Action plan
Focus Group results
I asked a group of fellow classmates a few question for each music video, to get an idea of what sort of video they enjoy and they think is most entertaining, and the results are:
Look What the Cat Dragged in
Q. Who liked this music video and why
Result: they liked this music video because of different reasons, which include; it looks like a party, the scenes outside and the way the dancers are dancing with the beat of the song
Q. In terms of mise-en-scene does it represent the hip-hop genre and how?
Result: They said that it is a typical grime music video and that is that you would usually see.
Q. Was there a narrative in the music video?
Result: They all answered no.
Good Times
Q. Who liked this music video and why?
Result: They liked this music video because it looks like they are having a good time
Q. What elements in the music video represent the hip-hop genre?
Result: They said; the clothing, women and dancing represent the hip-hop genre.
Q. What was eye-catching about the music video?
Result: they replied how hyper the video is, the party atmosphere and the different paces of the video such as the fast motion in the beginning.
You’re a Jerk
Q. what are the good elements of the music video?
Result: they said; it is a fun video, the dancing and the clothing were attractive, which include; the skinny jeans and caps.
Q. Does the clothing represent the hip-hop genre?
Result: they said the top half shows the genre, which include; the baggy T-shirts, chains and caps.
Q. does having one person in the video make it more interesting?
Result: They said it is better than having just one person and the people dancing in the middle of the streets is attractive.
The first two music videos were British and the last is American, which do you enjoy more?
Result: They all agreed that the second music video (Good Times) was the best because it is more appealing and it is more continuous rather than repetitive.
Digipaks
Drake – Thank Me Later
This digipak clearly represents the hip-hop genre because of many different factors, which include; the colour scheme, the text, the mise en scene, his facial expression and the effects.
The colour scheme for this is digipak is black and dark blue, which makes it look quite dark and gloomy; this is used because he does not want the album to look all fun, he wants it to look neutral or serious. The colour scheme shows what type of songs will be inside the album because it usually does; in this case the songs will be serious songs.
The text again shows that it is neutral and he does not want to make it look cool, the text is simple and clear, this is because he wants it to be easy to read and the audience does not have to look at it for more than two seconds without being able to make out what it says.
The text is the opposite of what the hip-hop genre would normally be because it is usually has some kind of design such as graffiti, but this is plain and simple, this is because he obviously wants it look uncomplicated.
The text is in all capitals this again is because he wants the text to be noticeable.
The mise en scene clearly represents the genre because he is wearing stereotypical hip-hop clothing, which include shiny jacket and a baseball cap. Without this it would have been hard to make out that it is a hip-hop album.
The facial expression Drake has is a neutral look; this is because he is again trying to portray the serious effect.
The effect that this album has is a motion blur, this is used because he wanted it to look a bit more exciting, even though he does wants it to be simple, without this effect it would be too simple which would make it look boring, so the effects makes it look a bit better.
Drake – Heartbreak Drake Part 2
This digipak clearly represents the hip-hop genre because of many different factors, which include; the colour scheme, the text, the mise en scene, his facial expression and the effects.
The digipak is the complete opposite of ‘Thank Me Later’ digipak, but they both represent the hip-hop genre.
The colour scheme for this album cover is mixed colours; this is because he wants it to look fun, exciting and attractive. This is opposite to the other digipak because he does not want it to look simple and serious.
This colour scheme shows that the songs inside will be exciting and not serious or boring.
The text on this album cover is not simple or serious it is attractive because it is unaligned, different sized letters, at an angle and has a crack through it, this goes with the title, because the title is ‘Heartbreak Drake’, so these factors show that it is not neat, which represents the hip-hop genre as the hip-hop genre is not neat.
The mise en scene clearly show the hip-hop genre because he has shown nearly every stereotypical hip-hop element on the album cover, these things include; a hoody, baggy jeans, trainers, sun glasses, women in short dresses, a sports car and being on the streets. So it is easily noticeable as a hip-hop album.
The diner in the background shows where Drake is from, which is America because that is where diners are.
His facial expressions are still serious this is because it gives the image a bit of a serious look because if he was smiling it would have looked too happy for the hip-hop genre.
The effect that this digipak has is the high contrast; this makes the image look much more attractive.
The image does not look like an original it looks like a collage, this is what makes it even more attractive.
Website Homepage
Game
The colour scheme this homepage has is black and red, it makes it look quite goury and indicates danger, which is what most rappers try to show, they want people to be afraid of them.
Another reason he uses this colour scheme is because the name of his new album is ‘The RED Album’.
The font on this homepage is mostly just a plain font, this is because he wants the important information to be clear and readable. However the other text such as the title and title to his new album has a graffiti effect, this is again showing the hip-hop genre because graffiti is mostly used by hip-hop listeners.
He makes the most important text that he wants the audience to notice to be bold for example the name of one of his songs, he has made this noticable because it is a new song released on iTunes.
His name is like a brand name, he wants to make his name to be remembered, and be noticed everytime people see it, the same with the name of the album this is why they are both repeated.
The images used are just images of him and the images on the side. The images on the side are very difficult to make out, but it is a design of a bandana; this represents a gang or he is a gang member.
The bandana design is hard to make out because it also has a graffiti effect, this is to show branding because the same effect is used.
He has clear photographs of himself because he wants to show everyone who he is.
Game’s facial exporessions in the two photographs show two different things; the first one shows an angry face and this is because he is again trying to show that people should be scared of him. In the second photograph he is trying to show that he does not care about anything.
J.Cole
This is the official website homepage for the rapper J Cole, his homepage also clearly shows that it is a hip-hop genre because of the colour scheme, font, contents and videos.
The colour scheme on this homepage is just balck and grey, this good because there is not much going and he wants everyone to focus on the important information, images and videos.
The grey makes the audience not look at that part of the website. The colours on the website make it look dull, this represents him as a person because it shows that he does not care about how he looks and he just wants everyone to listen to his music, this is the same as other rappers.
The idea of the font used in this website is the same as Game’s because they both have a plain font on the text that neads to be noticeable and the most important text such as his name and the news headings are big and bold because he wants everyone to notice them.
The website has a music video which is seen as soon as the person enters the website, so this is a good way of trying to show your new music video.
J cole has the new or most important music video in the middle and is quite big and other videos on the side in a smaller size.
The website has a lot of news headings all the way down to the bottom of the website showing his success, this is to show how successful he is to people that have never heard of him. So he gets more people to listen to his music. This is a very clever way of trying to get noticed by new audiences.
The Game and J Cole’s website are very different because Game is trying to promote his new album and J cole is trying to show his success because he is a new rapper. So obviously it depends on what you are trying to portray before you design a website.
Music Videos
Look What the Cat Dragged In
This is the music video of Look What the Cat Dragged In by Giggs, the camera shots; editing techniques and mise en scene clearly represent the genre.
There are a range of different camera shots and different camera angles used in this music video such as; close ups, mid close ups, long shots, mid shots, etc. The reason there are a lot of different types of shots because the song is fast paced so they are trying to match the pace.
There are a lot of shots but the camera always keeps going back to a mid shot, this is because they are trying to show the main person.
All fast paced hip-hop songs have quick camera shots.
There are hints of a steadicam used to make the camera move a lot; even when steadicam is not used the camera is still moving, either panning, tracking or zooming in and out, this is because most fast paced hip hop songs are quite energetic so the camera never stops moving.
There are a quite a few different editing techniques, for example the quick cuts, this is used to show the quick pace, however the cuts are not as fast in the beginning because they are trying to show everyone entering the party and the quick cuts start when the rapping starts.
Slow motion is also used in the beginning of the video again showing that the pace is slower in the beginning. This idea of starting slow in the beginning is used in most hip-hop videos and it shows it goes with the pace of the song.
Depth of focus is also used to again show the important person.
The music video is in black and white which represents the genre because it is trying to show that they are not trying to appear all happy but are serious people.
The mise en scene clearly shows what genre this is, because of the clothing, which is hoodies, t-shirts, baggy jeans and jewellery.
Also all the clothing goes with the lyrics because he is talking about the clothes he is wearing.
The lighting shows that it is a hip-hop genre because it is a party, which are in a lot of hip-hop videos.
You’re a Jerk
This is the music video of You’re a Jerk by New Boyz, the camera shots; editing techniques and mise en scene clearly represent the genre.
The music video has a narrative, of a boy going to a dance battle.
The word jerk in this video has two meanings, one being the insult and the other being the name of the dance that they are doing. So girls are saying jerk as part of the narrative and boys are ‘jerking’ as their dance. So this video cleverly links the two together.
In the beginning there is an establishing shot of the city they are in and then the camera just shows the legs of the dancers, this is to create a build up a bit of excitement and because they are trying to show the new clothing style.
There are a range of different camera shots and camera angles used after the intro, such as; close ups, mid close ups, long shots, mid shots, etc. The reason there are a lot of different types of shots is because the song is fast paced so they are trying to match the pace and they are trying to make it look exciting.
The mid-shots are used mostly when the narrative is shown and the other camera shots are used on the dancing. The mid-shots are used to show the narrative clearly and so it is not confusing to the audience.
There are a quite a few different editing techniques, for example the very quick cuts, and this is used to show the quick pace and to go with the beat.
In the intro the editing techniques used are slow motion and a black fade around the edges, this is again trying to create excitement.
Slow motion is also used throughout the whole video, but mostly during the narrative; this is because they are trying to clearly show the narrative story. Slow motion is used during some of the dancing because it makes the dancing look more effective.
The music video is in bright colours because they are trying to show that they are having fun on a nice and sunny day, this portrays a positive message because they are teenagers and that is what teenagers should be doing, having fun.
Split screens are used a lot to show the narrative and the dancing at the same time, this is much more effective because they get more time for either the narrative or the dance, and it makes the video look more exciting.
The mise en scene is not as clear when relating to the genre this is because of the clothing, which is skinny jeans, which are worn by skater boys. So they may be trying to introduce a new style of clothing to the hip-hop genre.
However there is one element of the hip-hop genre in the mise en scene which is the streets and the boys dancing on the streets, this is the most used place where hip-hop genre music videos are shot.
Good Times
This is the music video of Good Times by Roll Deep, the camera shots; editing techniques and mise en scene clearly represent the genre.
Unlike the other two music videos this video starts off fast and is fast all the way through.
There are a range of different camera shots used after the beginning, such as; close ups, mid close ups, long shots, mid shots, etc. The reason there are a lot of different types of shots is because the song is fast paced so they are trying to match the pace and they are trying to make it look exciting.
However they are still trying to build up to the party as there are shots on balloons and girls getting ready for the party, this is to build up excitement.
In the beginning the camera is placed on the alarm clock and it is fast forwarded through the all the days until Saturday this is to show that they have been waiting till this day, and it is going to be a big night. Also Saturday is when most parties take place, so they are trying to relate to the audience.
There is a wide range of editing techniques used in the music video, for example the very quick cuts, and this is used to show the quick pace and to go with the beat.
In the beginning there are fast motion techniques of London buses and black cabs, this is because they are trying to show where they are and the different transports which are usually used to go to a party. The fast motion is used to make it seem more exciting.
The colour is bright because they are trying to make it look exciting and shows they are have a good time.
There are split screens used to make it look exciting and to show the different people having a good time.
The mise en scene clearly portrays the genre in this music video, because the clothing used is hoodies, jeans and miniskirts, this not only portrays the genre but it also shows the clothing that are used in parties.
The setting is to obviously show the party, the genre and to show they are having a good time.
We were told today that we had to do research tasks, where we had to analyse 3 existing main tasks (the same as what we will be doing) and 4 ancillary tasks. My individual research will be analysing three hip hop music promo videos (I will be doing a mix of British and American to look at the differences between the two and which one appeals to the audience the most), two website homepages of a band or artist and two digipak as a cover for it’s release. The three music videos I have chosen to analyse are:
| Song | Artist/s | British/American |
| Look What the Cat Dragged In | Giggs | British |
| You’re a Jerk | New Boyz | American |
| Good Times | Roll Deep | British |