PREP Explain how music videos use media language to promote their artists. Refer to the pair of music videos you have studied from the list below in your answer.

Our music videos are Wheatus Teenage Dirtbag Avril Lavigne Sk8ter Boi

HOW TO ANSWER: Media language points to consider:

the prioritising of the star / the group; the privileging of the star / the groups in the frame

authenticating the star's performance / the band's performance to show their skills

the use of close ups; lip syncing to camera; eye contact with the audience

 

 

 

In the Wheatus Teenage Dirtbag music video, there is a clear narrative as the song is part of the story line. There are cuts between the actors and the band throughout the video. A panning shot is used in the video to show the whole of the band although there are many close ups of the lead singer who lip syncs and makes direct eye contact with the audience. He tells the story through his expressions and is very engaging and captivating. It is clear that it is his voice and that his band are genuinely skilled at their instruments which authenticates the bands performance. Furthermore, there are close up shots of the teenage dirtbag so the audience is aware the song is following his character. This allows the audience to empathise with him and fully understand his story. At the end of the music video, the band and the characters finally meet at the prom to create a euphoric end to the video as we see Wheatus’s adoring fans surrounding them in awe which accentuates the bands popularity.

In Avril LSk8ter boy, the editing is fast paced to create a sense of chaos and rebellion. Avril Lavigne is given a lot of screen time because she is the star. Therefore, there are many close ups of her singing and gazing deeply into the camera to draw in her audience. Her skill is also authenticated because we can see it is really her singing. The colours of the music video are desaturated which enhances the grungy tone. Towards the end of the video, the camera seems to be held by one of the fans which encourages the audience to fully immerse themselves in the video, as if they are there at one of Avril Lavigne's concerts.

MUSIC MAGAZINES: MEDIA LANGUAGE

 Look carefully at the front covers of MOJO and RNR magazines. 

QUESTION: How far do MOJO and RNR use different media language to create different connotations? (CONNOTATION meaning: an idea or quality that a word makes you think about in addition to its meaning.)

Answer on your blog. This is a high-value question and should take all lesson to answer. You can use the class blog search engine for more examples of how to analyse music magazines.

In your answer you should have 2 paragraphs:

• analyse the media language in MOJO and RNR magazine. 'Media language' includes the placement of the main image, the type of photography, lighting, colours, fonts, how busy or restrained the cover is, the layout (such as alignment to the margins), how serious or playful 
• make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the media language is used differently in both extracts to create different connotations. Are there similarities in both covers? What sorts of audiences are they targeting? You could think about MOJO's rock aesthetic of living loud and dangerously compared to RNR's folk, rock, blues vibe.

The MOJO magazine is very eye catching due to the blue background and the bolder colours used to attract readers. The rock band "Foo Fighters" is presented across the middle of the magazine and one of the members seems to be holding it in his hands as if he is showing it off to the reader. Dave Grohl is written in yellow so we can infer that he is the man in the  central splash of the magazine. Furthermore, the MOJO magazine is relatively busy with many things cover lines to read. However, the cover mount cuts across him and almost takes up a quarter of the magazine. The bright green and yellow stripes are very eye catching and there is a face of a skull playing the guitar. Contrastingly the RNR magazine is a lot calmer with it's soft brown background and sans serif, white text. It is very minimalistic and spacious, although there is still plenty to observe. Unlike the MOJO magazine, it has a serious tone to is which suggests the man in the centre is not a rock artist. We can infer he is called Christy Moore because the size of the text is larger than the rest. The lighting is soft and he has a warm smile on his face and he is wearing a black shirt in contrast to Dave Grohl's bright checked shirt. The placement of the text is clear and organised and the cover mount fits the tone of the magazine because it has the same background and text, but it is just given a white outline to make it stand out. Next to Christy Moore, it says "these days, it's yoga, camomile, tea and three Our Fathers".  

The magazines have totally different tones to them. The MOJO magazine has a sense of recklessness and the media language emphasise the rock and role lifestyle which is wild and dangerous. Although the media language in the RNR magazine connotes to peace and tranquillity. Especially the pull quotation which accentuates the serenity of the magazine. I would suggest that middle aged white men would be drawn to both these magazines because that is who is represented. However, those more interested in rock would be able to relate to the MOJO magazine. Whereas, those into nature, folk and blues would be more likely to want to read the RNR magazine. 

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MY MUSIC MAGAZINE