Fast Shutter Effect

When looking at various Kanye West videos we have gained inspiration for our fractioned shots. This is from Kanye West's fast shutter effect in the video Golddigger

0.19-0.23 seconds

Fractioned Shots Video

This video is a compilation of some of the practised fractioned video clips, we have added them with the track background just for effect.

Target Audience

Before carrying out any research on the target audience of R&B and Kanye West in particular, i already have ideas about what it may be. Due to the street/urban vibe of R&B music, i think that the main consumers will be between the ages of 15-25, but of course because the genre is so expanded and now crosses over into other genres the target age will consequently expand too. The target audience is likely to be mainly males as well, as the videos especially use alot of voyeurism and focus on women, promoting the men to be more important, enhancing the ego of male viewers. Both the male and female R&B artists seem to adhere for male wants. I think that Kanye Werst may have a slightly different audience, as his music both promotes the males but also is sincere in some tracks and show men to be sensitive, which may attract more female listeners. The target audience may be slightly older reaching into people in their 30's.

To test the target audeince for both we will carry out a questionnaire on ten members of the class...
The questions we have included are:
-Age 
one 21-25 year old
three 18-20 year olds
six 15-17 year olds
-Gender
8 female
2 male
-Do you like R&B music?
5 yes
5 no
-Do you think R&B music is aimed at men or women?
4 men
3 both
3 women
-Do you like Kanye West
7 no
3 yes
-What is your favourite Kanye West music video?
2 x stronger
1x touch the sky
-Would you expect to see him in his videos?
10 yes
-What do you think is Kanye West's strongest icon?
1 x coats
5 x glasses
1 x teeth

Kanye West's Digpaks

Kanye West has released many albums, including:
- The College Dropout
- Graduation
- 808s & heartbreak
- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
- Watch The Throne

This is the digipak for 808s & heartbreak, the cover is simplistic and has an off white background, focusing on the red heart in the middle, which looks like a crumpled heart, reflecting the title 'heartbreak', because it looks as if the paper has been scruched up ready to throw away. Kanye West doesn't feature himself on this digipak, showing that the promotion is for his music, not him. There is a strip of blocked colour down the side, addign to the effect that it looks like a peice of paper, like a newspaper, and the font used at the top supports this too in a block typo font. The back of the album is even more basic, continuing the white paper effect background, and the font is smaller and slightly faded with the track titles. There are no images on the back, making it a straighforward promotion for the songs being advertised.

 The digipak for his other album 'Graduation' is completely different. It contains the iconic teddy that Kanye West uses in many of his promotions and videos. There is mass colour in the style of a cartoon in which the bear is being shot into space, this may signify that Kanye thinks this is his best slbum and is 'out of this world'. The back of the album centres mainly around this image from a back angle, and has a simple brown strip on the side saying the track names and all the important information. This makes is seem as if Kanye is promoting his creativity and that the album will be much more upbeat and fun, especially compared to 808's & heartbreak.

Fragmented Shots and Photos for our digipak

These are possible shots for our digipak.. we have used heels to support our genre.

These are possible fragmented shots for our video, showing the models getting ready, we have some video footage for the fragmented shots too..

How HipHop changed the world

Recently there has been a documentary on channel 4 about 'How Hip Hop changed the world', it discusses the defining and most important moments in street music and culture over the past 35 years. Many artists on the programme talked about how they felt music has changed and what it essentially meant to them, including Jessie J and Snoop Dog.

The Guardian review stated that:
'But then these shows are about disagreement, and starting a debate. And it wasn't just about music, and musical influence; it was about a bigger picture – how rap entered the mainstream, commercialism and language, and even politics. It was about how hip-hop changed the world. And it was fabulous.'

Black History Month

BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Black history month is an important month in history, especially for the genres, such as R&B which we are working in. It is a Caribbean and African heritage recognition.

Beginning of Digipak

We have started playing around with ideas for our Digipak, we have decided to make our product as an album, as opposed to a single, because we believe it will allow us to be more creative. So far this is what we've got..

We still need to design and add background images for the covers, include professional conventions such as barcode etc. Also we need to begin designing images and ideas for the other pages within our digipak.

Original Storyboard

Theorists

Our music video will use many theorists as it incorporates many ideas. Voyeurism is when it seems to be filmed through a 'male gaze' objectifying women and satisfying sexual wants. Our video uses voyeurism because we are used fragmented body parts like the mouth and legs. The use of high heels has sexual connotations and is therefore part of the voyeurist idea. Our video uses voyeurism in scenes when the female models are walking up and down the catwalk wearing heels, focusing on certain parts of their body. Also, when models are getting ready/old model is crying it is into a mirror, which is a typical convention of voyeurism. Voyeurism is appropriate for our genre, as through our research we discovered that sexually objectifying women is a key convention of the R&B genre.

The video is also narrative and performance, the non linear narrative aspect encourages multiple viewings because it interests the audience and makes them want to watch it again to realise what it is really about, by using the correct mis-en-scene we will create authencity of storyline making it believable and appropriate to the song. The performance aspect of the video makes the artist look credible and like they have genuine talent. Our video used slight intertextuality as the narrative is inspired by the film Black Swan, but there is no straight links to other media texts.

Production Schedule

In order for our group to get all tasks completed to the deadlines and to the best of our ability, we have decided to create a production schedule.


29th September- film with Levan to see how much choreography we have, and agreeing a    new target amount. (1 minute)


03rd October- Practise lip-syncing section and practise projection effects and shots


06th October- Work on blog and create action plan. Aim to recruit models by next week


11th October-Practise filming with our props- drum, glitter, heels and also experiment with fragmented shots


13th October- Film Levan dancing in outside location (evening)


18th October- 


20th September- BREAK UP FOR HALF TERM. BLOG RESEARCH TO BE COMPLETED

[John Legend - Chorus]
I got the World in my hands, the master plan
But I don’t know why I keep calling
Why I keep all of these girls at my shows
They loving me but I don’t know why
I keep calling
Why I keep calling you

All the models to the floor right now
All the models to the floor right now
All the models to the floor right now
All the models to the floor right now

[Kanye West]
I’m in my Christian Dior with a Veronica Webb
Noemie Lenoir, Chanel, Sessilee Lopez
Arlenis Sosa, Selita Ebanks
If you work with my people, speak that Jourdan Dunn language
Make a phone call, out to Joan Smalls
I wonder how it feel to lower (Lara) Stone’s walls
Jessica Gomes, yall, I would damage her
And see if Jessica Stam got the stamina
I’m in the car with Leo and the Benz swerve
I heard Bar was friends with Esti Ginzburg
Coco Rocha, Kate Mimosa
Alessandra Ambrosia, Anja Rubik,
Get Olga Kurylenko, tell her I’m very single
Abbey Lee, too I’m a freak boo
I’m wylin I’m on a thousand
I wanna see Irina Shayk next to Doutzen.

[Chorus]
I got the World in my hands, the master plan
But I don’t know why I keep calling
Why I keep all of these girls at my shows
They loving me but I don’t know why
I keep calling
Why I keep calling you

[Kanye West]
Christian Dior denim flow
I told her I’m tryna eat out so what we going for dinner for

[Pusha T]
Miami nights on the search for some T and A
Tryna hide what’s obvious to see in me
We conversate a bit about your DNA
And my salmon coloured suits from the VMA’s
Oh you was watching, who the f-ck wasn’t
Me skip across that stage in 5 dozen
Yeah 60 grand for a minutes time
Italian vogue styled a n-gga for a minute rhyme
Lets be clear and lets be fair
The best things in music’s being offered here
Its a round table full of bosses here
Still giving you it all like the coffins near

[Chorus]
I got the World in my hands, the master plan
But I don’t know why I keep calling
Why I keep all of these girls at my shows
They loving me but I don’t know why
I keep calling
Why I keep calling you

I got the World in my hands, the master plan
But I don’t know why I keep calling
Why I keep all of these girls at my shows
They loving me but I don’t know why
I keep calling
Why I keep calling you

[Ryan Leslie]
It’s time for a lesson in model behaviour
Damn, look at all the bad b-tches I gave you
Man I can see the flaws to your flavour
Look like wonder woman and still need a saviour
Maybe its a billionaire maybe its that cocaine
I done seen drugs and money run the whole game
A good girl lost in the city life
Agent Provocateur holding titties right
I’m haute couture of hoes galore
Give my girl a newport ’cause she’s smoking yours
I’m the authority of model seniority
They call me Les but they all need more of me.
[Lloyd Banks]
He ain’t Kraft material, champagne for cereal
Shorty stole my heart, criminal, my lucky charm
Fly clothes and Lear shows, type kind of stuff we on
Stuff all my problems in that bong and I’m puffin’ strong
I been locked in my way of thinking, now my cuffs are gone
Must’ve been the liquor talkin’, I’m beggin’ the cups, “C’mon”
Might come off as irregular, I come in custom form
T-G-I-F, GT breeze, my hustler’s poem
My sound’s full-grown, reminds me of my favorite chronic (Kush)
Ball like a SuperSonic, make the haters vomit (Uh)
N-gga, make some money ‘fore you make a comment
I meant to snap a while ago, but who knows where the time went?
Probably dime chicks, whips with a Diddy
Now I’m back like a nine milli, runnin’ New York City
See me clearly through the storm
The world’s mine, sits pretty in my palm
Sean Don (Chandon?) as we continue on
[Chorus]
I got the World in my hands, the master plan
But I don’t know why I keep calling
Why I keep all of these girls at my shows
They loving me but I don’t know why
I keep calling
Why I keep calling you

[Kid Cudi]
N-ggas think they know I’m the guy with the story
They dont really know what’s in my head, f-ckin’ with me
How can I be better?
I could start with just the basics
Dior, Dior, galore, I love the cut
I seem to have forgotten that I’m off the nini
To the people who dont know Cud’, know what?
Rose gold presidential on my boney wrist
Took my ma to Chanel, had her LC the stunner
She got haters, some in the fam made us
But they don’t really matter, we escaping with our paper
“Hey ya”, I’m on my Andre 3000
I’m all good now, a n-gga don’t need no counseling
Woke up in the room and my mojo was active
Looks from the hoes that were more than likely passive
Back when let me not reflect on the old sh-t
I’m on to the new act, on to my new script
B-tches better have they thoughts before approaching
I done heard it all, baby, save it for them other n-ggas
Do things all before living, haters, copy, I’m the image
Haters, copy, I’m the image


To add to the effectiveness of our video and to ensure we dont make it too long, we have decided to cut out sections of the song as we don't think that they will be as suitable for our storyline. The sections we have decided to edit out is the Lloyd Banks section, . The lyrics to this song are appropriate for our music video ideas because it is about denim and fashion and women, which is what we have centered our video around.

Practise Shots

These are some practise shots and footage for ideas for our music video. We have included a short video of Levan performing some of the movements he is going to use for the section of dance within the video. We have chosen street dance because it is typical of the R&B genre, and helps us portray the urban background of our chosen genre. It also gives an aspect of performance and shows raw talent, making the video about the music and talent not the image of the artist.