Theory of music videos: conventions

Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

Links between lyrics and visuals• “Get up! Fresh out, pimp strut

walking, little bit of humble, little bit of cautious”. His dress sense matches his lyrics. He looks cool and unique.

• “I got my city right behind me”. The band are playing and in the background there is a long shot of the city.

• “So we put our hands up like the ceiling can’t hold usLike the ceiling can’t hold us”. Both Macklemore and his audience and dancing and cheering. Their hands are up in the air which highlights the idea of nothing can hold them down.

Links between music and visualsIn this part of the song there is a brass solo where all the brass instruments such as the trumpets play. The music video incorporates this. A variety of shots are used to frame the instruments and the musicians.

In this shot a long shot is used to show the many instruments playing.

In this shot a mid shot is used to show the main musician and his trumpet.

Genre characteristics • The music video is of a hip hop genre. Hip hop generally has rapping.

Macklemore is a fluent rapper and has won numerous awards. Also his debut single “thrift shop” reached no.1 on the US Billboards chart.

• Hip hop has a lot of heavy drum beats. This creates a hard atmosphere where the rappers try to come across as tough. This incorporates this. Macklemore is rapping about being tough and true to himself.

• However Macklemore does subvert the typical stereotypes of hip hop music videos. He doesn’t have women in his video where they are half naked. Also he is a white rapper. Normally hip hop rappers are black.

• Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are a duo. Ryan produces the song and Macklemore raps. Also they release their songs without the backing of major record labels. This is unconventional of hip hop music videos as they normally consist of a solo rapper and they are signed to major record labels such as Jay Z.

Multiple close ups of the artists

This is the first mid shot of Macklemore. Although it is not a close up it is still effective as the audience are able to see the fans behind him. They are all dancing to his music which conveys him in a powerful light. This close up is a low angle shot.

This portrays him as powerful and ready to take on the world. A theme which is recurring in this video – Macklemore is rapping about how he can’t be held down. He has no restrictions.

This close up shows him in another setting. Which sells the artist as he is in different clothes – smart casual. The image represents the rapper’s multiple sides. He is not the typical hip hop rapper.

This is a mid shot of Ryan Lewis the producer. He is an important figure as they both are part of the music process. He is wearing sunglasses in this shot. It creates a mysterious mood. Which fits his role as he is more behind while Macklemore is in the foreground.

Multiple shots of the album cover This shot is an establishing shot of the tower and the flag above it. The flag above it is the name of the soon to be released album “The Heist”. By having shots of their album they are exposing it and letting the audience know that there will soon be an album. This creates a hype between the fans and they will be excited.

This shot shows the flag but is a wider shot than the last one. The building behind it suggest that the album will be national and take the city by storm. It is creating the sense that this album will be big and many people will enjoy it.

This is the final shot of the music video. Rather than ending with a shot of the artists it shows the album cover. It reinforces the idea that the new album will be out soon. It highlights the importance of the album.