Music Video Analysis: 99 Problems

About the Music VideoBoth Jay-Z’s third single album “99 Problems” and its corresponding music video were released in 2004. Although Jay-Z is known today as a famous rapper and a producer of Roc-A-Fella record label, he did not start off with the most fortunate setting. The music video portrays the ghetto of Brooklyn, New York in the 1990s and illustrates the struggles that Jay-Z had to go through during his career in order to reach the top of the music industry. This hip-hop music video won “three MVPA awards in 2005, MTV Video Music Awards, Video of the Year, and the Best Male Video” Primary Audience & Representations - The primary audience for this music video is African American males. This is due to various cultural elements being portrayed through the video. For example there is a shot of a traditional native African in tribal clothing dancing to a more contemporary African child street dancing. The second verse of the music video shows Jay-Z getting pulled over by a Caucasian policeman for something coming out from a discriminating heart—he gets pulled over for driving fifty-five miles per hour in a fifty-four mph zone.

Police officer – “Son do you know why I’m stopping you for?” Jay Z – “Cause I’m young, and black and wearing my hat too low”. Feeling discriminated, Jay-Z raps about what happened and shows that this incident is just one of the many incidents of which him and his race deal with in their daily lives. Driving one mile over the speed limit is something

that police would believe is not worth wasting time or effort to pull one over. However, because Jay-Z is from African decent, it is implied that Caucasians do not feel safe about African Americans driving around the streets—Caucasians may believe that African Americans are dangerous, criminals, and/or a possible threat to the community. Another verse in the song refers to the court trial that Jay-Z faced in 1999. One day in “Kit Kat Klub”, located in Times Square of New York City, Jay-Z “was accused of stabbing record executive Lance ‘Un’ Rivera for Rivera’s bootlegging of Jay-Z’s third record ‘Life and Times of S. Carter’” (Wikipedia, Biography). This incident led Jay-Z to court for a trial. In the end, the court ruled that Jay-Z can bail out for half of a million dollars for what he had done.

In the music video there are many representations of poverty and race discrimination to the problems many Africans have to face while living in the

neighbourhood. Jay shows examples of what young teenagers turn to when they have no options left. For example there is a close up shot of a young teenage boy who seems innocent. However 10 seconds later the teenager pulls down a mask to cover his face, thus suggesting he

is about to commit a crime.

Lyrical Content Through his lyrics Jay Z has incorporated events of his life to share with his audience, either to relate with him or exploit the white race for their discriminations. The line “I’ve got 99 problems but a bitch aint one” in the song suggests Jay Z may have a low opinion of women, as the word ‘Bitch’ is demeaning and the line suggests a women is insignificant and cant hurt a man. This line has become famous over the years as many men seem to be able to relate to it. Through the use of voyeurism jay z is attracting more male attention to the already male orientated video. Shots of beautiful women in bikinis flick up through the clip to keep the men focused on the music video. The critical perspective however is that Jay Z exploits women and their bodies as portraying them as possessions and beautiful dolls. The visual images in Jay Z video uses a process called synaesthesia as his lyrics and beats collaborate together with the visual images. For example; when talking about police men in his lyrics there is a shot of a police man stop Jay Z in the video. While listening to the track you can picture the images in your head thus the artist is able to connect with the audience in a personal way as he is able to relate with them through the use of music and visual image.

Narrative and Performance – Jay’s music video has a narrative structure narrative with the addition of performance. However the song doesn’t tell the complete story , as the artists needs also to be advertised and promoted in the video. Furthermore people are watching his music video for entertainment rather than trying to analysis or decipher a secret message. Thus the addition of performance in his clip creates a casual atmosphere. Through out the clip women and street kids are dancing to keep the viewers mood elevated and interested in the music video.Performance in the video -

The Star Image To sell music artists need to continuously promote them selves in their music video to gain more popularity. In hip-hop the basic conventions are to dress in designer clothing and display your wealth, thus attracting young male viewers in to wishing they could be the singer in the music video. In Jay’s video he

uses the normal conventions of star image by dressing in designer clothing, wearing large jewellery, having fans and women vying for his attention. On the other hand he has broken away form some conventions as his locations are opposite to the expensive clubs and mansions most hip-hop videos are film in. Instead his locations centred on the theme of ‘the ghetto’ – a poor African populated neighbourhood that is run down and has high crime rates.

Technical Aspects of the Music Video -

Camera Work & Editing;

The music video explores a range of different camera work, Two shots – to create a personal connection Close ups – to display certain aspects in the video Establishing shots – to provide the listener with a view of the scene

The shots are taken with a precise architectural method, as many shots play with perspective and lines. The shot to the right creates depth with the various diagonal lines. Furthermore it has a very clinical and straight quality, creating a professional atmosphere. Many of the shots in the video are unsteady and create a sense of urgency and excitement, therefore matching the fast pace of the beat.The angles are inventive as some shots are taken through mirror reflections and at low tilts thus create space and interaction. With so much going on in the videos it keeps the various audience engaged on one thing or another. Through the use of editing, the video is fast paced and adventurous. Using speed on some shots so the images occasionally move so fast they seem to be impossible to understand on the first viewing, creates an incentive for the viewer to want to see the clip again. Using fast cuts also add to the quick pace of the music video.In the video the transitions used create a flow from one shot to another, thus combining all the different shots in to a cohesive whole. This result is also created by the black and white filter used through out the music video, linking all the scenes together. It creates a dramatic effect and also allows the views to focus on the shapes, perspectives and lighting instead.

The meat of most of the music video is portrayed when the camera cuts to close up shots of the artist as he sings the lyrics. This is because the voice is seen as the most important part of the pop music.

Intertextuality – Through out the music video there has been a combination of intertextuality. The video is sense of a shared culture between the western world and the African world, as it portrays traditional cultures to more modern elements. The shots locations modern seem to contrast with the shots of garbage and run down housing.