Task 2.1 - Beyonce 'Formation' - Semiotic Analysis

Beyoncé standing on top of a police car is the first image we see. It is extremely striking and connotes multiple things, primarily a reference to the lack of aid supplied by the federal government to the blacks in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina in 2001. This was seen as abandonment by those living in New Orleans and now, entire generations are against the police and all forms of government. This is also a statement regarding the current activist group taking America by storm, Black Lives Matter, showing someone of colour on top of a police car is a Black Power salute of sorts which infers that people of colour should stand up to the police brutality they’re currently being exposed to.

We also hear non-diegetic sound of a man, who we presume is African American also, talking to a woman, presumably Beyoncé, calling her “Bitch” and then telling her what food he likes implying that she should go and make it. This is quite shocking to those viewing the video who do not live in such areas featured in it. However, it is commonplace in the culture that surrounds those areas and words such as “Bitch” and “Nigger” have lost their meaning and are just part of the common tongue and aren’t offensive anymore. Beyoncé has put these bits of talking into her music video to highlight the misogyny that exists within these communities.

 

A series of shots throughout the video feature Beyoncé dressed up in a white lace dress in an upper class home. This is referring to the slavery that black people were exposed to 150 years ago and how they can now be in that position of wealth. It is ironic to feature such shots but will also shock some people who cannot imagine someone of colour being in such a position. It could also be a representation of what Beyoncé would be she was alive 150 years ago due to her extensive levels of wealth which aims to show how that America is more divided when it comes to rich vs poor rather than black vs white.

Furthermore, one of the lyrics from the song are “I just might be a black Bill Gates in the making” backs up the point I made in the previous paragraph as it clearly means that ethnicity does not define what you’re worth. You should determine your own worth. Before that line, the lyrics are “You just might be a black Bill Gates” showing her view regarding her fan base. She doesn’t see any difference between what she’s capable of and what her fans are capable off as she comes from a disadvantaged background as well.

There is a scene that repeats itself throughout the music video accompanied by the lyrics ‘okay ladies now let’s get in formation’. The formation she is talking about is a reference to actively protesting for Black Lives Matter and they physically take the form of an ‘X’ shape, referencing Malcolm X who used militant tactics rather than peaceful ones to campaign for Civil Rights during the 1960s. This is one of the many things from the music video that angered the police forces in America as it essentially incites violence towards the federal government, which we have seen recently across the whole of the United States.

Another scene which aggravated the police force featured a small child dancing in front of a line of riot police. This scene portrays the police as preying upon the weakest and most innocent in society, it feeds the stereotype recently given to them and accompanied with the messages from previous scenes, incites more violence. Alternatively, it could also be a statement telling protesters to stand up to the police in a peaceful manner rather than the violence that is taking over the nation. This could be through dance, as shown in the video, or through music, like the video, or in any other creative ways.

To conclude, the video carries a powerful message regarding Black Lives Matter and is very relevant to today’s society. Beyoncé is using her power as a modern icon to spread this message. The message can be interpreted in multiple ways leading to both negative and positive results.

Task 2.1 - Phases of the Music Video

Q1: What camera angles, shots, movement & position, are still used today from the ‘Hard Day’s Night’ Performance music videos?

In the performance music video for ‘If I Fell’ from Richard Lester’s ‘Hard Day’s Night’ a lot of different camera shots and angles are used. All of them that can be identified in the video are still used today; this is because Richard Lester established the codes and conventions for the production of a performance music video. For example, there is a high angle shot of the band very early on which clearly shows the viewer the band in it’s entirety and is used in most performance music videos today. As well as this, there are close ups of instruments being played (Ringo playing the drums). Finally, there’s a distinct use of handheld camera from the viewpoint of where the crowd would be, almost making it a POV shot. Most people dreamt of watching the Beatles from front row seats and this video gives them the best representation of what it would be like.

Q2: Discuss what the appeal was of MTV in the 1980s and analyse it in relation to Thriller/Video killed the radio star.

The appeal of MTV in the 80s can be defined from two points of view, the audience and the producers. The producers loved MTV because it was a TV station that ran 24/7, constantly broadcasting music videos. This meant that if they made a music video and it was broadcast on MTV it would increase the number of people that received their product thus getting them more profit and the artist more publicity. The audience would like MTV as it would allow them to view the most popular music videos whenever they wanted, thus letting them connect further with their favourite artists. MTV made music videos extremely successful and this was highlighted by The Buggles’ song ‘Video killed the radio star’. As well as this, Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ was extremely successful due to how intense it’s video was. It was just as, if not more, scary than most horrors at the time and it was paired with what was probably his most popular song. You could argue that this would not be the case if the video had not been received so well.            

Q3: Discuss what elements of the Marilyn Monroe musical scene are borrowed by Madonna? Think in terms of the similarities of Mise en Scene: location, setting, costumes, props, body language etc.

In Madonna’s ‘Material Girl’ video she has very cleverly decided to copy, almost exactly, the props, costumes, location and body language that Marilyn Monroe is surrounded by in ‘Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend’ video from the film Gentlemen prefer blondes. She has done this due to the success of Marilyn, as well as the fact she is commonly deemed as the most attractive women in the world. This may be because she desires to achieve that or to simply pay homage to such a definitive piece.

Creative Journey - Entry 1

In this entry to my creative journey I will cover my research and planning into previous music videos.

In class we looked at two music videos, Bad Romance by Lady Gaga and Formation by Beyonce. T analyse these video correctly, as they were deemed as rich texts, we looked into semiotics (study of signs) and Ferdinand De Saussure. Doing this further research allowed me to gain wider knowledge on media theories as well expand my ability to analyse a media text.

In Bad Romance I uncovered the message behind the song, about how Lady Gaga felt she had been treated by the industry. The video depicts a form of prostitution and this represents how Gaga feels the industry works.

Beyonce's Formation is a call to action regarding the civil rights movement currently taking the US by storm, Black Lives Matter. She does this through referencing Malcolm X and certain scenes aimed to highlight police brutality.

Task 2.1 - Lady Gaga - Bad Romance - Semiotic Analysis

The beginning of the video features a forward tracking shot of all the actors involved in the music video. It shows clear binary oppositions between the genders (females in white, males in black) according to the theory by Levi Strauss. It also portrays a very powerful image of the music industry which is the main motif of the production. It reveals the extremely sexualised images desired by the industry for both genders, but also shows how every artist is similar through the pretty much identical costumes that everyone is wearing.

There's also significant amounts of product placement during the very same scene. There is an mp3 player and three bottles of 'Lex' vodka. This is to highlight the amount of product placement within music videos due to the capitalist nature of the industry trying to milk as much money through such tactics as well as things like celebrity endorsements. One of the more profound examples being 'Beats' headphones which are endorsed by Dr. Dre.

The crucifix and 'god ray' are two of the more subtle semiotics within the video and are biblical references. The god ray is represents the idolisation and worship of today's more popular artists and celebrities with the most idolised one being Kim Kardashian. People worship celebrities like gods because of their fame. The crucifix is placed upon Lady Gaga's capsule and I perceive it to have been placed there for two reasons. Either because she is also worshipped in a godlike fashion and her coming out of the capsule is like resurrection of Christ but also because maybe only God can help restore her morality and innocence which has been stripped away by the industry in which she is a slave too.

Possibly one of the more striking scenes is the revelation of Lady Gaga and her monsters as they climb out of their capsules. They come out dressed in all white and this bares significance away from the binary oppositions aforementioned. The whiteness represents how they enter the industry as blank slates that are innocent but malleable to what is demanded of them to become successful 'artists'.

To further expand on my most recent point, there's a compelling scene which features two females corrupting Lady Gaga by forcing her to drink the Lex vodka. The two women start off by ripping away her clothes leaving her exposed wearing just her undergarments, this is a metaphor for the industry taking away her innocence. After this, they are then seen towering over her, intimidating her. This is a potential reference to some of the tactics used within the industry to control artists. Then they finally complete the process of corruption by pouring the drink down her throat whilst she struggles. Following this Lady Gaga is then seen surrounded by people who we can presume are her fans/other artists 'attacking' her as they rip off her jacket revealing a much more sexualised individual. This pans out revealing her to be surrounded by men watching her and all the others. This represents the industry looking for 'talent'. Lady Gaga and the other 'artists' begin doing an identical dance routine, this looks innocent but is actually telling the viewer how the industry only wants the same type of artist over and over again but looks for someone who is especially good at it. This confirms my point I previously made about the industries capitalist ideologies wanting to use cash cows for personal gain.

Another significant point to be made out of this scene is how it is women forcing her to do these things rather than men. This is due to the fact that women in the modern era complicit more to sexualising themselves and each other more than it is forced upon them by the males they so often blame. The women 'attacking' her could also be a metaphor for the competitive nature between women in the industry constantly battling each other commonly with vicious tactics and slanderous comments that isn't as prevalent withing the male side.

There is also a distinct number of feline references within the video including a shot of her back showing a very feline-like spine, a sexually provocative crawl that is also linked to the way cats stalk their prey and the more obvious one, a cat. These metaphors represent Lady Gaga herself as big cats are renown to be ferocious and very high up in the food chain, as well as this, all types of cat are very unwilling to be domesticated. We know for a fact that Lady Gaga is also unwilling to be domesticated through her outrageous articles of clothing such as a dress made out of meat and her general image as an artist being different to everyone else's so she is perceived as 'weird'.

The music industry is dominated by male led business and this is represented through the 'auction' that is portrayed. The men watching Lady Gaga represent said industry and they begin bidding on her, only taking interest in her now she is what they want precisely. This way of looking at it reveals how bad the industry is in modern times and what corrupt practices it gets up too.

Towards the end of the video we see Lady Gaga walking away from the camera wearing a cape made out of a dead polar bear with its head still attached. The message this conveys is an extremely dark view on modern society. It shows us how we deem it acceptable for people to do things like that because they're rich and famous but also how a lot of people in that position see nothing wrong with it as they also believe they are superior to normal people. Furthermore, it conveys the riches that can be achieved from conforming to the industries demands, almost justifying the industries actions due to the possible rewards.

Shortly after, we see the remainder of the scene. Except she has took the cape off and is standing in her underwear in front of the winning 'bidder', however, she sets him on fire. This is imagery for her conquering the industry and not relying upon them to be successful anymore. All while the polar bears head is in the foreground linking back to my previous comment about her being top of the food chain. The video then ends with her lying on the burnt bed with the corpse next to her whilst in underwear launching fireworks from her bra. This is Lady Gaga telling the industry that she doesn't need them anymore, that she has won and is celebrating it. It also confirms to the viewer that she can now act the way she pleases as an artist in her songs and music videos due to her now being popular. 

To conclude, the video can also be seen as a giant metaphor for Lady Gaga's experience of the industry and what she's had to do to achieve fame and succeed otherwise she wouldn't be in the same position that she is in today.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad_Romance

http://vigilantcitizen.com/musicbusiness/lady-gagas-bad-romance-the-occult-meaning/