'Drivin' Me Wild' by Common & Lilly Allen

Common Ft. Lilly Allen - Drivin' Me Wild [NEW]- Watch more Music Videos at Vodpod.

Common has been an american actor and rapper since 1992 and Lilly Allen who is featured in the music video has been an english singer-songwriter since 2005. This music video would be played on most music channels as it is of popular genre. The musc video itself is narrative based as are the lyrics. The meaning of the song is similar to that of Just Jack's 'Stars In Their Eyes', It is about people who try to hard and lose themselves trying to be someone their not.

The video starts with a downward pan shot of the sky and buildings to Lilly Allen, as she stands in the street. The song goes onto tell the story of a women, who shops on Rodeo Drive in Los Angeles which is one of the most expensive shopping districts in the world. Real people and places are continued to be mentioned throughout, such as the 'astronaut lady'. Lisa Nowak (the astronaut lady) was involved in a love triangle causing her to drive 1,000 miles from her home in Houston to Orlando International Airport to kidnap her female rival, wearing a nappy to avoid a toilet break. These real life occurences show the desperation of people who try so hard to make it, when all they needed to do was be themselves.

'Ring The Alarm' Beyonce

Beyonce Knowles has been an active singer-songwriter since 1990. Most music channels support her music as it is very popular. This music video is mostly abstract and the feeling of anger is conveyed strongly throughout. The lyrics would suggest that the song is about someone who has been cheated on and now seeks revenge.

The mise en scene is symbolic of the emotions within the song. The ringing and the red light of an alarm is the first thing you see and hear as the video starts. This gives the music video a sense of urgency and is appropiate for the lyrics and title of the song. Guards holding guns standing in the background gives connotations of entrapment to the piece as they try to stop Beyonce from escaping. There are also shots of Beyonce in a house near the shore, as she paces around the waves crash in the background. This strongly supports the emotional rollercoaster of the video and gives the audience a visual image of how Beyonce is feeling.

'Stars In Their Eyes' by Just Jack

Just Jack has been a famous English musician since 2002. Music channels that would support his music are MTV Base, MTV Two, MTV Hits!, VH1 & TMF. The music video includes the shorter edited version of the song that is three minutes twelve seconds, the real song is almost five minutes. The reason for it being edited hasn't been revealed but I would say it was due to the song being to long and the part of which was cut out included swearing & contrasted with the rest of the piece.

The actual video is more abstract than narrative but could be interepted either way. The meaning within the song is made quite clear, it basically shows that celeb culture isn't all it's cracked up to be. The lyrics explain that the media just use you to make money and couldn't careless if what was wrote were truth or lies. The lyrics also vaguely say that bad news sells more than the good news, therefore the media only focus on your down falls.

The music video uses various close ups and medium close ups of wannabe stars upon a stage as they all compete for fame in an audition. The people are all dressed to the nines and caked in make up, this has connotations of the fakeness that is often associated to the showbiz world.

'Gimme Sympathy' by Metric

Metric is a indie rock band that formed in Canada, Toronto 1998. The band consists of four members the lead singer Emily Haines, lead guitarist James Shaw, bass guitarist Josh Winstead and Joules Scott-Key on drums. Metric have not appeared on any of the general music channels as the band is not yet mainstream. The music video itself is a staged performance by the whole band.

The video is one-shot style and lasts almost four minutes, with band memebers changing their costume and instruments off-screen frequently throughout. The camera uses lots of smooth circling shots to establish a full view of the band and zooms to focus on individuals.

The actual video starts with Emily surrounded with flowers and teddies as she puts on two gloves, just before leaving to go onto the stage. This could be symbolic of her leaving her comfort zone and venturing out into the world. The ending also supports this theory as seven children wearing butterfly outfits come onto screen and run outside into the light.

The song 'Gimme Sympathy' also makes references to The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and a few of they're songs, therefore showing that the memebers of Metric are likely fans of theirs.

Codes & Conventions of Music Videos

I am going to analysis the codes & conventions of four different music videos by various artists. This will include:
-'Gimme Sympathy' by Metric
-'Stars In Their Eyes' by Just Jack
-'Ring The Alarm' by Beyonce
-'Drivin' Me Wild' by Common & Lilly Allen