Music Video

Question 1

Formation- Beyoncé Video

Answer 1

For example, the use of antebellum era dresses.
- Beyoncé and a group of other Black women pose in white dresses that appear to reference the antebellum era of American history.
- Consider the significance of slavery in relation to this sequence and what is being signified.

Question 2

FORMATION

American cultural context

Answer 2

• Album: lemonade, with song of 221 million views
• director Melina Matsoukas
• Beyoncé is a globally famous artist, but the video contains info that may be unfamiliar to those outside the U.S.
• reference to the black panther movements,

The issues explored relate directly to African-American life and may be potentially confusing or even harmful for non-Americans.

Question 3

Beyonce star persona

Answer 3

• fan base: B-Hive
• she creates hydrid genre music
• and expressive/reblious artist, explored an artisitc persona = sasha firece, there are eleme=nts of this in the music video
• core ideologies: women empowerment, rasical equality activits = features a sample of chimamanda Ngozi ‘we should all be feminists’, her goal is to give black women freedom to break cultural ‘glass-ceilings’

Question 4

Bell hooks feminist theory

Answer 4

• Hooks has labelled Beyoncé a ‘terrorist’ following her appearance on the cover of Time magazine, where she was constructed as
  submissive and almost childlike in a voyeuristic way.
• There are moments in this video that reinforce the objectification
  of women.
• For example, the women dance in formation in skimpy hot pants, and their movements draw the eye to
  their waists and curves.
  -This is very typical iconography for
  the pop music genre, so from this perspective Beyoncé is exploiting the dancers to promote herself as a pop-star by using recognisable conventions that appeal to a wide
  mainstream audience.
• A different perspective might be that Beyoncé is celebrating black feminism by featuring only black women, of different skin tones, and all with natural hair. bell hooks discusses
  cultural appropriation and the way white female celebs appropriate black culture in order to make money i.e.
  “white supremacist capitalist patriarchy” (Kylie Jenner, Miley Cyrus). - Black women are not celebrated for their culture, but when a white woman appropriates it, it becomes a cool style
• Examples in “Formation” that support bell hooks’ assertion that Beyoncé’s video is the Commercialisation of Black Culture: While celebrating black culture, the video also serves as a promotional tool for Beyoncé’s album, potentially commodifying black culture for commercial gain rather than challenging oppressive structures.
• These examples suggest that while “Formation” celebrates black women’s empowerment and cultural identity, it may not actively advocate for systemic change to dismantle patriarchal domination.

Question 5

FORMATION

Theories of ethnicity and postcolonial theory – Paul Gilroy

Answer 5

• it places black women in a position of power and domination. This can be clearly seen in the shots of Beyonce standing on top of the police car and dressed in Antebellum costume
  sitting proudly in a plantation style challenging postcolonial representations, as outlined by Gilroy.
• Consider ways in which the music video challenges racial hierarchy by subverting expectations and placing a black woman in a position of power and dominion, but may perpetuate a sense of binary opposition between races by perpetuating Gilroy’s sense of ‘otherness’ and a clear divide based on racial lines. = There is a clear divide on racial lines in this video, the scene with the boy vs the police is a
  prime example. The exclusion of white people, other than the police officers,

Question 6

ripetide: representations - the woman

Answer 6

• objectified and victimized manner
• the video uses high camera angles, with terrified facial features, low lighting = adds on to the representation of women being fearful
• the representation of women that seem scared and jumpy feels horror like
• dehuamnised

Question 7

FORMATION
product context

Answer 7

• Album Lemonade was released a day before Beyoncé performed at the superbowl 2016
• directed by Melina Matsoukas, winning numerous awards (it won best music vid award category in the Grammys )
• the video is set against the flooding in New Orleans following HURRICANE KATRINA and the association of racial tension in America with slavery/racism #blacklivesmattermovement

Question 8

FORMATION

FORMATION
media language - visual codes: gesture

Answer 8

Visual codes: Gesture
video featured highly choregraphed dance routines, singers. moves are very physical and sudden connoting aggression/power

Question 9

formation
media language - visual codes: visual effects

Answer 9

visual effects are overlaid during the car park dance routine to give the video a vintage appearance.

Low resolution camera: The blue tint and overlaid with a PLAY symbol. = connotations of surveillance, suggest ‘real life’ or police footage (CCTV)

also have connations of ‘authencity’ - a value especially important for many hip-hop whose credibility comes ‘from the street’

Question 10

Main references formation

Answer 10

• Hurricane Katrina (New Orleans) = black communities in New Orleans were forgotten by the American government
• Advocating voices of the underdogs
• historical context - Slave trade - antebellum images and iconography. However subverts the stereotypes as the black people in the house seem to dominate., reappriating its meaning bywearing it by an empwered women, suggests she is of higher class.
• THE ‘X’ formation choregraphy alludes. to malcom x, who champoined the black panther civil right movement = wear black panther clothing
• black lives matter: Police brutality conflict between white police men and black youths (particularly at the end of music vid) = political statement,

Question 11

lyrics in formation

Answer 11

• ‘you just might be a black Bill Gates in the making’ - suggests that she wants black women to conquer the capitalist American dream and brecome billionaires who outstage whiyte supermascit cultural dominance.

Question 12

Riptide mise-en-scene

Answer 12

• Riptide” lacks a traditional narrative but instead captures the carefree spirit of a road trip. It focuses on Vance Joy’s journey through picturesque landscapes, creating a sense of adventure and freedom.
• COLOUR: Riptide” employs a more muted and earthy color scheme, reflecting the natural surroundings and creating a relaxed, intimate atmosphere.
• EDITING: Riptide” has a slower, more deliberate pace, allowing viewers to soak in the scenery and the song’s melodic, folksy vibe.

Question 13

FORMATION

Empowerment and Feminism:

Answer 13

• Formation is a powerful anthem that celebrates black culture, female empowerment, and resilience.
• Beyoncé presents a strong, confident image throughout the video, highlighting themes of self-assurance and pride.
• Underscore messages of strength and unity.
• to promte indepence ‘okay, ladies now thats get to formation’
• promtes a sex positive, third way feminism
• women in charge: she positioned in the centre in all black, with lots of jewerlly. two male servants in the back

Question 14

Hall representation - formation

Answer 14

• Hall states that repeated representations in the media make the audience believe this is how the world really is and that such portrayals become ‘naturalised’ or common sense.
• In Western societies, the dominant group is white and the media present being white as ‘normal’, linking to ‘white eye’ which suggests media texts are produced by white people,
  for white people, using white representations.
• As a result it becomes more difficult to have representations of other ethnic groups in the media as this disrupts the white status quo.
• The video clearly challenges the notion of ‘white eye’ and features a wide range of black representations that reflect Beyonce’s upbringing.
• The absence of whiteness in the video and the positive counter-stereotypes represented connote a powerful text that challenges Hall’s theory.
• Many of the cultural references in the video are correctly decoded by a black audiences

Question 15

Guantlett - formation

Answer 15

In “Formation,” black women are positioned by the video representation as multifaceted, empowered individuals who challenge old stereotypes and celebrate diverse identities:
- Multifaceted Representation:Through montage editing, Beyoncé presents a range of female identities, particularly black female identities, which have been historically ignored or misrepresented by the mass media. The video showcases black women as multifaceted and diverse, challenging narrow stereotypes.
- Collective Strength: The dance troupe, portrayed as a collective of strong black women, dances in formation resembling an army, referencing the Black Panthers. This portrayal presents black women as freedom fighters, determined, and tough, challenging stereotypes of weakness and submissiveness.
Challenge to Stereotypes: The video challenges old stereotypes of black women, such as the mammy, the angry woman, the jezebel, and the matriarch. Instead, black women are depicted as individuals with agency, refinement, high status, and financial independence.
Supportive Role: Black women in the video are depicted as supportive and nurturing, fighting for their sons and raising up men, challenging stereotypes of emasculation and aggression.
Overall, “Formation” positions black women as complex and empowered individuals who defy stereotypes and celebrate their diverse identities. This representation aligns with Gauntlett’s theory of media playing an important role in creating new patterns of being by presenting diverse and complex representations that challenge old stereotypes.

Question 16

Representation of black wimen and Queer

Answer 16

• The video uses montage editing to present a wide range of images
  celebrating lifestyle and culture.
• One particularly interesting
  frame is the long shot in the wig shop which presents one aspect of black culture.
• Black women can have natural hair. They can wear wigs. They can express their culture however they wish.- bell hooks.
• The women in Beyoncé’s
  troupe are all black women of different sizes and skin tones, and
  all with natural hair. Beyonce uses black women and black queer bodies throughout the video. The cultural code implies that Beyonce is celebrating these groups who are usually marginalised in society (e.g. Pride, BLM), but who are often victims and leaders.
• The use of these bodies underscores the gender inequality of the visibility of black lives lost to violence – the pain and death of black women,
  queer, and trans people has become invisible and subordinate
  to black cis men.

Question 17

Representation of hurricane kat

Answer 17

In “Formation,” the video’s setting in New Orleans and depiction of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina serve as powerful cultural codes:
Symbolism of Hurricane Katrina: The opening scene with Beyoncé on top of a sinking police car references Hurricane Katrina, highlighting the disproportionate impact on poor black communities. Beyoncé’s defiance towards those in power reflects the struggles faced by the people of New Orleans.
Critique of Police Corruption: The sinking police car at the end of the video symbolizes the need for accountability within law enforcement, particularly regarding issues of racism. Beyoncé’s pose in a Jesus-like position suggests her power and determination to rise against corruption.
Troupe in Empty Swimming Pool: The scenes of Beyoncé’s troupe in an empty swimming pool may symbolize the abandonment of the people of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. The low-key lighting and isolation of the women could reflect the neglect and lack of support for black neighborhoods.
Overall, “Formation” utilizes powerful visual symbolism to comment on issues of racial injustice, police brutality, and the aftermath of natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, highlighting the resilience and defiance of black communities.

Question 18

RIPETIDE PRODUCT CONTEXT

Answer 18

• Vance Joy is an Australian singer-songwriter signed to Atlantic records - His music can be categorised as fitting into indie folk-pop genre.
• The video has nearly 100 million views on YouTube.

Question 19

Economic context - RIPETIDE

Answer 19

• Consider whether the seemingly low budget, unique style of the
muSIC vIdeo was an artistic decision or an economic one.
• Funding could be discussed in relation to music video in terms of the
watch inerease in budget the gain pupulartiy and fans.
• the extent to which budget impacts artistic decisions and the visual style of music videos. An extension of this discussion the band or representation of how valuable the brand is.
• Are mainstream audiences impressed by larger budget music videos and attracted to the apparent implied “quality” of that band?

Question 20

how media language influences meaning and intertextuality:

Answer 20

• montage editing is used in an overt way - a wide range of contrasting shots juxtaposed often hard jump cuts) to convey information
  • For example the sequence where a male and female suddenly turn their heads to look at something off-screen and the next shot shows a unrelated pile of dollar bills = which rejects a clear narrative structure

Question 21

Code and convention - Tide

Answer 21

» Whilst it is a convention of the music video form to have song lyrics interpreted on screen, the overt and deliberate way the lyrics are interpreted in this music video might be subverting this convention:
• *The opening line”! was scared of dentists and the dark” is interpreted explicitly with a shot of a female looking “scared with a metallic contraption in her mouth that suggests she is in a dentist’s chair and followed by a shot of a light swinging in a darkened room.
• » The music video seems to explicitly reference feature films:
• * The opening shot makes use of cinematic style credits and information about the music is presented with a title of the bottom of the screen.
- the video frequently references Western and thriller genres

Question 22

the significance of challenging and/or subverting genre conventions: RIPETIDE

Answer 22

• Riptide is relatively unusual both as a music video and specifically as a text within the indie folk genre in terms of its style, rejection of narrative and lack special effects.
• Comparison could be made with a later Vance Joy video Georgia (2015), which follows many more conventions, to consider why Riptide challenges or subverts the conventions of the genre.
• Candidates might explore the way in which the video might have been designed to conter a sense of uniqueness or intrigue to the band.

Question 23

RIPETIDE

Semiotics - Roland Barthes

Answer 23

• Explore Barthes idea that constructed meanings can come to seem self-evident by discussing the connotations of the colour green in relation to both money and envy - this could be said to have achieved Barthes status of myth through a process of naturalisation which might allow for complicated readings of the
  ImagB.
  • » This example of polysemy could be interpreted in a variety of ways e.g. is it implying that friends (possibly in other bands) have
  “sold out” by giving into money? Or might instead these friends be turning green with envy at the success of Vance Joy?

Question 24

Hooks RIPETIDE

Answer 24

• Hooks could be used as a stimulus to explore the seemingly contradictory messages about gender in the video.
• Is the video objectifying women in an ironic or knowing way or is it instead feeding into the oppression of women in a patriarchal society? Use hooks’ position that feminism is a struggle to end sexist/ patriarchal oppression to ask whether the video is part of that struggle or part of the oppression.

Question 25

Representation: Social and Cultural Contexts: RIPETIDE

Answer 25

• The infamous eye cutting scene in Un Chien Andalout for instance could be compared to the hand stabbing scene the music video.
- A brief exploration of the subconscious might also afford the chance to add depth to a discussion of the representation issues in the video and its sometimes dream-like logic.

Question 26

How how media representations convey values, attitudes - RIPETIDE

Answer 26

• Women in the video are repeatedly presented as an object to be watched:
  • » In one shot a woman with her back to the camera undresses out of her swimming costume and such as bare feet running away

Explore the lip-synch section where a woman sings the lyrics of the song into a microphone. At first she has full face of makeup and is framed in a flattering way, arguably conforming to the social norms of beauty and glamour. As the video progresses she repeatedly becomes disheveled her makeup smudges and her expressions become more vacant - songs the words wrong.
- the lip singing woman also clutches her own neck and we see what to be blood over her hand - trivialising and normalising violence

Question 27

Polysemy in RIPETIDE

Answer 27

• Their signification can have multiple meanings due to their ambiguity and as a result, the music video can be seen as a polysemic text.
• According to Barthes Semiotic theory. Myth is a form that provides understanding derived from, but beyond denotation and connotation - the major function of myth is to naturalize a belief.
• Polysemic meanings can be formed from the utilisation of myth in Vance Joy’s ‘Riptide’ - a series of, semantic, referential and hermeneutic codes within the music video create a tableau of meaning, and due to its abstract.
- conceptual and non-linear nature, leads spectators towards a multitude of interpretations - decoding the myth is part of the process of naturalisation, but the producer has little control over these interpretations beyond the initial intentions within the organisation of signs and signifiers within a text.
• Vance Joy’s ‘Riptide’ is a conceptual music video - it cannot be considered a narrative as there is no cause/effect to any narrative strands, and it is not performance as the band do not play in any of the scenes.
• While lyrics and visuals are repeatedly connected to each other, they do so as a series of dissociated images akin to Bunuel’s Surrealist style in avant-garde shorts like ‘Un Chien Andalou’ - the tableau of images can be considered a ‘fever dream’ which points to a myth or a deeper theme: the predatory nature of the male gaze. the victimization of women by patriarchy, and the destructive nature of voyeurism. like a riptide with its psychologically aggressive and encroaching nature.

Question 28

Intersectionality - bell hooks (RIPETIDE)

Answer 28

• bell hooks believes that Feminism is a struggle to end patriarchal oppression and that the cause is a political commitment - they believe in the intersection of other factors such as race and class with gender, which means that one cannot just be addressed as a single issue.
• Vance Joy’s music video resides within the hybrid genre (indie-folk) which has gained mainstream appeal over the last decade - the music video is produced from a white male bourgeois perspective - based on this criteria, it fails on all three levels of egalitarian representation: race, gender and class.
• However, it arguably addresses toxic masculinity, patriarchy and misogyny in an ironic fashion
• it could be interpreted that stereotypes of gender are used to mock rather than ingrain patriarchy.
  Is the music video conveying a sort of ironic objectification or feeding into patriarchal myth?

Question 29

Feminism theory - RIPETIDE van zoonen

Answer 29

• supports waves of feminism
• POV shot of a blonde woman undressing a bathing suit (back) on the beach unaware of being watched.
• Close-up shot of ‘Techniques of Photographing Girls’ book reinforces idea of female objectification.
• Multiple shots of a woman portrayed as a victim (stuck in dental surgery chair, tied up around a tree. running away from someone/something, attacked in darkness, jazz singer with smeared make-up)
• Whip pan shot of a man looking through binoculars man painting gun → woman in longcoat on the beach smoking a cigarette looking over her shoulder (direct address - confronts the vayeur with the female gaze).
• The deterioration of the jazz singer’s make-up has connotations that relate to male domestic violence - the enigma code is established, where it could be deduced that she is being abused due to toxic male oppression.
• According to Van Zoonen’s Feminist theory, representations of the male as active (voyeur) and the woman as passive (victim) reinforces patriarchal cultural codes but arguably in an ironic manner.
• Subversive representation is evident with three instances of the female gaze (one direct address shot “all my friends are turning green” to highlight her career succession, one low angle long-shat of a woman on a balcony looking through binoculars, and one of this woman looking over her shoulder to confront the male gaze - these representations challenge the patriarchal stereotype of women as passive.

Question 30

Postmodernism

Answer 30

• The blurred boundary between real and the imagined, distinction between media and reality has collapsed. reality mediated through simulated images and representations (hyper-reality).
• Postmodernism is sceptical about the advances of modernism leading to cynical interpretations of culture found in satire.
  • While Bunuel’s Surrealist style in ‘Un Chien Andalou’ can be considered Modernist in its experimentation, Vance Joy’s ‘Riptide’ can be considered post-modernism due to its intertextual recycling bricolage of anachronistic references (VHS tape, binoculars, 70s fashion sense, lyrics about Michelle Pfeiffer, imagery that echoes auteur tropes of Wes Anderson and Jean-Luc Godard).
  • Simulacra and simulation - the fake intertexts (Velocite VHS, Techniques on How to Photograph Girls Book) create a simulated world: a sort of hyperreal indiesphere’ where present day is reassuringly anachronistic.
  Meta-narrative - the use of direct address by various characters and on-the-nose associations between lyrics and visuals give a self-reflexive impression - additionally, the scene of a man looking through binoculars at a man pointing a gun at a woman smoking her cigarette who looks over her shoulder to give direct mode of address has a meta-narrative ‘Russian doll’ effect.

Question 31

Postmodernism in Beyoncé music video

Answer 31

The ‘three minute culture’ the MTV generation length of people’s attention spans - fast editing, intense imagery

Formation:
Bricolage of cultural references, blending styles reflects a fragmented self-aware culture.
E.g. Beyoncé’s various incorporation of various cultural symbols, such as Southern Gothic imagery, such as scenes of her dressed in antebellum-style clothing with modern-day settings like a flooded New Orleans neighborhood. This blending of past and present reflects a postmodern sensibility, where different historical and cultural elements are combined to create new meanings and perspectives. - creating a collage of narrative

Question 32

Postmodernism in riptide

Answer 32

• The ‘three minute culture’ the MTV generation length of people’s attention spans - fast editing, intense imagery
• Postmodernism is evident in the video through its eclectic mix of visual styles and references.
• e.g. the use of surreal and whimsical imagery, such as the scene where Vance Joy is portrayed as a puppet being manipulated by unseen forces.
• This blending of reality and fantasy reflects postmodernism’s tendency to blur boundaries between different modes of representation.
• Additionally, the video features nostalgic elements like vintage aesthetics and retro-inspired fashion, which are recontextualized in a contemporary setting.
• This interplay between past and present reflects postmodernism’s interest in recycling and remixing cultural artifacts to create new meanings.

Overall, “Riptide” incorporates elements of postmodernism through its eclectic visuals and playful approach to storytelling, making it a fitting example of how contemporary music videos engage with both the ‘three-minute culture’ and postmodern aesthetics.