Freiberger 1

Alina Freiberger

Prof. Loudermilk

English Composition II

March 29, 2021

Rhetorical Analysis of Two Music Videos

In 1974 the song Jolene, by Dolly Parton was released. 38 years later in 2012 Miley

Cyrus covered the song. These two songs come with very simple videos. Both of the singers are

in front of the camera singing and sending the same message, almost like a conversation with the

viewer, but in Miley Cyrus’s video, Cyrus uses a more modern setting along with more

upbeat/pop music to the song to bring in a younger audience of women and girls.

Dolly Parton in her music video of the 1974 release of Jolene starts with her sitting on a

stool in front of a camera being introduced to the audience by a man in a vibrant pink and

sparkly outfit. The video then begins to play the music and Parton begins singing the song.

Behind her as she is singing is a small simple farmhouse porch set design with some plants.

There are no other musicians or instruments in the video. There is a very soft ambiance to the

entire video while Parton sings to the audience. In 2012 Miley Cyrus covered the song and in her

video it is a backyard scene. It is a very lush outside look with beautiful golden hour light. To the

right of Cyrus is the band that is playing along with her as she sings very passionately into a

microphone. While it is not as direct as Parton’s video, Cyrus has a very upbeat and lively video.

There is a strong relationship between the two videos. Both videos use pothos to send the

feel of a conversation to women about the feeling of having a great love for someone and having

fear of love being taken away as by someone who is much prettier. This is shown by having

them in front of a camera simply singing the song with its lyrics of “ you could have your choice
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of man but I could never love again because he's the only one for me Jolene”. The only real

difference is, Miley Cyrus’s video targets a younger female audience while Dolly Parton’s video

targets an older female audience.

Miley Cyrus is easily one of the bigger pop stars of the younger generations today. Her

being the one to cover the song alone is a reason that her version of Jolene brings in a younger

demographic. In the video of Cyrus singing Jolene there is a much more modern feel to the

general abaniance of the video. With the golden hour lighting that is popular among the current

media and the much more lively outside background it brings in an astechic that, while simple, is

very pleasing to the younger eye. Another aspect that makes Cyrus’s cover of Jolene more

attractive to a younger audience is a more upbeat and pop like tune. While the tempo is still the

same there are different types of musicians featured in the video who each add to that upbeat and

pop like sound. Cyrus sings very passionately and exaggerates more of the notes in her cover of

the song. Both of these aspects turn an already catchy tune into one that grabs the attention of

younger girls and women going through their first experiences of that fear of having a love being

taken away from someone who is prettier.

Dolly Parton will always and forever be one of the queens of country music. In her video

of Jolene she addresses the same feeling of losing a love to someone prettier but aimed at an

older generation. Parton’s video sets her in a very soft and simple environment that has a simple

front porch background on a stage. Parton sits on the stage alone and sings the song softly as the

music plays quietly in the background. She engages with the camera almost making direct eye

contact allowing her and her audience to have a conversation. With the lack of flashy and upbeat

tones, this video attracts an older audience who has already gone through these feelings and
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wants to feel like their feelings of fear are shared. The softness of the overall video brings about

a calm almost conversation ambiance that brings in an older generation.

Dolly Parton and Miley Cyrus are both amazing women in the singing/music world.

Parton made Jolene sound amazing when it was first released and Cyrus kept it amazing 38 years

later. With Cyrus adding her own modern touches to the song, Jolene has become a wonderful

song for many younger women to enjoy and allows another generation of women to enjoy such a

wonderful song.
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Works Cited Page

“Dolly Parton - Jolene [Official Music Video].” YouTube, YouTube, 3 Dec. 2013,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5m71Jbi7NkU.

Mileyofficialonline, director. Miley Cyrus - The Backyard Sessions - "Jolene". YouTube,

YouTube, 24 Dec. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOwblaKmyVw.