Transformation into a boy band member on Prezi

Snoop Dogg - Image

This is how Snoop Dogg first appeared, as a gangsta rapper from the streets of south central LA. At this time he was popular among people from his own background and was popular as a pioneer of 90's rap, but was seen as a poor role model by society and he was widely feared due to his criminal record. During his first visit to the UK he was seen as a real threat to people's safety even though he was just doing music and had no harmful intentions.

Snoop Dogg's gangsta image became less prominent as his popularity increased, and he realised that he needed a more friendly and commerically acceptable image. The above image shows him in the video for 'Beautiful' which is a RnB/Hip Hop song featuring Pharell. His image went from gangsta rap to mainstream rap.

The above still is taken from Katy Perry's 'California Girls' video. Snoop Dogg features in the song with a clean rap about California. By this stage his image has completely transformed. After first being seen as a threatening young and violent gangster, he is now seen as a friendly and humorous man, shown by his willingness to be part of a pop song and to dress in a silly outfit for the video. He even has his own reality show about his life as a family man now.

Copyright Email

This is the email that Manan sent on behalf of our group to request permission to use the track 'I'm 17' by Rizzle Kicks.

"Dear Copyright Holder,

I am an A Level student writing to request your permission to use Rizzle Kicks’ track ‘I’m 17’.

With your permission, this track would be used in our current A-level Media Studies project, which involves creating a music video, as well as producing an album cover and a magazine advert for the artist. The artist featured in my video will not be using Rizzle Kicks’ name, as I will be creating a new marketing strategy for an up and coming artist.

If I receive your permission, this track would ONLY be used in an educational context and will be viewed by my media class, my teacher and the OCR exam board moderator. It would NOT be used for any financial purposes or gain, nor the school or I intend to make any profit out of using your artist’s track.

The artist and your company would of course be fully recognised throughout pre-production and the final video itself. A copyright notice, with wording supplied by you can be included in the records of the project. If this is required, please send full details.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,

Mr Manan Vekaria

Park High School, UK"

Final Track Choice

We chose this track as it is very age appropriate (me and my group are 17!), there is no excessive foul language, and there is no existing video for it, meaning our minds are not clouded with any previous footage to fit the lyrics. The song is also an interesting hybrid as it is rap content over a rock/indie instrumental which means the video could contain conventions of both these genres.

Video Analysis

This is a concept/performance music video. It is unique as it is all one setting and the performers do not move off the spot. The video features all of the star artists featuring on the track which will help push the song and the artist, in turn boosting sales. The camera shots vary in distance and there are many slow pan shots which rotate around the artist. The style of the performance is conventional for an urban rap/grime video. The performance has to be strong from each artist as they are not aided by different settings, actions or props. The clothing is fairly conventional for the urban scene and is what is expected to be worn by rap artists.

Student Video

This video was good because the performers were very strong, confident and enthusiastic. This is important to make the video look good and to keep people watching, as without a realistic and enthusiastic performance, watching the video would be boring and amateur-like.

Student Video

This video was impressive and had effective use of extreme close ups, although the lip syncing could have been more enthusiastic and efficient. Although the performance could have been better, the technical side (editing and camera angles) make the video interesting and aid it in looking more professional.

Possible Track

I think this track would be good to use as there is no bad language and the existing video does not eliminate too many ideas, as it uses a simple performance/narrative which is not particularly original. The video is fitting however as the slow motion parts fit with the feel of the song.

Possible Track

This track is good because there is a censored version and I already know all the lyrics so I could easily be a/the performer in the video. However one problem is the track and video are already quite iconic, making it hard to live up to.

Possible Track

This track would be good to use as it is humorous which means we would be able to create a funny video to fit with it. One problem however is the existing video already uses many jokes relating to the lyrics which eliminates the option for us to do the same.

Possible Track

This track would be okay to used as a censored version is available, and because I already know all the lyrics, meaning I could be a/the performer in our video. One problem however is that the lyrics are quite random so it is hard to draw video ideas from them.

Possible Track

This video is good as well as the track. The way at the intro the video is cut to the beat is a technique I like. The track is good because there is a censored version and I already know the lyrics so I could perform in the video. Another good thing about it is that there are two performers, which would enable two people in our group to perform. One weakness however is that we would not be able to live up to the standards of the video in terms of props and settings, so maybe a song without an existing video would be better to use.