Music Video Analysis

By Robyn Hemming
 Corinne Bailey Rae – Stop Where You Are
- The message of the video is that appearances are deceiving and
nobody is really who they seem.
- The setting of the video is cold, bleak, hostile and entirely concrete
whereas Corrine Bailey Rae is dressed in red which symbolises heart
and emotion.
- She appropriated an urban setting which was a conscious decision by
the artist to appeal to a demographic which would not usually listen
to her music.
- Corinne said this about the song; “Sometimes we hold our happiness
away from ourselves because we’re waiting for the perfect moment
and we say, ‘When I get this job, I’ll be happy. When I lose this weight,
I’ll be happy. When I get a partner, I’ll be happy. So I really wanted to
write this song, which is about being in the moment and being
present, and stopping and ritualising the moment, celebrating it. I love
the image of being in darkness and lighting a fire and saying, ‘Here we
are together. This is life with all its pain, all its agony, all its beauty, all
of its joy. This is it, this is what we have, this is the world that we’ve
made!”
- "Stop Where You Are" is about being present, stopping and
celebrating what's happening right at this very moment.
- Pop Ballad
TITANIUM
The style of the music video is a narrative. There is a long shot of a boy sat in the centre of all of his
surroundings and he is alone which suggest that the damage was caused by him. There is a panning shot of
all of the rubble on the floor that introduces the viewers to the scene and the story. The setting is based at
a school and the style of the video is grey and dull. The saturation is really low. The lyric ”nothing to lose”
can relate to the colour scheme because the lack of colour shows lack of emotion as if there is nothing to
lose. The boy is the main focus throughout and viewers are introduced to his character from the get-go.
The story is fully explained half way through. It starts off that the viewers do not understand what’s going
on and the confusion of the boy, also relates to the confusion of the viewers.

The shot shows the boy walking through the corridor but the focus is drawn to
the woman because it is drawn to the background where she is, rather than the
fore ground (which is blurred). The woman is scared, which suggests that the
boy is responsible for the damage. As he is running out of school, you can see
people wearing clothes from the 80s, this shows intertextuality from Super 8 as
it is set in the same time and has similar references to Sci-Fi. This is nostalgic for
the audience.

When the tempo of the song speeds up, there are sped up action shots
i.e. when he is on his bike. There are lots of jump-cuts and montage
when he’s on his bike to show that he is in action and this an action
scene/ fast paced like the music. It also uses a POV shot which makes
the viewer feel as if they are chasing him, which is a good way to
engage the audience. The boy stays in the centre of the shot just to
further establish him as the main character. And it also uses close ups
to show fear in the boy. When the rhythm of the song is slower, scene
of the music video are in slow motion.
SUPER 8 – the same boy from the super 8 film
is featured in the titanium video which is
another intertextual reference
As soon as the boy enter his house, there are mid-shots of the boy throwing away his
toys. This suggests that he’s throwing away his childhood because he knows he’s being
chased. It zooms into his bear on the floor to exaggerate the message. The warm lighting
of his house, suggests that he feels safe. As soon as his home is invaded, the lighting
becomes cold and grey again which suggests his safety has disappeared.

This is the first time we see the boy has superpowers, as he attempts
to escape through his back door and moves his keys by stretching out
his hand and telepathically moving them. The shot shows a mid-shot of
the keys physically lifting from the kitchen bench, breakfast is still left
from the same day, suggesting he is by himself.

This demonstrates the lyrics as he is bulletproof and can get through anything. The
scene in the woods is expected to be seen in thriller/horror films and this is a tribute
to slasher films. This is also done as the music speeds up as a montage to show fast-
paced action.
 David Guetta & Sia - Titanium
- Looking over the lyrics, you can see a number of figures of speech being used.
The one that stands out is personification. The phrase, “I am titanium” is
repeated throughout the song and the artist in the video is trying to show that
he is as strong as the metal. Nothing can pass him; even the bullets bounce back
without hitting him. This can also be related to a metaphor. Two things are
being compared that have something in common. In this case, it can be the
child in the video and titanium. Since the child possesses super natural powers
he is shown to be as strong as the metal.
- The boy is a schoolboy and the song is mainstream and pop (which appeals to
younger audiences), the audience can relate themselves to him and also feel
like they are ‘bulletproof’ and nothing can bring them down etc.
- The young boy is different to everyone else, this would appeal to a young
audience who are looked down upon by society. He is alienated by his peers as
he is alone and others around him. The point of the music video is to
demonstrate that being different is not always a bad thing because he has super
powers.
- The whole music video could be seen as a metaphor for being bullied. The fact
that words cannot get to you (bullets) and he wont fall because he is strong.
This proves that even if you are a social outcast, there are good things about
you and yopu can overcome anything. Sia (the artist of the song) was bullied
herself so she is sending a strong message across.