planning for music video: analysis of original video for my song choice/ explanation of how my video will differ

planning for music video: letter requesting copyright clearance

Rocket music management

1 Blythe Road

London

W14 0HG

Dear Stuart camp,

I am an A-level student at City and Islington Sixth Form College writing to ask your permission to use a music track from one of your artists that you have signed. The artist is Ed Sheeran and the track that I would like to use is called ‘Lego house’.

With your permission I would like to use this track in my current A-level media project. The project we will be doing is a music video for the music track as well as creating a digipack and magazine adverts for the artist.

If we receive permission for this track only the teacher, the exam board and other students in the class would be able to hear and view it. The music video will be uploaded onto the Internet but again this is only viewing for the class and is not a public domain.

If you give me permission to use the music track it will only be used for education purposes and no money what so ever will be raised or made from anything to do with the video.

Your label as well as the artist will be fully recognized throughout the project and the final video. A copyright notice with the wording as supplied by you can be included in the records of the project, if this is required please send me the details.

I hope to hear back from you soon,

Your sincerely

Ololade arowolo

(Student at City and Islington Sixth Form College)

planning for music video: final song choice

ED SHEERAN - LEGO HOUSE

why have you chosen this song?

I decided to use this song to create a new music video because i felt that it was a song i could be creative  with when coming up with a narrative for the music video. moreover because the lyrics to the song are so flexible in narrative i feel that i could create an even more intriguing music video that would capture a more wider audience. although the original music video is good , i feel that the video is more centred on the 'artists' and appeals more to the artists ' hardcore fans' rather than a wider room of people.

planning for music video: short-list of potential songs

sam smith- stay with me

Ed sheeran- this

emelie sande- breaking the law

research for music video: reflection on progress

1) how well do you feel you are progressing with blogging compared to last year?

I feel that in terms of blogging i am coping very well. blogging has become a lot more easier to me because i have been able to learn more and develop my skills in using different softwares such as prezi and slideshare to present my work in a more flexible way. I also feel that i am able to express every detail of all the research and planning i will be doing in order to complete my A2 coursework. so far i feel that i am on top of most of my blogging.

2) what mark out of 20 would you give yourself at this point for use of different ICT and level of detail in your blogging?

i would give myself a 14/20 for using different softwares and i would give myself a 10/20 for detail in my blogging.

3)what three things do you need to do to improve?

• to be able to be more detailed in every stage of my research and planning
• to be able to look at professional music video already done by artists and use some of the skills gained to perfect my music video.
• to be able make sure my music video narrative is clear to the target audience .

research for music video: reflecting on AS MEDIA STUDIES

research for music video: analysis of brand identities in cross media products

Disclosure- are an english electronic music duo. The two brothers ( Guy and Howard Lawrence) grew up in surrey and picked up their first significant national radio support upon the release of the 'Tenderly/ flow' single in 2012. Their debut album 'settle', released on 3rd june 2013 through PMR, was nominated for best dance/ electronica album at the  2014 grammy awards. 

1) Look at the album cover, what do you think is the most important element/ key feature used to brand the artists and this album?

• the fact there are two identical 'little' brothers at the front of the album cover which creates a sense of familiarity to their target audience but at the same time hides their identity through the 'white drawing pen' edit on their faces.  also this image of the two brothers strengthens the band identity of being a duo but also the 'white drawing pen' acts as an indirect symbol of 'electronic' wave sounds.

2) watch the music video, what key features from the album cover can also be seen in the music video?

• lazer edit 
• two brothers playing electronic instruments
• 'white pen' edit on their faces 

research for music video: analysis of brand identities in cross media products

Mystery  Jets -are an english indie rock band, the band originated from twickenham London and was formed by Henry Harrison ( who writes most of the lyrics and plays the piano), blaine harrison (vocals, guitar and keyboards) and William Rees (guitar vocals) when the boys were still at school and would send each other songs on cassettes. The other member is Kapil Trivedi who plays the drums .

1) look at the album cover, what do you think is the most important element/ key feature used to brand the artists and this album ?

• I think the most important element of the brand identity is the fact that they are in a 'band' and so the image of the 'four' men reinforces the idea of unity as well as uniqueness to their type of music which is indie rock. also their costumes originate from the 'texas cowboy' dressing which is rather different as the band actually originate from london. in the foreground of the album cover there is a close image of one of the 'musicians' cowboy boot' . also in the background of the album cover one of the musicians is sitting on a rocking chair - these are all symbols creating brand identity.

2) watch the music video single , what key features from the album cover can also be seen in the trailer?

• the guitar is familiar instrument that appears throughout the music video.
• also the location is set in the 'desert' which reinforces the idea that this music video was set in Texas , which is where indie rock is most popular.
• also the album name is called 'radlands' which is the amalgamation of Keith Richards 1960s apartment Redlands and the Terrence Malik film Badlands.

research for music video : creating a synergy In brand identity

DAFT PUNK -is a french electronic duo containing the musicians Thomas bang alter and guy-manuel-christo.  Daft punk became tremendously famous in the late 1990s house movement in francend met with continued success in the years following, combining elements of house with synth pop. 

1) look at the album cover, what do you think is the most important element / key feature used to brand the artists and this album?

• The main key feature used to brand the artist as well as the album is the helmet, as it works to identify the type of artists as well as to hide the true identity of the musician. Daft punks popularity has been partly more recognisable through mainstream media. For example their appearance on cartoon network.

2) watch the album teaser trailer, what key features from the album cover can also be seen in the trailer?

• Bright lights in a dark background mainly because its set out in space and a short image of an electric guitar appearing on the album case. also there is a 'robotic' theme that follows through out the teaser. which draws in the audience to wanting to know what the album will sound like and how it could possibly make us feel.

3) Watch the music video- focus on the costume , props , appearance, use of colour, location and graphic elements. what key features from the album cover and teaser trailer can also be seen in the videos?

• costume- all three musicians are in black shiny suites. This makes them stand out as a group but also goes quite well with the location of 'space'. they imitate the look of 'stars' at night which is a very clever technique because it links in well with Andrew goodwins theory of the record label advertising the artists as 'stars' in order to gain profit .
• props- The main props used in the music video are the instruments such as the electronic guitar. which is used as 'symbol' of the origin of daft punk. also the drum kit is also highlighted as a key feature of sound that the band uses. lastly the helmet once again is shown to familiarise the audience with the 'band's identity'.
• appearance- The first artist to appear in the music video is pharrell  williams who is featuring on the  hit single. he is also the main lead singer on the song 'get lucky' and was co-written by him. after there is a panning shot that shows all the musicians together. with daft punk playing the instruments while mr William's takes the lead in singing and dancing. This  therefore creating the mood for dancing and pleasure.
• use of colour and location- most of the video is shot in a dark background due to the theme of 'random access memories' album cover being set in 'space'. moreover the four men stand out due to their shiny 'black/navy' suites.
• graphic elements- in the middle of the video there are small clips or cartoon 'manga' characters dancing at a disco. This is a rather unique style of reminding 'daft punk' fans about their appearance on cartoon shows such as interstellar 555.
• colours- futuristic colours reinforce the sic fi feel of the helmets- black metallic, gold, silver , grey 
• fonts-the font used for the album title and track listings are also used in the music video and teaser trailer.

research for music video: costume, genre , setting and location part 2

In many hip hop music videos the location mostly relates to the lyrics of the song. for example if the rapper sings/or raps about their life or about everyday problems they have the video is usually quite layer out to show a story. however this is not for all rap music videos. take for instance -'asap rocky', 2chains,kendrick lamar and drake's video- problems . all rappers appear in this video with different verses and so it is not possible to fit everybody's life story in a 4 minute clip. However because they all work closely as a group the video still has a great element in combining the success of all rappers in one clip in order to gain an even greater target audience.

There is also a case of mulvey's theory in this music video as female videos are used to make the music video more entertaining and appealing to 'males. although unlike pop music videos there many hip hop rap video do not use as much colour as in pop music. this may be because the lyrics of the song do not necessarily  reflect such a 'happy' narrative.

the costume of music artists also depends on the genre of music. for example in a hip hop video , stereotypically the men tend to wear big gold or silver chains , baggy jeans and the latest and probably most expensive trainers with a nice car in the background. whilst the women wear little clothing and high heels. here are some examples 

 nelly- baggy shirt, long silver/gold chains

 wu-tang - expensive trainers and hip hop clothing

video girl- high heels ( to appeal to wider audience- mulvey 'male gaze')

research for music video: analysing costume , settings and location.

The costume of music artists varies depending on its genre. This is because the genre has conventions that are are typically followed to familiarise an audience. take for instance in a 'pop' music video it would be expected for their to be a specific type of costume that has a connection with the narrative of the music video. for example 'Katy perry' in the 'dark horse' music video. The theme for this video is clearly based around 'Egyptian gods'.

through costume and lighting we are able to identify that 'katy' is playing 'a sort of Egyptian queen/or goddess'. for example the exaggerated costume highlighting symbols that ancient egyptians used in the past. Also the lighting in the first top photo is 'gold' in the background which symbolises royalty as well the fact that theme is set in egypt where it is often sunny and hot. 

also katy's pose is rather stereotypical to how most queens back then would react to excessive sunlight. in fact in most cases there would be a servant cooling her down with a 'fan'. on the other hand we can see that katy has the most authority in this narrative as she is in the centre of the video. also there are repetitive shots of her and exaggerated body language as well facial expressions as different guest try to please her in the video.

also this music video uses a lot of bright colours to showcase the artist as being the centre of the attention. mise en scene is used to also show connection to the narrative. this shot of 'katy' trying to almost fly away links directly to part of the lyrics of the song that goes 'are you ready for..ready for' which emphases the artist  meaning of what the lyrics visually mean to her. meanwhile because the target audience are most likely to love wearing bright colour clothing the artist has used digital effects as well as edits to appeal to her audience.

research for music video: review of previous student work

One of my favourite 'previous student music video' was by khadeeja, romy, andreia and luke. I feel that their music video is very good because they used a lot of edits that would relate to the genre of 'pop'.  Especially the drawing pencil that was consistent throughout the video. This made the music video stand out more compared with the others. Also the background setting is great for the lyrics of the song as well as the genre. The narrative throughout the music video was very strong -highlighting a young couples relationship. aside from that i also felt that the dancing in the video showed a lot of creativity with the group.

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research for music video: summary of laura mulvey theory.

Laura Mulvey argues that music videos sexualise women to intrigue a certain audience-creating visual pleasure and narrative cinema.

• The concept of 'gaze' is one that deals with how an audience views the people presented.
• feminist on the other hand look at it in 3 ways :

1. how men look at women 
2. how women look at themselves 
3. how women look at other women 

laura mulvey came up with the term 'male gaze' in 1975. she believed that in film , the audiences have to view characters form the perspective of a heterosexual male.
The camera lingers on the curves of the female body, and events which occur to women are presented largely in the context of a mans reaction to these such events , which therefore portrays women as 'objects' rather than 'beings'. the female viewer must experience the narrative secondary , by identification with the male.

mulvey claims that there are specific genres that sexualise women in music videos, for example :

• Rap music videos
• R 'n' B
• Hip Hop
• Pop

here are some examples of music videos that sexualise women:

robin thicke- blurred lines 

ludacris - stand up

research for music video : narrative structure of music videos- carol vernallis

research for music video : laura mulvey theory- the male gaze

Laura mulvey theory:

laura mulvey quote -' no matter what your gender or sexuality is, everyone reads media texts from a males perspective .

• In many films, the male gaze occurs when the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual male. a scene may focus on the curves of a woman's body, putting you in the viewer of a male.
• Although it is only the male gaze theory if these curves are highlighted with specific conventions such as slow motion, deliberate camera movements and cut aways.
• Mulveys theory suggest that the male gaze denies women human identity, instead identifying them as 'objects' to be admired for physical attributes.  

although it is often the case that the presence of a woman in the mainstream film texts is rather vital. often a females character lacks importance  in itself in some movies , however it is how she makes the male feel or act that is seen as most important by most movie directors.

mulvey argues that there are two main functions of a female character in a narrative :

• The first being as an erotic object for characters within the narrative to view.
• Then the second being  an erotic object that spectators within the cinema to view.

this same male gaze is also represented in music videos of today:

e.g rihanna - diamonds

in this particular video there are close up images of rihanna in a black and white edit singing along with the song . however the camera is clearly fixed at an angle where its just above her chest therefore not  exactly showing any sort of nudity but almost implying it to be there.

research for music video :Richard dyers star theory

Richard dryers star theory argues that a star is an 'image' not a real person that is constructed out of a range of materials. in other words celebrities are manufactured by institutions for financial gain. 'stars' are usually manufactured by the music industry to serve a purpose, to make money out of audience, who respond to various elements of a stars personality by buying records and becoming fans.

e.g through advertising , magazines, interviews etc.


for example Beyonce Knowles carter .

Beyonce has had a exceptional outstanding career in the music industry and to many around the world she is an icon . Richard dyer would argue that the music industry has in some way had an input in the way Beyonce is presented to her fans. therefore creating a wider fan base around the world .

maintaining stardom :

richard dyer claims that true pop stars have lasting siginificances if they make sufficient sociological or cultural impacts of not they will be forgotten by all most avid fans within a few years. unlike many other female artist beyonce has been consistent from a young age ; originally starting off in a female vocal band to later on going onto a solo career and succeeding. she has been described as 'the most popular musician of the twenty-first century' and has won many awards.

on the other hand richard dyers theory is split into 3 sections:

• Audience and Institutions - stars are essentially seen by the music industry for money purposes alone and so therefore increasing the brand identity benefits the institution as they become a household name increasing sales in all of the media platforms they are in. The record label then models the artists around the target audience they choose . for example One Direction , according dyer, would argue have been modelled around young female teenagers so that the audience can be drawn into them as a group as well as their music.

• Character and personality- although the star starts as a 'real' person at the beginning of their career . they are transformed  so that they can provide an image of their time and culture. Take for example , audience can see how beyonce went from being 'curvy looking' to 'slim line' as the trends have change. The 'star' provides audiences with the idea of what they are meant to be like.
• Hegemony- hegemony in dyers theory means that we as the audience can relate to the star as we admire or share similar experiences to them. This then later on develops into idolisation . Beyonce has a massive following in magazines, blog sites and  social media sites and so her audience can see her actions everywhere. some fans attempt to replicate the 'stars' actions or decisions for example through fashion , hair styles and fragrances. 

research for music video : Andrew Goodwins theory

Andrew Goodwins Theory:

• In his theory he identifies certain characteristics that are present in the making of a successful music video
• he divided these successful characteristics into the following:

1) star image - a lot of musicians use their videos as a way of promoting themselves. lots of close up shots of them are used in order to create a sense of familiarity between the audience and the artist .

 an example of this is beyonce in her music video for 'countdown'.

2) intertextuality- This is when a music video references another text, often other music videos. other things can also be referenced such as films, literature or tv.

an example of this is charlie x in her music video 'boom clap' which refers to the hit movie 'the fault in our stars'

3)sound and vision - This is where there is clear relationship between the lyrics and video. when a clear correlation can be drawn between the visuals and the sound.  this is clearly shown in john legends music video 'all of me' where the lyrics are closely linked to video.

Within sound and vision there are four subcategories. all of which play an important role in making the music video what it is. 

• Disjuncture: the video and the lyrics have no correlation to each other for example Nicki minaj in 'pills and potions' video.
• Contradict: The visuals of the video contradict with the song lyrics for example 'Rudimental's' video for the song 'waiting all night '. here the lyrics does not exactly state anything that the video depicts. 
• illustrate : The visuals have some literal representation of the songs lyrics. take for example in 'beyonce's - 'best thing i never had' and ' if i were a boy' video both demonstrating a clear parallel link between the song lyrics and music video.
• Amplify : Repetition of the key meaning to manipulate an audience. the visuals may be exaggerated. for example in the Michael Jackson - man in the mirror.

4) notions of looking- 'voyeurism' is when the viewer is watching video/performer for personal pleasure. This is often the case with female pop stars who perform sexual dance routines to cater to a wider audience .

other elements of this is when the music video contains things such as mirrors , TV screens , cameras etc. These all reinforce the idea of watching and looking .

5) Genre- music videos should demonstrate Genre characteristics and should be relevant to the genre of the song. for example for pop song there should be mainly a lot of bright colours and lots of dancing going on which reinforce the idea of 'fun' and 'enjoyment'.

for example a lot of 'lady gaga's ' music video have the typical 'pop music characteristics' for example:

clear visuals demonstrating the artist and her dancers , with extreme costume changes through out the video

Andrew Goodwin feels that traditional narrative analyses don't really apply to pop videos. there are number of reasons for this but it isn't because pop videos are trying to be avant garde- it is just that they approach narrative from a different angle to novel and films.

The reasons for the different narrative structures are because :

1) pop songs are usually built around the song itself - and so therefore do not follow the traditional narrative structure , that is ( normality - problem- solution )
2) the pop video uses the singer both as narrator 

research for music video : Great music videos and their functions:

research for music video : copyright clearance :

The song that i have chosen to do my music video on is called 'lego house' by ed sheeran who is a uk artists that is sighed to 'Asylum records' music label company.

 here i have emailed the label to gain copyright clearance in order to use the song. i will try again to find another alternative email in order to be able to contact asylum records label.

research for music video : what is the main purpose of a music video ?

1) sell the song in a way that the audience can remember the song from the video.

2) To provide the viewer with a better understanding of the song so they engage with it both visually and audibly (this is achieved through a performance or a 'story' telling )

3)to entertain the viewer by highlighting the talents of the artist - dancing , singing , performing and physical appearance.

examples of some memorable music video's:

beyonce- love on top

rihanna- what's my name