Disturbia

                                       

  "Disturbia" is a song by artist Rihanna, taken from the re-release," Good girl gone bad:Reloaded(2008）”, which changed Rihanna from a cute "girly girly" to a sexy adult, highlighting the fact that she had grown up and was no longer a "good girl". The song is an up tempo dance-pop and electro-pop song and it describes the general experiences of anguish, anxiety and confusion. 

      At the beginning of the video, there was a wired sound like fingers running along a piano. We can see a hand that had fingers painted black along with long fingernails paly along a piano. Then Rihanna appeared as a powerful woman, with a fan in her hand. She was all in black suit and sitting on a black leather chair appearing in control whilst her chair is spinning. This black suit and chair made her a character like Evil Entity who would control others and make people being possessed. There were also other strange characters surrounding her doing weird things. One example can be a man with one eye patch was spinning two wheels with his arm. Everything seemed in Rihanna’s control and a performance is just beginning. 

   

  She took pleasure in tormenting the possessed Rihanna, who was shown in many different ways in the video. On the one hand, the evil entity can be the dark side of the human being that tried to control their spirits and behavior. On the other hand, the evil entity and different characters of Rihanna in the music video represent Rihanna's different images and she want to change the typical image of audience and become a bad girl.

   

 When the music " dum dum di dum " appears, viewers can see Rihanna with short haircut and lens which make her eyes look white. Eyes is the windows to the soul. It means that Rihanna's soul was taken away by evil entity. She was behind the bars, representing the imprisonment of her free will and thoughts. She was depressed and spared no effort to escape from bars but failed eventually.

  

  

  The later part of video shows that Rihanna was rasied at arms in length above by crowds with hands reached out to touch her, which indicates that she is above everyone else and seemed untouchable like kinds of worship. And them a bunch of people were dancing in a robotic way, just like zombies. It seemed that Rihanna was controlled by evil entity and danced with other monsters and she has gone insane because she wanted to get rid of control but failed. After that Rihanna was attached a post and burnt at a stake, which shows that evil entity tried to torture her and destroyed her body and minds. At the second bridge of the video, Rihanna was wearing a bodysuit that made up of webs and then a spider crawed her body and the lyric " Am I scared you now", indicating that she wanted to show audience that she was not a little girl squeamished by spider and she eager to shock the audience.  At the same time, her hands and feeds was trapped inside the walls and ground and she wanted freedom so much. 

  This video demonstrates the dilemma of evil and possessed. The different Rihanna in the video is different images in different people. She wants to use this music video to breakthrough the preconceived ideas people given to her and creates a totally new Rihanna, who is an elegance, cold-blooded and mature woman. What does the image of Cleopatra represent? Why does the evil entity win at the end? 

For more information:

http://aurion-tenosai.deviantart.com/journal/Truth-about-Rihanna-s-quot-Disturbia-quot-Part-232056562   

Turn Me On

David Guetta Feat. Nicki Minaj

   France native, David Guetta has sold over three million albums and fifteen million singles worldwide. In 2012 he was nominated for two Grammy awards and was nominated for one Brit award. Turn Me On was released on January 27^th 2012 and features Nicki Minaj

   
     Solely from the title Turn Me On and the lyrics you would assume the song is about something sexual but the video takes another side as in turning cyborgs/Barbie’s on to be life-like and real. The main binary is the women within the video are or have been constructed as robot forms contrasting to David Guetta who is both male and human. This could suggest him being superior to the Barbie’s as this is his song or that he wants to turn them on for his own use either physically or sexually. Another difference is the focus on Nicki Minaj as a different Barbie compared to all the others trying to find and possibly destroy Minaj as if she is the “real” Barbie.

   
     This video correlates to the two cyborg videos watched in class because in the beginning Nicki Minaj was portrayed as a cyborg just like Lil’ Kim and Missy Elliot. It was interesting that David Guetta was the one responsible for constructing the woman/cyborg using what appeared to be a directions manual or recipe. Perhaps this is reference to the song being his work and she is merely featured. Another possibility is that men are the dominant gender within our society therefore they can control women and construct them as they please. Towards the end of the video the other Barbie’s seem to strip Guetta down to a robot like figure as well, this change could be to get back at him for something or that they want him to “turn them on."

The main story line of the video is about making Barbie’s real and turning them on, weather it is sexually or physically, such as making them life-like. When the Barbie’s try to ransack the building that David Guetta is in, it appears that the Barbie’s are trying to find the one that is not the same (Nicki Minaj). Nicki Minaj was made into a Barbie like the rest of them and they tried to find the real one and terminate her. Possibly the other Barbies that were trying to find her could be mess-ups or practice Barbie’s until Guetta created the perfect Barbie (Minaj). Within the context of the video the repeated lyric turn me on, is used as literally creating the woman (Minaj) or turning her on physically, as opposed to sexually like the lyrics entail.

    
    The end of the video is peculiar; the Barbies want Guetta to transform by stripping him to a wire form? Do they wish to make him into a robot as well to have sex with him? What was the effect of the male “Kens” within the video surrounding Minaj?


If you want to read another analysis of the video go here : http://popcrush.com/davidguettanickiminajturnmeonvideo

Pursuit of Happiness

         This music video stars Kid Cudi,  an African American rapper who grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. Born Scott Ramon Mescudi, Kid Cudi broke out into the hip-hop scene in 2009 with his debut album, Man on the Moon: The End of Day. This Gold album contained hits like “Day’n’Nite” and “Pursuit of Happiness”. Kid Cudi is signed to Kanye West’s GOOD Music Record Label. Kid Cudi is known to have struggle with the use of alcohol and marijuana in his past but has since turned a new leaf.

Smoke is the first and last thing shown in this video and remains present throughout. It gives a certain shady feel, which represents the haze of life. During the video, the haze acts as an element that merges his reality and fantasy, making it hard to distinguish between the two. At one point the haze settles to the ground and is rowed through as if it was a boat in water. Kid Cudi is in this boat with two other women who are directing it. This portrays how, in his pursuit for happiness, others took over his life and now it is not his own. It is controlled by a current of uncertainty and directed by others. This haze and misguidance hinders his ability to find true happiness by his definition. 

The couch within this video is shown repeatedly and is always being sat on in one form or another by Kid Cudi. The video portrays the couch to be a center of his world, a magnet that always is drawing him back. In the beginning of the video Kid Cudi is trying to get off the couch but ends up right back where he started. Each time he attempts to leave he gets one step farther, but as soon as he gets through the door he tries to find a different way to leave. This parallels the paths of life. As you go through life you take two steps forward then one step back. Once you hit a dead end you hit reset and go back to the couch. His relation to the couch is indicative of a relationship. At first he struggles to resist the pull to the couch. However, towards the end, he ends up accepting it and staying with it. This shows that the couch is and always will be a point where Kid Cudi belongs.

Once Kid Cudi makes it out of his room and into the world, it shows him at a costume party. Everyone but him is wearing physical masks. This plays towards the haziness of life. Kid Cudi, by not acknowledging the people around him, is showing that he doesn’t know or care who these other people are. What is not apparent, is that Kid Cudi, himself, is wearing an emotional mask, keeping himself cut off from others. This fact is paralleled by the little girl that follows him around. She displays no emotion, yet wears a sweater that is covered in what people perceive as materialistic objects that bring short term happiness. Kid Cudi realizes this and continues to search for the longterm happiness. 

        This video shows Kid Cudi rising and falling into a “dream space”.  Cudi can be viewed as a dreamer in his own pursuit of happiness. What do you think the binary between black and white means?  What is the significance of the little girl that follows Kid Cudi around?  What do you think Kid Cudi is actually looking for in his “pursuit of happiness”?  What is the effect of Kid Cudi basically going right back to where he started from every time he opens a door or leaves the room?

Dreamworld 3

I feel the video showed how having power (money) can ultimately give you whatever you want. Some women may act out of character, (letting men slap bologna on their butt) simply because they are willing to do certain things in order to get recognized. Clearly it  looks degrating, however, "some" of these women are putting themselves in this situation, making it look acceptable. At the end of the day it all comes down to men/women profit. America is not always pretty, that's just the way life is..

Response to Dreamworlds 3

I would like you all to post a thoughtful 4-5 sentence minimum paragraph about the film we watched today, Dreamworlds 3.  This is a space for you to agree, disagree, or offer ideas about how to counteract the problems that Sut Jally identifies in the film.  You can post this paragraph as either a separate post or as a comment on this post.

Another way to respond is you can think about how Jewel's video "Intuition" works or doesn't work (this is discussed in Dreamworlds).  Or how does India.Arie's video relate to the ideas presented in the film (the lyrics can be found here). 

Miley Cyrus- "Can't Be Tamed"

 

Miley Cyrus- "Can't Be Tamed"

Miley Cyrus started her career as an actress/singer on the Disney channel.  She has changed a lot since her younger days on the kid-friendly show.  Miley is now 19 years old and wants to be seen as an adult so she rebels so she is not seen as a child anymore.  In this music video “Can’t be tamed” Cyrus clearly expresses her rebel side. When this music video first came out people were making a lot of comments about how Miley Cyrus was presenting herself and what came off as "slutty" to a lot of viewers, however it reveals more than just skin.

            She's on display depicted as a rare bird, she's in a cage, and people are watching her closely. It seems like the audience is all rich people watching her as if they paid to see her. There are many different kinds of feathers; the group of dancers are also birds, the glass shatters when she walks past. Also, that she can fit through the bars of the cage so easily. Once she's out of the cage her wings/feather disappear and it's like she's a human outside the cage but a bird on the inside. There's also a scene where she's laying on peacock feathers and it looks like her outfit resembles a snake skin. Maybe she feels like she has the characteristics of many different animals. Also, this ability to switch between skins reveals her ability to be free and to not be restricted by what it is that she is depicted to be.
            The most obvious binary in the video is the human and exotic animal comparison. We see the people in the 'audience' viewing the exotic animals in the cage. There is also a binary of men and women and Miley is shown dancing with both. The use of light and dark is also shown throughout the video. Another example are the lyrics “I can't be tamed” while she is in a cage.
            One of the common themes that happens repetitively in the video, with help from the lyrics "I can't be tamed" is Miley Cyrus's intent to be rebellious against and unrestricted by anyone who tells her what to do or what is acceptable of her. By being rebellious she refuses to be controlled by rules that are set by individuals (the majority of men), but also by society in general. She shows this by dancing semi-provocatively on men and women which can signify that anything goes with her and that she does not want to follow the rules that are set forth for her to follow. She also says she’s a rarity like the bird on display. She’s one of a kind and she can’t be changed and this also seems to be what the video is arguing,” She “can’t be tamed” for anyone.
            She says she can't be tamed, yet she's in a cage. This video seems to be arguing that although individuals are wild and free they are tamed by a certain degree in society. Why put her in a cage that she can just walk out of?  Why would she go back in the cage once she is free? Does she feel like she has a tame side as well and that is why she went back in the cage? How do some of these ideas resemble the society in which we live today?

 

Another analysis of this video can be found here:

http://allisbrawl.com/forum/topic.aspx?pid=1638908

The Bad Touch

The Bad Touch - Bloodhound Gang

When most people hear this song they don't know the title of it or who sings it.  All people know of this song is the repeating lyric "let's do it like they do it on the Discovery channel." So who is the Bloodhound Gang?  They are a alternative/rap/comedy rock group know for primarily only this song.  Bloodhound Gang's videos are unusual in content, and this is no exception.  The setting takes place in Paris, the City of Love.  The video starts out with the group dressed as monkeys.  The gang members are not only dressed as monkeys but acting the part. 

The gang sings about doing it like they do on the discovery chanel.  The song is very primative and primal.  The monkeys first capture four models walking down the street and ambush them with blowdarts while hiding in a bush.  They then go on to capture three chefs buy using meat on a stick.  Two gay frenchmen are then captured; but this wasn't shown in the censored version.  The monkeys then go on to capture a midget mime using a net.  All of the captured people are thrown into a cage.  The monkeys seem to be mocking the people in the cage.  This seems ironic because it is the opposite of what happens normally at zoo's.  At zoo's people look in and taunt the animals, but in the video it is opposite.  The monkeys then let the people out of the cage to dance.  All of the people look forced while dancing, but then the mime brakes away and is chased by one of the band members in a car and run over.  The way that the people are treated in this video is the same way that animals are treated at zoo's.  If an animal escapes people chase the animal and kill it if they need to.  This video seems to be arguing the primative nature of humans and how we can't escape our primative animal nature. 

Common themes in this video include conformity and mammal instincts.  The humans show conformity by dancing for the monkey's at the end.  When the mime escapes you see him hit by a car driven by a monkey resembling the behavior of humans toward animals.  This is important to the song because a monkey is a mammal.  The cage can symbolize many peoples lives because many people live there life trapped by school, or work.  The monkey's are living and acting primative but seem to have escaped conformity that seems to cling to people.  Paris is a very traditional city and monkeys roming the streets doesn't seem to fit when we think of paris. 

Why is the song called the bad touch?  Why are monkeys chosen to represent the animals depicted in the video?  How would it be different if a female group sang this song?

If you want to learn more about the Bloodhound Gang and this album click the link below.
http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Bloodhound-Gang-Biography/E2A5C70842CFA804482568C700098CB3