Carol Vernallis Music Video analysis

Carol Vernallis has a theory around music videos with four main points of analysis. Here are the key points:

1. Narrative

• The video is a visual response to the music
• Not necessarily a balance between narrative and performance
• Narrative is not always complete
• The structure may appear disjointed
• There is something that drives the video forward which isn't usually the main narrative but maybe the music, performance or another element altogether 
• May not always be a clear resolution (closure) at the end
• Poses questions that it doesn't answer or in a montage style

2. Editing

• Editing may match musical phrases or the beat
• Video may break or disrupt many rules of continuity editing - clear convention of music video editing 
• Editing can become foregrounded - edits may be obvious to draw attention as opposed to continuity editing

3. Camera Movement and Framing

• When it comes to shot types, extremes are common
• Style of framing and movement may run through video and is distinctive to that video
• Camera may move in time with the music
• Camera may move on the lyrics
• Master shot used frequently as are close-ups

4. Diegesis

• May be revealed quite slowly 
• Actions not necessarily complete
• Character or objects may move to the music
• May be gaps in audience's understanding of the diegesis
• Frames may be more important than others
• May be many repetitions

I am applying this theory to the music video 'Dilemma' by Nelly (feat. Kelly Rowland).

1. Narrative

The song is about the relationship between a man and a woman, which is reflected in the video which shows an on-and-off relationship between the two artists.

During the narrative the characters are at times shown lip synching to the song as well as performing in a street which is separate from the narrative.

The narrative is fragmented as it jumps through various times of the day and into different situations such as a cinema, as evidenced in the picture

What drives this video forward is mainly the music, with the catchy hook and production as well as Kelly Rowland's first popular appearance on a single after Destiny's Child.

There is not a clear resolution in the video as the narrative closes with Nelly and Kelly Rowland both with separate people and Kelly showing her disapproval which contrasts the performance element were they are like a happy couple.

2. Editing

The editing in this video I'd consider invisible and conventional continuity editing as the video is stylised more as a film or musical then a regular music video. It cuts within the lyrics through it's continuity editing, and during Nelly's first verse it does match the beat and cuts every time he starts a new bar such as at 1:14.

3. Camera Movement and Framing

The video constantly features close-up shots of both the primary artists, with the establishing shots mainly being at the start of the video as it enters the actual song after the intro. The main framing of two artists is them both in the middle of the shot for the majority of the video while performing.

4. Diegesis

The audience's understanding of the diegesis would be fine as the narrative isn't exactly broken or requiring deep thought to see how it moves along. Actions are usually completed with the only gap in time I noticed being the jump from the daytime where Nelly is performing on his own to the cinema scene which is in the night.

Semiotics

Signs and Meanings

Morris's theory involves human action, and says we have three different stages when it comes to signs and their meaning:

The perception stage - the person becomes aware of a sign.
The manipulation stage - the person interprets the sign and decides how to respond to it.
The consummation stage - the person responds.

Denotation

The literal meaning behind something, and the definition which is likely to appear for it in a dictionary.

Connotation

The connotation is the idea or meaning behind something, which isn't explicit and usally requires further looking to realise. They are the associations and emotional suggestions related to the word and exist together with denotations. One example is the connotation of the colour red being love or danger.

JAY Z & Kanye West - Otis

This video is from the 2011 single 'Otis' by JAY Z and Kanye West. The video doesn't feature any significant narrative with the basis of it being the duo taking apart an expensive Maybach and driving it around with girls in the back. This reflects the genre's ideology by featuring both expensive cars and attractive girls which are almost cliche in rap videos, and reflects the artists as they often rap about luxury items with the theme behind the album this was from (Watch the Throne) being about their fame and wealth. They express this through their braggadocio lyrics found in the track above and others on the album.

The cover of the single features the American flag image from the video, which is the iconography behind this song's release as it was also used as a back drop in live performances of the song. The reasons for this link could be to create an image behind the song, and make it recognisable so people think of the song when they see the American flag which is often for American consumers. It would earn the two artists more money through purchases of the song as well as the image being placed on t-shirts which have been sold.

Intertextuality

Intertextuality is a media theory based on taking another text and shaping it into another, as a homage or re-imagining more then a parody.
One example we have researched in class is Ashanti's 'Foolish', whose video is largely a homage of the classic gangster film Goodfellas but in a more modern era and setting.
One example of intertextuality I found myself in a music video was in Kanye West's 'Touch the Sky'. The main narrative of this video is West (under the persona 'Kanyevel') attempting to fly a rocket across the Grand Canyon in a similar to fashion to Evel Knievel's jump over the Snake River Canyon in 1974. The intertextuality is how like the actual event, Kanye West fails the jump and crashes as well as mimicking the costume that Evel Knievel wore. The whole video is styled like a 1970s film in it's presentation and costumes which is more intertextuality.

Andrew Goodwin

"Music videos ignore common narrative as they are essentially advertisements. As consumers, we make up our own meaning of a song in our minds: a music video can anchor meaning and gives the record company/artist a method of achoring meaning"

This is Andrew Goodwin's theory around music videos, of which he has 6 different conventions:

1. A relationship between the lyrics and the visual which illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics.
2. Thought beats: seeing the sounds (the relationship between the music and the visuals, which amplify or contradict the music.)
3. Genre-related style and iconography present
4. Multiple close-ups of the main artist or vocalist: the creation of a star image to promote a recognisable brand image.

5. Voyeurism often plays a major part, especially in relation to females.
6. Intertextual references to other media texts may be present, especially in humourous videos.

I have applied this theory to the video of 2013 hit 'We Can't Stop' by Miley Cyrus



1. There is definitely a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as the song is based on the life of partying and not caring about what society or anyone else thinks. The video is focused in a party setting completely with no real narrative behind it.





2. A lot of the visuals match up with the music in the video, such as during the first verse when the man takes a bite out of his money sandwich when the drum hits at 0:26.

3. This song was Miley Cyrus's first single since becoming inspired and bringing a lot of hip-hop culture into her music after many pop-rock albums so it features a lot of this throughout. One infamous example is the notable 'twerking' dance found throughout, which is now an icon of 2013 rap music and culture, as well as the jewellery on most of the actors and how they dress.

4. There are close-ups of the artist throughout the video as she looks to make her new haircut and look her brand image in contrast to the 'good girl' image she held for years before.






5. There is definitely voyeurism in this video, which has gaining it some criticism. This ranges from Miley Cyrus in revealing clothing, the suggestive dancing and general behaviour in the video.






6. I couldn't recognise any intertextual references in this video, as it seemed to be more original content to promote her new image and style of music.

My Favourite Album Cover

Artist -  Nas
Album - Illmatic
Year - 1994

History

This cover was designed by Aimee Macauley and features a picture of a block of apartments in New York City taken by Danny Clinch, where Nas grew up. Superimposed on this is a picture of Nas as a young child. The cover is said to have took inspiration from the Jazz album 'A Child Is Born' which also features a child's face against an urban background, but this hasn't been confirmed by Nas.

Connotations and Denotations

The connotations behind the cover is that it represeents Nas as a young child finally looking and taking in the world around him. Growing up in a deprived New York City area with violence all he seen was a life of crime before reaching an age where he realises there is a world outside of there for his career, and doing the right things. This is personal to the artist reflects the album content found in the album, where he raps about growing up in poverty and the gang lifestyles that surrounded him. These both are the basis for the lyrics in the album.

Target Audience

The target audience behind this cover would be young hip-hop fans and fans of Nas. I imagine people could also relate to the setting of the cover and the ideas behind it, most likely those who live in the deprived apartment blocks of New York and know what it's like growing up surrounded by gang culture and poverty.

What It Means To Me

This cover appeals to me because of the connotations and themes behind it, both the realising there is a world outside the ghetto and poverty as well as a feel-good nature that Nas has made it and became a millionnaire escaping that lifestyle. It is also the symbol I remember behind a classic album and one of the best hip-hop debuts of all time.

 

Album Covers

Album covers have been a prominent part of music releases for over 5 decades. The definition is:

"An album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album."

They were first used by Columbia Records in 1938, with the credit going to Alex Steinweiss for coming up with the concept. They then became the norm during the late 40s and since then some sort of design has been used on every album, from the LPs of back then all the way to being included on digital releases (the preferred music distribution of 2013). 

CDs had a period of being very popular during the 90s and 2000s , with the album cover being a prominent part of the marketing and even having a say in the sales. The two main formats were the standard jewel case and the more expensive cardboard Digipak, used mainly for special editions. Even with digital distribution, were a physical copy of the cover isn't provided, they are still a big talking point of major releases and as standard are included with every music purchase on digital marketplaces such as iTunes and Amazon.

The features of an album cover, are usually the album name, the artist, some sort of design either original or took from somewhere (like a photograph, as pictured in 1969's 'Led Zeppelin').

What I also might expect to see are some sort of link to the genre or the concept behind the album, such as Kanye West's 'Yeezus' cover featuring nothing but red tape on a transparent case which reflects the minimal style of the music on the album. I would also expect a familiar symbol of the artist or continuing a style that runs through the discography of the musician.

My Group Blog

My group to make a music video comprises of me and Anthony Hill, and we'll be working together closely on our project. If there are no posts on this blog for a long period of time it is likely that we have been focused on the group blog, which you can find and read the posts on here:

Group Blog