TW: Promotional Campaign Analysis

Sockets- The Slaves

Music video:
      Institution and Audience:
This music video can be consumed for focused viewing; this is because of the narrative which is quite hard to understand and follow. It contains narrative fuzz as the narrative accompanies performance from the band, the narrative is hard to understand as it is set with one man in one location throughout the entirety of the video and no traditional narrative with a story is put forward. However for fans of the band it can be viewed in an ambient way, this is because the performance aspect would appeal to people who enjoy The Slaves music, additionally with the abnormal narrative it follows this make make it quite repeatable as the audience may want to try and understand it further.
As the Slaves are seen as a more independent type of band due to their punk genre and with its peculiar music video, with relatively low production values, one may think that the record label would also be independent. However, the label (Virgin EMI Records) is actually largely industrial; this is important as it highlights the fact that the record label wants to focus on the independence of the bands meta narrative and wants to promote this reinvented style. It is also clear from this how the record label promotes the band to be relatable, shown by the way the video is set with a working class man in his living room and that both members of the band are shown only through performance, not positioned in a situation which could be seen as extraordinary (an element of Dyer's paradoxes of stardom).

 Uptown Funk- Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars

Music Video:

Media Language and Representation:
The purpose of this video is mainly based around performance, nearly the entire video follows well choreographed dance routines and follows artists Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson in a voyeuristic way. This may be because the image of the artists are trying to be emphasised, this image is given a stylish look, shown by the retro clothing, suburban downtown areas and with props like the old, white Cadillac. This, in addition to the genre of the song (funk) gives the video a link to older cultures, specifically the 1970s as it shares these values that were used frequently when funk was a popular genre throughout the 1970s, the costumes and locations used serve as signifiers to this era and connote that the reinvention of this genre appearance will make the artists appear stylish and artistic and to express their inspirations, using pastiche to do this.

This purpose is illustrated regularly in the video, for example there are frequent, low-angle mid shots of Bruno Mars and his associates automatically making him seem important and as a figure whom one could take inspiration. This is further highlighted by character blocking, non-verbal language and costume, Bruno Mars is wearing a more brightly coloured costume than others in shot, a pink jacket that will attract the audiences attention, furthermore through character blocking he is placed in the middle of the frame, with those around him focusing and looking towards him, while he breaks the forth wall and addresses the audience directly. This is used to show his importance, talent and constructs the view that he being represented as the 'star' in the video.

In general, Bruno Mars possesses a lot of 'star' values, as defined by Dyer, this includes conforming to the two key paradoxes of being simultaneously ordinary, represented by the way the artist is situated in normal day-to-day locations such as on the street and in a hairdressers, while being extraordinary, this is represented by shots in which both Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson are seen performing in a club or sitting on a Cadillac driving down the street.
The second paradox is also seen, Bruno Mars is present (shown performing throughout the entire video) yet absent for the consumer as his character is not represented due to his dancing and performing, leaving his meta-narrative incomplete. Because of this, it helps Bruno Mars appeal to a large audience as they may attempt to complete his meta-narrative. A wider audience will also be reached due to the appeal of the 1970s funk culture that is portrayed in the video, reaching perhaps an elder or more niche audience, yet remaining appealing to a more popular culture as Bruno Mars possesses 'star' values like youthfulness, creativity and talent which is engaging for consumers and will place the song into the pop genre, which consequently will help sell this product.

Race is one of the issues in the video that can be represented in different ways. The video features predominantly black people, including Bruno Mars and his band, with the only white reoccurring character in the video being Mark Ronson, this is important is it represents a regressive ideology as it connotes segregation between races. However this may be done to make the pastiche element of the video more realistic, as it coheres with the routes of the funk genre coming from many famous black funk artists and its cultural style.

I- Kendrick Lamar

Music video:
Genre and narrative:
There is evidence to suggest that this music video is conventional in some forms, according to Goodwin's theory. Firstly the video contains genre conventions in that music videos in the rap genre most frequently focus on performance driven by the artist, as is the same in this video. Furthermore, the video contains many close-up meat shots of the artist for promotional purposes; there is narrative fuzz in that the story of the video is unclear but the audience is positioned with the artist at all times, shown through voyeurism.
The video is an example of amplification, this is through the artist breaking the 4th wall and being shown in visuals singing lyrics simultaneously with the song, yet at some points the artist is not in shot, when intercutting with new scenes or settings to the music video are being revealed. The video explores some sensitive issues such as police brutality and domestic violence, showing how although appearing relatively commercial and conventional, the artist has explored challenging themes and issues, making him seem relatable and considerate.

 

 Kendrick Lamar Digipak (To Pimp a Butterfly) 

The genre of the album is quite evident from its front cover, this is due to the character blocking of the people featured on the cover whom through their non-verbal language are shown in a large group holding props like money, these props and other signifiers like the judge at the front who is presumably shown to be dead connote disregard for social values and conspicuous consumption of money which are culturally marked as values that rappers possess.

The cover has been given a black and white filter making it a darker tone, this could have been done to signify the seriousness of the album and what themes it may explore. Furthermore, the black and white effect may also reflect that Kendrick Lamar might be compared to rappers from older eras, giving this black and white effect makes the cover look like the album is old and makes Kendrick Lamar seem mature.

The absence of typography on the front cover and very little, relatively blank typography on the back cover is quite diverse which draws further attention to the front cover image, this may be important as the image depicts a black revolution on the white house lawn, this highlights how the artist wants his music to be inspirational and change life how it is. The entirety of people in the image are male, representing Kendrick Lamar's background, being raised in the hood of Compton- this signifies ideologies of the rapper being involved in gangs and represents him as dangerous or having power.
The title of the album (To Pimp a Butterfly) has intertextuality with the Harper Lee novel To Kill a Mockingbird, this would suggest that the narrative of the album or songs contained in the album might be based around racial discrimination, with this intertextuality and by exploring the sensitive issue, Kendrick Lamar's meta-narrative is further expanded- making him seem intelligent and highlights his authenticity.

I- Kendrick Lamar Magazine Advertisement

The first very noticeable thing on the single is the love heart hand signals of the two people, straight away this signifies peace and love between two people. The costumes of the people also act as signifiers, clearly showing one person wearing blue and one wearing red. This is an intertextual reference to two gangs in Compton, the Bloods and the Crips- whom are notoriously known to be rivals. This reference is easily noticeable by the fact the two people are, through rule of thirds, positioned on opposite sides to represent their rivalry
This represents Kendrick Lamar's views on this kind of life, showing how he is unlike many other rappers that promote a dangerous, gang lifestyle. This shows how his music can appeal to a wider audience, with his music belonging to the alternative hip hop genre and makes him seem mature as obviously does not see the sense in violence to one another and highlights how music can change things or how the artist has reinvented himself, again giving him a very inspiring image.