Genre Music Video Analysis

By Jamie Tilsley

Introduction

• In this task, I will be choosing a music video to analyse which will be in the same/similar genre as the song we will be creating a music video for. This will help me discover the key elements within the genre so I can implement them into my music video to make it better and appropriate for the genre.

• The music video that I will be analysing is: King Kunta By Kendrick Lamar.

What is the genre of the Music Video?

By watching the music video, it can be deduced that the music video is of the rap genre. Various conventions of the rap genre are included within the video which I will state:

Low angle shot

• A convention in music videos of the rap genre tends to be a low angle shot of the rapper or characters in the video. This shot of Kendrick gives him a powerful angle of him above the audience, giving him a view of importance and charisma that gives him a positive and star quality.

Settings

• The setting of the music video is Compton, California which is known for its gang affiliations. This is often linked to rap with roots from gangs and a persistent subject matter on gangs. This tells us that the music video has obvious links in the rap genre.

Women

• The inclusion of the women inside the video, portrays to the audience that Kendrick is desirable to the women in the video and gives him a more positive appearance. This is a common theme and appears frequently in rap videos, making it fit into the rap genre.

Crowds

• Often times in rap there are crowds shown jumping up and down or dancing along with the music. This portrays the popularity of the rapper and also the song as people are shown to

Analyse the setting and décor of the music video.

• Setting in music videos and décor can have connotations to the audience that can tell them things not portrayed in just the song.

- For example, within the King Kunta music video, the main setting of the video is Compton, California more specifically “Bompton”, an area of the city heavily populated by the “Blood” gang. This specific area holds a past for Kendrick Lamar as he grew up there. This means the video is shot in a setting which is very familiar to him, enabling him to give a better performance. This setting fits in well with the genre as gang culture and rap often go hand in hand as it is a frequent subject matter in the genre. The majority of the video is also shot outside in common places such as parking lots or in a front garden. This portrays the message of the song which is basically asking: where were Kendrick’s fans when he was just an average Joe walking down the streets- “Bitch where were you when I was walking?”.

Costumes• The main character in the music video Kendrick

Lamar is seen wearing quite regular clothes in todays fashion. A plain white t-shirt, baseball jacket, jeans and a cap. This regular attire links to the message of the video again saying where were all his fans when he wasn’t famous. The fact he is wearing his regular attire that he would of wore before he was famous, shows his character hasn’t changed, he has just become more recognised. The addition of a sports baseball jacket portrays the characters strength and good sporting ability, making him appear good at sports which may be enviable for some people

Costumes

• The women shown in the video have scantily dressed costumes on whilst dancing next to Kendrick. The fact they are wearing revealing clothing shows they are comfortable around Kendrick and he has women appealing to him makes the audience think he is appealing too as he is shown with these women. The fact they are wearing flashy jewellery also signifies Kendrick’s wealth, as the women are associated with him and it speaks to the audience that Kendrick may have bought them that jewellery.

Costumes • Lastly, the costume of a side character is

shown in all red. This is a definite representation of the “Blood” gang as shown in the amount of red the character is wearing. This is a connotation of the gang as they are represented by the colour red and gang members can be identified by the colour. This links to the rap genre and the subject matter that is regularly used in songs of that genre.

Body Language

• The body language of Kendrick throughout the video is open and confident as he dances in front of crowds and general has an opened appearance. This confidence shown in body language makes him seem more charismatic and gives him more of a likable character as his personality comes out more in the video. This links to the rap genre as the rappers in the videos often need to be the centre of attention

Performance

• The performance of Kendrick is very lively and his body movements are often exaggerated to make him appear more energetic. This shows the audience his charisma and that he has a big personality. His performance may also appear more natural, as the place of filming is where Kendrick grew up as a child, also filmed with his friends and family, making him more comfortable in front of the camera.

Narrative • The basic narrative shown in the music video is

showing that Kendrick is still an average person and has not changed through the money and fame. This can be shown through the activities and settings of the music video. All are everyday settings for Kendrick, such as parking lots, liquor stores and peoples front gardens in Compton. This fits along with the chorus of the song asking his fans “Where were you when I was walking?”. This question is backed up by the fact Kendrick is showing his fans through the narrative that he is the same as he was before the fame and that the fans weren’t with him when he was a nobody in Compton.