Research Task: Obtaining Copyright Permission

          Flat 15              

1 Heather Close

London             

N7 7EW           

28/09/2012
Colmbia Records UK

9 Derry Street 

London 

W8 5HY

Dear Sir/Madam,

Request for Copyright Permission to use part or whole of: Broken Record by Katy B

I am a student of A Level Media Studies and for my Advanced Portfolio I will be working in a group to produce a promotional package for the release of a new album track. I would like to request permission to use the above track for this project.

The finished project wil not be made available publicly and will be used solely for coursework purposes. The holder of the original copyright will be fully aknowledge in the the finished project. 

If you do not hold the rights for this song I should be grateful if you could forward this request to the appropriate person, or return it to me with the contact details in order that I might approach the copyright holder directly

Yours Faithfully,

Rchance

REBECCA CHANCE

RCHANCE@HOTMAIL.CO.UK

Research for Music Video: Favourite previous student video

http://vimeo.com/32960645

The link above is of my favorite previous student video. Its an Indie/rock style genre that is meant to appeal to young people. The structure of the video is disjuncture, meaning there is very little connection between the lyric and video. The two artists are styled well for the genre, which is very weird and unpredictable.

We see here one artists wearing pajamas, which is totally random, has nothing to do with the actual song but is cool and represents the laid back persona of the artist.

Furthermore, the video is features lots of editing, they are very quick and most are in time with the beat, the special effects worked well too and also added to the overall unpredictably of the video, which is the main reason that it is my favorite student must video. 

I like the use of this edit, which divides the screen into 4 different scenes in time with the beat, its very clever

 

Research for Music Video: Laura Mulvey's theory

"In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styles accordingly" (Laura Mulvey, 1992)

The point Laura is making is females are generally seen as objects  of male desire in music videos.

A perfect example supporting this view is the video above. 'Holiday'- by Dizzee Rascal . This video depicts a  highly sexualised view of women. The video of from the male point of view and the women generally go along with it. Dizzee is the center piece with the women surrounding him which represents male dominance. The women are almost expected to 'get in where they fit in' which they look comfortable with.

There are some artists though who make a conscious attempt to change this mold and go against the grain.

 

In this video, the level of sexuality is far lower than the 'Holiday' video. Both the women and the makes are on an equal level in the video. Missy Elliot's approach is to make the viewer look at her as a whole and not just certain parts of he body. As can be seen first hand by the clothing differences. 

Holiday- Dizzee Rascal

All N My Grill- Missy Elliot

My favourite music video of previous students

This is my favourite music video because when you watch it you can identify straight away the kind of genre the song is, which is Indie Pop. There is also great use of Props such as the light wrapped around the artists body. The artist is very dominant through outnthevideo, she use lots if eye contacts with the camera gives her more control. Althogh she looks like she is in control, she can also be seen as being sexual, for example, when she was dancing around in the leave on the floor; as well as her body movement very slow and lustful. The locatin, out doors relates with the genre of the song as well as her clothing, with the use of flowers in her hair and her long flowing dress. There are a variety of shot from close ups to low angle shot.  Close up shots allows the veiwers to focus on her makeup and the emotion on her face. The use of editing and effects are great, it makes the video come alive and gives it more power. The video uses amplification in which it brings new meaning to the song.

Mustafa, Nick, Poppy, Charon from 283goswell on Vimeo.

Usher Ft R.Kelly- Same Girl

This music video is an example of illustration, the music video tells a story of the lyrics. It starts withba coversation between tghe artist in wgich they are both singing the lyrics and telling the story if the sing tob eachother through a phine call. It also cuts to different scenes in wgich also relates to the lyrics. for example it says "liscence plait says angel, tattoo on her ankcle." In which both images popo up. I think thuis is a good example because it shows a cleaebstory line and although the artist is telling the story from the oast, clips are shown of what actually took place so itlooks like it is happening in the present. As well as them both singing in different location, such as white backgroynds. As a viewer we a following the story line and we are are experiencing the same emotions as the artist is.

Functions of a music video

The main function of a music video is to promote an artist. So the vide will focus mainly on the artist throughout the video. A artist will have a certain style, a certain dress sense or hair style in which it relate to its fans. The fans connect with the atist in which will encourage them to buy the artists song in whichis promoting them. Music videos are their to grab the audiences attention. for example viwers may not necessarily like the song, however thery ma6 be drawn into the video and like ut, in which case they mayb watch iut a nmber of times, making them evntually like the song.
Promoting music videos started in the 1980's as the technology started to develop. Music videos may not necessarily have a narrative, it can be illstration or disjuncture. So video can bring meaning to a song, give a message, tell a story or have nothing to do with the song whats so ever.

For example-
In my opinion Lady Gaga Bad Romance was I song i priviously could not stand, however watching the video numerace times eventually won me over, beacuse of it use of bright lights, dancing, costumes ect.

Laura Mulvey

Quote- "In a world orded by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze protects its fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly"
This quote gives the idea that women can be seen as sexual objects, male fantasy's in music videos. It highlights the male and female perseption are imbalanced. Hip Hop music portrays this concept. The image of an artist(s) in a music video will have been carefully planned, from the type of clothing they wear, to the style of their hair. This is based on the situation or 'narritive' that the artist isb placed within. As a audience we will 'read' or deconstuct this repsentation and will interpret it based on our own cultral reference and understanding. Through doing this, we also become accustemed tu seeing faniliar representations within the videos for particlar artist/groups.

Wiley- Heatwave

+

Dizzee Rascal- Holiday

 

In both these videos women are highly sexualized, the women are goingnalong with what is taking place in the video eg, dancing together. Women are also all in revaling clothing (bikini's), which is for the male gaze and male fantasy. Women are passive and saticfiying the men in the video, males are seen as being more dominant. The video draws men into watching it because of how the women bare portrayed.

Carol Vernallis

Carol Vernallis studies editing and camera work closely in music videos. She found that editing comes very frequently, many edits stand out as disjuncture. The editing seems to have a rhythmic basis closley connected to teh song. The usual rues of 'continuity' are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen. Edits may be really obvious to draw attention to themselves, such as wipes and special effects added. Jump cuts are often used as well as a master shot (base track) is frequently used to give the video a structure; the camera may also move in time with them music.

 

For example-

 

Rihanna- We found love has illustrates jump cuts

Professor Green- Remedy has obvious edits

Tulisa- Young uses  base track

Research : Andrew Goodwin music video analysis

Andrew Goodwin believes that using ideas along side a narrative doesn't apply in music videos, mainly pop videos. He believes that the narrative approach in music videos are different to such narratives in novels and films, he has three main reasons why he believes this. The first reason is that pop videos are based around the song itself which doesn't show a need to have a narrative. Second reason is that pop music videos are mainly to show the singer as a character and a narrator of the song and he third reason is that the singer of the song normally looks directly into the camera which helps to involve the viewer with the performance.

There are three types of content behind a music video :

1. Illustration - Illustration is where the video tells the story of the lyrics, a music video which demonstrates this is below 

2. Amplification -  Amplification is when the music video has multiple of meanings but do not contradict with the lyrics, a music video which has this definition is shown below, this music video doesn't go along with the lyrics but it has different meanings to it which I think make it an Amplification video.

3. Disjuncture -  Disjuncture is when the music video has little connection with the lyrics or when it contradicts the lyrics, ans example of a music video which suits this definition is sown below. The music video below shows the little connection the lyrics have with the video itself, which makes it a disjuncture video.

Research : Analysis of music video

The music video that I will be analysing is ' E.T' : Katy Perry ft Kanye West '

Unlike most music videos that don't have narratives, I would say that this music video does. The title of the song and the music video itself reflects on the lyrics, this music videos the viewers through a story which is told in the lyrics. The music video helps us to picture the scenery of the lyrics. I will be taking a few screen grabs to explaining what I like about them.

The first screen grab is of the artist, the editing of this particular moment in the video is really advanced, I also think that it gives the music video that futuristic feel.

The close up of the artist which is shown at beginning of the music video is a good promotional skill which is used in most music videos, the dark background of the screen grab and his facial expressions shows the type of genre of the music video.

The use of elaborate costume and design that went into this music video I would say is the main reason why I think this video fits many forms of what a music video should be like, the intricate scenes and imaginative feel of this music video fits in perfectly with the lyrics of the song.



To conclude, I find this music video interesting and imaginative, the change of lighting at different scenes of the video gives off a strong effect to the viewers, it also draws the attention of the viewers which in effect helps promote both artists which is the main reason of a music video.

Research : Functions of a music video

A music video is shown to promote the recording artist and their song, most modern music videos are normally used as a marketing tool to promote the sales of the music recording which then shows in the increase or decrease in the amount of sales that the music video has made. Promoting music videos started in  the 1980's as the technology started to develop. Most music videos do not have a narrative, meaning that the video doesn't have to illustrate the lyrics of the song.

The above picture is a picture of recording artist ' Kanye West' and 'Estelle' from their music video ' American Boy'.

Research for Music Video: Functions of a Music Video

The function of a music video is to promote the artist first and foremost. Most music videos have no narrative and are sequences which may not make sense together when looking from an analytical point of view, but can show the personality or persona of the artist(s). Furthermore, a good music video can increase the popularity and appeal of the actual song greatly. Music channels such as 'Mtv' and 'Viva' showcase Hip-Hop, Pop and R&B genres of music.

Research : Copyright Clearance letter

Above shows the copyright letter which I had to get sent off to get permission from the label that I will be able to use the featuring artist in my music video. The letter was sent of the the recording label which was addressed to the 'A&R' manager' which stands for ' Artist and repertoire' who is responsible for talent scouting and seeing the artist development with the label. The letter explained that it will be used for educational purposes only which shows that it will not be used for the public.

Research : Editing a music video

The above video shows how I synced the the actual music track to the video, to do this I used final cut pro to edit this piece of work. Base tracks were used in this sequence which helped the video run smoothly, also editing to the beat was used the remake of this music video which I done today. The tutorial on how to use base track editing today made me more confident when I have to edit my own music video which will be produced soon.

Bloggging Task: Re-edited video

Using the editing program 'Final Cut Pro' I re-edited another students music video tinkering with different clips to create my own unique base track. The basic operation consisted of selecting a clip of the students original base track and synching up the audio of the music track with the utterance of the artist. To do this, I opened the clip in the editor and then accessed the stereo tab to find the certain word I wanted the artist to say, from there I placed a marker (M) and dragged the clip down into the timeline. I lined up the marker with the audio track marker I set so it snapped into place with synched video and audio. To quicken up the process though, its possible to add a few clips at a time to the timeline, marking the clips in time with the beat and then cutting pieces of the clips out to create an in time, well synched video.

Andrew Goodwin's theory

 

Andrew Goodwin's feels that the traditional narrative analyses doesn't really apply to pop video's. Pop videos uses the siger both as narrator ans as a character. The singer often looks at the camera, this is an extension of (music hall) performance and is trying to invlve the viewer at home with the performance. Pop videos rely on representation eg- it repeats images in the way the song repeatts its lines. It makes us fimiliar with the songd genre. The song would be played on TV, Radio or might even be advertising a film.

Pop songs have a form of opening and ending. There are three types of relations between songs and videos: Illustration, Amplification, Disjuncture

 

 

•  Illustration- This is where the song tells the story of the lyric, dance is often used to express  the feeling/mood in teh song.

 

Eg- Usher Ft R.Kelly- Same Girl

 
 
 
• Amplification- Occurs when the videos introduces new meaning that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning

Eg- Christina Aguilera Ft Lil Kim, Mya Pink, Missy Elliolt- Lady Marmalade-

• Disjuncture- This is where there is little connection between the lyric and the video contradicts the lyric.

 

Eg-Micheal Jackson- Man in the mirror

 

 

 

 

 

My re-edited verision of previous students work

 



I learnt how to develope my skills in editing such as cutting clips and placing them together to let the whole clip flow throughout the whole video, the clip jumps from one scene to another. I also learnt how to put base tracks together and to put markers on the clips as well as the backing track. I made sure that the backing track was instinct with the artist singing on the clip.

Blogging Task: Base Track Testing

Ellie Goulding - I'll Hold My Breathe 

Todays lesson was to learn how to use base tracks when creating music videos. We was given the clips of a previous student's work and was told to recreate a small section of the video. By using markers to mark out the first word of the song got us started on where exactly the clips needed to be placed. Then one by one we would choose 3-4 base tracks, mark the audio to the beat and cut them down to edit to our desire. Here was my result :)  

Research Task: Laura Mulvey, Representation

''In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects it's fantasy onto the female figure which is styled accordingly'' - Laura Mulvey 

Representation consists of: 

• Gender
• Age 
• Ethnicity 
• Place

An artist(s) image would be carefully planned in a music video from the choice of clothes and style of hair to the situation or 'narrative' that the artist is placed within. Mulvey discusses that women in particularly are 'dismembered' in all forms of media meaning that there is a focus on not just women as a whole but particular parts of their body. Men on the other hand can be shown as a whole majority of the time.

        Pussycat Dolls - Buttons
An example of where female artists are 'dismembered' and purely seen as sexual objects through their dancing and skimpy clothing

John Legend - Tonight (Best You Ever Had) 

Although quite sensual and desirable Legend is still shown as a whole, portraying him as a sophisticated and loving man 

Research Task: Andrew Goodwin's Theory

The Structure of Music Videos

Rethinking Narrative Analysis

Andrew Goodwin Andrew Goodwin's theory towards the structure of Music Videos is not the typical traditional narrative analyses like how a film would be structured. Pop videos aren't trying to be avant garde but they approach narrative from a different perspective.

The Reasons are as follows:

1.      Videos are built around a song which do not pose as traditional narrative structures

2.      They use the singer as both narrator and as a character

3.      The singer often looks directly into camera by trying to involve the viewer at home with the performance

Repetition

Music videos also contain repetition by repeating images in the way the song repeats choruses, lines or rhythms so that we become familiar with the genre and have certain expectations. Additionally, the song would be played on TV, radio and could be advertising a film or TV tie-in making the song very familiar.

Pop songs do have a form of closure and ending. It will build to a climax usually before fading away or could end in a cliffhanger with a second part to the video which reveals the ending.

Sometimes videos provide a visual pleasure for the audience that encourages repeated viewing. Some videos might be promoting their commodities such as films. There are 3 types of relations between song and video:

1.      Illustration: This is where the video tells the story of the lyric ''Thinking of You'' (Katy Perry) for example. Here Katy Perry tells a story of her boyfriend that goes to war and tells her to move on however she can't because as the song quotes ''when I'm with him I am thinking of you'' meaning when she does find someone knew all she can think about is her lover at war.

2. Amplification: Occurs when the video introduces new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but add layers of meaning, for example ''Russian Roulette'' by Rihanna which illustrates the actual life threatening game Russian Roulette but is a metaphor relating to her previous relationship with Chris Brown ''Said I'm terrified, but I'm not leaving'' which involved an incident that physically put her life at risk and made her complement death which is shown in the video.

3. Disjuncture: Where there is little connection between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyrics. Lady Gaga songs are a perfect example of this. ''Telephone'' for example the video portrays Lady Gaga and her partner in crime Beyonce together as partners poisoning people and jail breaking but has no relation to the actual lyrics which gives this impression that it's about an annoying person who keeps calling her .

Other Easily Recognisable Features

1.      A noise or dance move - Michael Jackson

2.      Women present as sexual objects - Beyonce and Madonna do this deliberately to appeal to a males desires however they look directly at the viewer and cease to be passive but in fact quite intimidating and dominating.

3.      Instruments represented by an object - Rock the Cashbar by The Clash, every time the piano is played during the chorus and armadillo is shown treading along.

4.      Appealing to a wide audience - Without alienating their core audience a video might feature older bands when they were younger to jog their memory so an older audience can still identify them.

5.      Songs written for films - Particular movies often incorparate images from that movie in the video not only to promote the artist but the film as well for example Celine Dion - My Heart Will Go On

Research Task: Carol Vernalli's Theory

Experiencing Music Video: Cultural Context

Her theory:

She observed that edits in music videos are much more frequent compared to edits in a film and that many stand out as disjucture with a rhythmic basis closely connected to the song

Main Points of Observation:

· Rules of 'continuity' editing (usually found in classic broadcast fiction) are broken in order to draw attention to what is on screen

· Edits may really obvious to draw attention to themselves e.g. wipes and special effects

· Jump cuts used often

· A master shot (base track) frequently used to give the video a structure

· The camera moving in time with the music

Coldplay - Viva La Vida, a lot of jump cuts and special effects

Vato Gonzalez ft Foreign Brother- Badman Riddim, camera moves in time with the music

 

Rihanna -Umbrella, frequently uses base tracks to structure her video