of Aston singing.

‘Artificial lighting’ is the most common type of lighting used in pop videos. It helps to enhance the look of the band or artist by making them look younger or ‘ageless’. For example, in ‘Cheryl Coles’ video for ‘Fight for this Love’, artificial lighting to highlight her defined cheekbones and her perfect complexion whilst emphasising her eyes.

Costumes worn in pop music videos are personal to the artist but it shows off their fashion sense or their character, so it is important. This is evident in ‘Lady Gagas’ video for the song ‘Telephone’ as she wears a black and white striped PVC low cut dress with high shoulder pads, sunglasses, opaque tights and high heeled black shoes which is significant of the well known ‘robbers’ striped jumper. It shows the audience she has her own interpretation of fashion and that it is important to her.

Pop music videos have many different conventions which are very important and make it significant to this genre. The specificity of elements, such as, the artificial lighting and the close ups to emphasise the artist all add up to make a cleverly thought out music video which adapts to its relevant genre.

Storyboard

Lyrics Analysis

Nelly- Just a dream

Nelly is signed to Universal music group which released his major label debut Country Grammar in 2000 with a predominant genre of rap and r'n'b. The audience he targets ranges from teenage girls who will be attracted to his appearance and lyrics about love, and teenage boys who aspire to look and behave like him, however he also targets a mature audience as rap contains a lot of taboo language therefore he is also aimed at students and men and women aged 20-28. However selective stereotypical groups such as gangstas and people interested in rap culture are attracted. The video has a clear narrative in which Nelly is missing his 'ex-girlfriend', however it also consists of performance when he sings into the camera.

The lyrics of the song 'Just a Dream' is reflected in the music video as it contains a lot of unrealistic features. It begins with an extreme close up of water which has been edited into slow motion which immediately introduces the pace of the song. The lighting is black and white but almost sepia toned which creates a sense of reminiscing and adds to the originality and effect of the music video, this again links with the lyrics. The low angle shot of the car floating in the air above the beach indicates the 'dream effect' of the video as it is unrealistic, it also could be a significant symbol of his past relationship which he misses. The car is shown in many different shots such as mid shots, close ups and long shots to emphasise its importance in the relationship. The beach is an iconic location for a couple as it is seen to be romantic and gives a sense of togetherness. The girl is shown sat in the car with a soft focus of the sun shining through the window, this suggests that he says her as a ray of happiness, also the close up of them holding hands is a convention of music videos with a romantic narrative. The close up of his eye opening shows that it is a dream and also links in with the lyrics. The soft focus in the middle and around the edges of certain shots give the audience the sense of love and attachment. Along with the blur of lights in the distance also giving off this effect.

The different shots of the ring shown later in the video also is unrealistic in real life reinforces the audience about the idea of fiction and dreams. It is an iconic link of a happy marriage and love and it could be another symbol of his relationship he misses. Also, the mid shots of nelly performing with the soft focus ring in the middle could be another link to the ring and its connotations of relationships. The camera goes underwater to show the girl floating and the pair kissing which could indicate flashbacks of the past but it could also connotate that theyre relationship is dead because theyve been in the water for a long duration. Due to the fact her leg is wrapped over his this indicates a sexual reference. The long shot of the girl running along the beach with the ring in the frame suggests that she misses him aswell as she is running towards the ring. The fact that Nelly is looking down from the car at the girl on the beach indicates that he wants to go back to how it was and the beach could be of importance to him as they could of spent a lot of time together there or they couldve met there.

The medium shot of Nelly sat in the club with the people dancing at the edge of the frame tells the audience that he is bored going out without her and he feels isolated. The extreme close up of the word 'Gents' on the door follows the narrative that he gets distracted by thoughts of her when he tries to move on therefore he has to leave the business and talk to her.

The medium shot of the 'Summerhouse' or small flat which sets on fire in slow motion emphasises the fact that they will never get back together; asif their relationship has burnt out. It is then emphasised even more when the ring and the car then set fire and rocks and ash begin to fall, this could mean that everything he has given her has been thrown back at him. The close up of the eye shattering with glass and the ring coming out of his eye is iconic and a key motif in this music video, it connotes his life being shattered and him being extremely upset. The video ends with a close up of their hands parting in slow motion which truly emphasises that that was the last time they would ever be together.

Although this music video is slightly more romantic than Nellys others he still maintains his tough image through the mise-en-scene and the clothes he wears. The car, the ring and the close up of his expensive mobile phone still shows signs of wealth which is common of the rap genre. He wears a diamond earring in his ear, a silver chain bracelet and a silver watch which also symbolises wealth and it shows that appearance is important. His leather jacket portrays his tough image well along with his tattoo which is shown underwater, however the white top and white shirt he wears later on shows his softer side as white suggests purity and cleanliness. The girl has brown hair which is worn down showing that she is attractive and feminine, she wears a top with longer sleeves which is curved round the neck;this suggests that because she isn't wearing revealing and provocative clothing she is really respected and loved for who she is by Nelly. However in the underwater section she is wearing an appealing swimming costume which portrays her more 'sexy' rather than 'cute' side.

The editing in this music video is continuity editing which creates realism for the audience and makes the video flow, however it uses a lot of slow motion for emphasis. The special effects such as fire and the close up of the eyes shattering glass is used for connotations.

This video heavily relies on the narrative to run through it. This video links very well with the video I am going to create as elements of the genre are the same and its theme will be predominantly romance throughout.

Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dogg- California Girls

The collaboration between Katy Perry and Snoop Dogg creates a dominant pop genre in which the music video clearly portrays. The music video shows the theme of a board game being played throughout which sets a clear narrative by use of different props and the way they are presented, it also consists of performance. The record label/institute this song is produced by is Capitol records. The video is based on turning everything into different kinds of sweets and is set in 'Candyland'.

The video begins with a close up of the board game packaging which is called 'Candyfornia'; a play on words of the title of the song. It also says 'face the Sugar Daddies dice to free the Queens of Candyfornia' which immediately tells the audience that the artists are playing these characters in the video. The video is based on turning everything into different kinds of sweets, hence the name 'Candyfornia'.

Katy Perry wears a number of different outfits in this video, her first one being a multicoloured mini dress which has a number of different sweets such as ice cream and smaller cakes on it, she is also wearing a violet wig which could represent the well known sweets 'Palmo violets'. Her necklace is again made of delicately wrapped sweets and her high heels, headband, bracelet and ring all show that she is very feminine and girly and that she really fits in with the 'candy' gameboard theme with her character being one of the 'Queens of Candyfornia'. The location she is in consists of white trees and candy canes, candy floss and red wrapped sweets in the trees representing leaves and bushes and ice cream and swirled lollies representing grass which all relate to the candy theme. The camera shots consist of close ups of the ice creams, medium shots and medium long shots of Katy Perry exploring the wonderland, which emphasises themes of happiness and fantasy. The gummie bears also show quite a controversial element as she waves at the bear in a shot reverse shot it then shows it swearing back at her which is blurred, this also reinforces the idea of the game context as it is a competition from the happy fantasy world. Due to the candy canes turning into snakes, this connotes an intertextual link to the board game 'Snakes and Ladders'. Also when close ups and medium long shots show Katy Perry is laid in the clouds performing the song with no clothes on, she is just wrapped in candy floss clouds which again sticks with the fun atmosphere of the video but also portrays her to be a sex symbol and still show her promiscous side to fit all types of target audience.

Snoop Dogg is represented to play 'The Sugar Daddy', he wears a suit which pictures jelly beans, and yellow boots, he also wears his sunglasses to show that he is relating to the location and theme whilst also showing that he is cool and the stick he is holding is a stereotypical link to what sugar daddies or pimps call the 'pimp stick' or the 'pimp cane' which relates to his characters name very well. As Snoop Dogg is origionally a rap artist, the fact that the dice has diamonds instead of spots supports his music video convention of wealth and also girls as they all dance in provocative but fun outfits. The actual board game made from ice cream cones, candyfloss, pancakes and other cakes is shown from birds eye view shots and high angle shots to show the pathways and locations and the way that you would look at it if you were playing the game yourself.

The editing used is continuity editing to make the video more fluent to watch, also it consists of slow motion as the dice rolls to create a bit more tension in the game, and also a technique used is making Katy Perry smaller in comparison with the set which makes her look like a doll amongst tall icing volcanoes and lollipops and connotes that she is playing a vunerable character in the game. The game essence is shown by Katy having to save other 'Queens of Candyfornia' on her quest; one from a bubble of bubblegum, another one from a cube of jelly and the other one wrapped in candy wrapping which reinforces the theme of the competition against the 'Sugar Daddy'.

The target audience of this music video has a wide range as pop is such a big genre. It is aimed at tweenagers and teenage girls as she acts as a role model who is attractive, outgoing and having fun, however her clothes suggest that she can be portrayed as a sex symbol creating a seperate target audience to teenage boys and 20 year olds. This video predominantly relies on fantasy, fun and fictional aspects.

Theories...

Michael Shore (1984) says that all music videos fall into these key concepts:Recycled Styles, Surface without substance, Simulated Experience, Information overload, Image & Style scavengers, Ambivalence, Decadence, Immediate gratification, Vanity and the moment, Image aussaults and outre folks, The death of content, Anesthetization of violence through chic, Adolescent male fantasies, Speed power girls and wealth, Album art come to turgid life, classical storytelling motifs.

Andrew Goodwin (1992) argues that in music video 'narrative relations are highly complex' & meaning can be created from the individual audio-viewers musical personal musical taste to sophisticated intertextuality that uses multidiscursive phenomena of western culture . -Many are dominated by advertising references, film pastiche and reinforce the post modern 're-use' tradition.

Sven Carlsson (1999) Music video is a many-faceted multi-discursive phenomenon. Some generally acknowledged "facts" about music video are that ...#Music videos communicate through TV-screen and TV-speakers # Music videos are a form of low-brow popular culture # The reception of music videos depends on the beholder (music video may be beautiful or ugly, art or trash, etc.).

Christina Aguilera- Dirrty

In order to develop my knowledge of liiar and to help me with ideas in order to create my own music video i have chosen to analyse 3 videos. I have chosen to Christina Aguileras video 'Dirrty'.
"Dirrty" is by Christina Aguilera featuring rapper Reggie "Redman" Noble. The song was written by Christina Aguilera and Redman along with Jasper Cameron, Balewa Muhammad, and Rockwilder. It is featured from her second album 'Stripped' in 2002 which the majority was co-written by Christina Aguilera who had recently signed a global music publishing contract with massive institute 'BMG music'.
The video was directed by David LaChapelle.

Christina Aguilera's genre was previously pop but this song/video the genre is more pop/hip hop/rap. The video portrays her sexuality and shows sexual fetishes from sthenolagnia (women body building), mud wrestling and dancing wet which is also quite controversial . A bull dog is also present in this video which is iconic as it is known to be one of the most toughest and feared dogs. It shows her more fierce side in comparison with 'the girl next door' image she had preciously portrayed herself as. This song links with Michael Shores theory 'Adolescent male fantasies' and 'Performance'.

The video starts with an initial close up of a motorbike wheel and then we see Christina walk past wearing leather trousers with the bum cut out, this indicates that shes represented to be strong and tough, however it also shows her to be a sex symbol as she is showing off her toned body. The fact that she has peircings also shows us that she is tough and individual. Also her facial expressions show she is pouting with her head up whilst portraying intimidating gestures and trying to represent herself as being lusty but also hard shelled. The video consists of her being released into a boxing ring in a cage, she is then performing amongst males with their tops off showing their bodies, this indicates a sexual reference to the audience and also showing she is a sex symbol with all the male attention she is getting. She then performs a sexy dance routine with other girls in the ring, suggesting a flirty side but also like a pack mentality, she has no fear. The fact that christina wears little clothing such as bikini tops and mini skirts with her long blonde hair suggests that she is promiscous and really appealing to the male audience. Also when the 'fight' begins the opposing female enters via a ladder and Christina is given water which she then spits out which is iconic of the boxing industry. A lot of over the shoulder and shot reverse shots are used during the fight to make it look more realistic and effective. Also as Christina wins the fight this puts her in a higher position to the audience and suggests she is extremely tough. The camera also used a blur technique as the opponent falls to the floor which puts the audience in her position and emphasises how she feels.

The way Christina dances in the showers, in the boxing ring and on top of the stands is very provocative which would attract more of a male audience, however it could offend a lot of viewers by being a bit controversial, although young girls would aspire to look like her too therefore the target audience is of quite a wide range but mainly aimed at a more mature audience of 18-25 males and females. The video consists of a clear narrative which is the lead upto the fight and who's going to win but it mainly consists of performance. Close ups are used to show emotion in her face although mainly medium and medium long shots are used to show her singing and dancing. The editing is also continuity editing which makes the video more fluid and more realistic.

Codes & Conventions of Music Videos

This is my first insight into the research of music video conventions: Most music videos consist of the same or similar codes and conventions however, they will be used and consumed differently depending on the artist, genre, target audience and many other things through the Cinematography, Editing & Mise-en-scene. Editing to the beat of the music- Reflect the mood and tempo of the music. Fluid cuts and transitions-In faster videos there are more cuts and in slower more romantic videos there are less. The choruses usually contain more cuts than the verses though. Also, reflects the mood and tempo of the music.

Narrative-Music videos usually have a narrative running through out, depending on the type of genre.

The motivation in a music video is the tempo of the music, or the words of the song.

It has a clear beginning and ending-If the beginning of a music video is good it will keep the audience hooked and a strong ending will give the audience a positive feeling about the music video.

Close ups-Introduce the audience to the artist and show emotions and performance.

Medium shots- Shows the artists performance other than just close ups. Used for performance.

LIIAR

Language
Institutions
Ideology
Audience
Representation

I am using the 'LIIAR' acronym to help me with ideas and the creation of my music video.

Language- Is used in music videos as the structure and meaning of the song lyrics and the chosen language used. The certain language is used to create meaning and feeling by creating visual images to entertain or make impact on the audience or just to get a response. Visual language will be produced from visual effects with use from cinematography, mise-en-scene and editing. Stance, mannorisms and body language will help the audience response when it comes to non-verbal language. In my research and analysis of music videos i will look at the connotations and denotations.

Institutions- Is the company/record label who produces the band or artist.

Ideology - The ideology of music videos is to present the artists image to the public and show them what they are all about aswell as creating a fanbase from the target audience. It also a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions visually.

Audience-The audience is who the product or in this case music video is specifically aimed at; also known as the 'target audience'. This could be a mass audience or a smaller audience, for example, a mainstream popstar like 'Lady Gaga' will be aimed at a mass audience, and a less popular group such as 'The Maccabees' would be aimed at a smaller audience who are generally interested in indie music and appearance.

Representation-Is how the music video is portrayed and how the audience responds to it. Image, sounds and words are dominate the power of representation by showing arguments and issues in an abstract or just different form in order for the audience to gather a positive or negative opinion.

Genres

A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other types of music.
Music can be divided into many genres in many different ways. Due to the different purposes behind them and the different points of view from which they are made, these classifications are often arbitrary and controversial and closely related genres often overlap.
This will effect the way my music video will be made as it will fit with the chosen songs genre.

An example of just a few out of many music genres are;
-Classical -Rock -Pop -Hip Hop -Rap -Jazz -Alternative -Blues -Gospel
-Folk -R'n'B -Ska -Punk -Dubstep -Motown -House -Drum 'n' Bass
-Dance -Indie -Electronica -Reggae -Swing -Metal -Pop Rock

Browse All Music Styles Here

The history of music videos

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". In Chinese entertainment, music videos were simply known as MTVs because the network was responsible for bringing music videos to popularity in that country. Music videos are now known as MVs in Chinese entertainment.
Music videos use a wide range of styles of film making techniques, including animation, live action filming, documentaries, and non-narrative approaches such as abstract film. Some music videos blend different styles, such as animation and live action. Many music videos do not interpret images from the song's lyrics, making it less literal than expected.

In 1894 sheet music publishers Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern hired electrician George Thomas and various performers to promote sales of their song "The Little Lost Child". Thomas projected a series of still images on a screen simultaneous to live performances. This would become a popular form of entertainment known as the illustrated song, the first step toward music video.
In 1926, with the arrival of "talkies" many musical short films were produced. Vitaphone shorts (produced by Warner Bros.) featured many bands, vocalists and dancers. Spooney Melodies in 1930 was the first true musical video series. Shorts were typically six minutes in duration, and featured Art Deco-style animations and backgrounds combined with film of the performer singing.
Animation artist Max Fleischer introduced a series of sing-along short cartoons called Screen Songs, which invited audiences to sing along to popular songs by "following the bouncing ball". Early 1930s cartoons featured popular musicians performing their hit songs on-camera in live-action segments during the cartoons. The early animated films by Walt Disney, such as the Silly Symphonies shorts and especially Fantasia, which featured several interpretations of classical pieces, were built around music. The Warner Brothers cartoons, even today billed as Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, were initially fashioned around specific songs from upcoming Warner Brothers musical films. Warner Brothers also produced the cartoon "Three Pigs in a Polka", set to Johannes Brahms' Hungarian Dances. Live action musical shorts, featuring such popular performers as Cab Calloway, were also distributed to theaters.
Blues singer Bessie Smith appeared in a two-reel short film called St. Louis Blues (1929) featuring a dramatized performance of the hit song. Numerous other musicians appeared in short musical subjects during this period. Later, in the mid-1940s, musician Louis Jordan made short films for his songs, some of which were spliced together into a feature film Lookout Sister. These films were, according to music historian Donald Clarke, the "ancestors" of music video.
Another early form of music video were one-song films called "promotional clips" made in the 1940s for the Panoram visual jukebox. These were short films of musical selections, usually just a band on a movie-set bandstand, made for playing. Thousands of "soundies" were made, mostly of jazz musicians, but also of torch singers, comedians, and dancers. Before the soundie, even dramatic movies typically had a musical interval, but the soundie put the music in the forefront; virtually all known jazz performers appeared in soundie shorts. The Panoram jukebox with eight three-minute soundies were popular in taverns and night spots, but the fad faded during World War II.

Musical films were another important precursor to music video, and several well-known music videos have imitated the style of classic Hollywood musicals from the 1930s to the 1950s. One of the best-known examples is Madonna's 1985 video for "Material Girl" (directed by Mary Lambert) which was closely modelled on Jack Cole's staging of "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" from the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Several of Michael Jackson's videos show the unmistakable influence of the dance sequences in classic Hollywood musicals, including the landmark "Thriller" and the Martin Scorsese-directed "Bad" which was influenced by the stylised dance "fights" in the film version of West Side Story.
In 1956, Petrushka, directed by John David Wilson for Fine Arts Films aired as a segment of the Sol Hurok Music Hour on NBC. Igor Stravinsky conducted a live orchestra for the recording of the event. In 1957, Tony Bennett was filmed walking along The Serpentine in Hyde Park, London as his recording of "Stranger in Paradise" played; this film was distributed to and played by UK and US television stations. According to the Internet Accuracy Project, disk jockey-singer J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson was the first to coin the phrase "music video", in 1959. It is no coincidence that the rise of popular music was tied with the rise of television, as the format allowed for many new stars to be exposed that previously would have been passed over by Hollywood, which normally required proven acts in order to attract an audience to the box office.

1960–1967: Visual innovation
In the late 1950s the Scopitone, a visual jukebox, was invented in France and short films were produced by many French artists, such as Serge Gainsbourg, Françoise Hardy and Jacques Dutronc to accompany their songs. Its use spread to other countries and similar machines such as the Cinebox in Italy and Color-Sonic in the USA were patented. In 1961 Ozzie Nelson directed and edited the video of "Travelin' Man" by his son Ricky Nelson. It featured images of various parts of the world mentioned in the Jerry Fuller song along with Nelson's vocals. In 1964, Kenneth Anger's experimental short film, Scorpio Rising used popular songs instead of dialog.
In 1961, for Canadian show Singalong Jubilee, Manny Pittson began pre-recording the music audio, went on-location and taped various visuals with the musicians lip-syncing, then edited the audio and video together. Most music numbers were taped in-studio on stage, and the location shoot "videos" were to add variety.
One of the earliest performance clips was The Animals's 1964 hit "House Of The Rising Sun". This high-quality color clip was filmed in a studio on a specially-built set; with the group lip-synching.




The Beatles
In 1964, The Beatles starred in their first feature film A Hard Day's Night, directed by Richard Lester. Here is the official video:


It is shot in black-and-white and presented as a mock documentary, it was a loosely structured musical fantasia interspersing comedic and dialogue with musical sequences. The musical sequences furnished basic templates on which countless subsequent music videos were modeled. It was the direct model for the successful US TV series The Monkees (1966–1968) which similarly consisted of film segments that were created to accompany various Monkees songs.
Film critic Roger Ebert credits Lester with constructing "a new grammar":


Today when we watch TV and see quick cutting, hand-held cameras, interviews conducted on the run with moving targets, quickly intercut snatches of dialogue, music under documentary action and all the other trademarks of the modern style, we are looking at the children of A Hard Day's Night".
The Beatles' second feature Help! (1965) was a much more lavish affair, filmed in colour in London and on international locations. It fitted the all-important musical sequences into a contrived fantasy adventure in which the group is pursued through a series of locales (including Switzerland and The Bahamas) by a band of Indian thuggee assassins bent on recovering a sacred ring which has come into Ringo's possession. The title track sequence, filmed in black-and-white, is arguably one of the prime archetypes of the modern performance-style music video, employing rhythmic cross-cutting, contrasting long shots and close-ups, and unusual shots and camera angles, such as the shot near the end of the song, in which George Harrison's left hand and the neck of his guitar are seen in sharp focus in the foreground while the completely out-of-focus figure of John Lennon sings in the background.



In 1965, The Beatles began making promotional clips (then known as "filmed inserts") for distribution and broadcast in other countries—primarily the USA—so they could promote their record releases without having to make in-person appearances. On November 23, 1965: At Twickenham Film Studios, The Beatles videotaped 10 black & white promo films, all produced by a British production company Intertel. They were "We Can Work It Out" (3 Versions), "Day Tripper" (3 Versions), "Help!" (1 Version), "Ticket To Ride" (1 Version), and "I Feel Fine" (2 Versions, neither of which were ever aired). One version each of the first two songs were aired on "Hullaballo" in the US on Jan 3 1966. Many clips were aired on "Top of the Pops" in the UK, and two were aired on "Thank Your Lucky Stars." Recent reports indicate the entire reel is circulating among collectors. "Help" and "Ticket To Ride" were re-released to accompany the CD release of the "1962-1966" or "Red" album in 1993. Composite edits of "We Can Work It Out", "Day Tripper", and "Ticket To Ride" are seen in "The Beatles Anthology," DVD set.

At the same time, The Byrds began using the same strategy to promote their singles in the United Kingdom, starting with the 1965 single "Set You Free This Time". By the time The Beatles stopped touring in late 1966, their promotional films, like their recordings, had become highly sophisticated. In May 1966 they filmed two sets of colour promotional clips for their current single "Rain" / Paperback Writer" all directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who went on to direct The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus and The Beatles final film Let It Be. The studio clips were straightforward performance films shot at Abbey Road Studios on 19 May, especially for broadcast on The Ed Sullivan Show and prefaced by a spoken introduction from Ringo.
The location clips are considerably more elaborate and use vibrant colour footage shot on location in the grounds of Chiswick House, London. Both clips are notable for their use of hand-held camera work, rhythmic editing, slow motion shots and reversed film. The "Paperback Writer" clip is more conventional, with Lennon, McCartney and Harrison lip-synching and miming playing their instruments (although Ringo is notably not 'playing'). The "Rain" clip marked a major advance in stylistic terms; it uses some colour shots common to both clips but is also intercut with monochrome reductions of the Abbey Road studio footage, making it one of the first examples of this device in music video. Most notably, apart from a few brief shots (a close-up of Lennon lip-synching and a shot of the group under a tree miming playing their instruments) the "Rain" clip virtually abandons any pretense of performance and has no obvious narrative structure.
The colour promotional clips for "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "Penny Lane", made in early 1967 and directed by Peter Goldman took the promotional film format to a new level. They used techniques borrowed from underground and avant garde film, including reversed film and slow motion, dramatic lighting, unusual camera angles and color filtering added in post-production. Reflecting the fact that these studio masterpieces were impossible for the group to perform live, their psychedelic mini-films illustrated the songs in an artful, impressionistic manner rather than trying to simulate an idealised performance or depict a narrative or plot.
At the end of 1967 the group released their third film, the one hour, made-for-television project Magical Mystery Tour; it was written and directed by the group and first broadcast on the BBC on Boxing Day 1967. Although poorly received at the time for lacking a narrative structure, it showed the group to be accomplished music video makers in their own right. It included elaborate edited sequences for the new songs featured in the film and the clips for "I Am The Walrus" and "Your Mother Should Know" have been screened many times on music TV shows in later years.