Our Moodboard

We created our mood board which incorporated the ideas we wanted for our music video. We included pictures from Rihanna's video 'Disturbia' as we like the edgy feel to the video and we wanted to include this style in our video e.g. through our use of make-up and hair. We also included images of Christina Perri and Taylor Momsen as we like their image and want the members of 'Studded Roses' to have a style similar to this. In addition to this, we looked at how colour themes are used by girl bands in their videos, photo shoots, albums and so on. In particular we looked at the girl group the Pussycat Dolls in which they tend to have colour themes in their albums and photoshoots (a picture is seen in the middle of the moodboard). Therefore, we want to incorporate this theme in our video. Lastly, we decided on a narrative for our video which is the females (Studded Roses) dominating over the men; so we started to look at the lyrics of the song 'Scandalous' and we began to consider what the band members will be doing in each section of the song. Below our pictures of our moodbaord.

Genre Research

I decided to research into our chosen music genre which is Pop/RnB. I did this to give myself an insight into the genres. Hence, I researched the history of the genres and they came about as well as music artists associated with that genre in the past and present. Below is a powerpoint in which I used to present my research.

A definition of Independent music - an artist that is not attached to a major company and it is on its own.

The Punk rock era was seen as the birth of independent labels as it allowed any one any where to record music and release it to the rest of the public. Punk records were also not played on mainstream labels.The punk rock era brought about a turning point for independent labels, the do-it-yourself ethos of the time seeing the emergence of a plethora of independent labels.

Sony BMG

Which subsidiary labels do Sony BMG own?
Sony is one of the four biggest music companies in the world. There subsidiary labels include:
Columbia Records/Epic Label Group, RED Distribution, RCA/Jive Label Group, Legacy Recordings, Provident Label Group and Syco Music

How are Sony vertically integrated?
Sony are vertically integrated as they own many different companies, thus widening the audience that listens to their music. They have rights to their artists music, so they'll sell their artists CD's and allow their audience to legally download their singles. They also produce electronics such as: MP3 players and through this audiences can listen to their artists music.


How do Sony profit from media convergence at the level of media product?
In 2003 Sony released a PSX, this was a PS2, but had the ability to write DVDs and a hard drive, allowing video recording and DVD burning functionality. It was to be a media convergence device to make use of the PlayStation brand to gain a place on a new market, however due to its high price it failed to gain any major market share. It was never released outside of Japan.

Thursday 22nd September 2011

We decided on our music brief and decided that our genre is 'R and B/Pop'. The song we have chosen is 'Scandalous' by Mis-Teeq as we believe the song can fit in with they ideology of the band.

Music Video Brief

We have been asked to devise and make a promotional music video for the new act. As a new act, the record label is keen that this first release appeal to a wide audience and establish an image that is both recognisably unique and appealing to their target audience. With this in mind, their first release will be a cover version and will be used as a platform for future original releases. The record label is happy for this release to be any of the three songs listed below and they would like us to choose whichever one we can make a dynamic promo for, as the key thing is to get them exposed!

Good Girlz Bad
Fiona(19), Sarah(18), Louise(21) and Chelsea(19) formed Studded Rose in 2009 when they all responded to an advert in the Stage magazine (they are a manufactured band) and all went to performing art schools/were working on performing arts courses. They are signed to Sony BMG.
Sound: Funky pop
Ideology: Girl power makes comeback...with an edge
Influences: Spice Girls, Cyndi Lauper, Destiny's Child
Likes: Shopping, girly chats, travelling, independent women
Dislikes: Footballer's wives, being told what to do, copycats

I believe the brief we have been given is good and I also believe that the girl group have the capability to reach a wide audience, particularly females as they are independent women 'with an edge' and because of this they be seen as role models. We have changed the group name to 'Studded Roses' to integrate with the ideology of the band as they are edgy.

Rough in the 21st Century

How has Rough Trade evolved in the 21st century?
This record company evolved as they have entered into a partnership with Sanctuary and the Beggars group. Thus mean that they would gain financial stability worldwide. Also Rough Trade now has a bigger US presence.

How are their working practises different to the music produced through programmes such as X Factor?
They are different because they allow artists to stick to and sing the type of music they love, unlike programmes such as X Factor that direct individuals on what to sing and create mainstream music.

What successes have they had at this time?
At this time they have had successes from the likes of The Strokes and Duffy. The Strokes were the band that would 'kick start Rough Trade's future'. They became Rough Trades biggest band since The Smiths. Secondly Duffy, who Geoff and Jeanette had managed for four years. 'Mercy', Duffy's first single became no.1 on the U.K. charts.

How has Rough Trades ideology developed for the company in the present day?
They are progressing to find global stars. Also, things such as contracts have become more important for the label as they they do not want to repeat their previous mistakes of letting their artists leave their label easily, when they become well-known.

Rough Trade and the 1990's

What problems did Rough Trade incur at the start of the 1990's?
In July, 1990 Rough Trade moved to another premises due to the fact that their financial peak that was crashing to the ground. Further on, in December 1990 the company experienced cash flow problems yet again!

What effect did this have on the record label and distribution?
There was major arguments between the record label and distribution. This brought the company down and tore it apart.

How did major record labels branch out into the independent music scene?
...

What actions were taken to revive Rough Trade? What new music industry areas did Rough Trade begin to work in and with which artists?
Geoff had a new partner name Jeanette, they both moved into an office in 1991; together they bought Rough Trade back to life. In addition to this, in 1993 there was new artist management.

They heard a clip from the band 'Pulp', they liked what they heard and they consequently signed them to their label. Pulp granted Rough Trade 5 consecutive top 10 singles, here a new level of mainstream success was shown.

Rough Trade and the 1980's

How did contracts effect the development of Rough Trade?
By Rough Trade having contracts it was helping them to create a bigger name for themselves, through big acts. However, as these big acts were selling records and becoming even more successful in the music industry, they would then move tolarger corporations for better opportunity for their careers. This lead to Rough Trade loosing a significant amount of their artists.

What issues occurred between the record label and distribution?

There was a conflict between the record label and distribution, as one aspect was under the control of Geoff and the other in control of another member of staff.

What changes did this lead to within the business structure of Rough Trade?
In business terms Rough Trades inexperienced staff were out of their depth, which ended up in the company experiencing financial difficulties as the company owed money that they could not pay back. This lead to the shop coming to closing point and on December, 1982 Rough Trade's shop was sold to three of its staff. These staff carried on with the shop and also kept the name.

What has been Rough Trade's ideology and how was this effected by the change in structure?To begin with, Rough Trade's ideology was mainly about the music and they bought principles before profit. Whereas, now they wanted to make more money and since many of their artists were on contracts they did not want to loose them.

Which artists led to success for Rough Trade?

In April, 1973 John Marr from The Smiths) walked into Rough Trade with a demo.

New music emerged from The Smiths as they started off the Indie music scene. Rough Trade were seen as 'enemies-out to spoil the party'. Rough Trade also gave The Smiths independent credibility and they also hired London Records, an expensive marketing campaign for The Smiths-after this a string of hit singles followed.

What music trend emerged at the end of the 1980's?

The rave scene explosion, was the music trend that emerged at the end of the 1980's, this was evolutionary scene since punk.

What differences were there between Rough Trade and independent labels and this time?

Independent labels at this time wanted 4% share. Also, although in a larger corporation, they would sell artists as independent, whereas Rough Trade was.

Rough Trade and the 1970's?

How did Rough Trade start?
Rough Trade started over 30 years ago on February, 20th, 1976. It started as a small but 'hip' record company in a small studio. Jeff Travis, a Cambridge graduate began this record company by opening a shop off West London. He brought loads of records from San Francisco, America to London and began to sell them in his shop, which lead to this company turning the record industry 'on its head'.

Which music trends were popular?
At this point in time the genre of music that was popular was Punk. Therefore, this shop began to sell Punk orientated, 'middle of the road music'. This company also did not stop at selling music as they started to sell Punk magazines too.

What was the ethos of Rough Trade at this time?
Rough Trade wanted to be somewhere they felt comfortable. They were an independent record label at that time which differed from other labels as most of them were major mainstream labels. Also, Rough Trade had a 'do it yourself' attitude as they sold their own records.

How was Rough Trade different to large corporations?
This record company was different to large corporations due to the fact that they received 50%
profit and the bands/artists also received 50% profit; this meant that the band/artist could leave the company whenever they wanted. This was uncommon at the time because most record labels would have received most of the profit and would have kept their artists under a contract so that they cannot go until the end of the contract. In addition to this, they put costs on the records so people knew how much they cost.

What techniques were used to expand the independent music scene?
Rough Tradeformed an unlikely alliance between Punk and Reggae music, it was very important that they sold reggae music at the time. This 'unlikely alliance' gave Rough Trade a unique spirit. Also, they began to release singles with a major independent record label which granted them good support.

How did this lead to Rough Trade's expansion?
This lead to their expansion as new bands began to join. One of them being 'Scritti Pollitti. This a Marxist, democratic, anti-capitalist band that went against what a majority of people thought during that time.

What type of business structure existed in the 1970's?
Firstly, record distribution was controlled by major companies. Secondly, there was a principle project, they wanted to promote good music and they put principle before profit, they was not interested in building an empire. Also, the shop offered experimental musicians a chance to sell records worldwide.

Explain the successes of the distribution department and record label?
Richard Scott joined Rough Trade in 1977 and he thought of the revolutionary idea 'independent nationwide distribution'. This record label was also granted more success as they becamea record label on 'its own' when French Punks entered their shop. Also, in February, 1979 Rough Trade and band The Stiff Little Fingers released their first industry album, it was the first album in British music history to sell over 100,000 copies. Also when they released their first single it went to no.14 in the U.K. charts. Their band, Scritti Pollitti, changes their direction of music to Pop which was indeed very successful.

Analysis of 'Unfaithful' by Rihanna

• The video begins with the sound of a heartbeat which suggests maybe fear or a guilty conscience. Here the viewer sees a relationship between the music and visuals as each step Rihanna takes is in sync with the heartbeat.
• There is also voyeuristic treatment of the body, as we see the camera focusing on Rihanna's assets, curves etc. The viewer also see Rihanna putting on her lipstick and pulling up her lingerie which draws attention to her cleavage.
• The shots of her with the black guy make it clear to the viewer that she is cheating on her boyfriend. These shots of her and the guy change in time with the beat of the music. Also, these shots that are shown give a sense of the notion of looking as it is as if the viewer is spying/watching Rihanna.
• When Rihanna says 'I don't wanna do this anymore'-switches to the shot of her and the black guy. Even though she does not want to carry on cheating, she still carries on with it.
  
• 'I said I won't be long just hanging with the girls' looking at her phone, so it is as if she is texting the message to the person she is cheating on
• 'I'm about to go'- Rihanna pushes her hand to the side
• 'Die a little more inside'- Here, when Rihanna says this she clenches her fist and holds her arms closely to her chest
• This video also features codes and conventions used in R 'n' B videos as:
• Rihanna's make-up/Hair is well made
• Glamorous features e.g. her earrings, clothing
  
• There is a performance element to this video, when she goes on the stage and starts singing and the way she moves around, particularly on the piano is very dramatic
• The video is narrative based-as the viewer is let into the story of her cheating on her boyfriend
• There are also a lot close ups, and mid shots used to capture emotions and her body language.
  

CASE STUDY

We had to do a case study of a music video director and I chose Anthony Mandler as he has directed videos for a range of artists within our genre, (Pop/R and B), such as: Rihanna, Usher, Nelly Furtado and Fergie. Therefore, I researched into Mandler's life as well as his career as a music video director. I also analysed the music video, 'O.M.G.' by Usher, which he directed.

Mariah Carey Case Study...

Part of my homework was to do a case study of a music video artist and explain how their image has changed over time. Therefore, I decided to do my study on Mariah Carey as she is a very influential artist within the music industry as well as society; I also had already known that as far as her image is concerned she had transformed a significant amount in comparison to her youthful days.

Analysis of Tenacious D's'Tribute'

Music Video demonstrates Genre Characteristics:

The genre of the video is evidently rock and this video features many characteristics of this genre as:

• They are performing with a guitar (one of the main instruments used within this genre)
• The video is like a live performance
• Like a parody song/video
• References to the devil/hell link to the rock genre
  
• Costume-casual clothing
• One of the men is old and balding
• Taking conventions of the rock genre and making them humorous
• Typical trouble makers, rebellious and violent at times

Relationship between Lyrics and Visuals:

• 'There shined a shiny demon'- a demon was also shown
• 'Looking into my eyes'- Jack Black points to his eyes
• 'Two and one make three'- Uses his fingers to show the numbers
• He illustrates the song throughout
• When Jack Black talks/sings his facial expressions show what he is talking about

Relationship between Music and Visuals

• Sound of flash followed by a visual flash
• Slow building song, then a big flash which makes it faster

Influence of Record Label and use of Close-Ups:

• Introduction to who they are
• Lot's of close-ups

References to the Notion of Looking/Voyerism:

• Camera is positioned where the screen would be as if we are looking in on them

Intertexual References:

• Ben Stiller shown towards the end of the video, as one of the passers by
• Their CD is shown
• David Grohl plays the devil
  

Analysis of '99 Problems'

Genre Characteristics:

Jay-Z's music video for his single '99 Problems' features many characteristics of Hip-Hop/Rap genre. The video is set in Brooklyn, New York, a very urban setting, in the 'hood' area. Jay-Z seems to make a point to draw our attention by revealing the name on his hoodie. Also, there are representations of the 'gangster' lifestyle as the video shows individuals cruising in cars, dog fights, loltering on the streets, individuals getting pulled over by the police, basketball and guns. The viewer also is shown another genre characteristic through the type dancing shown in the video which is freestyle/street dancing. Hip-hop/Rap videos usually feature woman whom of which are usually 'half-naked', similarly this video features scantily dressed 'sexy' woman in gold bikinis. In addition to this, there are stereotypical representations of race as the white guy is in a suit and the policemen are also white. However, when the viewer is shown the jail scenes all the jailbirds are black and also the individuals roaming the streets are black. Although, this video does seem to divert from the codes and conventions of Hip-Hop/Rap videos as they usually include representations of wealth but this video does not have the latest, fancy cars, clothes, 'bling', women etc. In this video the woman are not very significant as they are only a minor element in the video; whereas in most Hip-Hop videos there would be more shots of 'sexy' women. The viewer is also introduced to another genre characteristic as Jay-Z gets shot at the end.

Relationship between Lyrics and Visuals:
When Jay-Z says the words:

• 'From the hood' he pulls his hood down
• 'Radio' a radio is shown
• 'Jay-Z' he points to himself
• 'Bitch' each time in the chorus woman are always shown
• 'Ain't passed the bar' shows dog through the bar in the boxing ring
• 'Talk to the Lord' a crucifix is shown
• 'Paparazzi with their cameras snapping them' shows flashes as pictures taken of criminals holding their cards up.
• 'Hit me!' Jay-Z slowly falls backwards as someone hit/shot him
• 'Pussy' two girls are shown
• 'Fast forward' Jay-Z moves his hand gradually
• 'Do you mind if I look round the car a little bit' Police officer inspects someones car

Overall the images illustrate the lyrics. This is sometimes done very literally, however at other times it is done in a more subtle way. The theme of the song is all the problems Jay-Z is experiencing and the video is showing all these problems.

Relationship between Music and Visuals:

In accordance to the relationship between the music and the visuals, the video is cut in time with the beat of the song. Secondly, the music is hard-hitting, aggressive-sounding with an emphasis on beat rather than the melody. Also, the visuals are also harsh-looking and the edits are fast-paced to emphasis this aggression.

Influence of Record Label and use of Close-Ups:

There are a lot of shots of Jay-Z in this music video; they are not all close-ups but there are some. There are close-ups of other men as well with an aggressive demeanour; though the shots of women are long/mid shots which suggests that they are least important. There is less emphasis on Jay-Z on his own as he is an established artist and does not need as much exposure. Jay-Z has his own record label as well as being part of 'Island-Def Jam', which is quite an independent record label. It is evident that there is less control from the label on this video, whereas you might expect more control from a major/mainstream label.

References to the Notion of Looking/Voyeurism:

Jay-Z puts his hand over the camera so that it gives the impression that the audience is looking through his fingers. There is also an x-ray vision shot of money in the boot as we can see through the boot. There is scopophillic treatment of women in this video, which seems unnecessary and makes it quite uncomfortable for the audience to watch. The establishing shots at the beginning of the video are almost point of view, this gives the idea that the audience is looking around the 'hood'. There is also a video of Jay-Z outside the subway station. Possibly a video of Jay-Z in which he is referencing himself.

Intertexual References:

Possibly a video of Jay-Z in which he is referencing himself.

Analysis of 'Telephone' by Lady Gaga

LADY GAGA featuring BEYONCE-'TELEPHONE'-Directed by Jonas Åkerlund.


This video contains elements of Goodwin's theory regarding music videos.

* Referencing the fact that she is a man
* The video is like a film
* Music-telephones ringing and viewer can also see the telephone (VIRGIN)
* Like the films 'Kill Bill' and 'Pulp Fiction' (Quentin Tarintino-elements of his style)
* The music video demonstrates genre characteristics as it is a pop video. So there is a lot of dancing, costume (of different outfits-which is focused on more in the video), the visuals don not illustrate the song-as she is singing about being in a club..'Hello, hello, baby; You called, I can't hear a thing. I have got no service in the club, you see, see…' whereas she is actually in a prison.
* There is also a relationship between the music and visuals as the visuals vibrate as the music jumps.
* Reference to notion of looking- CCTV type shots as if we are spying on her. there is also a blur of her bum.

Introduction to Music Video

The cinema invented music videos to be way they are; music videos have been around since the 1920's. American Blues singer Bessie Smith had one of the first music videos, 'St. Louis Blues (1929)'. Obviously from this video it is clear to see that music videos have progressed a lot since this time. The video is in black and white, there is not a huge amount of editing, there is no special effects etc, this is due to the fact that the type of technology we have now was not established in those times.

However, Bob Dylan was credited as having one of the first music videos from his song 'Subterranean Homesick Blues' (1965).



As we can see here the video is quite unique as it features Dylan holding cue cards for the audience, with selected words and phrases from the lyrics and as the song plays he flips the cards. This concept, being the cue cards has been imitated by many other artists.

In the 1970's recording industries saw T.V. programmes as a way to promote their artists and their focus from here was to produce short 'promos'.

In 1975 Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' was considered as one of the first videos to feature visual effects.

The video opens with a shot of the four band members in near darkness as they sing the a cappella part. The lights fade up, and the shots cross-fade into close-ups of Freddie. The video then fades into them playing their instruments. In the opera section of the video, the scene reverts back to the "Queen II" standing positions. All of the special effects were achieved during the recording, rather than editing. The visual effect of Mercury's face cascading away (during the echoed line "go") was accomplished by pointing the camera at a monitor.

Technical Codes

• CAMERAWORK-(Camera movement, angle and shot distance all need to be analysed). Close-ups tend to predominate and also emphasise the song, artist and the voice (this is known as 'commodity on sale').

• EDITING- fast cut montage: rendering many of the images to grasp on the first viewing, which consequently ensures multiple viewing. Enhancing the editing which will be digital effects, offers pleasure for the audience. This might be in the form of split screens, colourisation, block-buster film style CGI, green screen (known as chromakey).

An example of a one shot video (no cuts): Wiley featuring Daniel Merriweather -'Cash In My Pocket'

Andrew Goodwin's music video analysis:

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics
2. Music videos show a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals
3. Music videos also show a relationship between the music and the visuals.

• AMPLIFIES
• ILLUSTRATES
• CONTRADICTS

4. Demands of the new record label will include the need for close-ups, (most common amongst new artists) of the artist. The artist may develop motives which re-occur across their work.

5. There is frequently reference to notion of looking and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

6. There is often intertexual references (to films, TV, videos etc).

Examples of intertexuality in Music Videos:

• Michael Jackson-'Thriller': Horror film imitation
  

• Madonna-'Die Another Day': references to 'James Bond'

• Red Hot Chili Peppers-'Calirfornication': Video game characters

The purpose of intertexual references is that it:

• Can add another dimension of meaning to the text
• Fulfills an important role for audiences
• Can work on different levels, so it is understood by some but not necessarily all- those who understand the references feel privileged.