MTV Culture And The Impact On Youths.

MTV music culture background, and impact on youths.

•  Music videos are made to promote and advertise the artist. The audience can either identify the artist or relate to the artist, boosting popularity. This is often achieved through the content, Form, Style or marketing (poster, YouTube, Music videos, CD covers, Talk shows, Radio) of the artist.

• Music videos has become more than just videos. It’s meant to sell a particular brand which can be lifestyle or motto, for example Drake, a famous rapper has a brand called YOLO (you only live once) which has become a statement for the artist, and has been used as a logo to advertise the artist.
• Furthermore, with other musician, especially Hip pop culture and the portrayal of particular lifestyles that are glamorous (Wealth, Cars, Money, To be desired by women) and aspirational which makes the audience want to be like them, or achieve what they have achieved.
• They do this by face to face editing and flashy jewellery, cars and showcasing a lot of costume change from “trashy to flashy”. This is what MTV means to particular people.

• Music video are also used to create or establish a particular common ideology. MTV serves has a negotiate in the hegemonic process by amplifying and absorbing elements of oppositional culture.
•  Music videos mean more to MTV generation because of globalization which impacts the world (influences from different culture around the world in style, using instruments to create different sounds).

• Teenagers identity is created through what’s trendy, what they learn and what kind of person they want to be or aspire to be. It serves has a main source to learn or shape their gender, Age, Ethnicity. It allocates gender roles by showing what girls should be interested in  like there appearances by learning  to be sexy and glamorous and can also dictate what is attractive and what is unattractive.
• This is what MTV means to people or youths however, feminist say that music videos is very sexualised and it creates males gaze this is Laura Mulvey theory. 
• Feminist also believe it portrays one particular ideology of females being sexualised because white rich men dominate the music industry. However, Marxist says it benefits capitalist system because they believe it allows the men to go and work and therefore leads to an increase in profit.
•  Marxist also says we live in a profit based system. That’s why music videos is more about the music.This is what music videos means to particular groups in society.

Props

Props
We went on the research and find props to use for our music video that makes sense and fit in with the narration, setting, location, genre and can also link to our target audience.

• In the first scene as the artist wake up in her bed she checks her I phone. We will use this prop because it's modern and the audience are more likely to recognize the mobile phone. Its also a very popular phone and many of my teenage friends including girls have an I phone so it associates the teenage audience with the artist for sharing the same prop.
• This is also a convention of pop music having modern props such as new cars, goods etc. We followed that convention to so are audience are more familiar with the genre.

                                                                                                                 

• At the bedroom scene the artist gets up and starts to prepare herself by doing her make up and putting on lipstick. Although we don't want to promote heavy make up, our artist only used red lipstick, light foundation and eyeliner for her make up. We only emphasized her putting on her lipstick by zooming in. 



Lipstick 

• This prop relates to many teenage girls and especially in urban areas because they are more exposed to fashion, advertisement of make up on transports, posters etc. Our target audience are likely to use make up because they are teenage girls and i researched by asking girls in college and on the street and the stats supports this.                                                                                     

BMX bikes

• The scene in Southbank skate park has bike tricks and bike riding. We needed BMX bikes specifically because they are best for tricks in on ramps and are associated with punks who we try to represent in the scene. In one of the artist we researched Avril Lavigne has used BMX bikes in her music videos.

• we are also going to use Skate board tricks in southbank along side BMX because they link to punk culture and rock genre. There a lot of skateboard used in rock music videos and representations of punks because it associates to them. In Avril Lavign (Pop, Rock artist) has skaters in her music video "SK8ter Boi"

Football

Basketball

• The basket ball court we will film in is also a football ground in one and we will have people playing football on one side and basketball on the other half so we can film both at once. We wanted to film people playing football because its a urban sport and in that scene we are representing an urban tomboy who like to hang out with boys playing football or basketball. This can relate to some of our target audience who like playing football/or basketball because they may feel like its their lifestyle.

police car

• The basketball court is in Shoreditch and there are police cars which drive around every now and then, we thought it will be good to include this in the basketball scene because it will build some tension because people associates police with trouble which links to the location of the basketball court in a council estate. We researched grime artist for ideas in the basketball court which will be like an urban grime scene and found Lady Sovereign ideal. She included a police in one of her music video "Hoodie" but we thought of just adding a second of a police car driving off from the scene.

Stereo

• For the basketball court scene we thought about using a stereo when she walks in the court or just carrying it on her shoulder like people did in the 1980s and 1990s which were also famous in urban streets for example in America. This enforces our urban scene and associates with the grime, hip hop genre music videos which we want that scene to look like.

• At the last scene of the music video, Sonika goes out  with her friends to party, we want to create a party atmosphere which will include Alcoholic beverage. Blossom Hill is one brand we will use and young adult females and legal teenagers are likely to have tried this. As we went around asking teenagers questions we also asked them what they drink and if the drink this, most said yes. 
• Most teenagers start to party at the age of 18 because they become legally aloud. We thought the party scene will link to our Target audience because they have been to parties before and may still go out  to bars or clubs which they may be able to relate to.

Andrew Goodwin Theory- How It Relates To Our Production.

Andrew Goodwin believes there a five key features that distinguishes a music videos appearance and form. 

These key features are:

1.  The relationship between the lyrics and the visuals of the music video. Some music videos contradict the lyrics of the song, where as some show a clear relation between the two. For example:

• This is from the song 'Migraine Skank' by the artist Gracious K. As the lyrics read 'put your hand on your head that's the Migraine Skank', the performers put their hands on their head as you can see in the picture; portraying a clear link between the lyrics and the music video. 
• In relation to our music video, we have chosen to do the song 'Hot Right Now' by Rita Ora. We have decided to use this feature of the Goodwin theory in our production as the audience can connect to the song visually. 
• An example of how we will use this technique is as the lyrics read 'Hot Right Now' our performer will fan herself with her hand. This will also be a dance move that the audience will associate with the song when they hear it.

2.  Each type of music video genre will have its own codes and conventions which relates to the style of the genre. For example:

• This is a pop artist called Leona Lewis and this is a shot from her music video for the song 'Bleeding love'. From this screen shot we can see she is following the codes and conventions of a Pop genre music video. 
• She is wearing a silver, shiny glamorous dress which is eye catching and stands out. Also, her hair is long and curly, making her look beautiful and presentable, which reaches out to her female audience who will look up to her. Furthermore, she has a big shiny belt and a shiny bracelet, which also reaches out to her female audience and it is 'bling' and 'sassy'. 
• These are typical codes and conventions of a Pop genre music video. 
• Our music video genre is also Pop, and we have also chosen to portray our artist as glamorous. 

3.  Close ups are used to focus on the artist/vocalist. This is usually a demanded by the record company so the artist can boost their popularity.

• This music video is by a famous male rapper called Jay Z.
• When watching the video, we can see many close up are used on the artist making it a perfect example of feature three of the Goodwin Theory.
• By focusing on the rap artist in the music video, it is easy to distinguish who the artist is, boosting the artist's popularity.
• Furthermore, it also shows the personality and creativity of the artist - the 'star image'. 
• In our music video we have used the artist as the performr so she is easily recognised. Also, many close up will be used as she is the main character and the vital selling point of the video. 

4.  Voyeurism is also often included, usually in relation to females. Goodwin also came up with the idea of the male gaze, where women bodies are used as sexual object to sell their music videos and attract their male audience.

• Voyeurism is a key aspect especially in relation to females who are feature in current music videos. 
• In this RnB music video, women are used as sexual objects. They are shown wearing sexy lingerie; displaying their bodies to the audience. 
• The mise en scene of this video is also very sexually as a low lighting is used. Also, the background of the video is very plain so the audience is attracted to the female performers. 
• Women being portrayed as sexual objects is used in many current music videos and this help female artists attract their male audience, emphasising the male gaze.

• The 'notion of looking' is recognised by having the artist or other talent on sexual display or by featuring screens within screens.
• We have chosen to go against the norms and values of a normal mainstream pop video and we are not going to sexual display our artist.
• Instead, our artist will dress responsibly when performing in the music video. As our target audience is young females, we believe we can use fashion and class to sell our video. 
• The artist will represent pop culture fashion.
• This will put the theory to test, will a music video still sell if it doesn't show women sexually displayed?

5.  Inter-texual reference to other media texts such as films and TV texts may be used.

• This screen shot is from the song 'Lady Marmalade' by Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink. 
• There are inter- textual reference to Moulin Rouge which is a cabaret in Paris, France. 
• By using inter-textual references, the audience feels smart as they have recognised the connection between the two mediums.
• In addition, this helps promote the music video.

Questionnaire Results

Questionnaire Results and videos



The questionnaire helped use to understand our target audience ideology about music videos. we also collected information about their own taste and preference in music. This will help construct our music video to suite there taste and expectations.

We recorded some interviews with our mobile phones to show some answers and how we received information on how to construct our music video. These answers back up our research result. Please click on the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zainu71pukc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DS5YRrJl6qg

Questionnaire

As part of our planning and research, we have made a questionnaire which will hand out to teenagers to complete. This will aid us in finding out what our target audience like and enjoy, so we can include this in our music video.

1.    What is your gender?

       Male               Female

2.    What age range do you fall under?

11-15      16-19     20-25     26+

3.    What is your favourite genre/type of music?

·      Hip Hop

·      Pop

·      Rap

·      House Music

·      RnB

·      Indie

·      Grime

·      Classical

·      Other………

4.    Who is your favourite female artist?

·      Katy Perry

·      Rita Ora

·      Beyoncé

·      Tulisa

·      Cheryl Cole

·      Other………

5.    Does the artist you like represent any particular lifestyle ?

Yes             No

6.    How does the artist dress?

·      Smart

·      Casual

·      Glamorous

·      Revealing

·      Other………

7.    Do you tend to dress like the artist that is your favourite?

Yes             No

8.    How is the artist portrayed in their music video?

·      Sexy

·      Boring

·      Sophisticated

·      Weird

·      Retro

·      Other………

Costumes

Glamorous Costume 

In our music video we have chosen to have three different costumes changes. We wanted to portray our performer with three different identities and we decided to do this through costume. 'Glamorous' is one of the  three we have chose as we wanted to depict our performer as girly and elegant. This will attract our target audience group which is  young women.

Following through our music video research, we found Beyonce to be one of the many poplar glamorous female artist. She is frequently pictured and filmed wearing glamorous dresses, with long curly hair. 

• When researching, that gold was a popular colour when creating a glamorous image, therefore we found it necessary to include somewhere in our outfit. Also a lot of glitter and shimmer is usually used in both in jewellery and in costume so this was something else we should consider including. Glamorous artists usually have their hair down and curly.
• The make up they use is subtle but striking. Furthermore, they are usually shot in bright lighting to highlight their perfect skin complexion and to also make the glitter they are wearing shine, making them truly 'Glamorous'. 
• As we studied Beyonce appearance, we found that in most of her Glamorous shots their was the aspect if the male gaze to attract her male audience. When deciding what we did and didn't want to include in our music video, we all agreed that we wouldn't portray our performer as being to revealing. In addition, we didn't find the need to appeal to a male audience as out targeted audience were young females. We also wanted to challenge Andrew Goodwin's theory on music video who believes the record label demands women performers to be presented sexually in order to promote their videos.
• Therefore we decided to also do some research on an artist who doesn't use sexual representation as much, but is a popular mainstream artist; Jessie J.

• Jessie J still follows the use of gold and glitter in her outfits but does this in less revealing way compared to Beyonce. She also wears bright red lipstick portraying a fierce yet bold look. We also chose to look into Jessie J as she has a similar target audience to us, therefore we can use her image and style to assist use when choosing costumes and locations.
•  In her music videos she not only presented as glamorous, she also uses the punk and grime image, for example in her music video 'Do it like a dude', you find aspects of both punk and grime, as she wears a hood to represented grime, but also wears black lipstick presenting punk. 

• This is the costume we have chosen to use in our music video to represent a glamorous image. The gold in the dress makes the dress eye catching and bold. It's also a colour which is commonly used by female mainstream artists when presenting a glamorous image, as I previously explained before.
• The black in the outfit makes it look elegant and not too over the top. Overall, the costume is not too revealing, going against Goodwin's theory of the male gaze. 

• The hair we and make up we have selected to use is subtle but elegant. Eye-liner and mascara is used for the eyes to making them bold. Also a little shimmer is added to the eyelids, just to add a bit of 'glamour' and also makes the eyes glisten in the light. Bright red lipstick is used on the lips making them stand out and gives the performer a fierce look. For hair, I have slicked to one side as Jessie J has done, and left it curly this emphasizes the facial features more.

Costume 2

• This caption is of Avril Laviegn who is a famous pop artist and this is from her music video 'complicated' which we have looked at to take ideas from her music and her character in this video.
• The music video is a representation of punk teenagers but represented in a distinctive way compared to other teenagers e.g. Lady Sovereign. We wanted to get ideas of the costume because she represents herself in a punk-ish way.
• This will help us pick the right costume and props for our artist to represent herself like punk for a part of our music video. 
• This is to attract different types of teenagers and portray the differences between teenage cultures but most importantly to show the positive similarities they all have for example hanging out with friends, having fun and being quite irresponsible. Her dress code is very different compared to other artist that we looked at i.e Katy Perry and Lady Sovereign which we will focus on showing the differences in our music video between artist who will have three different roles. 

Here's the costume we chose to include in our music video for the punk character.Black tie
White vest
Black eyline
Row curb chain (on her black bottoms)
Long black & white stripes gloves

• we carried research up clothing and accesories for the punk character in our video.
• http://www.redhaze.com/acatalog/Leather-belts-wristband-choker.htm
• this website have relevent clothing and accessories that we want to use as costume in our music video

 black spike stud bracelet

 black stud belt









                                          black and red stripe sock

checkerd sweat bands 

Costume 3

• One of the artist we looked into was lady sovereign because of the type of music she makes and how she represented herself. 
• This is because we also want to portray teens in this way as urban street teenagers and our artist will play this role as one of the three characters in our video. 
• In this music video Lady Sovereign portrays herself as a tomboy because of what she wears, acts, who she is hanging around with and whats shes doing in her music videos.

• This caption of lady sovereign from her music video “ Adidas Hoodie” Shows her standing in a shopping mall with her friends wearing hoodie's.
• The music video narration contradicts the stereotypes of teens being bullies because the video is about her returning a bag to an old women who is running away from her.

costume

-orange adidas track suite

-white adidas trainers

-gold chain

-black t-shirt 

 -blue jeans

                                                                                    

• We want to portray this kind of image for our urban tomboy character in our music video by the costume, body language and facial expression. We selected some similar clothing from Lady Sovereign's video for our artist.

                                                                 

                          skull sweat band

• Like in the video analysis of her song "A little bit of Shhhh" we mentioned the majority of the characters where street urban male in tracksuits, caps and hoodies messing around in front of the camera for example pushing each other, dancing, moving their head to the beat, riding their bikes and skateboards on the ramps. The artist wanted to portray herself as an urban tomboy rather than a glamorous flashy attractive artist inviting the male gaze.

costume-2 

1.       -blue baseball hat

2.       -blue straight jeans

3.       -Blue addidas hood

4.       Black and blue adidas trainers

5.       Blue sweat band

6.       Pony tale

7.       Black chain

8.       Gold ring

• In this caption of lady sovereign from her video “adidas hoodie”. It Shows her standing in a shopping  mall with her friends also in hoods and wearing jeans. The music also contradicts the stereotypes of teens being bully's because the video narration is about her returning a bag to an old women who is running away from her because she is scared.

• After looking at the lady sovereign music video we chose to have the similar costume as her and the characters in her music video for filming in an urban basketball court in Hoxton. We chose these costume because its associated with being an urban tomboy for a girl wearing a tracksuit as its not feminine or sexy. For this role we are challenging the convention of the male gaze and showing one of the three roles of stereotypes the artist plays. which are tomboy, punk and glamour in our music video. 

• I it also helps us to create the urban teenager feel as the artist and friends are all wearing track suits in the basketball court which is also a teenager hang out. The locations are in detail on the Location post.

• Although the media has portrayed teenagers negatively on TV shows for example the urban TV show "Topboy" on (BBC), we want to challenge this stereotype and portray the artist and friends in the video the opposite as being friendly, cool and skillful in the court.

  

•     Nike trainers