Analysis Using Goodwin's Theory

Lil Wayne - Lollipop (Goodwin's Theory)
The genre of this music is hip-hop and rap which is the same genre as Kyle Rapps - Hard Knock Children, therefore this will be helpful when producing the music video.
Hip-hop and rap has very simple genre characteristics, for example the costume Lil Wayne is wearing is a baggy, untidy suit with big high top trainers and lots of jewellery. This is the style of clothing we expect to see from him and most other rappers and we are going to use this style in our video too. Also in this rap video we see him rapping to the camera with lots of hand movements and facial expressions showing his emotion to the viewer. This showing of emotion is understandable as most rap lyrics are meaningful and coming from the view of the artist himself.
The lyrics and visuals relate a fair amount to each other in this video. Firstly and most noticeable lollipops are shown throughout the video however most importantly the lollipop Lil Wayne is holding at the start is a lollipop shaped as a dice - to represent gambling and wealth. The gambling is later shown with shots of poker chips and tables, therefore this shot is important for the story of the song as well as the lyrics. There is also a line that says "bottles in the club"  and at this point some luxurious bottles of alcohol are shown to contribute to the lyrics.
The music and visuals also use each other well. The song at some points re winded or stuttered and usually when this happened the pictures on screen also juddered or flickered really quickly. This effect is usually used when parts of the music change suddenly, so if we can get this into our video the audience would understand whats happening.
Obviously as Lil Wayne is a solo artist, sometimes accompanied with another artist, he is always pictured in mid shot or up close to address the record labels demands. Even when pictured from far away he is still noticeable among the other extras due to his costume and movements he is making when rapping.
In conclusion this is a strong rap/hip hop video which certainly abides to Goodwin's Theory. We can use ideas and take inspiration from Lil Wayne and his video - perhaps linking the lyrics with the visuals more and to make sure the shot changes go to the beat of the music.

Time Schedule

Lesson 1 (27th Sep)
- Create our time line for our work on A3 DONE 
- Create a moodboard with ideas and inspirations for our music video project DONE
- Research into the artist, including his background and his other music videos DONE

Lesson 2 (28th Sep)
- Begin planning the location's we are going to shoot at in our music video DONE
- Analise the lyrics in order to create a more meaningful music video DONE
- Create a test shot list to try and experiment with different shots in the video and to add a variety to the video in order for it not to become repetitive DONE

Lesson 3 (29th Sep)
- Create an initial storyboard to get the base of ideas together, before developing the music video further
- Add to the shot list
- Research into similar music videos using Goodwin's Theory DONE

Lesson 4 (4th Oct) 
- Continue to do Storyboard and finish DONE
- Analysis of Student Music Video DONE

Lesson 5 (6th Oct)
- Research into digipak and magazine ad - including fonts and mise en scene etc.
- Upload pictures of storyboard, timeline and shot list and put on blog  DONE
- Lighting Research DONE

Lesson 6 (7th Oct)
- Analysis of Professional Music Video DONE

Lesson 7 (11th Oct)    
- Test shots - upload to blog DONE
- Mise-en-scene research DONE
- Digipak Ideas DONE

Lesson 8 (13th Oct)
- Begin filming - Basketball court scenes DONE

Lesson 9 (14th Oct)
- Review of filming DONE
- Arrange meeting times and what we need to do over the filming weekend DONE
- Begin editing 

Kyle Rapps - Hard Knock Children: Test Shot Plan

Below is a test shot plan for out music video for our chosen artist/song.
Some of these shots will be new to us, for example we have not tried a trunk shot, hanging miniature or walk and talk, but after researching the effects they give, we feel they would be effective when included in the producing of our music video project.

Possible Locations

Because we are trying to portray our artist of being in an urban environment with his mates or perhaps on his own we need to make sure the locations are as effective as possible, but also realistically possible to reach and shoot at. We outlined in our pitch that we were going to try and shoot in an urban street, a basketball court, a skate park and his room.

We have thought that for the basketball court, we could use the basketball court on the college site as it is fairly old and looks a bit rugged and urban. Because we are filming on college site, this means it will be easily accessible and we can film this part of our video in our lessons. Obviously there are disadvantages to this location - firstly there will be students continuously passing by and there may already be people playing on the courts. This will mean we will have to try and make sure they are not in the shots - as their costume wont fit into our chosen theme. It could also damage our continuity if people are walking through and past shots we use, so we will need to consider this greatly.

Jesus Green Skate Park

If we use a skate park as our location there is a number of choices we can choose. There is a mini skate ramp at Park side Pools in Cambridge and there is also a more urban skate park at Jesus Green in Cambridge. Both I feel will work well, however again the continuity will need to be assessed as users of the ramps and parks could get in the way of the shots. The ramp are park side is also situated right next to a busy main road which will obviously mean there will be a view of modern cars. However I think if the shots are positioned right and the skate park is free we could create some low angle shots to show the artist in front of the ramps and we can avoid the traffic in the background of the shot. The skate park in Jesus Green again could pose the same threats with continuity however the park is probably more urban and may even have graffiti in the background which could be great for our video. With these locations it could also be possible for local skater's or BMXer's to do some tricks for our video to use to break up long duration shots of rapping from our artist.

When using the walk and talk shots we will probably need a long urban street and we have thought of possibly using parts of Cherry Hinton or other more urban areas such as the Mill Road area, near the train station.
Finally we may decide to use one of our groups rooms to shoot some rapping in the artist house. However the room will have to look effective - to show perhaps that the artist is not wealthy. This could be very difficult to shoot, however we may try to look for an abandoned house/shack in Cambridge. We are still currently looking into this location and if we find it suitable we will use it.

Lyrics Analysis

Kyle Rapps obviously seems to be rapping about his childhood at school and how he, despite trying to get something out of school and college, still managed to get influenced and dragged into being supposedly a "gangster". The first line says "I'm not gangster, but I am gangster" - perhaps showing he doesn't want to be like the rest of the "gangsters" however he has no choice.  He then goes on to talk about how his friends are possibly fake and the line "I don’t got a slow brain but I get retarded" which could be telling the listener that he was told he was no good in school, however he was just actually never supported by everyone. This would have obviously meant he sorted to being a "gangster" and taking cocaine as he mentions.

The chorus says "First grade, second grade, third grade, fourth Bell rings walk out that door," which, in my interpretation, tells us that all of the children that go to school forget everything from school and completely change as soon as they "walk out that door". They seem to be thrown into a different and harmful community, where you have to fit in with the gangsters to be recognised and to make friends in the town he lives in. The song title "Hard Knock Children" which is mentioned in the chorus, tells me that he feels that children in his society have a hard life and have to resort to violence, drugs and all sorts of anti-social behavior because there is no support from anyone for them.
The second verse is Kyle Rapps talking about how many tests he took, and perhaps how they didnt help him at all. He then mentions "Mother f*cker teach fake fact at my third grade class" which tells me the education the children were receiving wasn't even very good, which meant that the children didn't feel that school was worth while and most will find it a chore. You can see that in this line he was angry at his teach, which shows that he wanted his education to be worthwhile, and wanted the school to teach him something right - perhaps to teach him not to mix with the people he was forced to make friends with.

Kyle then talks about him and his brother used to  "Fight, fight, fight" and this shows that even at home he did not feel loved or supported in his family, therefore decided to resort to the drugs and violence which made him supposedly a "gangster". The lines "what you know about smoking candy’s cigarettes without a light   Right in front of mama …move to Michigan to …   …everything I know now I learned" i feel are very important. Firstly he shows that obviously he was exposed to things like smoking from and early age as there reference to "candy cigarettes.  I think the rest of the line about his mum making them move is important as he says "everything I know now I learned" which tells us once he moved he realised that he was doing the wrong thing and wanted to perhaps to change. On the contrary it could mean that his mum left him and his family, and he learned that he had to change to bring his family back together.

Overall I think the song is very powerful and has a very clear message that young children at school have a hard time and need support and education to make sure they don't get influenced by "gangsters" in their community. It is obvious that he regrets his childhood and wants others to hear his music and lyrics and understand that there is more to life than being antisocial taking drugs and causing violence.

I think that we will be able to illustrate some of the lyrics in our music video, perhaps showing siblings arguing, young children pretending to smoke candy cigarettes or just showing the artists anger when rapping lines such as  "Mother f*cker teach fake fact at my third grade class" and "Right in front of mama …move to Michigan to …   …everything I know now I learned".

Genre Characteristics

"Hip hop music, also called Rap music or Hip-hop music is an American musical genre in which rhythmic and rhyming speech is chanted to musical accompaniment. It developed as part of hip hopMCing/rapping, DJing/scratching, breaking/dancing and graffiti writing. Other elements include sampling (or synthesis), and beatboxing."

 

 

Background Research

We were set a task to construct a magazine advert in preparation for our magazine advert we will create later on in the project. We had to concentrate on a certain genre - we chose the indie genre - and then find out the genre characteristics to create a visual and effective advert.

 

Indie Photo Shoot (Research)

From our mood board we have found out various relationships and themes for Indie bands and artists.

Firstly we have noticed that a few have low down shots, showing them not looking at the camera, but looking thoughtful or just chilling out.  You also notice that there are a few pictures which show the band in a forest, which we feel shows that their band is natural and “stripped to the bone”. It can show they are a simple band that only use their natural music – no auto-tune or garage band loops etc.

Despite most bands scruffy look, you can notice that most are still wearing smart clothing making them look fresh and cool. You can see that the clothing style ranges from white tops with denim jackets, to duffle coats and denim shirts. We like the use of the shirts preferably denim, with the top button done up. We like the coats worn by most of the artists. None of the artists in our mood board wear bright or really vibrant clothing; it’s mostly plain or stripy shirts. The indie genre styles we’ve picked out for our mood board are quite plain and serious – smart casual.

For our photo shoot we’ve decided we’re going to use the low angle shot seen in our mood board. We’re also going to shoot it in the forest; Hopefully the sun will be out and we can recreate the effect from one of our mood board images. We hope to create this effect by catching the rays through the forest treetops almost giving a blurry effect. Our artist will be wearing a simple denim shirt with a casual jacket, un buttoned. He’ll also be wearing beige chinos and smart casual shoes. The artist will not be looking directly into the camera, as most of the artists we researched were not doing this either. He’ll be looking thoughtfully away from the camera as a way of representing the Indie look.

Props: Denim Shirt, Black Coat, Chinos, and Smart Shoes - Reece

Steve reserach

Ghostpoet analysis

Ghostpoets props he uses and his appearance influences the though of which genre of music he creates, his appearance is very stylish and laid back which influences the soul\mellow hip-hop music he creates.

           Ghostpoets clothes, props, shoes, appearance influences the impression the audience receive from him, the impression that we got was that he is very stylish and he gives off a mellow vibe, this reflects within his music (cash and carry me home)

the compision of the image implys that ghostpoet is very mellow and does not really rap with much emotion, this is also backed up by his laid back appearance. The background of the image is quiet urban and origional with the cribbles on the blackboard gives off a hint of hip-hop within his music.

The location of the image is in a school with urban scribbles on the blackboard suggesting old school hip hop. This is relevent because it emphasizes his genre of music.

The music video to ghostpoet cash and carry me home. The visual match the lryics because whenever he talks about alcohol and how crazy his previous night was a bottle of some spirit appears on screen which makes it easy for the audience to relate and understand more clearly about what he is talking about. Whenever he sings the chorus ‘carry me home’ his head and above his shoulders is in a house which represents his home and again makes it easy for the audience to realise that he just wants to be at his house as the whole line is ‘im begging you just carry me home’ which also shows the audience which mood and the kind of emotions he is currently feeling. The whole music video is in the dark using light as the alcohol bottles and his house which could show the only things that can take away the pain which he is feeling, or the only good things he wants. Also the darkness of the video connotes the lyrics as the lryics are sad and depressive. There are many extreme close ups of the artist which shows the emotions and expressions of the artist.

Kyle Rapps-Target Audience Research

"Strictly underground, Kyle’s flow does not translate to a mainstream audience."

  it is fair to assume when analyzing Kyle Rapps as an artist, that he is aiming his work at a younger target audience. This is demonstrated in his video to the single 'Me', through his use of backdrops and surroundings such as libraries, classrooms, school hall stages and schoolyards.

Another piece of evidence to support this idea is that  he formed his poetic trio 'Mayhem Poets' while he himself was studying in college. Giving the idea that, through presenting his poetic work and writing to students in schools and colleges, he is communicating his ability to relate to student life and adolescence and well as sharing his own personal experiences in a creative and unique way.

  He translates these experiences through the incorporation of music and, instead of stanzas, converts his writing into verses and lyrics. This would have a particularly successful effect on his target audience, supporting the idea that they are of a younger/teen age group, as the younger generation are more likely to take notice of the themes he is trying to communicate if his writing is accompanied by up to the minute music with an edgy and individual/unique style, as this makes it easier for them to relate to. Especially if his target audience are listening to creative and meaningful lyrics accompanied by a likable and interesting modern genre of music, such as the hip hop scene he creates.

  Due to Kyle Rapps being such an underground artist he is most likely to be received successfully by those with an obscure and up to date music taste. as they are most likely to be the kind of audience to be looking for artistic and original lyrics and sounds. This is seen as more typical in the younger generation as past a certain age, the craving for something 'different' usually fades to a degree. 

  Typically, mainstream genres and their target audiences are not usually looking specifically for meaning an the intellectual communication of specific themes such as those that are found in Kyle's work.

 

 

Kyle Rapps - Hard Knock Children (LYRICS)

 ,I’m not the gangsta but I am gangsta
The whos’s …like …I take them to the break of the break ..
and I wait patient for the .. to escape them
I make friends lot of fake never waistence,
Take ..on a skin never …in your face …if I have …so I’m not making
If I got the bank than I make sense
If I go to Japan than I make yens
First I make a mistake and begin again
then I make a mess before anyone could take offence
I don’t got a slow brain but I get retarded
Spit the hardest cocaine how I flip the market
So nice me a fool …and everything I learn today I learn back again.

Chorus:
First grade, second grade, third grade, fourth
Bell rings walk out that door,
Hard knock children …the building chillin’
Now take it back.
fifth grade, six grade, seven grade
or some drop out, hard knock children
we are the building chillin’
now take it back.

I always stay black never stay back, took more test in a cage rat,
Mother f*cker teach fake fact at my third grade class
Used to love the little ..ass …all the ..stink before they ….,

before they have cell phones, before they ..facts
…she make cast, sometimes I wish they were bring …ok it’s back
I use to ..bright life as a night life, me and my little brother fight, fight, fight,
What you know about the try,
what you know about smoking candy’s cigarettes without a light
Right in front of mama …move to Michigan to …
…everything I know now I learned

Chorus:
First grade, second grade, third grade, fourth
Bell rings walk out that door,
Hard knock children …the building chillin’
Now take it back.
fifth grade, six grade, seven grade
or some drop out, hard knock children
we are the building chillin’
now take it back.


He was ..paper, …spit ball …playin’ pitfall
Kicking on a …running down the stairs …
Never that helped ..let’s make …Transport
Crash on a …only hope get …
Hang on the doors…. almost cry …movie ain’t hot …
Every day no …Michael J five …maniac when the giant got drop.

[Chorus:]

Mise-En-Scene Research. MoodBoard.

  

This is our mood board with all our mise-en-scene ideas we are going to try and use in our music video (Kyle Rapps - Hard Knock Children). In this mood board we have considered all the elements of mise-en-scene including props, location, lighting and costume. As you can see the costume we are using suits the genre of the artists work - with baggy jeans/t-shirts, basketball shirts, gold dollar chains and baseball caps. This gives the artist an urban American look which we feel he will need because Kyle Rapps is American. We have also considered the props needed, which include a basketball and boombox - usually associated with this genre of music again as well as the look of the artist. The locations of the video will be urban streets, basketball courts and perhaps skateparks - all places where this artist is likely to fit in and "hang" about. Lastly we have considered the lighting - with a possible use of dark street lit places, which would create a sense of the artist walking about all day and night.

In conclusion we feel this mood board has helped us decide, realistically, what we will need to get and perhaps buy to make sure the music video is as effective as we possibly can. After this mood board we will be able to begin searching for locations, props and costumes and begin our storyboard and shot lists.

Kyle Rapps-Artist research

Kyle Rapps

 Kyle describes his own music as witty and youthful yet insightful and catchy. “Hip Hop is about stories and connecting the dots, some of the stories can be meaningful and still be fun and appealing. I rarely ever write a song that I can’t relate to in some way, shape, or form. My music will always reflect who I am.”
By age 20 Kyle started winning poetry slams in NYC with a concept-strong, socially-sharp raw hip hop delivery. Kyle attended Rutgers University in NJ and formed the acclaimed underground hip hop group, Thought Breakers under the Psuedonym Skeptik. By the time he graduated Rutgers with a B.A. in Spanish, Thought Breakers were local legends, having opened up for Wyclef Jean, Fat Joe, Talib Kweli, and Dead Prez, Independently selling 10,000 copies of their Album, Episode One.
After his poetry career has taken off with The Mayhem Poets playing children’s theatres and schools all around the country, Kyle has returned to his roots with concept driven hip hop music. Under the name Black Skeptik, he followed the “Rent” single (featuring rap legend KRS ONE), with “Frankenstein Saves Hip Hop” (featuring production by Blockhead and a video with Crazy Legs of Rocksteady crew). Solidifying a more positive out look on things, he changed his name to Kyle Rapps and release a 3rd single, “Love, Love” (Featuring KRS-One and Homeboy Sandman), which reached #1 on the college radio charts for Hip-hop.
Eager to show people the benefits of combining Hip- hop with education, Kyle is gearing up to release his debut EP, RE-Edutainment. This “revisit” of Boogie Down Productions classic album is produced by Kev Brown, and features songs with KRS-One, Joell Ortiz and U-N-I. Kyle is also finishing up his debut album, which was recorded in LA, NY, and on a Liberian refugee camp in Ghana, Africa. So stay tuned Kyle Rapps is definitely taking the steps to gradually become a household name amongst Hip Hop fans worldwide.



Kyle Rapps at work with his 'Mayhem Poets'







Kyle Rapps- 'Me' single and video

  Kyle Rapps' videos, from the one above that we found have a very relaxed and mellow yet meaningful atmosphere when putting across the themes and topics he is trying to communicate to his audience, through his lyrics and general presence he brings to his videos. In the bio that we found, we were informed that he is an active poet and is regularly involved in expressive poetry readings to various audiences. The themes he communicates involve race, gender and equality in society and class.

Pitch for music video

Track 4 - Kyle Rapps - Hard Knock Children

Video 
For our concept we thought the main rapper could walk towards the camera and the cameraman walks backwards, with lots of different settings and things going on in the background. For the chorus we'll have the same shot at a maybe a skate park, a street corner with graffiti or maybe a basketball court. Sometimes the shots in the background can represent the lyrics in the song - for example the artist talks about school children at different grades - showing different aged school children in the shots. Obviously the costume for the artist and characters within the shots all need to be wearing urban, old school clothes - for example baggy jeans, long basketball shirt and chained necklaces. This will obviously portray the artist as being cool and hip.
Props: Old school tape player, Basketball, Skateboard, Bling.
Location: Skatepark, Urban street, Basketball court, Maybe in a room with his boys just jammin'.
Shot Types: Mid shot, low angle shot when walking, close-ups of artist, pans to show location.

The Pharcyde - Drop hip hop video that uses the same camera techniques (walking towards the camera) Also one rapper in the middle and things going on behind him is similar to our music video and concept.

Digipak for the Album

Font we could base our digipak font on.

For the front cover of the digipak we feel that obviously the artist needs to be the center of attention. We could possible use a close up still image from the video we have created, or potentially we could do a separate photo shoot with the artist. The clothing he will wear will need to be the same style as that of the music video, and perhaps the artist looking straight at the camera, looking like he's rapping. We feel the font will need to be of graffiti style, probably colourful - this is taken from inspiration from the Fresh Prince Of Bel Air's font type. On the back of the digipak, it could be likely to have different shots of the video showing the buyer what they are paying for.

Magazine Advert
We decided, that so as not allow our magazine advert to become boring and identical to our digipak, the magazine adverts color scheme would be slightly more muted. We would be using the same font as in the digipak. the muted, dusty color scheme would allow the font to stand out more, which means that the advert itself would become more striking and aesthetically attractive. in preparation for the magazine advert we would take our model/main artist and produce a photo shoot with him wearing one of the costumes included in the music video itself. this photo shoot would leave us with an extensive range of photographs to work with that would present us with the best possible chance of a successful and striking advert.

Target Audience
Our target audience is people who enjoy hip hop and rap music, however we feel with our music video it might attract other people who have never listened to the genre before. Mostly we are targeting males ageing from around 13-18 year olds.We chose teenage guys because we felt they could probably relate to the concept and ideas we were putting forward and we also felt that they might like the idea of being introduced to sort of old school hip hop.

Possible costume for our main rapper. Use of baggy shirts, baseball cap, gold necklaces.  - based on Will Smith fresh prince

Songs we have chosen - Music Video

The three tracks we have chosen are tracks 4, 8 and 9. We like these tracks because they're different, up beat and old school. We feel that they would be quite exciting and fun tracks to shoot the music video. We feel the tracks will give us a challenge and will push us to get a good mark.

Track 4
Emotion: chilled/ happy/ nostalgic. Colours: gold and black/ night time/ smokey