Applying for copyright

Applying for copyright

 

Copyright is a legal concept, which is used to give the created of original piece of work exclusive rights. This usually lasts for a limited amount of time and is enacted by most governments. This is used to stop people from copying or using that idea, it also gives the creator the right to be credited from the work, which they have created in order for them to be able to determine who may use their work and give them the permission to be able to use it. But it does mean that the person who wants to use it does have to ask for permission. The creator can also gain some financial benefit from this as this gives them the permission to charge people who want to use there creation, there are also other benefits which can be gained from copyright, although the creator has to say to have there creation or their idea copyrighted. Other similar forms are a patent, trademark, and the trade secret.  Where music is involved it automatically gets copyrighted when it gets created, and if someone wishes to use this then they have to get permission from the artist first.    

 

1.       Explain why I had to apply copyright

One of the reasons why I had to apply for copyright is because it is against the law to just use someone’s song as they can sue the person who had used the

The reason why I had to apply for copyright is because it is against the law to just use it. As if someone did just use it then the artist would then be able to take legal actions against that person, and as music automatically gets copy righted.

    Therefore I had to make sure that I applied for copyright to conform to legal legislation, so I emailed the artists, which we were interested in, to make them aware that I would be using one of their songs.

 

 

2.       Discuss in detail what you did. Identify the record label, email, phone, etc. (step by step account)

The first thing, which I did, was to go onto the Internet and look for the artists, which I was interested in. I then searched for their email addresses; again I found this by looking it up on the internet. Once I had found the page which would allow me to contact someone to ask for permission to use a song. I emailed them with this request, although when we contacted people it wasn’t always the artist themselves, as on many occasions it was the artist manager, or the marketing team amongst many other departments to get permission the email which I asked was along the lines of me asking if it would be okay to use the song, and make them aware that I would like to use the song for school purposes and nothing more than this, in order for me to be able to complete my course work I would also tell them that we are interested in therefore using one of their songs and therefore enquiring if that would be okay . I found that a lot of the departments then provided me with another email address asking me to contact another member of their department. Again this was also done through email. This was the last stage which I took about asking for copyright.      

 

3.       Response- did you get a response from the record label, how many times did you contact them, are you still waiting for a response?

I did get a response quite a few of the artists which I emailed. But for our chosen artist we decided to use the song of. They sent an email back saying that they understand what I was staying, but I would need to contact another woman, the email address was then provided in the email for me to therefore email. I chose not to email this women as this was a similar email which I had got from a quite a few other artist therefore I thought that I may of found myself just having to keep emailing different people and not really being able to find out if I would be allowed to use it. But for this reason I just kept it to the one email. So to answer the question I did receive a response from the artist of the song which we are thinking about doing.  

 

Censorship

Censorship

“Do you think music videos should be censored?”

1.       Censorship law OFCOM

Ofcom is the communications regulator for a whole range of different media sectors, some of which being radio sectors, fixed line telecoms, TV, mobiles, postal services and airwaves waves which wireless devices operate from. They makes sure that consumers are getting the best from their communication services and are protected from any type of sharp practices and scams.; but at the same time ensuring that the competition in the industry can thrive. Ofcom functions under the communication Act 2003, Ofcom don’t act or anything more than they should and what is said in the act. Parliament is also part in advising and involved in some of the settings some of the technical elements of the regulation, implementing and enforcing the law.

    Some of the main duties which the Ofcom do are to ensure, that the UK has a wide range of different electronic communication services, including high speed service for example broadband. Some of the others are making sure that television and radio services are all provided by a whole range of different companies. Another is to protect the consumers who watch the TV and who listen to the radio from offensive material, as well as protecting people from being treated unfairly in television and radio programmes, and their privacy invaded. Also another one being the radio spectrum (the airwaves used by everyone from taxi firms and boat owner, to mobile-phone companies and broadcasters) is used in the most effective way. These are just a few of the things which the Ofcom do to support the multimedia which is in the UK.

    There are also things which the Ofcom don’t do, some of these things are; settling disputes between the user and their telecom provider, the content of television and radio adverts, complaints about accuracy in BBC programs and the BBC TV licence fee are just some of the disputes which Ofcom don’t deal with and have nothing to do with.

 

2.       Detailed examples from music videos

A good example of where there has been a large controversy was over the song S&M by Rihanna. This video caused a stir when it got released because of both the content of the lyrics and the nature of the video. When it first came out it was viewed on a few channels, but then when the controversy got worse this video was not allowed to be played on any music channel. Bearing this in mind the song was not written off all together as when it hit the charts it still got its mention but the video was just not viewed. This song was then not allowed to be viewed on music channels for example MTV, and KISS, but this was just for TV the song was also banned from some multimedia internet devices for example you tube, users were not allowed to watch the video unless they were over 18 and they had a you tube account, this was the only way for people to watch this video online.

But the song was not banned from being played on the radio, as most radio stations still played the song, although it was not the original version of the song, it was an edited radio cut version, each radio had a slightly different version of the song which slurred out some of the lyrics others covered it with other instruments, and some just the some of the lyrics out all together this was in order for the song to be played through radio services. Then of course the song was available to download from various sites for example ITunes. An example of why this was so explicit was because in the video Rihanna had men with dog leashes around there necks on all fours, and some of her lyrics are “'Cause I may be bad, but I'm perfectly good at it Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it Sticks and stones may break my bones But chains and whips excite me” I think that this examples then makes it more obvious why these lyrics were seen to be explicit and this was one of the reasons why this song was so strongly censored.

    Another music video which got censored was, Skepta s*x all over the house this song never even made it onto the TV or the radio stations. There were a lot of issues with this music video when it came out as well the lyrics and the intension of the song. This was one of those videos which everyone heard about through word of mouth, and then watches the video after, but people had to try and find the video to watch it as it was so explicit it was not to be viewed anywhere. This video couldn’t even be seen on you tube, and was not played on the radio either; even other music websites didn’t play the song. There were only actually one website which the video could be viewed from, but then even this video was then blocked after a certain amount of time soon after the songs release. This song can currently be downloaded but is unable to be watched, one of the reasons being that this video was considered to be so bad is because it was considered to be just as bad as pornographic videos and was therefore considered inappropriate. An example from this video which displays why this film is explicit would be where during this video there is a couple doing inappropriate sexual things in the kitchen. This then makes it quite self expiatory why this music video couldn’t be shown on music channels.

3.       Specific artists from the music industry

One artists which has been through a lot of controversy would be Lady Gaga, as she was actually denied the permit to perform her concert in Indonesia after the Islamic conservatives protested, due to the type of clothing and her choice dancing after claims that they are too ‘sexy’ and would corrupt the country’s youth. They didn’t want her in the country to the point where they were prepared to use physical force to prevent mother monster from coming into the county, this also would have been Lady Gaga’s biggest tour on the Asian leg of her ‘Born This Way Ball’ tour. For which the tour which would have been performed on the 3^rd June 2012.          

   

Another artist which has suffered from the censorship battle would be; M.I.A, as her single from 2007 was censored by MTV as well as ‘Late Night With Dave Letterman’ because of the use of the gunshots which were in the rhythm track. As these music stations didn’t want to have this sort of music exposed to its listeners.  This song was actually made in response to the US government denying her visa back in 2006. But this was not the only time that M.I.A music video has been censored, as it then happened again in 2010 with the release of the song ‘Born Free’ which entailed a video about red headed young people being rounded up and then being brutally murdered. Due to this, the video was rejected from being played on YouTube due to the content being too violent. But this didn’t stop the video spreading over the internet anyway even if it wasn’t through YouTube. 

    Another artist which it has happened to which is slightly older in the industry now would be; Garth Brooks. As in 1991 he brought out a video about domestic violence for his song ‘The Thunder Rolls’ even though the clip had the support of women’s shelters from the outset, some TV networks such as CMT and TNN banned the video from their airwaves. But then the song did end up at the top of the charts and went on to win the coveted CMA video of the year award.

   






One of the most famous names in the music industry has also been censored for some of their videos. Madonna being my prime example here, back in the 1990 Madonna liked making titillating music videos which she hoped would excite her audience. But this was not always the case as sometimes this actually offended her viewers/ audience instead. To this day her most outrageous music video, and her biggest piece of eye candy would be; ‘Justify My Love’ this was so raunchy that it would even make Lady Gaga look like Mother Theresa. This video is completely in black and white and the duration of the video and it shows Madonna in various different states of where she is with men (and maybe women) engaging in naughty activities. There are also women and a few scantily-clad people of which had very questionable genders. MTV was spouse to premiere this song and the video but banned the song outright from the first time they saw it. But all of this controversy about the clip only created a further interest of the clip thus 260,000 VHS copies of the video were sold, as well as the song then spending two weeks at the top of the billboard of the hot 100 chart.

Having analysed the lyrics of the song which I am looking to base my music video on I have found that it doesn’t really have anything offensive in the song. This is because there is no swearing, abusive, sexual, or inappropriate language or connotations within the lyrics of the song therefore I didn’t think that there would be an issue with ofcom as the lyrics of the song are okay. If there had been issues with the lyrics of the song which I had chosen I would then have to look into if there would be issues about where I could be able to distribute the music video but luckily that is not the case here.     

 

4.       Eminem debate

Eminem is a well established and controversial rapper, he’s the first white rapper to come onto the scene since the Beastie Boys and has been a big success from day one, and hit a large amount of top ten hits and some of the most record breaking hits on YouTube is a well respected artist.    

    Eminem is an artist who is well known for having his music video and his lyrics censored. His arguments lies with Eminem’s argument to this is that he is expressing what he feels and telling a story about the experiences which he has been through and talking about hoe he has got to where he is today. He feels that is nothing wrong with the music which he produces and that this shouldn’t affect the people that listen to his music, further portraying the idea that what he sings about shouldn’t really encourage people to do violent things or and pick up violent language.

    But the augment which is then posed against this would be that young people which listen to his music do pick up the band language, and that the content which is on the screen may be too much for its audience to handle and just to be on TV generally. As it’s wrong for people to watch this sort of behaviour on the TV as it can attract and encourage the wrong type of audience and encourage bad behaviour.       

 

5.       Provide both sides of the debate

Every person will have a different predicament about what is right, and what is wrong, as well as what should be view on TV and radios and so on, and what shouldn’t. This is everyone who has any time of interest in music and about what they think should be showed and what shouldn’t, for example;  parents, children, the audience, the producer, the record label, the music channels, the radio stations, and of course the artist themselves. I will be discussing all of these different views in order to see what all these different people think and how they think it affect the industry and fans.   

    The first view which I will be discussing will be from the view of a ten year old fan. “I don’t think that there is anything wrong with the music which Eminem produces. I look at him as a role model as someone who I can look up to, I think that I have a lot of valid reasons for why I think that this is a good idea, the first being that Eminem proves that it is still possible to make it, and be successful even when the odd are stacked up against someone as he still made it even given that he only had his mum, and because he had to deal with the suicide of his uncle who he saw as a dad, and living a life where he was constantly travelling and further ended up dropping out of school he still managed to make it big, and get through the worst which life could possible throw at him and still become a success. For examples of where he has done this would be in songs such as ‘Stan’, ‘toy soldier’.As these are two examples which are related to the life of Eminem, as he sings about the relationship between him and if fans and well as the discussing the loss of one of his closest friend and sings about how this has affected him and the impact this has now had on his life. One of the impacts being that he now feels that he has grown as a person this is evident as he sings about all the loses he has experienced throughout his whole life up until that stage in his music career and he raps about how he has made it through all of that and how this had made him feel as if he is now able to achieve more as now he feels stronger. All that Eminem is doing is singing about his life and if people thing that, that should be censored it is also like saying that his life should be censored because that’s all he’s doing is singing about his like and not superficial things which have never happened to the artist. I think if that’s not a reason to look up to someone then I don’t know what is. I would even ask the question is it better to look up to someone who has had everything handed to them on a plate and hasn’t had to work for anything in their lives? I would that be a way to learn the value of money or how not to take things for granted is it better that young people looked up to someone like that? I think that yes maybe it can be debating the type of language which has been used through his videos, but then again no one said that it has to be played on TV? That should just be the personal choice of the listener if they want to listen to that or not these are my reasons for supporting Eminem and showing that he’s not doing anything wrong by expressing the way he feels”

    My second view is now from ‘Kiss’ the music channel “as Kiss we appeal to a large audience and play a whole variety of music. So it is important that we strongly consider the matter of censoring in terms of who may get offended by certain music videos. For example it may be better to not play an Eminem video and lose a few viewers and offend the minority than offending the majority by playing the video as there would be a bigger lose in views and may affect the reputation of the channel which may then lead to bad publicity thus effecting the view that the channel would get. So as you can see we are better off losing a few views then a lot, rather than the channel having to try and live through the knock on effects that one video can do to the channel. Examples of song of the songs which could be considered to be ‘spacebound’ and ‘Kim’ these are just of the videos where the channel has had to think twice about viewing. For some of the reasons being because of compliments from parents. But then on the other hand it is hard to please everyone as Eminem has such a large fan base, the channel is at risk of losing a lot of view, but then we have to think in comparisons about the figures in views and what would be the biggest loss.” 

    The third opinion which I will be looking at is ‘Radio One’ “the way we look at it is that we are a radio station which plays a whole range of different diverse music and we try to appeal to a whole range of different target audiences. This is why we have decided to play Eminem’s songs but then we also do try and respect what all of our listeners like to listen to. So bearing this in mind we do play Eminem’s music, but for the content which can be seen as being really bad is where we decide to just radio edit the song, so that this way it will appeal to our entire listener so that they can listen to music without having to worry what type of music the radio is playing. We find that this then puts parents and so on at rest as then they don’t have to worry so much about what their kids are listening to as they will know that it is not that bad because the swearing and harmful language would be taken out. We also believe that each artist has a different way of expressing themselves and this shouldn’t be discouraged just because it is a little bit different. Although it can be argued that this could mean that some artists do take it too far to the point of where it does become inappropriate like the lyrics of ‘Stan’ for example, “I'm in the car right now. I'm doing 90 on the freeway.
Hey Slim, I drank a fifth of vodka. You dare me to drive? “And “Shut up, slut! I'm tryin' to talk! Hey Slim, that's my girlfriend screamin' in the trunk, but I didn't slit her throat. I just tied her up. See I ain't like you cause if she suffocates she'll suffer more, then she'll die too.” This is the clean version of the song ‘Stan’ and although this I still bad as well this song would have also need to be changed so that it can be played on the radio and although this could be said to be taking things too far there are ways of getting around it, as we don’t believe it to be fair that people should miss out on good music because of a few lines in a song which can be sorted out so that the song is able to be listened to by everyone.”

     The fourth opinion that I will be looking at is the music channel ‘AKA’ “we are a channel which is designed and caters for a niche market and therefore we don’t really have a problem with showing Eminem’s music won our music channels as the niche audience that we cater for is that of which would listen to this sort of music. Bearing this in mind if we didn’t’ play this music then where else would they hear it and they would be confused as to why it is not being played as music such as Eminem’s is being played all of the time so why should this be seen as any problem? What we are trying to say is that we wouldn’t be catering for our market if we didn’t play this music and as we play music like this all the time playing songs such as ‘lose yourself, we don’t give a f*ck, we made you, verbal suicide, pills’ and so on are just a few of Eminem’s songs which we play. But at the end of the day this is a rap channel and this will obviously play song likes this. But yes it can be argued that the lyrics and the videos are taken to far sometime, but if that is what the artist which in this case is Eminem has chosen to do then so be it. When the content of a song really does get that bad then of course it is edited slightly, but otherwise it is kept the same. For example swear words would be taken out of the song for obvious reasons one of which being because of the water shed and it is important that children don’t hear that sort of language. But if there parents are letting them watch certain stuff like this after 9:00pm then there is not much that the channel can then do”        

    The fifth opinion which I will be looking into is MTV “being MTV we think it is important to make sure that we are censoring the right videos where they need to be censored in order to make sure that they are not promoting harmful behaviour has they don’t want to be seen as a channel which is partly responsible for the promotion of this, or as a channel which thinks that it is okay and agrees with it. this is why we believe that it is important not to show videos which we think would be considered harmful in some way. Songs such as ‘The way I am’ would be a good example of a video which may have been censored as the video has Eminem jumping off a roof, and smashing mirrors in this can be seen as harmful and encourages harmful behaviour, this isn’t the sort of activities which we want to promote. We feel that it is wrong and that it might make people think that, oh if Eminem can do it then why can’t we? And then do the actions themselves. As we have such a large audience and such a popular channel we feel that it is important that we are playing appropriate types of music. As by showing our audience videos such as ‘Stan and lose yourself’ that this could just the one thing that might just push a member of the audience to do the wrong thing. We also thing that by playing these songs then this would almost we a way of saying yes this behaviour is fine and that it is okay to be tolerated. We think that unless the audience is aware that these videos are wrong then they might think that this is normal behaviour and we don’t want them to think that we want them to see that this type of behaviour is wrong. Although it can then be argued that if you want the audience to see that it is wrong then maybe they should show the video or even just a little bit of it just to show that it is wrong, or how will they ever know that it is wrong if they don’t ever see it. but then the audience may not have even been aware of behaviour like this and playing it might then start to put thoughts into their minds such as videos like ‘spacebound’ This is because in this music video there is a scene where Eminem shoots himself in the head and the whole shot of this is in the music video. The actual bullet is shown going through his head with the blood at the blood after the bullet, the gun and him falling to the ground. This is quite a graphic image to watch, and can be seen as a bad influence. This is just one reason why we don’t play this type of music, using Eminem as an example”.

    The sixth point of view which I will be discussing is the view of the parents for the Eminem videos. “we feel that this type of music which is being produced by Eminem isn’t all bad, as all it is, is him talking about real life and what it was like for him growing up and how he deals with life today and the problems he’s had, he is just talking about really life and surely that is better than listening to superficial artists which don’t speak any truth. We think that in terms of the language which is being used is it is all stuff they are going to hear anywhere if it not be through music videos. Also in terms of the content of the videos, again he is not telling them about anything that they won’t be hearing elsewhere or anything that they won’t be finding out about themselves in some ways shape or form. Not all of what he sings is bad some of it has good intensions as he looks at the mistakes which he has made and talks about how he should have gone about certain situations differently. Just because he swears don’t mean that what he is saying is bad, it just shows that he may be emotionally connected to that situation and that is one of way of expressing it, this is language which children will end up hearing anyway, so what difference would it really make if they hear it through a song which talks truth, or if they hear it in the playground at school or just amongst people in general it really doesn’t make a different because if they know not to swear then they won’t. Eminem also takes situations which everyone says jokes about and just makes them into a song and makes them a little funny. For example ‘just lose it, and we made you’ with the whole Michael Jackson and his nose, and Amy Winehouse, and Jessica Simpson and so on. He is just playing with the sort of content which gets talked and discussed about in the media and turns it into a song so really he’s not doing that much wrong when this is what the media is doing every day.”

 

 

    The seventh opinion which I will be looking at is from the view of the parents against letting their children watching these sorts of videos “we that that children look up to their idols the most and they play a major role in their lives as children want to be just like them and want everything they have and just love everything they do, now we don’t think that this would be okay with any artist but we think that some artist can be more dangerous than others. We think that this may be the case for Eminem as he is so violent and raps some very aggressive and full on direct lyrics about his life. We think that this would be a major impact on out children’s lives as they would then feel encouraged to pick up the same behaviour and the same language. We think that this would then be a bad thing because there are a lot of harsh lyrics in his songs as well as a large amount of swearing and had aggressive and violent videos, we feel that this would then put ideas into the young children’s minds about music videos and this could encourage them to be violent as they might think of if Eminem is doing it then why can’t we? It can also be argued that on the other hand by taking this away from them, and changes his songs to much you will then be changing the type of person he is and the things that make him, him. And would probably be changing the main things which the kid would like about his artist as soon as the artist starts to be changed they are no longer themselves anymore and they start to lose the shine which they would have started with which would have made them the good artist which they are and the reason why kids would have liked them so much and why they would have such a large fan base. And also it is probably wrong for an artist to change who they are just because a percentage of parents don’t agree with the content of the song, as the whole point of the music is to express themselves what they are feeling and their emotions and life experience based on their lives and that shouldn’t be changed because a certain amount of parents don’t like it. But we still think that if Eminem is producing music which he knows will appeal to young target audience then he should at least consider clean versions, and maybe being a little less harsh with the lyrics. As at the end of the day this will have an impact of the younger listeners.”  

    The eighth view which I will be looking at is the view of the fans for Eminem “we think that there if nothing wrong with Eminem’s music as it is just expressive of the person he is and subjective to the person he has become, and how he has a success. We think that this should just been seen the freedom of speech which at the end of the day should just be seen as a human right and something which everyone is entitled to do so why should Eminem’s freedom of speech be censored, surely this is wrong. We do understand that yes he swear s a lot and some of his language may be seen as being quite bad and offensive, but even then I think that this just a way of conveying to the audience just how much he has been through and he has still managed to come out the other side and be a success, he is a real person just expressing the way he feels and speaking strongly about his experiences “hi kids, do you wants to see me stick nine inch needles in my eyes?” This could be seen as something quite bad and something which could corrupt the mind of young kids. This could also be bad as they could out up the bad language which young people could start to pick up and use them. This could also persuade young kids to think that it is okay to behave like this if they think that their idol is behaving like this. Yes it can be challenged that subjects of this nature maybe a bit much for listeners, but then again at the end of the day it is down to that person about what they decide to listen to and what they can handle. We also believe that there are people out their which are much worse than Eminem and they aren’t given this much grief? We think Eminem is good and don’t think he should be censored, it is clear that he doing well in order for him to last this long in the industry and be the big sell out and success which he is today. If people start censoring his videos then people are taking away what is good about Eminem and what makes him the person he is today.

    The ninth person which I will be looking at the view of the fans who are for Eminem but think that the content of the songs maybe be a bit too much “yes we are fans for Eminem and we like his music but we do think that sometimes his lyrics can be a bit over the top and be considered as offensive. We as fans do understand the concerns which people would have and how this may influence young listeners we do understand this, and we do agree that to some extend that some of his stuff should be censored but then we do think that this could potentially then be changing the image which he currently up holds this then could mean the loss of fans which wouldn’t be good. But we do think that there are ways of getting around this, some of which being, to just edit some of the songs for the TV and the radio and then if people want to buy the album then they are then able to hear the full version of the song. We also think that there should be the option for the user to buy a clean version or the full unedited version we think that this is just one way in which this issue would be tackled, I think there other ways this this issue can be sorted but this is just an example of one of them. But at the end of the day we still enjoy Eminem’s music”

    The tenth opinion which I will be looking at is; the record label “as we work of Eminem we think that it is important that we encourage and support Eminem in the decisions which he makes about his music and help to guide him in his choices in order for him to remain a success. We believe that he has done well to get to where he is now and it is 100% up to him about what he decides to produce. We don’t think we should change what Eminem is producing as it has done well to get him where he is not, so we would be stupid to change that. This is the reason why he is one of the most successful artists of his time and in this decade. He sells successful music and has a very large fan base he has broken records and writes real music, and why should we discourage this, when he is making this much money like he is, he must be doing something right. As the saying goes if it’s not broke then why fix it, we believe that this is the case with Eminem he has done so well up until now some of the songs which have prompted the success which he is a part of now is, ‘Stan, Lose Yourself, The Way I Am, Guilty Conscience, Yellow Brick Road, Role Model, Till I Collapse, Rock Bottom, and Sing For The Moment’ These are just some of the songs where the Eminem has discussed his success and how he has come up from nothing and how me how come up from nothing and how he wants to tell people how he has managed get through everything that has happened to him in his life like the death of his close ones, the back stabbing and the loss of some of his friends. Thus conveying the accomplishments which he has achieved and illustrating how he is an inspirational figure of loads of people as he chose the right rout and didn’t go down the wrong rout. These are just some of the songs which have made Eminem the success he is today and we wouldn’t change that. At the end of the day this is Eminem’s record label therefore he is free to do whatever he likes. We think if people don’t like his work then maybe they shouldn’t listen to it, as no one is forcing them to listen to him, Eminem just like any other artist will never be able to please and appeal to everyone therefore why would he need to change, when he knows who his fans are? Therefore we don’t see the need for Eminem to change.

    The last and eleventh opinion which I will be looking into would then of course the view of Eminem the artist himself and what he thinks about all of this censorship over his music. “I think that every artist including myself should get the chance to be able to express themselves in whatever way they find suits them, whether it is through art, music, dance, writing and so on. I have just chosen to express myself using music through singing and song writing as this has helped me to overcome some of the big hurdles which I have overcome in my life. Of course I understand that I will never be able to please everyone with my music, but at the end of the day it is a product of my thoughts and feels and if people like that then great and I’m glad that I can touch people with my music but if I can’t then it’s not the end of the world either everyone had individual taste and no one said that people have to listen to my music. I have people say to me all of the time about if I think my music promotes danger and violence and my answer to this is, if they people are that is that way inclined to committee such offenses and even consider half of the crazy stuff which happens in within music videos (not just mine) then they wouldn’t need my music to be able to committee the crime as they already have it in them and it would b wrong to blame a song for what a person is willing to do off their own back, and at the end of the day it is just a song so they wouldn’t need encouragement from the song as they would already have the motive in themselves to be able to do it. To this date there are no reports that there has been any offense of a song having any sort of influence of any sort of crime or offense. Therefore it would be wrong to just blame a song from the crime which happens in the world when the people that do this would have to have quite a strong agenda and vendetta to be able to do such as thing. Therefore I think that it would be wrong to blame people, I also think that people wouldn’t need lyrics to committee crimes, as artists should be to express their talent without censorship. But that’s just me other artist may think different.” 

 

             

6.       Personal opinion

Personally I think that it’s up to people what they chose to listen to; I understand the argument from both sides completely. I think that what people listen to does have a big impact on their lives especially young people, I also think that they do look up to some artists as role models so how they act, the songs they produce, and the way they behave is important as ultimately people do look up to them and this can influence what people do. But then I do also think artist have the right to behave the way they want and not base their life on other people because they are in the spotlight, and they shouldn’t act fake just to please other people. but then I  also do think that if as artist or just any celebrity if they have committed to becoming a celebrity then they have taken up that role of people wanting to look up to them as role models and therefore they should behave. But at the end of the day I don’t think that any artist would actually be willing to do but, so I just think that they should think a little more about the music which they are producing and the target audience which they are trying to reach and think twice about their lyrics and what messages they are portraying to people. That’s why I think that radio edits are appropriate, and changes to the song for it to be able to be viewed on the TV and the radio stations. Because I don’t think that songs should just be stopped from being played through these devices such as radio stations and the TV and YouTube. I don’t think that an artist talent should be hidden or changed, but I think edits are considerable in order for it to still be enjoyed by fans in public places such as the TV, radio stations and YouTube.

Comparing music genre

Comparing music genres

Drake- over

I have chosen to look at a 3 different videos to analyse in order for me to compare different genres in the music industry. The three different genres which I have chosen to analyse are, hip-hop/ Rap, dance, and Indi. I will be looking at the micro elements such as mise-en-scene, camera shots, and editing.

 

    The first artist which I have chosen to analyse is Drake ‘over’ as my video for hip-hop/rap. This is because this is the song which made Drake and made him, and helped him to become the established artists which he is today. Over was the leading song on his album ‘Thank me later’, Drakes wrote this song himself with Boi-1da and produced by the latter and Al Khaaliq. This is also the fourth consecutive top twenty hit in the USA. This song also charted within the top five in the USA of the R&B and the rap charts, further becoming Drake’s fourth consecutive top five on those respective charts. This song wasn’t only a hit in the USA it was also a hit in the UK as well as it also reached the R&B charts. The song also got nominated for the ‘Best Rap Solo Performance’ at the 53^rd Grammy Awards. This was the song which Drake used to make his audience aware that he has reached the place he wants to be and tell them that he has finally made it. This song is very much about the turning point for Drakes career.     

    The purpose of this video is to illustrate the struggle which Drake went through from his old life, through to his new life. First shot which I have decided to analyse is the camera shots used, this is close up shot. An example of where this has been used is near the start of the song where there is a close up of Drakes face, which is positioned on the right side of the camera lightly to the bottom of the scene. This is used to convey the emotion on Drakes face and convey to the audience what he may be feeling and also conform to the conventions of a hip hop video. The look on Drakes face conveys that he is being serious, this is conveyed through the close up of Drakes face and the straight expressions which he has. I think that this could show that, it has not been easy to get to where he is right now and that it has taken time just to get to the stage he is at now.

I think that this also shows that it is not all about living the celebrity life style and that it takes time to adjust to this new life style which he has now become a part of. I think that the seriousness is a way which Drake can convey that he is not a joke to the industry and that he takes his music seriously. Also in the scene the audience can see the top of Drakes hoodie again I think this shows that even through her has adopted this new famous life style he is still the same person her was before the fame and the fame hasn’t changed him and he is still human and hasn’t changed. He is almost saying that this is the person who got him to where he is today and he don’t need to change that person otherwise he wouldn’t be that same man that managed to get him to where he is now. This is helped to be seen as the breakeven point of Drakes career.

    Another shot which I think is significant to the song would be the long shot which is used during the video. This is used in the middle of the song where Drake is in the far left of the scene, and the rest of the shots on the right hand side are of silhouettes of people, they are all very generic, blurry and fade into each other. Some of the silhouettes are big and some of them are small, the silhouettes are also not solid and dark but they all range of a different percentage of transparency, they all overlap and are moving at a very fast rate. This shot looks similar to people on a busy city street with people rushing around everywhere. So Drake is the only character there which actually has any personality and a different look and dress. This is done to show that Drake is different and his music is different. I think this is also a way of showing that Drakes wants to bring something new to the industry and showing that what he writes about and the new fresh image which he wants to bring to hip hop will make him stand out just like he is amongst the large amount of people. This done to show that Drake was once of those people who was just part of the busy crowd and was considered to be just another person on the street who wasn’t particularly different and wasn’t considered to have any type of raw talent or anything which was worth making Drake stand out. This is shown as he is on the left of the shot showing his not in the middle or the centre of attention he was just another person in the crowd, and he has made himself shine and standout and put his personality out there. This also shows that if someone wants to make their talent or their dream possible then they need to make them aware and make things happen for themselves because it won’t just happen on its own. I think that this point is portrayed through the use of low key lighting which is used during this scene to give the audience the idea that these people aren’t happy with their lives and showing that they could do something better. I also think that the fact that Drake is on the left almost at the end of it shows that Drake has been through the worst of all of that and he has come out of the other end hence why he is at one side.  

    There is mise-en-scene used throughout this video in order to help to portray Drakes image and to connect the lyrics with the visuals. One of the main key aspects of this would be low key lighting which is used through this video would the use of low key lighting. This is used throughout most of the video, but I found that on some places it is more effective than others and tells more of a story to the audience which helps them to understand in simple terms where Drake has come from and help them to see what he has achieved. The example which I have chosen to use is from the scene where Drake is singing with not that much instrumental to the song and is more about just Drake, his voice and lyrics. In this scene which I have chosen there is where there is an all black dark background with Drake in the middle of the scene where he is  just singing at the camera there is nothing behind him or with him, it’s just him on his own. Where Drake is there is the use of bright lighting to make Drake stand out more in the darkness. The use of low key lighting showing that he has come from a  dark place and he hasn’t forgotten where he has come from, and it’s that what has happened to his which reflects what has happened to him in order for him to get where he is now. Drake is then brighter, which shows that is his time and he as waited a long time for this and now he is shining and he is the star. This is also a raw shot, showing that it is all about the voice and all about the lyrics and what he wants to convey and what he wants to show about himself, showing that the music is most important and he is not just doing it for the fame and the money. 
 

    Another micro element which is used is the use of props. This is significant in this video as it links and connects with the lyrics of the song thus providing a greater understanding for the audience. Props help to convey the conventions of an R&B video, and the image which Drake has. The example which I have chosen to use is where Drake has a white hoodie and has a chain around his neck. This conforms to the conventions for an R&B video, which is to wear jewellery but not wear loads of it, just enough to show off wealth and power for the artist. Also the fact that the Drake doesn’t flash all of his wealth, this suggests that he is a modest artist and to him all this jewellery is just an accessory to him, and his music is more important and the chains and other jewellery which he wear is almost just like a bonus and comes with the music and the new life which he is living. The hoodie which Drake is wearing is a form of casual clothing, and is an affordable item which most people can afford. This also shows that he wants to be conveyed at a normal person who wears normal clothes.

    The use of low angles I think is important and has a deep amount of conations would be; this is because it shows so much about Drake and what he wants to show convey to his audience. A good example of where this is used would be where there is a close up of Drake, but in the background there is a long shot of Drake. This type of shot which is used shows Drake to be a new rap artist in the music industry; this is shown through the close up of Drake, while the long shot of him in the background is used to show Drakes image, and who he wants to be. Further illustrating that he wants to be a big star, but the close up of him shows that he I still new and not that well established yet, therefore he can still be seen as a little fish in a big ocean but he wants to be as big as the shadow behind him. The large shadow could also show that there is no certainly and that Drake wants to leave his fans on edge slightly to keep them guessing about what they more they should look forward to from Drake and what new type of music he has coming out and what direction he decides to go in. According to Dryers theory, this relates to the rap genre as it defines Drakes emotions which Drake has been through. The audience would then be interested in watching this as this is a typical conventions and the audience are interested in learning more information about Drake; thus conforming to the conventions of Dyers theory about how stars are made and how they are tailored so that they fit into the industry and leave the audience always wanting to know more about them.

    One of the forms of editing which is used during this music video would be; the use of fading in and out of each scene. This has been used to show the movement in time, and is a softer approach to moving into a new scene rather than a straight cut, the use of the fade also matches and works in beat with the time of the song, so that it is all in time and the and the song matches the visuals. An example of where this has been used is the fade in and out where Drake moved through different locations through the duration for the music video. The purpose of having this through a music video would be to symbolise that the song has moved on, this is one technique which can be used to illustrate the progression through time, and help him to explain things in his life. This is an important technique as it shows the audience the many point of his life. I think that this also conveys the pace and the transition through Drakes life and conveying how it is gradual, and he is not just jumping and doing different things.

    One of the reasons why editing is important is because it helps to connect the visuals and the song together so that they match. The type of editing which is used here is fast pace editing; this is used mainly while Drake is rapping. One of the reasons why this is used would be because there are so many messages to get across while he is rapping, and the pace of the song it going so quick because of the rate of which he is singing the editing is almost showing all of the different emotions which he is going through. An example of where this has been used would be where there is a white background and there are three images plus of Drake all in a repetitive order, with every character doing the same thing, all of which are slightly transparent. Drake is wearing a red leather jacket with some zippers. The editing shows that his life is in the fast lane right now, and everything around him is moving at a fast pace and Drake just wants to stop and reflect and what he has done so far this is shown through the slightly solid image of Drake in the middle which shows that he just wants to take in what is going on. The white colour shows that he is going in the right direction and that he is going towards good things. This then excites the audience as it matches the lyrics and his previous life together. Thus informing the audience about his life and how it is moving quickly, which also establishes his style as an artist.

The next genre of music which I have decided to analyse is dance; again I will be looking at the conventions he has conformed to. The song which I have decided to be Flo Rida, ‘Club Can’t Handle Me’ this is a song featuring David Guetta which was released for digital download on ITunes on June 18^th 2010. This song was the lead single for ‘Step Up 3D’ on the soundtrack. This song was also featured on Flo Riders third album ‘Only One Flo’, this song also top many charts in many countries some of which being; Portugal, Ireland, Poland and the UK. The song then became a top five hit in Belgium, Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, New Zealand, and the Netherlands. In America the song got to the number 9 on the billboard hot 100. By August 2011 the song has sold 2.6 million copies in America alone. The music video for the song was filmed in Los Angeles and directed by Marc Klasfeld. This is also Flo Rida’s 5^th top 10 hit.   

    The purpose of this video is to promote the film ‘Step up 3D’ this song was the official sound track to the film first shot which I have chosen to analyse is the camera shot which is used through the video which conforms to conventions for a dance video. Throughout the video there are clips which have been taken from the film and others which have been copied and contributed into the music video itself. Flo Rida wanted to create a club anthem and came up with this. The first show which i decided to analyse of the micro elements are the camera shots and analyse if they conform to conventions and work out what affect Flo Rida is trying for the audience. The first sot which i have analysed is the long shot which is frequently used throughout the whole video. This is a whole shot of the club which Flo Rida is in, Flo Rida is then appeared to be raised almost on top of the crowd singing in the club with everyone dancing around him, with his arms wide open. This scene is just shown for a slip second when it is shown but is shown quite a few times, every time it gets shown it is mostly shown from a different angle. This shows how Flo Rida has set the club alight and how the whole setting he is in appears to be buzzing. The way Flo Rida is positioned over everyone else creates the idea of his singing being able to fill the whole club. I think this is a way to show that Flo Rida has a lot of fans, as it brings in the idea of Flo Rida making an appearance at this club and everyone has come to his him. This is suggested through the way Flo Rida is singing into the camera purposely showing that he is in front of the camera. This conforms to the conventions of dance as one of the stereotypes of a dance video, some of which being the choice of location for this video, it is clear that it is a club through the use of the low key lighting, strobe lights, drinks, bottles and viewing the location of the club from the outside of the club. It is also an upbeat and fun video, this is portrayed through the people dancing and smiling in the club, there are also women who are wearing skimpy, and revealing outfits again this conforms to the stereotype of a dance video. These are some of the conventions which the video conform to, in order for Flo Rida to portray that typical night out in a club with people partying.

 

    The second camera shot which i have chosen to analyse is a close up shot which has been used during the video, the reason i have decided to analyse this shot is because i think that this shot is significant to the image which Flo Rida wants to create for himself. This shot is the scene right at the start where there is an extreme close up of the wheels of Flo Rida’s car which he has shown up in. The wheels are so big that they take up the whole screen this is done to show the sheer size of the car and also to promote the brand of the car and show the audience what he is travelling in. Another reason why i think the extreme close up of the car is important is because it makes it seem like this is just a casual car that Flo Rida uses to get around as he is just taking it to a club. There are also two cars this shows that the two people Flo Rida and his friend don’t travel together as they both care about showing off what they have got. The extreme close up is a good way of conveying to the audience watching what that artist has and what they are proud of showing people.

The use of the extreme close up makes the audience look and become interested in what brand of car it is as there is just a large close up of it, it interreges the audience to want to know. This conforms more to the R&B and hip-hop convention of music, in terms of the stereotypes and the conventions of their videos as they are more about showing off the brands and what they have, this is what Flo Rida has done. This then conveys the original artist which Flo Rida is and how he has tried to convey this still in his dance song which he has done. This is a way of him showing that he has produced a dance song, but he is still an R&B artist and he still wants this to be portrayed through his music, and the life style which he wants his audience to see that he has. Flo Rida has also gone against the dance conventions a little bit as well by having more than one location for example some of the partying is filmed on the street, where Flo Rida is dancing on top is a car.

    Mise-en-scene plays a key part in dance music videos; this is also illustrated through this video ‘Club Can’t Handle Me’ in order for there to be a clear representation of the clubbing and partying theme which Flo Rida is trying to get across as well as the portrayal of his life style which he wants the audience to see. Some artist used iconography through there videos to try and sell themselves as a brand. This is what Flo Rida does; an example of where this is used would be where Flo Rida is wearing the big diamond chain around his neck which is custom made to his design as it has Flo Rida written on it, engraved in big bold letters with his logo of his name which he has all over his album and through his videos. This is something which Flo Rida wears in most if not all of his videos, this is a way for Flo Rida creating an establishing brand for himself, therefore when people see that brand or logo anywhere they will know what it stands for. Flo Rida wears this chain throughout the video with every outfit change and every location. This is a way of showing Flo Rida wealth, like saying he has so much money that he can create he own brand and customise his stuff to suit him. This can also be used as a portrayal of the type of life style which he now lives which he wants his fans to see. This conforms to the typical R&B and dance track to show off their wealth, especially through the use of iconography as this conforms to the stereotypical conventions to these types of genres. Flo Rida has also used iconography with another prop as well, this one being the use of sunglasses, as Flo Rida still wear them even though he is inside a club which is dark this then suggests the image which Flo Rida is trying to portray about himself in the way he dresses and how he wants to be seen ‘cool’ image. There are also other props which are used throughout the song such as the bottle of alcohol, and flash cars, the clothing, and the money which convey Flo Rida wealth and the lifestyle of which he leads. One major suggestion of the flash life style would be the amount of money with Flo Rida has. This is shown at the start of the video where Flo Rida and his friend get out the car and once they are out they just start throwing money up in the air everywhere like it’s nothing, showing that they have so much money that Flo Rida is able to do this.   

    There is also use of low key lighting throughout most of the video. This is to try and conform to the club setting which is usually portrayed through dance videos. The use of this lighting helps to further intensify the club image and make the video look more realistic. This is used throughout most of the video, like for example where Flo Rida is singing inside the club and it is all dark and the main lighting which is there is the use of the strobe lights. This is used to help conform to the stereotypical theme of the song. The darkness might be used to convey the idea of night life and how it involves drinking, and convey how drinking could be bad for people through the use of the darkness, this could also represent the unknown, as the people going clubbing are unlikely to remember the night before and it is like the unknown because they don’t know what is going to happen. I would then say that the use of the colour strobe lights would then be used as the excitement and the fun which is to be had with clubbing, as showing that it is a laugh and people have fun and loosen up when they go out as well as having a really good time. This is then represented through this video, but this video does also juxtapose with the stereotype as well as it has some of the video includes partying out on the street as well as breaking (quite literally breaking) through the wall of the club into a corner shop where it is day time and there are people in the shop. The people from the club then start a party in the club this then doesn’t conform to the stereotypes of a dance music video as there is no low key lighting used there.

    The editing which is used through the video ‘Club Can’t Handle Me’ marries together the beat of the song to the narrative of the song. This conforms to main conventions, one of which being Goodwin’s theory. But this is done to help build the narrative of the song and help to build the song up and the narrative, which is in this case Flo Rida during one of his nights out. An example of where the editing has done this would be at the start of the song where Flo Rida and his friend are getting out of their cars, and the scene mixes and fades between Flo Rida singing a solo on his own to back at the scene of the car with his friends it also fades to clips of the film (step up 3D) and an ice sculpture with Flo Rida and his logo on it. From the start of the song where Flo Rida is getting out of his car to the main scene where he is inside the club and is sitting down with drinks and his friends, all of the transitions before that are all fade in, fade out shots. This effect has been used to help build up the suspense of the song. This form of editing also matches the visuals to the lyrics and the song. It helps create the idea of a night out and everyone is excited, and everyone’s getting ready for the night ahead and getting prepared to go out. This is also a slow part in the song, and there are not much instrumental during this part of the song, this then relates the two together, as the flow of the song matches with the movement, as there is not much sound, as its only vocals and not instrumental, this part of the song is also sung slow, and this is seen as like the warm up to the party. This strongly relates to the party atmosphere which is had at parties, this is also like a song which covers the whole night from the start to the finish.

    Another editing technique which is used is would be the use of past pace editing. This is used to create the atmosphere of a club setting, and used to match the beat of the music. An examples of where this has been used is present throughout the video, as the transitions through every shot is fast, this is mixed in with a whole series of jump cuts which also flows at the same time. This is so that everything in the song links together like the lyrics and the visuals and the beat of the music.  An example of where this has been used would be where there is a big crowd of people in the club and then they crash into the shop next door, then a few seconds after that the next scene is back on Flo Rida, there is then a close up of him singing, the scene then moves to a clip during the film of ‘Step Up 3D’ and then back to the first scene of the people in the shop dancing, and back to Flo Rida again this all happens in about 20 seconds and is just an example of how fast the scenes come and go. The use of this shot is almost representative of a clubbing environment where there is more than one thing going on at the same time; almost like there are loads of little stories which go on in a club and this video is an example of just trying to show the audience a few of them which can happen. This relates to the conventions of a dance video being fast paced, upbeat and having a high tempo. 

The final genre of music which i have decided to analyse is Indi. The artist which i have chosen to help me analyse this genre is Coldplay, with the song ‘Paradise’ this is because this song is one of Coldplay’s most successful to date. The song was the second to be released from Coldplay’s fifth studio album ‘Mylo Xyloto’. This song was released on the 12^th September 2011, although this song was not initially chart eligible in the UK, with the reason being because it was available on ITunes as an ‘instant grat’ or in other words an immediate download when pre-ordering the album. Then with the follow of the release of the album on the 30^th October 2011 the song then became chart eligible in the UK. The song ‘Paradise’ then entre the singles charts at number 14, this was before the song then took the number one spot on its tenth week. This then became Coldplay’s second number one single after ‘Viva La Vida’ in 2008. This then became the best rock song of 2011 in the UK and sold 410,000 copies.  This song was also nominated for a Grammy award in the best pop duo/group performance, they then preformed this song on the 12^th February 2012 at the 2012 MTV video music awards, on the 6^th the song then got an award for the best rock video. This is why i thought that this song would be a good example to use to illustrate the conventions of an Indi music video and analyse where the conventions have been challenged and my predicament as to why.          

    Camera movements and angles are one of the micro elements which are used in all music videos which affect if they conform or challenge a convention as most different music genres use the camera angles in different ways to perceive different things to the audience, and show different thing. For example an R&B artist may use a close up to show their bodies and may try to present sexual connotations to its audience. Whereas a rock artist may also use a close up shot but they may use it to show the expression on their face as they sing or have a close up shot of a specific instrument being played if it is performing a solo and so on. These are just some of the examples which are used to convey how different artists use different shots to serve different purposes. An example of where this has been used during this video would be where there is a close up of the elephant wrestling with the bars to get out of his cage in the zoo, through his struggle he looks around and decides to use a rock and try and break out of the cage he is in. This shot is used to convey that the elephant is trying to get out of the zoo which he is in, so that he can get back to where his other elephant friends are. It is clear that the elephant is unhappy in the zoo, this is shown through when he is marking off how long he had been in the zoo and when he is gripping onto the bars, and shaking and rattling them to try and get out. There are close ups used in the in a conventional alternative rock and Indi video, these are usually used when convey the lead singer singing a intense bit of a song or of an instrument being played and showing that instrument usually this is when the instrument is performing a solo. But instead of having a close up of an instrument there is a close up of the elephant breaking out of the zoo this would go against the conventions as instead of showing an instrument the is a rock shown instead in a sense of that being an instrument. Therefore this goes against the conventions of an alternative rock video.  

    Another camera shot which is used is the mid-shot, this conforms to the conventions of an alternative rock video. Although this video doesn’t not use it in the stereotypical way. this video challenges the way in which it is used but still uses the show in the video. An example of where it has been used would be where the elephant is behind bars at the start of the song and it has both its trunk and paws wrapped around the bars, with a sad face, as its expression sinks and the elephant looks upset. The use of this shots shows the audience that the elephant is tramped and is not happy this is shown by the representation of the elephants face; as it looks down in sadness. This idea of the elephant being unhappy is shown through the use of having the elephant’s paws and trunk gripped around the cage bars, this creates the stereotypical position for people who are in jail and want to get out. This then creates the idea of the elephant being unhappy because he is in a cage which can be seen as a prison to him. This could be for many reasons one of which being because that is what it feels like.

This could also be related to, as the elephant is in a cage, just like the other animals some have an inmate and others don’t, the elephant is not with his friends, and visiting hours only last so long, this would be when people come to the zoo when they are allowed to see people, they are only fed a few times a day, they don’t get to chose what they eat, they are away from home, have no one to talk to, they could scream the place down and no one would come. There is also a more unrealistic side to this as you wouldn’t really see an elephant counting down the days that they would be able to get out of the jail and have a picture of his friends on the wall made out of chalk. To the point where the elephant can’t take it anymore and wants to go home so tries to break out and go home. This idea of the chalk and the pictures and the count down on the wall help to emphasise how the elephant wants to go home and how upset he is and how depressing being in thing jail like place is like. The mid shot which is used only conforms to a few convention of an alternative rock and Indi as there are mid shots used in these videos, although they are used in a different ways as the conventional way of using this shot would be to have the lead singing playing an instrument, or show a few member of the group. Whereas this video goes against this in a sense that instead of using people they have used an elephant to convey a concept instead of which being that an elephant is representational of ancient power, strength and royalty, and discrimination are all just a few of the ways in which a elephant is being represented, although in this video this idea is being juxtaposed because it is in a zoo. Which the image showing this being behind bars which could illustrate that the power of the elephant has been taken away.        

    Mise-en-scene plays a key part in this video as it challenges the conventions completely. The examples are clear throughout this video. i think that the main example which is used would be the elephant costumes. The costumes which are used obviously do not conform to the usual conventions of an alternative rock video as they would normally wear normal, and very casual clothing throughout the video, or have be wearing a style which suits them or one which they have established themselves and is something which they portray throughout the whole album sometimes. This is what Coldplay have done with their style as throughout this video as they are all wearing elephant outfits even when they meet up and they are all shown playing there instruments they are still in their elephant outfits. This both conforms and challenges the codes and conventions of an Indi and alternative rock music video. as the costume choice which has been used is very different and challenges conventions, this is because Coldplay want to be seen as a different bad and don’t just want to be seen as another Indi group, they also want to make themselves stand out, which may be the reason why they decided to develop this look for themselves. But then on the other hand this does still conform to conventions as the use of the elephant costumes shows that they have developed their own still which suits them. This is also a theme which they have carried out through their whole album this then means that this has conformed to conventions but Coldplay have just decided to take it to extremes with the decision to use elephant. They have also interpreted this into their tour as well for when they perform live; they also have the elephant heads.      

    The editing which has been used in this video is continuity editing. This is when the camera follows a character around and is always watching what they are doing during a certain amount of time. This can be done by using many shots for example having a long shot of the person and then having a close up of their hand on the door and then have a mid shot of them on the other side of the door. This is an example of time when this has been used. An example of where this has been used during the ‘Paradise’ video is where the elephant is on the run, the camera follows the elephant everywhere it goes and watches what its doing. For example; where the elephant breaks out of the zoo the camera follows as it goes past the other animals such as the monkeys, then as the elephant comes across the Barclays bank bikes and drive down the field with one of them, to when it gets away from the police, and it is on one of the underground stations, to where the elephant is at the airport, right up to where it buys a little bike and cycles until it finds its friends. This is just one example of where this is used through the video, as this is a narrative music video this concept is used throughout the whole video. This is used to help tell the story of the song and convey a message to the audience. This conveys to the audience what the elephant is doing. This also makes the narrative much clearer as the audience knows what is going on. This form of editing also makes it easier for the audience to follow narrative and keep up to date with what is going on, and illustrate what the elephant is trying to do. This doesn’t actually conform to the conventions of an alternative rock and Indi video as continuity editing is not normally used in a alternative rock and Indi video as the conventional video for this genre is to have a performance based video it is rare to have a narrative based video.

    Another form of editing which is used during this video would be the use of straight cuts and jump cuts this is used to contribute in moving the narrative forward and help to convey the change in a location or in the change in time. A good example of where this has been used during this video would be where the elephant is in the zoo and is running out, but then the next scene then jumps to where the elephant is being chased by the police. This shows that there has been a transition in the change in time, as the elephant would have been running a lot longer before it got caught. But the point of a narrative is to try and catch the main points of the song and a put them together and make them into a story. The point of this is to show that the elephant is trying to get away from the zoo but the song doesn’t shoot all of this because it would just be a waste of time so it takes the most significant and uses that. This then happens at the end as well where all of the elephants meet back up and they are performing in the savannah and then the scene jumps to where the group are performing on stage live in front of people. The music is used to represent freedom as it is see as something which they can do to express themselves and a chance for them to be themselves and create what they are feeling. This is compared to the scene at the start where the elephant is tramped in the zoo as this is seen to be like a jail where he was not allowed to be himself or express himself in anyway like an animal should he also only has a limited space of which he had to live in comparison to where an elephants usually live and where this main character returns to. This could also relate to the idea of Coldplay now expressing themselves more and not sticking to conventions (this would be seen as a jail like place where the elephant was) and now they have brought out this album it is a way of expressing themselves and bringing out stuff which they like and content which suits them and music they enjoy.   This is further represented where the elephants and performing as elephant in the middle of the Savannah where they are jumping around playing there instruments and performing their songs. This scene then jumps to where the group are performing on stage while they are on tour and they still have the big elephant heads on and a tail, and paws. But this time they have clothes on, the clothes which they are wearing are stereotypical clothing which is expected to be worn by this group and is clothing which they have been seen in before. This type of clothing conform to the stereotypes of the Indi groups of very casual and nothing fancy this is reflected during this video at the end where the elephants are performing on stage but are dressed. I think that this helps to convey the idea that Coldplay are still part of the industry even though they have changed they are still performers but they just like to perform using their own style in order for them to reflect who they are.       

      These are the three different types of videos which we have decided to analyse. I chose these because these songs all represent three different music genres and look at how each of them have conformed to conventions and how they differentiate from each other.