Exploring Music Videos

I have looked at four different music videos and analysed them closely. The links to youtube are given below.

Michael Jackson - Black or White

This video is quite unusual as it's 6 minutes and 36 seconds long which is considerably longer than the average music video. I can tell that the video has been planned very careful to help portray the message of the song and also tell a story. The message being that everyone is equal no matter what race they are. Different cultural backgrounds have been displayed in this video to portray this particular message. Michael performs his personal choreography, which draws the attention of the audience and this is cleverly edited to show him dancing in a variety of countries with people from all over the world.

Although you may presume the video will show consensus between 'black and white', there are many clips within the video that emphasis the racism that goes on in the world. For example we see a baby that is white and a baby that is black sitting on top of the world together. This shows equality and could also be saying that there is no such thing as racism to a baby because they are open minded and not influenced by the media as they are far too young. Then in contrast we see fighting and shooting from adults. This then identifies that there is hatred towards one another in the world and shows that people are prepared to kill one another due to the certain views that they as an individual have. We then see Michael breaking through the fire and walking toward the camera. This could be showing that he is fighting the flames and the torture and rising above it, therefore sending out the message that we can fight and stand against racism.

The song is soft rock/ pop and attracts a wide audience as it is of a popular genre.

Beyoncé - Crazy in Love

This video is targeted at both males and females. They have made beyoncé look glamorous wearing hot pants and a loose vest top. This attracts men to watch the video as they find her attractive, but isn't threatening for women as they are intrigued by how good she looks and want to be her. The genre of this song is hiphop/pop featuring Jay-Z who adds rap to her music. The video is concentrated quite a lot on the choreography to make it interesting and exciting to watch. She always has strong, new routines in her videos which make a statement and often copied. They have used interesting editing techniques such as speeding parts of the video up, this increases the pace of the video making it more energetic and fun. Parts of the video are also slowed down for example when she is walking up the steps, this captures her in slow motion making it more sexually appealing for the male audience. She uses lots of different outfits and accessories in her videos which are trendy and up to date, this attracts the younger generation as they are eager to see new fashion.

The location chosen for this video is in an urban area where there is no public interference. There is also a scene shot in the studio where multiple lights are used that flash to add to the glamour. Backing dancers are also used to make the routines look sharp. They have also used the modeling format in this video to promote the video in a fashionable style. They have used a lot of makeup and colourful outfits in this video to make it stand out and look visually appealing.

Christina Aguilera - Dirrty

When this video was released it got a lot of attention in the media because of the drastic change of image that Christina Aguilera went through. She went from being sweet and innocent to raunchy and wild. Everyone wanted to watch it and were intrigued by her new look. The genre of the song is pop/hiphop. The video may cause offence to the older generation and therfore is aimed at a younger target audience. The choreography is raunchy and aimed at attracting the opposite sex, this is also done by the choice of outfit which is a bikini top and bottomless leather trousers. The location of the video is set in an underground boxing ring which suggests rebellion.

Close up shots of her lips are used which give sexual connotations and attract a male audience. A motorbike is also used as a prop which shows Christina as more boisterous and rough. There is a big interference of males in the audience who are lusting over her which show they sexual connotations to the song. A lot of heavy eye makeup is used which make her eyes look dark and goth-like. Her hair is in dreadlocks which links to the title of the song 'Dirrty' as they can't be washed. The video is filmed in a boxing ring which gets hot and sweaty in other words 'Dirrty'.

Bjork - Oh so quiet

This video is very innocent compared to Chritstina's 'Dirrty' and gives us a great contrast. The video is made in a musical style with bright colours and lots of choreography. The video is made on a continuous loop following her as she moves around. The genre for this video is pop and is aimed at all ages but i would say it is more towards the female audience than male. The opening scene is shot in a small, dingy apartment where you can see mould around the sink and walls. She is getting ready to go out so we know that it is where she lives. She then goes outside into the street and the lyrics begin. The pace of the song pics up and she walks into a colourful cafe where everyone is dancing. This creates a happy tone where everything is very innocent. Only one costume is used which is a plain orange dress. This doesn't distract the audience from what is happening in the video so they can focus on the dancing. There are connotations to the wizard of Oz when she walks out into the street as there is a tin man and a man looking like a scare crow. This video has been well organised and must have taken a long time to shoot as there are some very long takes which can be hard to get perfect. Also there are alot of extras featured in this video which have to make sure they are in time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMbEge4BQQU&feature=related