Advert Analysis 2-By Kayleigh Hobbs

This is an advert for the album cover The Kooks- Junk of The Heart. It has just been released.

The Kooks are a band that fit into the Indie Genre of music. This album artwork could be described as simple as there is one main image just off centre. This means that the audience that will be focusing on this album cover, can directly focus on the individual image. It is also a simple image, of a woman standing in a car so it is more than likely going to be remembered by their fans and lookers of the magazine.

The font on the cover is in block capitals and in white letters which means that the font is easily seen and will be spotted. The dress that the woman is wearing matches the writing on the album cover so the colours all blend well together.

The costume that the individual is wearing, is an everyday dress that the majority of females would wear. The contrast of the black cardigan against the white dress, could be reflected by the type of people that may listen to the band.

The orange in the corner of the page, matches the ginger hair of the female in the image. All their colours match meaning that no particular part of the album stands out.

Caroline Vernalis-By Kayleigh Hobbs

Audience analysis-Questionnaire results

What do you expect to see in a soul music video?

This will give us a good basis for the content of out music video as it will give us what the audience thinks are integral parts of a soul music video, for instance, we now know that we need bacing singers as it in the number 1 convention shown in the graph above. However it also tells us about costume, if we have a female artist the little black dress is a must it seems. This chart will give me the ability to back up my decisions in regards to the video as we have primary research to bac it up.

Number of people who listen to our genre

This graph tells me the popularity of out chosengenre, it tells me that the genre (soul) is not as popular as rock or pop, this is due to the fact that these 2 genres are quite mainstream whereas soul is a more niche audience. As such we can afford to be more daring with the song choice and make it so that it will only appeal to our relatively small audience. This is a good thing as it will make our video a lot more focussed as we do not have to worry about pleasing different groups, only our niche market.

Audience Analysis-The Questionaire

This will give us a very clear indication as to what our target audience want to see in the music video, as we have put in very specific questions about the content that they expect to see. Also we have asked aboutthe artists this will not only help us to choose out a specific image that will make our artist very popular with our target audience.

Bordwell & Thompson's Theories

 

Genre research 6

Created by Kayleigh Hobbs (group work)

Jamie Cullum is an English pop and jazz pop singer and songwriter, he is a solo artist who accompanies himself on many instruments such as the guitar and drums as well as the piano. 

Jamie Cullum's video 'Everlasting Love' fits into the Soul Genre with conventions that match to others in the same genre.
Jamie's mise-en-scene is clearly portrayed clearly to the audience as he us wearing a suit. This could also be a similar style to the likes of Lemar (also a Soul artist). This could be a common convention. The clothes that he wears could also make people see him to be a man that takes pride in his appearance, and this sort of pride could also be taken with his music, as he is very pedantic when it comes to songwriting.

1 and 2. Lighting
3 and 4. Sound

The lighting in this music video perhaps fits into the genre of Soul music videos as well as perhaps going against.
Image 1 (far left) shows that this music video uses artificial lighting that is seen as very bright, highlighting the figure of Jamie who is in the black suit. However, when approaching the end of the song, (2) the lighting becomes more low key and Jamie isn't as prominent as he previously was. The low key lighting fits into the genre of Soul music, whereas the bright artificial light could be seen as 'not the norm'. This may make the audience more familiar to the music and the genre in which it fits.
The sound in this music video could be described as diegetic as Jamie has a band that are accompanying him as he plays the piano. This conveys to the audience that perhaps the music has been left as it was recorded, with little or no changes to the sound of the instruments and Jamie's vocals.

While he performs it is clear to the viewer that this performance means something to Jamie Cullum. When he is playing the piano and singing the notes that reflect how he is feeling, he will gradually stand up, and this is when the camera comes closer to him. This conveys to the audience the passion that Jamie has for his music, and perhaps his feelings towards the person that the song lyrics are about.

Genre research video 5

Created by Kayleigh Hobbs (group work)

I chose to look at the music video for Adele's 'Chasing Pavements' as it isn't stereotypically a music video that would be associated with a Soul artist like herself. However this song 'Chasing Pavements' is definitely a Soul song as can be told by the sound that we hear in her voice and also the instruments that accompany her in this song, and in fact all the songs on her album.

The colour scheme that is used in this music video, very much matches the genre of her music. The dark orange colours of the leaves on the floor, the dull colours of Adele's costumes and in fact what the actors are wearing fits into the typical colour scheme.

Contact sheet to represent the colour scheme.

Colour scheme is one way to instantly tell the difference between a pop and soul music video. Pop videos use brighter/bolder colours whereas Soul will use more neutral colours that go together well.
In Soul music videos, the female artists are usually dressed to look glamourous and as if they are wealthy people. In this particular music video, Adele is wearing a long coat with black trousers on. This isn't particularly glamourous but does fit into the overall colour scheme really well.

Adele as an artist does not normally include dance moves into her music videos, and this one is no exception. She has little screen time in this music video, but what she does do is very important and very well done. She has various close ups on her face to convey her facial expressions and  perhaps show to the audience how she is feeling. Like other soul music videos, the use of the long shot is  used here (as shown at the top of the page). This is a very effective shot, as it shows the background as well as Adele and the colours fir together, creating the overall mood of the music video.

As Adele is just situated in the background for various shots, it could suggest that her status perhaps isn't at it's highest point. However the close ups on her face, could perhaps go against this idea. In Soul music videos, females are seen to be of a high status and parts of this video go against this.

The lighting in this music video, is natural as it has been shot in the natural environment, which looks to be a park. The lighting is used in a very clever way, as it creates slight silhouettes of the characters on the floor when they are performing various movements. However when Adele is moving around the set, a silhouette is not apparent, again limiting her status. This could also be used to make the two main actors in the video stand out when they are surrounded by the other characters.

Label research 3

Columbia records started up in Washington D.C in 1891, from then to know a lot has changed (believe it or not) and it has since become a very successful record label for soul artists. It is owned by the Japanese company "Sony Entertainment". This is a big label and therefore a lot of very successful artists have been attracted to it because of that.

I think that this label would suit our music video due to the fact that they sign on a lot of british artists (like Adele for instance) and a lot of artists who fit into the catagory of soul artists (Adele and Beyonce pictured above.) However it is an American label which might make it a bit less relevant to the type of artist that we need to emulate.

Label research 2

Created by Kayleigh Hobbs (group work)

WARNER MUSIC GROUP: is the record label that I have chosen to discuss in this blog post. This is because it best supports the genre of music that I intend to use to create my own music video.

This is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies.

This company was formed in 2004 when it was spun off and made completely seperate from Time Warner.

Some artists that work with Warner Music Group are the likes of: Chaka Khan, Seal, Simply Red and Rod Stewart. This sing in the same style as my choice of artist Duffy.

Warner Music Group is currently situated in New York, United States. This is a very beneficial place to be as there are always new artists looking for recognition in America and being situated in New York would be ideal for the artists to find the record label and want to work with them.

Label research 1

Created by Katie Lee (group work) 

Island records was founded in Jamaica but was based primarily in the UK for many years, now it's owned by the Universal Music Group however now it operates under the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group. This fits well with soul as soul as a genre is derived from Motown which came about in 1960s Detroit, as well as this Def Jam records is well-known for the making of accomplished r'n'b and hip hop artists such as Rihanna - which are also genres of black origin. However, nowadays soul music is equally as dominated by white artists especially in Britain.

Artists such as Leona Lewis, Lionel Richie and most relevant to our genre of female soul, Amy Winehouse are signed to Island Records.

The fact that Island records is related to soul artists means that they're a relevant record company to our planned artist as we wish to base our portfolio around soul music.

Genre research 4

Lemar is a classic Soul singer, he has a lot of passion that he freely and openly shares on stage, this passion is clearly shown in his video for the song "It's not that easy". Lemar's mise-en-scene is clearly shown in the video as he wears his trademark suit and tie combination and uses the classic 50's style microphone. These 2 items clearly state him out to be a soul singer as the suit is common for male soul artists across the board, and the microphone refers to the golden age of soul, the 50's. The clothes he wears also make him very approachable as he looks to be a gentleman, this fits him as he is often reffered to as one of the "gentlemen of pop", which reflects his mise-en-scene of the "nice guy".

The sound in this video is dominated by diagetic sound as Lemar and the band make up the music, this shows how his music is very "real" and has not been interfeared with (autotuning) as we can see the band playing the music (for the most part.) The moments of non-diagetic sound emphasise the singers isolation as he is alone and the music has almost abandoned him along with everything else, this is shown by the absense of the band.

The cinematography in this video shows how Lemar's emotons are increasing, this is clear as the camera comes closer to the singer as the shot progresses, this could show how Lemar's emotions are intensifying. It also makes the performance more personal to the viewer as they have an up close and personal view of the performer, this enables the song to have a greater effect due to the fact that the viewer can clearly see the emotion on the singers face. The editing here is clearly continuous as the shot is about 10 seconds long, this could show the singers long suffering or the everlasting love he possesses for the woman he is singing to.

Genre research video 3

Plan B is a soul artist of sorts, what I mean by this is that he mixes soul with other genres in order to create a fusion. However his song "Prayin" is definately of the soul genre, we know this due to the sound that we hear. The non-diagetic sound that is provided, this comes in the form of a brass band, these are a key trait of soul music. Also the way he sings is very expressive we can tell this from the tone of his voice and the desparation that he clearly puts across in his lip synching. However as the sound that is diagetic is only the singing it shows how Plan B is a solo artist rather than part of a larger group it could also show how alone he feels during this video as the song is about guilt for killing another man this idea seems to fit well.

The mise-en-scene for this video is a lot more aggressive than other soul artists whos songs and mise-en-scene are a lott calmer and more romantic. This emphasises Plan B's very individual image, as he originated in rap (a traditionally agressive genre) that shows in his mise -en-scene (see above.) Also the fact that the video is set in prison shows a darker side to his music which connotes his very grimey up bringing in London. However his clothes suit the trend for soul artists, this is due to the fact that most male artists wear smart clothing such as suits, as we can see (again above) Plan B conformes to this one stereotype of his genre.

The cinematography in Plan B's video is very in keeping with the style of a rap video, in fact it has very little in common with most soul videos, for instance above there is a clip of Plan B's "Prayin" video, as we can see the shots are handheld, this connotes that he has so much emotion that he cannot control it, this is similar to a soul video. However, the close ups and high mobility in the shots connote a very angry theme to the video, this shows Plan B's rap background. The close ups could however connote that this is a very personal video as its almost like Plan B's own confession which is obviously a very personal affair. The editing colates with the cinematography very well as the montage editing creates a very confused atmosphere which emphasises the angry/upset mood that is clearly very evident in this scene.

Genre research video 2

Post created by Katie Lee (group work)

 

My group for A2 media have decided we'd like to make a music video for the pop-soul genre (artists such as Duffy, Plan B, Adele, Seal, Jamie Cullum etc)...

Duffy's video for 'Rain on Your Parade' is very conventional to the Soul genre. The colour scheme (black/grey/white) is consistent throughout which is a typical colour scheme in itself to the genre which tends not to use bright, garish colours and prefers to give an impression of 'class' and subtlety. These choices in colour may be in place to represent the differences between genres such as chart pop and soul, to show how soul music isn't manufactured and the artists care about music more than image. In most cases, female soul singers appear classy, glamorous and well-dressed however, in this particular video Duffy is dressed moderately provocatively. Despite this, Duffy's state of dress still comes across to the viewer as quite smart, she wears a black blazer and tights and has sex appeal but doesn't look cheap unlike some r'n'b artist, no real inappropriate skin is shown.

In terms of performance, Duffy's role in the video is bold but simple, she sticks to basic but effective dance moves (as shown in the gif image attached below) which is conventional to the genre which doesn't rely on dance moves in music videos and hasn't done even since the real beginning of soul/motown music (as shown by The Supremes in the gif image attached to the right). Instead, Duffy uses male dancers to compliment her own simple dance routine with a more complex one and to avoid viewer fatigue and the technique is effortlessly effective. The dancer's costumes are also smart, the men wear suits and jackets which is again very conventional dress for men in the soul genre including artists and dancers. The male dancer's routine (below) revolves around the main artist and they are seen to be 'falling' around her which suggests her status and importance as an independant and strong woman which is an attitude often adopted by females of the soul genre.

Cinematography is fairly simple throughout, ranging mainly between close ups and long shots which is conventional to music videos (particularly for solo artists) which tend to show the artist performing/singing the song then long full body shots to show dance moves. This is really effective because it presents Duffy as the main focus for the video, which is also portrayed by the fact that she is the only female and that the colour of her legs stand out against the black of the dancer's costumes. The camera movement depends a lot on tracking the artist, which again conveys her to be the main attraction and connotes her to be a strong woman as everything revolves around her (which is conventional to female artists in the soul genre). The camera movement is very smooth (demonstrated in the above image) and fits in well with the smooth, jazzy feel of the music.

Lighting is key to this video, despite the setting being a plain room, the lighting turns it from dark to light in an instant which creates the idea of changing setting to the viewer and thus avoids fatigue. The lighting is also used to create sillhouettes and at times (again demonstrated above) is used as a vehicle to make Duffy stand out and the dancer's to appear sillhouetted. This is a typical lighting style of the music video, which is a promotional tool and uses lighting to flatter the artist - in order to create sex appeal and sell records. As a viewer, we also see a lot of sillhouetted instrumentists, this is conventional to the soul genre in particular as the instrumentation is key to convey that this genre isn't manufactured and the artist is passionate about music moreso than image, which is more important to pop chart artists.

The editing is also fairly simple which is conventional to a music video which tends to run as a narrative with occasional cuts to performance based shots. However, in the clip above I have included a jump cut which moves from a shot of Duffy central to the frame in a long shot, to a mid shot. Her stance is strong, hands by her sides and legs apart, dominating the frame and the lighting makes her appear a sillhouette. This creates a sense of strength and mystery which again are both conventional to the genre as strong women are prominent in soul as I've previously stated and this eludes to the fact that women in soul tend to be more mysterious than those in pop as they don't so much reveal their personal lives to glossy magazines etc... The shot rotation throughout is fast and fluent to avoid viewer fatigue, although this slows down when the dance routine begins as this allows the viewer to focus.

Genre research video 1

Post created by katie Lee (group work)

Amy Winehouse's video for 'You Know I'm No Good' fits some of the conventions for a soul genre video, however much alike herself, certain aspects do contradict the 'norm' in terms of soul music videos but it works as a promotional tool nonetheless.

In terms of lighting, Winehouse's video is really effective and conventional to soul. In the example (below) low key, but highly effective lighting is used on a dark background, reminiscent of a Duffy video, which not only flatters the artist but increases their status and in this case creates an 'eerie' feel. This use of bright lighting on dark background is evident in a lot of soul music videos and could definitely be considered typical of the genre.

In this video Amy is dressed in her typical 'scruffy' style, messy beehive and vest top despite the conventional dress for a female soul singer being usually quite the opposite, dark, smart clothing (such as a black dress). However, Winehouse's own development of fashion earned her recognition as a household name and figure, her sense of style is recognised both world and nationwide. Therefore, although she doesn't really conform to the fashions set by previous soul singers, this helped her to create her own success as an artist and an individual.

The location throughout the video is strikingly similar, although props change around the dark room, such as a bar, a table, a bath, a bed (pictured below). This prop rotation allows the room to take on the shape of a new setting and avoid viewer fatigue.

The colour scheme is dark and revolves around a blue/white/black/grey basis which is highly typical of a soul genre video, particularly in female soul artists. Soul singers tend not to use garish colours and sex-appeal image to sell music but focus more on the message of the music.

Unconventional use of shot types.

Despite the 'lack'of real location change or at least dramatic location change, the video is extremely effective due to it's clever use of cinematography. Winehouse's video is unconventional to the average music video in that a wide variety of shot types are used whereas a music video normally stays around the long shot/close up area, this helps to introduce the viewer to and sell the artist. However, Amy's creative influence in clear in this instance, as is the soul genre, a focus is set more on the message of the song and conveying this in a narrative structure rather than by creating a video revolving around how the artist is important, sexy, etc...

As well as this, a creative, but unconformist decision has been made using cinematography, in that the video uses the highly rare over the shoulder shot in music video format. This is a shot type usually avoided by a music video director as it completely shuts off the artist from the viewer in that their face is not visible, but the back of their head which is often considered a sign of rudeness in day-to-day situations. This would be considered ineffective as the viewer is supposed to engage with the artist in a way that would make them want to buy their music after watching their video. This represents how Amy Winehouse was more interested in her music, than image, or money, fame and beauty (which is further shown in her less than glamorous state of dress) although this isn't typical of a music video this is a trait often portrayed in the soul genre.

Evidence of media and alcohol cultures in the video

The editing throughout on a general basis is typical to a music video structure, moderately fast shot rotation and a mixture between narrative shots and performance based scenes. However, what I found particularly interesting was the way editing is used to show Amy watching her own actions on television and in moving polaroid 'photographs', I found these scenes particularly poignant as they connoted her own struggles with the media and the media insistence on documenting her 'fall from grace' at any given opportunity so all were aware of her personal issues and dramas. As well as this was the dominance of alcohol throughout the video, which I also found intriguing as Amy's creative influence upon the video becomes evident, connotations of her personal battles with alcohol and drug abuse whilst being questioned by a love interest, representing her rocky relationship with husband, Blake for which the whole album 'Back to Black' was based upon add an essence of personality to the video. These connotations show how Amy was passionate about her music, how these lyrics meant something to her and how she wanted to represent this in the video and make it more personal to her - something, maybe not to such extremes, which isn't rare in the soul music genre which is known to focus on music, not image.

Off centre shot, represents her personal state and her unconventionalism

Conventions of Soul music videos

A video of me talking about the conventions of Soul music videos.

Foo Fighters analysis of album advert

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Mood board

Low Budget Ideas

The low budget ideas that have been exibited in this music video are the simple lighting tricks that have been used to create silhouettes whilst the performers are dancing. This is very low budget for me as the school has many lighting rigs that could replicate this effect very easily. The  setting is also very easy to recreate as any fancy wallpaper will give the illusion of an expensive house or a high class setting. Finally the costumes are common in the wardrobes of any guy, therefore to recreate this its a simple matter of looking for a suit in my household.

In this music video the cheap ideas come from clever use of depth and camera angles, for instance at the beginning the silhouette is simply twigs in the foreground and a bright light behind the woman. Then there is no need for complicated costuming or props as a lot of extreme close-ups are used, these still add to the overall look of the video which is very chaotic and fast paced.

Conventions of a music video

The conventions of a music video depends upon the genre of the song, for instance in this song ("The Rock Show") by Punk/Pop pand Blink 182 has a comical mise-en-scene, this goes along with the bands image of having a care-free lifestyle. So I will divide the conventions into 2 major genres, rock and pop.

The conventions of a rock video are a lot of handheld shots, this connotes the slightly out of control nature that most rock bands have created for themselves. The shots also change in pace along with the song, for instance at its crescendo the shots are in montage editing form, this emphasises the speed of the song. The mise-en-scene of most rock videos is very dark, black is a very dominant colour in most rock videos. The mise-en-scene also encompasses the instruments as a major part of the bands image, ehich includes at least a small amount of instrumental ability.

Pop videos differ in that they use a lot of steady shots in them, this shows that they are more orderly than rock videos, however it could also represent the emotion being conveyed as the shots seem more focussed. The shots also change pace as the music gets faster, however montage editing is used less often, this shows that there are some similarities between the rock and pop videos. The mise-en-scene of pop bands is a ot brighter than that of rock bands, this could be due to the fact that the subject matters are a lot lighter than those of rock videos. Also in pop videos instruments take a backseat as pop is usually about the vocals rather than instrumental ability.