Music Video Analysis

My Three music videos;-Virtual insanity-All is full of love-Telephone

Jamiroquai - Virtual Insanity Directed by Jonathan glazer Released 1997 Won 4 MTV VMA awards, including best

video of the year One of Jamiroquai’s most predominant

music videos.

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within Virtual insanity

Relationship between the lyrics and visuals- In Jamiroquai’s video, there is a clear relationship between the lyrics and visuals as the song is about ‘virtual insanity’, Jonathon Glazer came up with the concept of moving walls to give the illusion that Jay Kay was floating about the set through his dance routine. This music video was particularly interesting at the time because of the stylistic theme that Jonathon had used, which drove viewers ‘virtually insane’ trying to work out

how it was achieved. An example of the lyrics which illustrate its relationship with the video are ‘Futures made of virtual insanity’ The set that Jonathon created conveys a clinical and modernistic view of the future with moving walls and Jamiroquai’s particularly unique choice of clothing, which also helps establish a relationship between the lyrics and visuals.

Relationship between music and visuals- A key element to this music video is the choreographed dancing and timing in which Jamiroquai moves to the track. Jamiroquai’s movement also exaggerates the effect of the moving objects around him and creates an interesting visual, the dancing also establishes his persona in the video and draws the viewer in to concentrate on the artist. There are many other interesting elements to the video such as the blood seeping from the furniture and the CGI affect coach roach which appears on screen. From the lyrics I can see a clear relevance to the use of these in the video, such as the blood, we can say perhaps that the ‘virtual insanity’ is killing society, and the use of the blood illustrates this well.

Style and iconography- Jamiroquai is an artist known for his unique style of clothing as he loves to wear big hats and ‘retro’ colours and print. This video does not only convey his style as an artist but it also represents the link between the meaning of his song and his views on it. This is clear on screen as it is apparent the set had been made to look modern, clean cut and new. This is a strong contrast from Jay Kay's outfit choice, as he is bold and stands out against the white setting in blacks and purples, wearing a very big black hat. It also represents conflict between the song and artist, perhaps arguing his point about ‘technology’ as we can tell from his lyrics.

Close ups of Artist- There are many close ups of the artist, which makes him memorable in the video particularly to new fans here are some examples

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within Virtual insanity

Bjork- all is full of love Directed by Chris Cunningham Released 1999 Won breakthrough video and best special

effects at the MTV awards in 2000

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within All is full of love

Relationship between the lyrics and visuals- In Bjork’s ‘all is full of love’ I can see its not just a song about love but it is said to be about loving yourself in order to love another. This is key within the video as the robots seen on film are

both a replica of the artist’s face. An Example of lyrics used in context with the video- ‘You'll be given love. You'll be taken care of’ This can be said to have a strong relationship with the visuals as Bjork’s robot is laid out on a table being fixed or (taken care of) by the machine above her.

Relationship between music and visuals- This particular video can be said to be the most controversial music video in relation to the genre- a love song using robots to display their love for one another. It is unusual because we use the word ‘robotic’ to describe someone who displays no emotion, is cold and gets on with the job. Here Chris has cleverly used this stereotypical view of modern technology and twisted it into his own perception of the world. The visuals match the time and beat of the music, for example, when a guitar chord is heard on the track, the machinery is shot in close up and moves in time with the music. The video has also displayed its elements of being a love song as the Bjork robots are filmed kissing very intimately towards the end of the music video.

Style and iconography- As an artist Bjork is quite quirky and is said to be very controversial within the music industry. This video certainly backs up this statement, as its not the ‘norm’ for an artist to have a CGI robotic version of themselves for their video. Particularly women are expected to be very glamorous or glamorised for their feature music video. This video of Bjork shows the core meaning of her song as the robots are shown to be in love with each other. Not much can be said about Bjork’s style here as she is represented as a machine, although her iconography as an artist is known to be unique throughout. That is, her music and style as a whole and she is not afraid to be different to the typical female artist of her age group- exposing themselves to voyeurism to seduce male fans.

Close ups of Artist- There are few close ups of Bjork's face to reveal the stunning CGI affect used within the video. Here are some examples

Intertextual references- upon researching this video in Wikipedia, I found out that there has been a lot of

controversy about Chris’ ideas about the video and found this statement ‘When the film I, Robot screened in 2004, some people found the robot design in that movie was inspired by the video directed by Cunningham — he has not commented.’

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within All is full of love

Lady Gaga- Telephone ft. Beyoncé Directed by Jonas Åkerlund Released 2010 Won 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, in

the categories of Best Choreography, Video of the Year and Best Collaboration

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within Telephone Intertextual references- This particular video from Lady Gaga was directed by Jonas Åkerlund but

information on Wikipedia puts a question mark on the involvement that Quentin Tarantino had within the video, as there are clear references to his films- Pulp fiction and Kill Bill. (Beyoncé’s characters name- Honeybee and the Pussy wagon) All that is said about Tarantino’s involvement is ‘There certainly is a Tarantino-inspired quality in the ['Telephone'] video...His direct involvement in [it] came from him lending me the Pussy Wagon.’ Although, this is all which is clarified about Tarantino’s part in the video but there is definitely a strong style of his which Jonas has used effectively for the track.

Relationship between the lyrics and visuals- The song is obviously about ‘telephones’ and so many phones are featured within the video. They come in all different forms from advertising products, to hair styles here are examples

Style and iconography- Lady Gaga’s prominent fashion statements never cease to amaze fans and this video is no different. The music video is made more like a short film and is a sequel from her previous music video- Paparazzi. Both videos are directed by Jonas but have a very different style. It is clear that Lady Gaga’s persona here is (dare I say it) even more controversial using her artsy fashion statements to create advertisements for big businesses.

Close ups of Artist- There are many close ups of the artist in the video, especially to suggest who the track belongs to as Beyoncé stars in the video and song with her.

Use of voyeurism- One thing I personally love about Lady Gaga, is her bravery- its clear that she is not afraid to show her body. Although I do not agree with the nudity that young people are exposed to within the media,

I believe that Lady Gaga can carry this off as an attempt to be ‘artistic’ at least as shown here with the use of

security tape as an

outfit.

It is not seen as sexy or provocative, perhaps she is even a turn off to most men through her bravery of unique style and identity.

Andrew Goodwin Theories Within Telephone