MTV – More than just pop culture?

I totally agree with comments (by AndrewS, Sat 7 April) about the lack of local content on MTV New Zealand. The claim of “Pure New Zealand goodness” is such false advertising! I can barely recall one show on MTV that’s actually NZ-made.

Nabeel talked about MTV’s ‘glocalising’ nature – how it has become a global institution in pop culture, whilst still maintaining a heavy focus on local content. However, I would tend to comment that the aspect of the importance of local content seems to be absent on MTV New Zealand. Even www.mtv.co.nz is hardly recognisable as a New Zealand website – the only ‘iconically Kiwi’ thing on the homepage is a few cows!

After the disappointment of the NZ website I thought I’d check out the main MTV website to compare the two. What I noticed was that while www.mtv.com was still very focused on keeping up with the youth culture, or what Dieckmann (1999) describes as “promoting a lifestyle channel for what seems like an increasingly narrow demographic” (p. 97), it did make an effort to pay some attention to ‘socially relevant’ issues. For example, there was a section titled ‘Think’ (www.mtv.com/thinkmtv) which dealt with topics such as discrimination, education, environment, global, politics, and sexual health. (Check out http://www.mtv.com/thinkmtv/education/index_9.jhtml for a closer look at MTV’s take on education.) To be honest, the standard and credibility of this ‘serious’ content is probably quite questionable, but I must admit that I was pretty impressed by MTV’s initiative to provide its viewer/consumers with some ‘meaty’ content. I guess on television you don’t really get to see MTV’s more ‘serious side’, but it’s refreshing to see such an influential youth network attempting to make its consumers more socially aware.

Hopefully, as MTV New Zealand becomes more established it will be developed into something with a little more focus on socially relevant issues, even if that only happens on the website. And who knows, if we’re lucky, maybe they’ll even include a decent amount of ‘real’ New Zealand content…

~ Shalinie ~

Thou Shalt Always Kill

Let's hear it for a jihad on contemporary pop!

Moulin Rouge!: Musical not lost…Just adapted and cleverly constructed.

As someone has discussed, I agree that the musical is not lost but is still emerging in various forms and styles that appeal to its contemporary audience. Moulin Rouge! is an interesting modern day musical to look at.

Moulin Rouge! consists of a colourful soundtrack consisting of already existing songs that Luhrmann modified and adapted for the film, to be sung by the characters. Showing a wide range of genres that Luhrmann borrowed from, Moulin Rouge! features songs by well known artists such as The Police, Fatboy Slim, David Bowie, Nirvana, Queen, Madonna, Elton John, U2 , Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Kiss and Dolly Parton to name just a few. Moulin Rouge! also borrows songs from The Sound of Music and the film’s Bollywood influences are reflected throughout the film’s soundtrack.

As the songs were taken from a wide range of artists, genres and eras, there is always something identifiable and appealing for most people, whether old or young. Through the older songs, an element of nostalgia is created for those who recognize them from the past. Luhrmann was also clever in choosing songs that have been remade by later artists so even if some people are too young to remember the original recordings, then they may recognize the later renditions, such as the All Saints’ version of “Lady Marmalade” originally sung by Labelle, Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” originally by Dolly Parton, or The Wallflowers’ “Heroes” originally by David Bowie. There is something for everyone to recognize and enjoy.

One of the most famous songs to come out of the film was “Lady Marmalade” which was covered for the film by Christina Aguilera, Lil Kim, Mya and Pink and released with a ‘Moulin Rouge’ themed video clip. It became a hugely popular hit around the time the film was released making it a successful commodity to accompany the film, even though the song itself was only featured for a brief moment in the film.

Another popular hit that came from the film was “Come What May” sung by Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman. An original track written by Luhrmann, it is the only original track within the film. Luhrmann discusses in the DVD’s audio commentary that he wanted the love song between the two main characters to be the only original song in the film.

The rich, diverse soundtrack allowed the Moulin Rouge! to be popular amongst a wide range of audiences while reflecting the film’s themes of music, dance, theatre, culture, wealth, friendship and above all, love! There really is something for everyone.

Shifting the Context of Music.

I thought this was fun, as a way of attracting attention and being memorable.

Canada has the weirdest beer ads.

- Kevin.

The end of Musicals?

The musical films used to be kind of main stream in the early Hollywood (1930’s – 1950’s); however, they are no longer a regular feature in current Hollywood. Does this mean the end of the Musicals? This question needs to be explored in the context of the shifts in popular music and the film production during the late 20th century and the early 21st century.

As the various music and dance styles existing inside and outside of today’s film industry have broadened the audiences’ eye-views; even some classic musicals such as Evita (1996), Chicago (2002) still could secure the audiences, the new style films becoming more and more popular such as rap, lambada and biography films of some famous singers. This suggests that musical films are not over; they just show up with many new appearances to meet nowadays viewers’ taste. And as Estella said, “the tradition of the musical’s affective use of music - to produce and organise an emotional response that is overtly presented as part of the film text – retains its importance in cinema”(“The soundtrack movie, Nostalgia and consumption”, in Ian Conrich and Estella Tincknell(eds), Film’s Musical Moments, 2006).

Showing "My Humps"

HI All.

Thought I would climb on the bandwagon concerning the representation of gender in music videos. Most of the postings have had valid points and forgive me if this starts to sound just a little repetitive.

I think there is a line, albeit a fine one, between representation and misrepresentation of gender. For example, Fergie's body in "My HUmps" is used to display just exactly what humps the Black Eyed Peas are talking about. It is a celebration of a woman's form and yet is a slightly tongue in cheek one in that, and certainly positions the male viewer in a negative light. I find myself covertly watching guys watching Fergie or indeed any other female star on music videos. Maybe I'm paranoid , but I certainly do not think I am alone and this 'paranoia' concerning what your guy is watching instead of you, is greatly influenced by the gender positioning of music videos. As to the representation of the female body itself, I agree that Fergie has every right to display her body in any way she chooses and in this case it furthers the 'narrative' of the music video.

However, it is inexcusable for videos to have women prancing around the screen in the skimpiest of outfits, and fawning over, lets face it, not exactly the most attractive men on the planet. This representation of women, who are simply present to emphasise the greatness of the male artist (various rappers and justin timberlake to be precise), is degrading and positions them simply as sexual objects, with none of the 'power' associated with star status (as in the case of Fergie, for example). The drooling male in front of the tv screen is a position, not simply implied, as in "My Humps", but naturalised and made the norm.

The latest Ne-Yo Video and track "Because of You", is a case in point. Ne-Yo's 'girlfriend' and 'bit on the side', while undoubtedly there to further the narrative, are not given the status of the female performer and are placed as objects whose existence is simply for Ne-Yo's pleasure. Certainly, the whole point of the song as far as I can understand it, is that Ne-Yo's dalliance is because his girlfriend wont give him enough (sex?) , so it is all her fault!!!! Hmmmm not exactly respectful towards women, and even less so towards men, who are placed as helpless, sex-mad beings who cannot remain faithful when a better piece of booty comes their way.

Just a thought
Kate Van NIekerk

the point of analysing

I agree with what Robynn Stilwell said in the panel discussion (reader) about how lyrics don’t usually matter to the average consumer of media. My problem with critical analysis by scholars is the extent to which it is necessary.

In film, music is used so purposely. Their lyrics can contribute a whole lot of meaning to many films, but average audiences rarely take notice of the lyrics because they’re so immersed in the visual narrative. It’s mostly scholars that read into the lyrics and take apart what filmmakers have carefully put together to create a seamless narrative flow.

But why? For what purpose is the critical writings of music in films? Why do we need to know how music assists or creates the film when all we really care about is whether we liked or disliked the sound in the film? Average viewers don’t read so deeply and aren’t trained to discover WHY the music worked or didn’t work with the film.

Jim Buhler claims his media experience is enriched with the critical analysis and discussion. Discovering how a text has been created visually and musically does have its perks I guess, the same way as understanding the intertextual references in media can make the viewing experience more entertaining. Life experiences and knowledge enriches a persons understanding of the media because they can take a lot more out of the film. For example, all the references in the retro scene of ‘Pulp Fiction’ were pretty unfamiliar to me and therefore I probably didn’t enjoy it as much as some others who knew the references and the history of the content. So media studies and critical analysis I suppose is the scholarly way of enjoying more through understanding better.

A question that hangs over my head is how much of the content that gets analysed was intended by the filmmakers? Are we making the world more complicated than it’s supposed to be by reading too much into the way the media reflects society and culture? Psychoanalysis, ideologies etc… What if the films’ lyrics don’t reflect the film but scholars analyse it until in some far-fetched way it does relate to the narrative? Geeze, why don’t we just ask the filmmakers what they intended.

I guess it’s important to have scholars, otherwise filmmakers would be putting in all this effort to include special references (such as lyrics) to an audience who wouldn’t ‘get’ it.

Sports Music

Watching the UEFA Champions League soccer on ESPN over the last few days reminded me of the use of music in sports clips on television. This might be a topic for those of you still seeking inspiration for a research essay topic. Wouldn't one of Christiano Ronaldo's goals for Manchester United seem different if it was shown with ambient electronic music or dub reggae rather than the usual sounds we hear? What makes some pieces of music work and others not? Heavy metal and propulsive rock and electronic music with a prominent dance beat above (I'm guessing) 140 beats per minute tend to be favoured. Sometimes opera and grandiose classical music give the big event more of an oomph. Female vocals rarely appear, even on those montages of goals, tries and plays of the week which sometimes emphasise the music rather than the commentary. Martial music with horns is popular since sport is like war in some respects. 'Extreme' sports like snowboarding and making almost suicidal jumps and somersaults on motorcycles tend to favour a punk indie grunge feel. Are these musics 'extreme' too or is it the associations of the musical subculture with the sport's participants? There does seem to be quite a variety of tunes used for sports visuals, just as there are for ads. I guess with YouTube and people posting their own video montages of their favourite sports moments, the range of music used will continue to widen. I'm not sure how to embed YouTube vids with text around it on this blog (someone can write to me if they have time--much appreciated) but what kind of music would you have for this goal?

Why do i scream??

Why do i scream??

Being a huge fan of The Beatles and bands in general I can understand this manic fan behaviour on a very personal level. As I am usually one of the screaming females pictured in the lecture it was interesting to analyse this behaviour as a media studies student and have a good giggle at their extreme facial expressions.

What I would like to address is why we as human beings find ourselves caught up in extreme emotions of love for others that we idolise. I constantly seem to surprise myself with my uncontrollable behaviour when band members walk on stage. Where does my passion come from? Why do I scream? C’mon Steph, get a grip its just MUSIC.

What about the obsessive fan, the one who becomes convinced that they can have a relationship with their object of affection. The anger that is derived from their rejected adoration can often have quite extreme repercussions. You only need to look as far as Eminems ‘STAN’, a scary reminder that the delusions of an obsessive fan can become more than dangerous.

There are exceptions of course. I am convinced the lead singer of The Mint Chicks, Kodi Nielsen, will fall madly in love with me at some point or another. I mean there has to be someone that scores sooner or later, right?

Major Label Exploitation

I thought Nabeel's post about the Bratz soundtrack opportunity offered by Geffen records makes for a great example of major label exploitation.

When reading through the 'terms and conditions' it is apparent that the artist selected will be paid nothing and lose all rights to the works used. So basically any artistic intentions that originally accompanied the work can be manipulated for whatever purposes the record label deems necessary....most likely advertising, promotions etc but as the terms are vague the realm of possibility is open to anything.

You may ask why this is such a bad thing if it gives the artist publicity? Surely this could then lead to a major label record contract, fame/fortune and the rest of it? The problem is IF the record company then decides to sign the artist, the artist has no choice but to accept their terms as they are legally obligated to sign with Geffen. And the likelihood of a major label offering an unknown artist a contract where they receive decent backing and support by the label? Very low. The most likely outcome is the band ends up another artist on the scrapheap pile of those exploited to make a major label money at very little cost to the label and huge cost to the band/artist.

I point you to an essay by Steve Albini: "The problem with music" where he explains how such a scenaro works. Steve Albini is an independent musician and engineer most well known for recording artists such as Nirvana, Pixies, and PJ Harvey. He also recently recorded NZ group Die! Die! Die!'s debut record.

Website Addy for Pop Tunes in TV Adverts

Hi Everyone,

Further to my previous blog - 'Thinking About Research Essay Topics'

‘Music and TV Adverts’ – Did Nabeel post a list of names of Songs/Music in TV Ads? His blog seems empty? (Posted on Monday, April 9.)

I’ve been trawling the net for research purposes… to examine what Popular Music / Songs are used in Popular Television Commercials.

Suggested Website Address:
For a list of Popular Song in TV Adverts, see – http://adtunes.com/

On the websites list of the ‘Top 10’ Advertisement Music for 2006, the following music tracks are featured:

1. ‘Remind Me’ - by Royksopp
2. Various Cell phone Rings!
3. ‘How Can I tell You?’ - by Cat Power
4. ‘Huddle Formation’ - by The Go! Team
5. ‘I Walk the Line’ - by Johnny Cash
6. ‘Galvanize’ - by The Chemical Brothers
7. ‘Supernature’ - by Goldfrapp
8. ‘Better’ - by Regina Spektor
9. ‘Mad World’ - by Gary Jules
10. ‘Rock Star’ - by N.E.R.D.

(Accessed: 04/04/07)

Many of the pop songs popularity – and the results of the website’s poll – were generated via iTunes and cell phone ring tones.

This is another trajectory to take… into the remix world of popular music, and the remediation of ‘old’ tunes into ‘new’ tunes. For example, the Gary Jules hit ‘Mad World’ is a remix of the 1980s pop hit ‘Mad World’ by Tears For Fears.

I’ll post more in a new blog entry soon, about what adverts feature certain songs. Any feedback about Kiwi Pop Songs in local TV Adverts would be great!!!!

bests,
Andrea Francesca
Student – FTVMS 323

"I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song."

WARNING: Contains pictures of Janet Jackson’s nipple.

“I’m gonna have you naked by the end of this song” Naked. Not quite. Perhaps just a glimpse of the breast will have to do. Ah yes the famous “wardrobe malfunction” between Justin Timberlake and Janet “nipple ring” Jackson during the halftime show of the XXXVIII Superbowl in 2004 .



Timberlake and Jackson both were performing Timberlake’s song “Rock Your Body”. Everything going smoothly till the last line “I’m gonna have you naked by the end of this song”, when Timberlake reached over to Jackson’s right breast and grabbed her costume and pulled it off to reveal her breast to the world. Shocking? Yes. Planned? Perhaps. But then why was Janet Jackson’s breast exposed while wearing a sun-shaped nipple ring to accentuate her nipple. Comfort perhaps? By the looks of the image it is not something you would wear to work in an everyday situation.

'Wardrobe malfunction' or not...is it really that much of a big deal?

Following this “wardrobe malfunction” the FCC created a ‘broadcast indecency’ campaign and fined CBS who aired this event US$550,000! And only days after this a lawsuit was made by Terry Carlin on behalf of “all American citizens who watched the outrageous conduct.” Although the lawsuit was later dropped – why make all the fuss in the first place? In an earlier blog someone mentioned that sex sells – and it does. The music industry, movies, and magazine sales all rely on the use of sex and sexuality to sell their product - and it works. But why the big deal? Just think of how many “sexual” images we see every day? – Are we that effected by it that we have to call up their company and fine them US$550,000?

A majority of people don’t think this is that bigger of a deal – so many parodies have been created of this including an advert made by American advertising company Crispin Porter. Their created an advert for Burger King, the rough plot was two people fighting over the new BK ‘spicy tender crisp sandwich’. One person rips the others shirt and a star shaped nipple piercing is revealed under his shirt. Now, if Burger King of all companies creates a national campaign to promote their burger– this must say to you that it is not a big deal.

A result of this event has led to some networks permanently delaying live shows by 5 minutes to prevent this from ever happening again. Which I guess makes sense. I mean, we’ve already had Janet expose herself; we’ve had the Tara Reid nipple slip and let’s not get started on Paris Hilton. But hate it or not – sex still sells...even if it’s not planned.

Any musicians who want their music in a movie?

A chance for unknown musicians to get their music in a Hollywood film, Bratz. But look how Geffen have locked the rights down so that the musician gets zero, zilch, nada from the work.

Exploitation or Empowerment?

There has been a lot of discussion on here about the portrayal of females in music videos, and it appears that most people think the way women are portrayed is an exploitation of their sexuality. However, I think it's important to note the difference in the portrayal of women in other, male artists videos (particularly rap and R&B artists), and then how the women are portrayed in videos where they're the stars themselves. There's been talk about The Pussycat Dolls being exploited, yet when you listen to their lyrics, it can be argued that they are empowered in their sexuality and that the dance moves and clothes (or lack of) in their videos show that they're comfortable in their skin and not afraid to show their 'sexiness'.

Another perhaps better example is that of Beyonce Knowles in her music videos. Again we have a female star who dances provocatively and displays her body to viewers. Yet, I find it hard to understand people thinking Beyonce is an exploited woman. She's one of the most successful female singers in the States, had her own mother as her stylist while in Destiny's Child, and refuses to bow to the pressure of being unnaturally thin in her industry. She was in fact interviewed on 60 Minutes on Monday night and is very comfortable with her body the way it is. I think in her case, as with most female artists, they display their body to show that they're proud of what they have and to portray it in a way that makes them feel sexy.

Sanjaya & his fanjayas

Could it all be going down the gurgler?

Gender Representation and the Silence of the Men

Over the course of reading everyone's (well, most) posts, I have been surprised by the absence of a male perspective on gender representation. The often cited video clips of Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and even Madonna, not to mention almost every 'mainstream' female music star there is, do contain an excessive amount of sexual activity and suggestivity. And criticism of this is justified. Yes, the objectification of women is a negative thing, but not solely because it exploits the women in front of the lens. In an equal capacity, it assumes certain traits about men, stereotyping them as much as it does women. When I see a billboard, TV advertisement, music video or magazine that presents women in a sexual manner, I am being interpellated as a straight and incredibly horny man with no self-control or respect for the woman in the media object (let alone respect for myself). Now, I am a straight man, and I am insulted by the pervasiveness of explicit sexuality in the media, this mindset that says "We know how to get your money, and we will get it, damn it!" The present situation is empowering to no one (unless your name is Murdoch or Packer).

Music Piracy is OK

How I Became A Music Pirate

Record Industry idiots

RIAA Goes After NINE INCH NAILS Fans Over Deliberate Leak Campaign

Sexual attractions on MTV

In the first blog, I was talking about the commercialization through the music videos but now I’m quite interested on body representation of women in MTV. The famous female singers like Beyonce, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Madonna and Jessica Simpson they express their sexual attractions through the music videos. Their music videos deliver the lyrics and it highlights the music however these days the female singers over-show their body with sexy costumes and dance in very sexual nature. Also the music video has been used to show Women’s attraction as body images. Theses days, more and more of young female stars are turning towards so called sexy trend as public embraces the idea of being half naked in the TV screen. As we can see from earlier images from Britney spears where she adopted young teen sensation look where she dressed as a school girl portraying the looks of innocent young school girl. However, as they progress into their careers, the demands from the public as well as from their own music companies driven by the sales and commercial endeavors, female stars are almost forced to sell their music with sexual images. From the transformation of these stars, we can see that music companies and marketing strategist still believes the old saying ‘sex sells’.

Guns of Roses - Sweet Child Of Mine

I can't quite remember if I've read anything about this before, and the topic was a few weeks ago, but I've only just watched this video again and came across some interesting points.

While watching 'Sing Along Classics' on C4 I saw for the first time in years Guns N Roses - Sweet Child Of Mine, the video of a video being made. There's a disjunction being used throughout the video of a music video and a band practice, with a black and white used on some cameras that capture the creating process. There are cuts between a camera looking up at Slash playing guitar and a camera looking at that camera looking up at Slash. The viewer suddenly realises they are watching a music video filmed by a bunch of guys in a room of a band playing their song.

Or are they

Another interesting aside was the use of this technique to make the performance look more natural, making it seem like they were just playing the song while the cameras were rolling. There is even a slight effect on Axl's voice that makes it sounds like they are in the big empty room they are playing in, but these are soon discounted as we hear the effects used only in the recording of the song on the voices and the multipul layers of Axl's voice in the songs break down. Slash's solo is also the exact same as he plays on the recording, so the viewer must realise it is a lip synced performance of the song.

The cutaways to outside images are done in an interesting photographic scrapbooking that uses a 'ken burns effect' on the camera (moving the camera over the static image) instead of having the subject matter move within the image.

Hope holidays are good for everyone, i'm sick of essays already

My E-mail help for your essays

Dear class,

I hope you had a good Easter break.

Just realized that I have a bit of extra time over the next 2 weeks that I hadn't expected. Therefore, I can actually spend some time giving you e-mail advice for your essays. So scratch the previous announcements about me being unavailable during the break. You can email me at n.zuberi@auckland.ac.nz

thanks

New Zealand Music Month is nearly upon us.......

Within a couple of weeks, three to be exact NZ Music month will be upon us, as we say good-bye to April and welcome the month of May. I think the whole concept is great “New Zealand Music Month is a celebration of New Zealand music. It focuses media and public attention on local musical talent”. For New Zealand music the publicity and promotion of our music is vital to its survival. The opportunity for local artists and bands to get publicity through live performances and concerts is important for not only local talent but to create public awareness and support. The great thing about living in Auckland is the access to seeing live gigs and performances during this month; with Auckland being the home of major record companies, music video production houses and live music performance venues, we somewhat have an advantage over the rest of the country. I think that the idea of New Zealand music month is in its essence creates authenticity and appreciation for home-grown talent to prosper, as with the influence of commercialization of music, the purity of music can be lost with the influences; with likes of Americanization and the focus of profit generated and not the music itself. The intensity of commercialization with downloading of music illegally, artists lose out both financially and creatively; therefore the decline in New Zealand music and the decline in artists. So bring on New Zealand Music month, as our music is great, we have great talent that needs to be nurtured and supported. (Just listening to the Mint Chicks, great album!).

reactable: basic demo #1

To paraphrase the Gap Band, 'Is this the future now?'

Music and TV ads

Songs used in TV commercials

Re-mediated Experiences: Power of musical memory

Media is always mediated. Relayed events are only versions of the event itself. Many versions exist of a single event because everyone’s experiences are different, altered by their vantage point (perception and cultural knowledge). Re-mediated experiences, like concert films provide only a version of events. The manipulation of footage through editing and inclusion of other documented information will again change the way the original event is understood and more importantly, remembered. The Wattstax document is like this. It combines edited footage of the actual concert with interviews, historical figures (Martin Luther King’s speech), art, photojournalism and other documented remnants of the period. This situates the viewer in a very specific context. The event of the concert is understood in relation to the added material as a historical event in the Black Power movement in the United States. As such the concert footage focuses on the audience as well as the performers. It is a documentation of their powerful and united response to the stimuli of music. Director Mel Stuart conveys a potent statement of what it is to be Black. Songs are used to punctuate important moments within the movement. Soul and Blues speak of power in the past, of a people who suffered and now are strong. Black Power meant, Stand Up and Be Proud. Music was a means to do this.

The Wattsax document affirms the concert as a united cry to be remembered:

"I am Somebody."