Artist/Track Chosen

The name of the artist we have chosen is Natalie Lungley who is an unsigned artist and the song which we have chosen to create a promotional music video for is 'Gems':

Biography of Natalie Lungley

• Natalie Lungley grew up in South London
• She developed a passion for photography wanted to capture the magic she found in nature
• She always had a passion for music, listening from artists from Fiona Apple to Deftones 
• Her singer/songwriter and producer brother Matt discovered her talent after hearing her singing in her bedroom
• Natalie and Matt have started writing and arranging together and have now had over 6 million views so far with a worldwide fan base with their covers and unique original songs
• The Seattle grunge scene led by Nirvana was a major influence on her formative years, as well as bands like The Smashing Pumpkins and Pixies
• She is currently working on an unreleased debut album and she also co-wrote 'Broken You' one of the songs on the new James Walsh album

Why we chose Natalie Lungley and the track 'Gems'

Lana Del Rey's 'Summertime Sadness'

Our group is extremely interested in the artist Lana Del Rey and came across Natalie Lungley by looking at YouTube videos of unsigned artists covering Lana Del Rey songs. Natalie has posted videos on her YouTube channel covering songs such as 'Born To Die' and 'Videogames' and we liked the similarity to the melancholic and haunting voice which Lana Del Rey possesses. Our group was inspired by the video 'Summertime Sadness' by Lana Del Rey and after listening to some of Natalie Lungley's original songs, we could imagine an original and unique music video for her song 'Gems' created by us with twists of Lana Del Rey's homemade video style. The strong filters and colour patches such as in the video 'Summertime Sadness' are inspiring to us and suit the dark and haunting style of Natalie Lungley's original songs.

Musical Genre, Artist Image and Audience

The music genre which Natalie Lungley belongs to is indie however her music sounds much darker and melancholic than most popular music. The rhythm is very much the same during the track 'Gems' however you can hear the changes in her voice while she sings and the tone of the music is very serious and pensive. The lyrics could reflect an abusive relationship with the line, 'The blood dries in your hair, we were all so unaware', and the line, 'No they don't want you, beware the ones with poisoned minds' could equally represent a man or woman who was not really loved by their abusive partners. The image which Natalie Lungley presents greatly reflects the introspective and somber tone of her music with all of her videos being in black and white, while the EP she released has album art of her name in a typography which is floral and reflects nature and the green underlining of her name reflects this also. This relates to her interest in photography and capturing the beauty in nature mentioned in her biography above. The audience for Natalie Lungley's music spans from mid-teens to thirty years old and can be attractive to both males and females due to the lyrics being interpretational and the sound being very unique and not placable in a niche category.

Below is a video I created about the target audience for Natalie Lungley's music:

Music Artist Magazine Adverts

Conventions of Music Artist Magazine advert:

• Artists name is very large and dominant which is important as it catches attention of audience and current fans
• The album name is also prominent but stands out less than the artists name
• A clear image of the artist to attract an audience who may have seen an interview or past albums of the artist and then wants their new album
• The is synergy between the new album and the advert e.g. typography/colours/artists pose or stance which means that fans of the artist can recognise the album in shops easily if they have seen an advert in a magazine
• Website of the artist so the audience can find out more about them and previous albums released/tour dates etc
• The release date of the new album or single so that the target audience can buy it on the day of release (possibly setting records for the artist such as 'biggest number of singles sold on day of release')
• Any singles previously released are advertised on the advert for the album so that it encourages an audience to buy the album if they liked one of the singles
• Other websites of the record label company and places the album or single can be bought or pre-ordered
• The record label logo is usually in a corner so that the audience can recognise the artist is signed to a good and successful company

The first image above shows a Music Magazine Advert of Olly Murs' album 'Right Place Right Time' compared to the second image of a Film Magazine Advert of the movie 'Bad Neighbours'. One of the big differences between the two adverts is that the music advert has the artists name very dominantly at the top of the advert, because an audience buys music for the artist, whereas the albums name is smaller. However the movie advert has the name of the film as the largest writing on the advert and the actors in the film in smaller writing above it. This is because the advert is selling the film and not the actors however the producers know that some people will go to watch a film because their favourite actor is in it so the names are still an important inclusion. Both adverts include when the product is going to be released as this is very important so that the audience can buy the product as soon as possible to create records and figures for the companies and it also creates buzz and excitement leading up to the product release. Both products use synergy with the typography and colours so that all the advertisements and products are recognisable to the audience.

Olly Murs 'Right Place Right Time Album' and Bad Neighbours DVD case and disc:

Both adverts use a similar technique to attract an audience. The Olly Murs advert uses examples of singles to attract buyers who like one or two songs he has brought out and then are persuaded to buy his whole album because of this. The 'Bad Neighbours' advert uses a star rating and quotes from critics to attract an audience and let the audience know that it is a great film to go and watch. In a similar way to the Olly Murs advert naming singles which suggests the albums musical tone or themes, the movie advert also has a catchline saying "The Battle For The Street Begins" which gives the audience an idea of the films plot and intrigues the audience.

Intertextuality in Music Videos

Intertextuality is when a media text references another media text. It can be used to create pleasure for the audience at recognising the reference as it privileges them because they are 'in on the joke' while it can also create a nostalgic effect for the audience. It can be used as both a serious or humorous effect. Intertextuality is reflected in the fluidity of genre boundaries and the blurring of genres.

Examples of intertextuality:

Robbie Williams - 'You Know Me'

This image is referencing the white rabbit from the book 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' by Lewis Carroll.

This screen shot above references the Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer trademark lion however it is replaced with Robbie Williams wearing the white rabbit costume for comical effect.

Taylor Swift - Love Story

Both screenshots above and below are from Taylor Swift's music video 'Love Story'. The screen shot above is inspired by the Shakespeare play 'Romeo & Juliet' as shown by the costume and also the storyline of two lovers forbidden to be together by their families is also a intertextual reference from Romeo and Juliet. The music video uses a modern day storyline in some sections (shown by the screen shot below) to contrast the 1500s mine-en-scene.

Madonna - 'Material Girl'

This music video was inspired by the 1953 film 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' which featured Marilyn Monroe:

The whole music video is a homage to the film mostly obvious from the strong miss-en-scene links. The red setting, the men in tuxedos, the blonde hair, the hot pink dress and the abundance of diamonds. The intertextual link is mostly used to express that Madonna is a 'material girl' due to her seductive nature which she uses to get men to buy her jewellery.

Conventions of Genre in Music Videos

What are the genre conventions of music videos?

• Music is categorised into genres based on their sound, lyrics, music-beat and their image
• Artists can be defined by one genre or my many which creates 'sub-genres' e.g. Alternative Rock
• Three popular genres of music are Rock, Pop and Hip-hop

Rock conventions:

• Mostly use performance shots or sometimes videos can use disjuncture
• Themes of instruments used include electric guitars/drums which make strong/loud sound
• Their lyrics tend to be meaningful however are based on modern concepts
• Dark lighting/colours/clothing are commonly used which represents the tone, mood, atmosphere and content of the artists music and the colour red or religious imagery is commonly used
• An example of a rock music video which follows conventions is: Nirvana - 'Heart-Shaped Box'

Pop conventions:

• Music videos range from performance, amplification, illustration and disjuncture
• Quirky outfits or the latest fashions are worn as well as bright and eye-catching colours
• Videos are commonly choreographed, especially those of boy bands and girl bands
• Locations can also range widely but are commonly urban
• An example of a pop music video is: Ariana Grande - 'Problem'

Hip-hop conventions:

• Mostly use performance, amplification or illustration in videos
• Videos show wealth by promoting cars, fashion and objectifying women
• Darker lighting is common is some videos which are about darker themes however Hip-hop videos about aspiration are commonly filmed on beaches or mansions and places of wealth
• An example of a Hip-hop music video is: Jay-Z - 'Dirt off your shoulder'

Styles of Music Videos

What are the styles of music videos?

The different styles of music videos can be summed up using Andrew Goodwin's theory suggests that music promos can interpret or use meaning created in song lyrics in different ways:

• Illustration: illustrates the idea of narrative in song lyrics e.g. Eminem - 'Stan'

• Amplification: Uses a key idea/image from lyrics and develops into a concepts within the promo. A link remains between the lyric and the promo e.g. Beyonce - 'Grown Woman'

• Disjuncture: The promo bears no resemblance to the lyric or it's meaning; abstract, often seen as unconventional/ 'arty' videos; creates a new range of meaning for the song e.g. Franz Ferdinand - 'Can't Stop Feeling'

However there are three other ways a music video can be 'styled':

Performance - This can be when an artist is shown on stage performing their song with a band or it could be when an artist is 'acting' but miming the lyrics to the song. A good example of performance without a band or instruments is Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown - 'No Air'

Narrative - This is very similar to illustration as the music video uses a narrative, usually conforming to Todorov's theory of narrative to express the meaning behind the songs lyrics and feeling. A good example of a music video using narrative is Goldfrapp - Jo which is from the murderers point of view as they stalk and kill a woman named Jo

Concept - This is similar to disjuncture as it is based around a single idea which is unusual or obscure. It will also attract a wide audience and the video will make the audience constantly look at the unusual images on the screen. A good example of a conceptual video is Red Hot Chilli Peppers - 'Otherside'

Conventions of Music Videos

Camera shots

Music videos include many long shots, close ups and mid shots which allow the artist to be shown consistently and shows their emotions to add tone to the song; it also adds interest of the surroundings.

Camera Movement

The camera movement usually tracks the artist or band while they move and usually uses crane, tracking, pans and tilts for a variety of shots which change on screen and keep the audience interested. The music video 'Skyscraper' by Demi Lovato uses many different camera shots such as long shot, close up and mid shot while also being a good example of camera movement such as crane shots, pans, zoom in and tracking shots:

Mise-en-scene

This is the arrangement of the artist/band and props on stage or a scene and also includes technical aspects such as the make up, costume and lighting. Mies-En-Scene is extremely important as it all adds to the tone and understanding of a song and the video. For example a black and white video may create a dreamlike idillic atmosphere or could equally be used to create tension and a dark mood while props are essential in music videos that use amplification or a conceptual style to maintain understanding for the audience. An example of strong mise-en-scene is Lady Gaga's - 'Applause' as it demonstrates wacky costumes, dance numbers and artistic settings demonstrating her artistic and performing nature that links to the songs name 'Applause' which follows her performances:

Editing

The shot most commonly used in music videos is a jump cut because it allows the shots to follow each other swiftly and in time with the music however other editing transitions such as fade or dissolve are also used depending on the songs beat and the emotions the artist is aiming for the audience to feel. The song 'Girls and Boys' by Blur demonstrates cutting to the beat well:

Other conventions of music videos:

• Most music videos contain either performance clips or conceptual clips (narrative/artistic) or both
• Usually the performer is shown in one or more settings with instruments or a band
• Performance settings usually include concerts or smaller gigs, household settings, streets/bedrooms or an artistic background
• Narrative clips usually have a visual story that is easy to follow
• Narrative stories are an idea or a concept
• The narrative relates to the song in a subtle way
• E.g. of a narrative video is Radiohead's - 'Karma Police'
• Artistic clips are conventional of music videos and contain no obvious narrative and a very unconventional
• Combining all three elements (narrative/artistic/performance) can create a very effective music video

Todorov's Theory

The 5 stages of narrative:

1. Equilibrium (all is as it should be)
2. Disruption of that order (by an event)
3. Recognition that disruption must be restored
4. An attempt to repair the damage of the disruption
5. A return or recognition of the new equilibrium