Music Video CW - Sypnosis, Location, POA (21/09/14)

Summary 

We are going to make a narrative based music video to accompany the track by artist Fab Soares called Underdog music. Our video is based on split narrative where our protagonist has two choices. A life of crime which has helped to support his mother and suplement his hedonistic lifestyle. However his drug dealing antics have sowly caught up with him and he has become embroilled in a drugs war with a rival gang. Or will it be boxing that is his saviour from this lifestyle of crime. It follows a day in the life of our young protagonist who will be played by Clifford Williams. And it will portray how he's balancing selling drugs, school and boxing and also the threat of rivals running up on him. This will all culminate in him either being stabbed as a result of gang tension or him in the ring rising up as the underdog. All of which will be set in the urban backdrop of White City and Ladbroke Grove.

Locations & Sypnosis & Plan 

So we are going to use a variety of locations which we think would be stereotypical of a young innercity youth growing up in where violence and crime is prominent. To create a realistic visual portrayal of a street narrative its essential that we choose the right location that we think could support our protagonists nature and story and that we conform to the you are a product of your environment location. To do this Ladbroke Grove and White City are perfect for presenting our story. Not only do we want to show the story of our protagonist but also we want to represent the areas that we have grown up in and that we can relate to in a way. These will be our external shots to show the envrioment that the protagonist is in so we will alternate between both which are relatively close to each other. Different shots of Ladbroke Grove will serve as establishing shits and will feature in a montage of the area in black and white and slow motion to accompany the beat and rhythm of the music with the title of the music. 

Shots that open up for the narrative will be done in either Clifford or my house. So this will involve Clifford getting up out of bed with Mohammed Ali posters and boxing gloves by his bedside wall and also posters of luxury items such as sports cars, jewellery and women. He will be putting his school clothes on however there will also be shot of his stack of money and his knife by his bed side table to give early indications of what else he does. The room is quite cramped and messy to create the sense that he his quite poor. Obviously our school shots will be in Gunnersbury and will show Clifford working to present the protagonist as a hard working and smart young man who is trying to make his mother proud through education. These will be shot on school premises and in school class rooms around Gunnersbury. 

Shots of Clifford selling drugs and him on the street corner with his mis en scene denotting a tracksuit indicates his altering lifestyles and the person he is outside of school. Shots of him around the area will alternate with him hitting the puching bags at a gym in slow motion and this will then alternate with shots of him in a black background with boxing gloves contrasting with images of expensive clothing. Our video culminate in two different scenarios. One could be the consquence of living a criminal lifestyle or the other could be in the ring fighting using the theme of the underdog to represent him rising up from the negativity in his life. 

    

Music Video CW - Music Video Influences (12/09/14)

Music Video Influences 

Lyrical Analysis

"I'm back with voodoo and I'm breaking UK barriers, differently, viciously
So hit the deck, best protect your neck, cos your life could go in seconds
They reaching for the weapon, all in the name of: money, power & respect

This is a extract from verse 2 of Fab Soare's track Underdog Music. Immediate from the get go the artist is promoting and selling himself. Billed as this type of rapper we can recognise his distinct flow and rhythm to the jazz infused 90's resonating beats. The word aggressive is appealing to myself as it fits in with the type of video that we want to make about a aggressive young adolescent who faces depravity but faces it head on through boxing. The second line states 'so hit the deck best protect your neck.' This is a direct reference to Mobb Deeps lyrics from survival of the fittest. This line can relate to the instinct of survival as you could be targeted or threatened at any time. Line 3 infers that things such as guns and knives are commonplace in the cycle of depravity and people would do anything to gain fame, money and respect.  

Our Video Concept

We are using the track entitled Underdog Music by the unsigned artist Fab Soares. Having analysed the lyrics of the video I found a distinct link between the subject matter of lyrics to that of artists such as Nas and Mobb Deep. In his track he reiterates themes regarding social problems such as drugs and gangs and the hardships of living in London where money is regarded as a metaphor for power and success. This is something that appeals to us as we want to integrate these themes into our video.

We are using the concept of the 'Underdog' and the stereotypes behind this ideal. Using the narrative format Fab Soares track will accompany lyrics that relate to a protagonist who comes from a deprived area. He has become embroiled into the world of petty crime including selling drugs to support his single mother. He wants to break out from this lifestyle and hopes he can achieve it through his passion of Boxing. Boxing is a sport which conforms most to young inner city kids who are involved in the life of crime and often its seen as a saviour for those who have fallen on hard time. We can use the representations of and the symbolisms behind the film which relate to a underdog attitude and resilience against the established favourite.In essence our video is going to relate to themes such as hope, handwork and desire in contrast to the repressive negativity of crime and poverty. Essentially our video is going to challenge the conventions of hip hop music video. Instead of a variety of themes that represent the usual connotations of power, money, women and respect our split narrative will question whether that path to riches is really the right one.  

Video Influences 

We are very much influenced by the recent surge in East Coast rap music with the emergence of rappers such as Joey Badass and Dillion Coopers videos inspiring us. So regarding the cinematography and the use of colour and ambient urban shots of the area that they represent this is what is going to inspire some of the shots that will be seen in the video. For example for the opening shots to our music video I've looked at Dillion Coopers video State of Elevation and his other video Kung Foo and at the beginning the visuals show a montage of shots of a urban environment that cut quickly synchronising with the pace of the beat. The visuals are shot in black and white which emphasises and portrays the area as rough and gritty which is something which we want to fit into our video and this can link to the narrative of the video and the domestic situation of the protagonist. 

Joey Badass's video Waves is also a video that we see inspiration from. At the beginning of the video it shows Badass getting up out of bed to start his today. This is effective for us as it can show that everything seems routine and normal for our protagonist until he picks up the things that he needs to sell his drugs showing that his life is different to others. Next to it is a shot of boxing gloves showing the contrast of ideals and responsibilities that our protagonist has. Additionally there is a shot of him kissing his mother. We could perhaps twist this image to show money being given to his mother from his illegal gains. Influence has also been drawn from other musical genre's for instance pop artist Lorde's Royals video. The simplistic nature of some of the shots create a sense of realism and that is something that we want to reflect in our product. For example the shots denoting one of the actors in the video plotted against a blank grey background. 

Other important music video influences include the definitive and very prominent tale of the theme of revenge which is told in the video by Murs - Walk like a man. He use's simplistic narrative that compliments his lyrics well to navigate the viewer through a street narrative that involves the protagonist of the story avenging the death of his gangster friend. Such symbolism's is something which we can use and import into our video regarding the themes of gun crime and we can use the gun as metaphor for success or failure. In Murs video he also toys with a split narrative regarding the protagonist implicating himself into a world of crime and prison or whether he can challenge that anger through music. Also regarding visual representation, I've discussed with my partner that we could include a variety of shots that represent the protagonists alternate lifestyles.This could be seen through a single shot of the protagonist in a black background wearing boxing attire I want to use Tempa T's next hype video for example, a performance video where there rapper is seen topless in just a black background that's the type of finish that I want to achieve. This could split to mis en scene of expensive clothing and drug taking. These are just some idea's that we could use and that have been drawn from videos such as Rick Ross's Thug Cry and so fourth. 

Music Video CW - Music Genre Research (15/09/14)

Genre research - Hip hop/ Rap

Hip Hop (History, sounds, artists) 

Perhaps one of the most prominent and influential genre's in the music industry, hip hop music is culturally, socially and politically relevant to popular culture. Hip hop music first emerged in the city of New York.  Hip hop music is often synonymous with African american youths and it was during a block party in a Bronx housing estate that saw a mixture of R&B and funk enfuse from the decks of DJ Kool Herc in the 1970's. In the 1980's the genre began to reach new heights with artists such as LL Cool J, African Bambata and Grandmaster Flash. Grandmaster Flash's the message and African Bambata's Planet Funk were recorded in the early 80's and since been indited into Bilboards top 100 songs ever. Both retained culturally important messages about living and growing up in deprived area's and the social contrasts that existed. It was the powerful impact of the message that has seen it ranked as the number 1 hip hop defining track.

The 90's was an age where hip hop music really diversified. Perhaps cited as the greatest period hip hop in the 90's functioned as a voice for the black community in the public sphere in American society especially in the wake of the Rodney King beatings. However the genre had also seen the death of two of hip hops greats Biggie Smalls and 2pac as result of the infamous feud between the established East Coast which saw representation from New York rappers and the West Coast. The gritty sound of New York was pitted against the West Coast and the emergence of gangsta rap. The rise of the West Coast saw dominance from influential artists such as NWA, Snoop Dogg and most notably 2 Pac creating a musical feud. Whilst this was highly publicised by the media and shed in a negative light on the genre. 

It was also in 1994 where a young rapper from the borough of Queens New York by the name of Nas released the infamous Illmatic. Now recognised as the greatest debut album and perhaps the greatest hip hop album of all time it went on to sell more than 60,000 copies upon its release in its first week. The album received critical acclaim for its production and distinct sound of Jazz infused beats that complimented the innovative first person narrative of a young adolescent Nas growing up in the tough environment of Queens bridge New York and his presentation of the social themes in terms of urban poverty, gang rivalry, murder, crime and drugs. Depicting the harsh social realistic life of a young man in the projects was something that was new to the scene with Nas shying away from the bravado and extravagant themes that were personified by his predecessors.It was the release of this album that saw a revival in New York Hip Hop creating what is now known as a East Coast renaissance after shadowing the dominance of the West Coast coupled with the emergence of the Wu Tang Clan following the death of Biggie Smalls. 

Now 20 years on the genre of hip hop as spurned out some of musics greatest names that are still very much prominent in the modern age such as Jay Z, Kayne West, Eminem. and so forth. The climate of hip hop is very different to what it was back in the 90's. In my opinion this is very much down to the commercialisation of hip hop where as in the 90's everything was a lot more fresh and innocent. Despite this however within the different subgenre's exposure to the scene that was created in the 90's with the old school inspired beats of the 90's through artists such as Joey Badass and so on is an example of unprecedented impact and legacy of hip hop in today's society and popular culture.

Hip Hop (Music video)

Characteristics

Hip hop music video conventions are no different to any other genre's. Hip hop music video has changed and evolved since the its emergence in the 1970's. Often music videos associated with the genre refer to hedonistic activities such as recreational drug taking, voyeuristic or sexual images of women to reflect the ideals of power and dominance. Its dependent on the sub genre and the contexts of the track for example characteristics of a performance video for a artist such as Snoop Dogg is the use of customized low riding Chicano cars. To the audience this forms part of the lifestyle and culture of West coast rap and could be used to reflect the type of character the artist is. In hip hop videos the use of setting is also a very important aspect. What does the representations of a video set in a deprived area of Los Angeles such as Compton with the artists mis en scene denoting all black attire, a customized Chicano and gold jewellery with women dancing in revealing clothes connote? In my opinion West coast music videos are a example of social contrasts that personify the extravagant ideals of power through money. 

Hip hop music artists often feature performance videos. In hip hop music videos the use of low angle shots are important in portraying power. For some artists power is the key to respect and often low angles are used to show status and power over the audience. In some cases i.e NWA's 'straight out of Compton' low angle shots are used to represent resistance, injustice and the abuse of power by the police which often young black people in the 90's we're subject to. In over videos such as Eminem's my name is the low angle shot is used to show representation of a white male it a genre that is usually dominated by African American artists. This shows that he's making a statement of intent by breaking the established racial barriers. Low angles are also important in framing the artist in the light of status. In the case of Eminem's my name is the low angle shot denotes a blue sky above. As a white artist this could be purposefully implemented to represent a sky's the limit attitude as he's not fazed by his race perhaps holding him back. 

Andrew Goodwins music video theory characterises the traits of Rap videos and this can be seen in many of rapper 50 Cents videos with the representations of the rich and wealthy lifestyle which many hip hop artists aspire to. Expensive items serve as a component and link the visuals to the representations of the artists lyrics. In 50 cents narrative driven performance a common form of hip hop music video, the video to his track 'candy shop' is a primary example of the ideals of being rich and famous, driving a luxury car, having expensive clothing, a nice house with a model wife. This breaks the conventions and audience expectations regarding a black man who is successful and wealthy. Whilst there are different functions of hip hop videos many of 50 Cents records refer to a new type of black man who can afford sports cars, designer clothes and beautiful women. This seems to be a tendacy of directors such as Jesse Terrero whom delivers exciting and compelling narrative to 50 Cents videos. Take for example Many Men directed by Terrero which connects 50 Cent to his earlier years as a street soldier 'hustling' drugs on the sidewalk of a Queens street corner. The mis en scene is bleak and moody depiticing the harsh reality of survival in a tough envrioment. Many men in contrast to In Da Club for instance represents a 50 Cent who is now successful and who is living the dream that he thought hard to get is a entirely different video portraying mis en scene of success and fame through the connotations of voyeristic images of women in revealing clothing, wades of cash and expensive drinks such as champagne. 

Another important convention of Hip Hop music video is the role of the 'gangsta.' In videos such as Mobb Deeps 'survival of the fittiest' themes of hood status, gangs, drug related violence, homocide, inner city youth growing up and urban degradation is portrayed powerfully by the montage of shots that vary from drugs being cooked and to guns being shot, even the representation of Mobb Deeps t shirts reading hennassy is a motif referring to the what the youth of Queensbridge drank when hanging out in the projects. The sharpness of the instrumental compliments the aggressive lyricism of the group and this raw power and instensity can be resonated through the images that are exposed to the audience in the video. The use of black and white in the video presents criminal activity such as the sale of illegal narcotics as being a normal everyday occurance. Biggie Small's 'hypnotize me' video contrasts distinctly. The narrative is very different almost gloryfying the role of the gangsta and exhileration, rush and responsiblity that comes along with it. Gangsta in this video is personifed in a Scarface esque plot coupled with hollywood styled cinematography featuring car chases, speed boats, white suits and yauchts. 

Whilst I am discussing American hip hop I have failed to talk about the UK scene. As I am representing a London rapper and sound the style of the music is very different. Like the US the same conventions can be seen. Aspirations of leaving the 'hood' through music or 'trapping' (selling drugs). Whilst the music videos in the USA are highly dramatised Uk hip hop is still in its developing stage. The style of music and video is still very raw and in some ways is more conscise to growing up in tough envrioments. Brixton rapper DVS presents his area Brixton with a montage of shots illustrating the daily going ons around the area. He raps in consistency with what the area means to him both the good and the bad side as its bought him both fame and trouble. Grime music is a offshoot of hip hop and implements a fast style of rapping. Music video making youtube accounts such as link up tv, sb tv and grime daily have garnerd popularity for bringing attention to grime artists in just a simple and simplistic format where the rapper has the freedom to just freestyle and spit.

.

Music Video CW - Securing the rights to music (7/9/14)

Rights To Music 

The first part of the process into making a music video from scratch means securing the rights to a track. This is often faced with difficulties and involves countless hours scouring various websites from facebook to soundcloud to find a artist who is willing to sacrifice there work for the sake of your project. For myself I had different concepts and ideas into the type of genre that I wanted to work with. At first I hinted at contacting my cousin who has a small indie band in Ireland. However this would mean managing logistics that would involve my cousin and there band either coming to London or me going to Dublin to shoot. Its here that I would encounter my first genre convention. As they are a indie band what type of video would I shoot? Andrew Goodwin's dancing in the distraction factory associates indie music with either a narrative driven video or a performance. Shooting a narrative driven video within the confines of Dublin city centre I thought would be ideal in projecting a narrative especially amoungst the bohemian settings of temple bar. If I shot a performance this would be less probalamatic and however it would restrict my marks unless I edited well and used a variety of different shots. Though neither would be possible due to scheduling this has served as a platform for the type of video that I want to deliver. 

I then turned my attention to UK underground rap artists. I figured that UK hip hop is a emerging scene with a unique sound and I think that certain tracks would complement well with a video. Soundcloud is a particularly useful tool for finding new and undiscovered talent. What soundcloud provides is a service that embeds music with social media allowing for you to message the artist yourself and try and establish a relationship with that artist for the means of the track that you want. Soundcloud artist profiles also serve you with contact details so you can try and speak with a artists management team, follow them on twitter and instagram etc. Based on my knowledge of the underground scene I unsuccessfully made contact with several artists who did not reply to my email. The image abouve shows the type of email and style that I used when addressing the artist for his music and below is the artists Soundcloud page where I found him. Located his twitter account and it was there was his managers email address is on display which enabled me to contact him.

Like Jesse James several other artists failed to respond. To keep my options alive I used a rapper that my stepfather knows by the name of Byron Chadwick from Slough. I contacted him via Facebook messenger for his track 'kids' which had already had a video and had featured on a prominant UK hip hop site called Link Up Tv, he himself had already toured both Australia and America. His video featured a mixture of montage shots of his area Slough and performance from himself mimicking the lyrics to the track. Looking at Byrons video gave me an insight into how a grime track is done. Websites such as Link up tv, SBTV and Grime Daily serve as an important influence into different types of visuals and editing that is used by the directors. As seen the image screenshot shows me making contact directly with the artist who agree's for me to use his track.  

   
So having made contact with Byron I continued to look for different artists. It was not until that I encountered a website by Digital hip hop magazine which showcased new and emerging unsigned UK talent that I discovered London Rapper Fab Soares. I liked the sound of the track Underdog music as it hit the elements that I wanted and the vocals and instrumental went well with the video that he had made. I found a link to his soundcloud which enabled me to message him regarding the rights to the music. He liked the idea and replied within a day to confirm that I could use his music. So soundcloud helped me instigate conversation with Fab who kindly let me use his music. From here I sent him a document which I made that just confirms that the purposes of using his music is for my A level course and nothing commercial. I thought that it would be appropriate to create the document for the purposes of the task and to avoid any sort of infirngement that could in the unlikely event be bought up against the school. Below shows the conversation between me and Fab who agree's and further below is the legal document. 

Having secured the rights to a track that I want and I like has helped me formulate my idea's and concepts better. This has taught me on how to be self suffcient and instead of relying on others to find the music for me. It has also developed my research skills on how to properly use the internet and facilities such as soundcloud to garner the right results for the benefit of my project. I feel with this track I can deliver a excellent video both conforming and adapting the conventions of music videos that are associated with the Hip Hop genre. One concern however that I do have with the track that I am using is that it does contain profanities. This I will overcome by bluring out the swear words that are in the track so that it doesn't affect the outcome and delivery of the finished video. Below is the track and video by Fab Soares entitled Underdog music that I will use to make a alternative video. 

  

Music Video CW - Analysis = Hunting For Witches (31/0814)

Analysis of Music Video

Bloc Party - Hunting For Witches

This is a analysis of Bloc Party music video hunting for witches. Hunting for witches is a conventional performance video. The video blends a mixture of camera angles and movement whilst the band stay seeminglsly still. The variety of shots and at such quick succession flow nicely with the pace of the track with its heavily influenced guitar riff played at the lower cords. The lighting projects this rather low key effect creating this dark and grey atmosphere which is in appropriate for the the title of the track in refernce to the supernatural phenomina of witches and spirits.

The extreme close up shots of the band members eyes and faces complement the dark mood and atmosphere and create this effect of fear and claustraphobia for the viewer. This infused with what sounds like a montage of voices mix with the bang of the drum and sharp cords of the guitar creating a feeling a feeling of menace for the viewer. What can also be established is the costume. Each band member is wearing a different colour t shirt. This is perhaps to create contrast and lighten the mood of the atmosphere created by the lighting and music.

In Bloc Party's hunting for witches a proceeds to shows a extreme close up of one of the band members upper face conveying a look of intension and purpose. The fast paced editing distorts the viewers sense of understanding that the diverse variety of shots from close up to long shots of the instruments and band members creates a relationship and places a importance between the instruments and the band members.

The reoccuring long shot centres all 4 members in the frame. This can be interpreted by the viewers that the band are united and that the witches are metaphors for the dark forces that wish to tear them apart. Though this might be a underlining message, understanding the lyrics of the track shows that Bloc Party are making a statement of 'critical intent'. "Hunting for witches" is a play on the term witch hunt and its through the multicoloured t shirts that represents there light hearted yet resiliance to tabloid papers 'witch hunt' against ethnic diversity. 

The different shots of the members faces present the viewer different ethnicities marketing them as young, diverse and independent. It seems also that the band are critical of the society that they are living in and the prominence of groups and political ideologies that oppose and do not embrace a new and different Britian. This view is personifed through the consistent cuts between the black front man Kele and the asian drummer. Additionally the echoes of the guitar chords and the camera's emphasise on the medium shot the the guitrarists strumming the instruments ferociously heightens the bands anger at the existing social problems and issue towards different people. The quick cuts synchronise well and reinforce this climax of sound.