The official music video for I Gotta Feeling was released on June 2nd, 2009 after an incomplete version of it was leaked on May 29th, 2009 and it was made earlier in the same year. The video features other music artists such as David Guetta who produced the song, Kid Cudi. Katie Perry, Chantal Jones, members of the indie rock band Gossip, the designer duo Dean and Dan Caten of Dsquared and a few well-known personalities of the LGBT community, including Ongina of RuPaul's Drag Race fame. All together it cost around $200,000 to make according to unconfirmed reports on the internet, the filming didn’t take too long too do as a lot of the shots are within the same interior location with the band and other actors and dancers dancing aswell as the band getting ready to go out. There are also some exterior shots of people walking and driving around Hollywood Boulevard. There is a very little amount of shots in particualar that would of took a far greater amount of time to film or make as it sticks to the same relatively basic concept of dancing and jumping around for the majority of the music video.
The director Ben Mor was born in Israel before moving to Nigeria and has directed commercials, music videos, and short films. He is a director whose creativity and style give his videos an immense cinematic quality, no matter the budget or tools he is given to work with.
One of the main assests and strenghs of the music video is the lighting effects produced, which sets a very good dancing vibe for the video, in paticually for the second half when the lighting is dimmed and the band has phosphorescent paint on them while dancing slower to the slower beat and key change. This is the part of the music video when it goes to the next level in terms of the vibe and excitement in the video, music, lyrics and effects and continues for the rest of the song. It makes people want to dance which is what the song and music video is trying to achieve, this links on to the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as the song is dedicated to people who are going out, on there way out which is shown at the start, and people who are out having a good time. The lyrics are related to having a good time, which is also shown in the music video and it’s the vibe you get in the music. The relationhip between the music and the visuals is simlar as it’s also showing people having a good time whilst and it’s the vibe you get in the beat of the music and the speed of it, when the key changes, so does the lighting effect and the dancing is slowed down and so is the music.
The genre of the song is R’n’B and that’s what the Black Eyed Peas are known for but for this song they work with dance DJ David Guetta who produced it creating a remix of his dance song as they use the same music beat, so the song has a very dance genre feel to it. There are many characteristics in the song and music video that are dance related as in the lyrics their singing about having a good time dancing, the beat of the song and speed of it is of a song you would dance to at a party and dancing and partying is what the music video is all about. In a dance song, the key and tempo changes as it goes along untill it reaches the end by which it is very up tempo and this is what it used in I Gotta Feeling and transferred into the video as the atmosphere and the dancing tempo also picks up with the music as it goes along. The entire music video is based around a party and dancing and this is typical of other dance song videos that are similar. The lyrics are also typical of an R’n’B song and the way in which the song is sang is likewise as some of the lyrics are rapped and some of them are sang.
The majority of the music video is concept based and sticks to the concept of a party within the video with no narrative and some performance as it is often showing shots of the band singing whilst dancing. The video features a very realistic example of a party showing people dancing and having fun, the majority of it is very natural to the extent that it makes you feel like you are there just enjoying yourself at a normal party. It doesn’t seem like the extra dancers except for the band and guests are aware of the cameras as it rarely shows anyone making eye contact or trying to get attention specifically for the camera and these all make it seem very accidental.
There is very little cinematography in the music video and the song is constantly playing the duration of the video with no cut scenes for speech or any other dialogue. The majority of the video is just showing people having a good time jumping around dancing except for the beginning when it shows the band preparing for it and looking at phones and doing make up etc. This is the only time any of the video appears attentional and seems like band are acting up fot the cameras trying to create the pre going out vibe.
The visual effects in the music video relate back to the lighting effects and phosphorescent paint in the second half of the music video which creates a more up tempo vibrant atmosphere. A lot of the shots are slowed down in time with the music which makes the video more structured as the slowed down shots come in separate parts at the beginning of the video when the music is slowed down and not again untill the same piece of music and beat returns towards the end when the lighting is dimmed. It all comes together to make the video seem more attentional and organised as it doesn’t stick to the same concept the entire duration. There is some intresting bits of editing in the video aswell including a shot when one of the band members is floating still in midair as people walk past seeming unaware of anything not normal and another similar shot when another band member is also floating in midair but coming down whilst dancining, this is in slow motion because it starts as soon as the music slows down. A lot of them main editing in the video is based around the slow motion in which people dance in to the music.
The promo does a good job of promoting the band as it shows the band dancing with a lot of people to their song showing a typical party enviroment which people can relate to. It also represents them well as it shows the type of people they are and how they like to enjoy themselves, it also represents them well musically because it shows that the song is meant for partys for people to dance too and also the car as people will want to listen to it on their way out so people who can relate to this will buy the record. This song and video also shows a slightly different style for the band as their past work has a different vibe and purpose in the lyrics and music, it shows they can expand their music range and have success in different areas within music and the video is also different as they normally have more special effects and editing instead of a normal, typical party enviroment.
The intended audience for this music video is young adults from late teenage years, people who are out partying , getting ready to to go out or driving out as it can be played to get people in the mood for a good night. The video acheives this as it shows that it is for young adults before and during parties as that’s what the video is all about.
Kanye West - Amazing directed by Hype Williams
The music video for Amazing by Kanye West was made in early 2009 and released April 23rd, 2009 and was premiered on BET’s 106 and Park. It was directed by Hype Williams in Kauai, Hawaii, a lot of the footage in the video is shots of different locations around the world and Kanye West singing in several locations and as a lot of the footage was shots of the world, it didn’t take too long to shoot. It cost around $200,000 to make and Hype Williams did a good job of making the most of it using a range of incredible locations and effects. Hype Williams in a multi award winning American director specializing on music videos and has worked with some of the worlds biggest stars including Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G, R Kelly and Alicia Keys and has worked on other music videos with Kanye West.
The music video is based mainly around its long camera shot over the top of well known incredible locations in different parts of the world because it relates to the lyrics and title of the song. There is also some interesting Mise-en-scene in shots where Kanye West is singing including at the beginning when the only light is the vibrant fire burning behind him and also when he is standing alone in the middle of a huge rain forest, the video is making a point with its breathtaking locations and setting.
There is a very strong relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as the entire song and lyrics is based around the word ‘Amazing’ whish is also the title, and the entire video is showing ‘amazing’ locations and effects. That’s the effect the video is aiming for and it succeeds creating a nice combination of quality camera shots to go with the lyrics making a powerful statement. This is similar to the relationship between the music and the visual as the song uses a strong beat and vibe and each time there is beat which is constantly repeated, the lyric ‘amazing’ is used and it changes from one overhead shot of a location to another also helping to make a statement and show the style it is looking for. Kanye West is also using powerful body positions throughout the song to go with the lyrics and music trying to get the ‘Amazing’ atmosphere it’s aiming for. Everything about the song and video from the acting, lyrics, music, location, effects etc is making the same statement as it is non stop throughout keeping a consistent beat and lyrics whilst keeping similar locations showed with different shots using similar camera shots.
There is a strong meaning behind the video as Kanye West is trying to promote himself using more very positive, powerful words other than the title and chorus. It is also saying that he is the only person still around and is able to survive challenges equivalent to living in a wild rain forest and surviving off a wood fire, apart from the rapper who also features in the song singing similar lyrics with the same meaning just in a different style. The camera shots used for the shots over the top are representing power and hierarchy as they tower above everything else to once again promote the artist to be ‘Amazing’ and so powerful that even an incredible location like them aren’t as rich. Your initial reaction to the shots of the locations and the setting in which he stands in are that the lyrics are trying to describe these places as ‘amazing’, which it is. There also showing through the survival alone in places such as wild forests and camera shots along with the lyrics that even these places are not on the same level.
There are genre characteristics for R’n’B as there is a verse sang by a different rapper also singing about similar things, in a lot of songs sang by rappers there are other rappers helping to promote the song by featuring in it either singing a big part of small. A lot of rap songs have strong, self confident lyrics and this is no different and it’s shown in the promo, there is also a constant beat and vibrant feel throughout the song which is also conventional of the genre. However, Kanye West also gives the song and video a twist as he makes the culture different. It’s less urban and this is particularly the case in the video as there are no props or other elements you would normally expect to see in a rap video such as bad language, violence, women and cars etc. It is actually the opposite and features a lot of visuals and acting you rarely see in a rap video such as the locations and the lack of people so you could say the artist is trying to give a new style to his identity has a musician as the video represents a slightly different meaning. On some songs if they were titled ‘Amazing’ and had lyrics to relate to success and money, money and related things is what you would expect too see. Kanye West has shown he is creative and not a conventional artist of the Rap/R’n’B genre.
The video and song is a mix of being narrative and concept based, the narrative is because the whole idea of the video is to describe and represent through visuals ‘Amazing’ and that’s what it does the duration of the video and uses good examples of places around the world and survival to do so. It is also concept based because some of the video still sticks to the conventional music video, there are shots of Kanye West singing, but it is very rare in the video to see eye contact made with the camera and the whole video seems as though he’s there singing alone unaware of the cameras. So it is more narrative as it does a good job constantly describing the visuals using the lyrics but it manages to create a good mix of both to make the video more effective.
The promo does a very impressive job of promoting the band as the song itself is already purposely doing a good job of promoting it through its lyrics, and the video is a great way of bringing the two together to really promote Kanye West and the song as a success. There is also nobody else, apart from the other artist, featured in the video so full attention is on him so it is clear that the reason behind the lyrics is to describe him and that’s what it does. It also represents the world through a birds eye view making it look very positive and by switching from shots of him and the locations he can make people put them on the same level and into the same thought and that’s how the video is forcing the audience to see it.
The music video is aimed at many people of different ages from late teens onwards as it has something to appeal to most people. Some people will find just the scenery and experience worth watching even if they don’t like the song itself, this is likely to be older people. Whilst some people, most probably the younger generation will like the song which is what the video is trying to promote anyway, some people may just like the statement the video and song is making. The song isn’t one certain genre of music and is a mix of different genres including rap and pop and can appeal to a range of different tastes in music, making it even more of a success as it can rely on more than just one group of people to buy the record. The video will appeal to everyone as the scenery and shots are interesting and along with the music make a bold statement representing the world from a birds eye view.
Purposes Of Research
Primary Research - Primary research is you take it upon yourself to collect information that you wouldn't find on the internet such as specific facts and figures. It is more flexible so you can target your research towards information related to you such as people in your class, however this can be harder to find and takes more time than looking on the internet. But the results you get are more reliable as your getting it yourself instead of relying on someone's website that might have incorrect information.
Secondary Research - Secondary research is when you take information from an already used source such as internet sites like Wikipedia and books you would find in the library which is more reliable than a website that could be false information as anyone could make one. You cant search as specific information as you can when you do primary research.
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