MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS/COMPARISON: Corinne Bailey Rae – Stop Where You Are & David Guetta – Titanium ft. Sia
The music video for ‘Titanium’ is set in a neighbourhood. The music video starts off in a school which has been destroyed and deserted. A little boy is cradled up in a ball. He wakes up and walks down the corridor, catching the attention of a teacher who hurriedly closes the door. It is clear to the audience that the boy has something to do with the situation that the school finds itself in. The boy starts to run away, and cycles home as the police are alerted by the teacher.
When the boy arrives at his house, his special powers are displayed, where he can move objects without touching them (known as telekinesis). The policemen break into the house, and the boy uses his powers to escape them. The video ends after the boy runs into the forest and the police finally catch him. The boy ends the video in the same position he started it; cradled up in a ball, this time on the forest floor. There is a large explosion as the video ends, of which the circumstances are unknown to the audience. We assume that this is how the original damage to the school was done. This video, despite answering some questions, still leaves some unanswered which adds to the mystery of the video.
The music video for ‘Stop Where You Are’ is set amongst many buildings, almost like a courtyard. In the video, the artist, Corinne Bailey Rae, encounters many people who you would tend to avoid, however, as the video develops, she shows that these people are not always like you think they are.
One person that she encounters is made to look quite rough and intimidating as he has tattoos on his face. Despite what most people would expect, he is actually proven to be kind and loving, as he strokes his dog with a smile on his face. There is another instance where a business man walks past a struggling, homeless woman, who shouts at him for not being generous. You would expect that the business man doesn’t care about her and is focused on going where he wants to be, however, he later appears with a cup of coffee for her and he sits down to have a chat with her. The whole video challenges the idea of these socially constructed themes we associate with people. It shows that not everyone is as they seem and ‘you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover’.
These two music videos have their similarities and differences. One similarity of the two videos is that they both present how people are viewed if they are different. In ‘Titanium’, the boy has supernatural powers and is always on his own. He is presented as quite lonely and the audience are led to believe this is due to his differences. In ‘Stop Where You Are’, there are a number of different scenarios where the audience are shown different characters who are perceived to be people that you would try to avoid, however as the video continues, we are shown that these people are no different to us and have just experienced tough times. This fits the whole idea of the music video: ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’.
The video for 'Stop Where You Are' displays many countertypes. These are the opposites to stereotypes. These are people that we would tend to avoid, however in the video they turn out to be the opposite to what we expect. For example, there is a man with tattoos who looks very tough and aggressive, however there is a shot of him later on in the video being loving and caring towards his dog. On first impression, we would not expect him to act like this. This relates to Bauman's representation theory, which states that identity as a reflection of society is problematic; there are too many variables. This means that we shouldn't judge people based on their apparent similarity to others because not everyone within a certain group is the same.
This is similar in ‘Titanium, as we imagine that the boy has something to do with the shooting. There is even a shot of a teacher on the phone who hurriedly closes the door after she sees the boy. The police also chase him throughout the video, however the boy comes across as quite innocent. If, for example, you were shown a picture of him, you would not expect him to be related to a school shooting.
One difference between the two is the speed and tempo of the songs, and consequently the frequency of cuts in the videos. ‘Titanium’ is quite a fast-paced song, so in the video there are lots of quick cuts to create a sense of excitement and speed. Added to the fact that the video is about a chase, this quick editing matches the video very well. ‘Stop Where You Are’ is quite a slow song, and as a result, a lot of the editing is very slow. There aren’t as many cuts as there are in ‘Titanium’, and the whole video is almost in slow motion. The speed of the videos suits the tempo of each song.
Another difference between the two videos is the way in which they are presented. ‘Titanium’ is more of a story; it is a sequence of events that all link together. ‘Stop Where You Are’, however, isn’t a story as such. The video shows many scenarios which don’t link together, but they still give an overall message (to not judge a person by what society perceives them to be). ‘Titanium’ follows Todorov’s theory of equilibrium. There is an initial disruption (the school shooting) that changes the original balance. There is an attempt to repair this (the police chase the boy), and at the end of the video, when the police find the boy, we estimate that the original equilibrium has been restored. The music video for ‘Titanium is presented as quite cinematic right from the start as there are black bars at the top and bottom of the video, which are used in films. This shows right from the start that the video will be a short film that will tell a story.
In Titanium, neither of the artists appear in the video. Sia is known for not showing her face, so by not appearing in this video, she is continuing that theme of not revealing her true identity. Fans of Sia would know this about her and would not expect her to feature in the music video because of this. It is all part of her persona that she portrays to her audience.
Corinne Bailey Rae is represented as a kind, loving and almost angelic person. There are lots of shots of her with the light shining over her shoulder. By singing the lyrics, she is teaching the audience of the message. The music video teaches us to act and behave like Corrine Bailey Rae does in the video. She doesn’t shy away from people that many of us may think appear unwelcoming or unpleasant.
There are many instances in the video of people that you would try to avoid who, as the video develops, are shown to be kind and loving (not how you would expect them to act on first glance). Corinne Bailey Rae said about the video: "I was just trying to write a song about being optimistic, really, about grabbing opportunity where it falls." She is trying to encourage the audience that not everything is as bad as you may fear it is.
When some people, particularly American people, first watch ‘Titanium’, I’d imagine that they would instantly draw comparisons with the Columbine school shooting in 1999. The whole video may evoke different thoughts from different audiences, however due to the amount of attacks like this that occur in the USA, the audience may react in this way. This reaction would be different to the reaction of a British audience, as we haven’t grown up seeing these stories in the news, so we may take a different glance at it.
‘Stop Where You Are’ would provoke a more general reaction from its audience, and the same can be said for the demographics and psychographics that make up that general audience. The message of the song does not change according to the type of person you are, or the type of life that you live. Your job or class can be completely different to another person, but you will both recognise the same message being presented.
In ‘Titanium’, there is intertextuality of the film ‘Home Alone’. When the boy is walking down the school corridor, it is very similar to a famous shot in that film. This film is very popular and well-known, so when people watch this video, it is likely that they will recognise this reference.
Also in ‘Titanium’, as the boy is riding his bike, there is a shot of two overweight women running in the street. The video up until this point was quite serious, so this moment of humour provides some comic relief for the audience.
The setting of ‘Stop Where You Are’ is all man-made. This reflects on the message of the song that all of our problems are man-made and can be solved.
In ‘Stop Where You Are’, as the first chorus is sang, Corinne Bailey Rae stops the group of angry girls in slow motion. This is to tell them to stop and think about what they are doing and whether it is really necessary. This reflects on the overall message to the audience; that sometimes, an angry reaction to the bad things in our lives is unnecessary.
When the boy arrives at his house, his special powers are displayed, where he can move objects without touching them (known as telekinesis). The policemen break into the house, and the boy uses his powers to escape them. The video ends after the boy runs into the forest and the police finally catch him. The boy ends the video in the same position he started it; cradled up in a ball, this time on the forest floor. There is a large explosion as the video ends, of which the circumstances are unknown to the audience. We assume that this is how the original damage to the school was done. This video, despite answering some questions, still leaves some unanswered which adds to the mystery of the video.
The music video for ‘Stop Where You Are’ is set amongst many buildings, almost like a courtyard. In the video, the artist, Corinne Bailey Rae, encounters many people who you would tend to avoid, however, as the video develops, she shows that these people are not always like you think they are.
One person that she encounters is made to look quite rough and intimidating as he has tattoos on his face. Despite what most people would expect, he is actually proven to be kind and loving, as he strokes his dog with a smile on his face. There is another instance where a business man walks past a struggling, homeless woman, who shouts at him for not being generous. You would expect that the business man doesn’t care about her and is focused on going where he wants to be, however, he later appears with a cup of coffee for her and he sits down to have a chat with her. The whole video challenges the idea of these socially constructed themes we associate with people. It shows that not everyone is as they seem and ‘you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover’.
These two music videos have their similarities and differences. One similarity of the two videos is that they both present how people are viewed if they are different. In ‘Titanium’, the boy has supernatural powers and is always on his own. He is presented as quite lonely and the audience are led to believe this is due to his differences. In ‘Stop Where You Are’, there are a number of different scenarios where the audience are shown different characters who are perceived to be people that you would try to avoid, however as the video continues, we are shown that these people are no different to us and have just experienced tough times. This fits the whole idea of the music video: ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’.
The video for 'Stop Where You Are' displays many countertypes. These are the opposites to stereotypes. These are people that we would tend to avoid, however in the video they turn out to be the opposite to what we expect. For example, there is a man with tattoos who looks very tough and aggressive, however there is a shot of him later on in the video being loving and caring towards his dog. On first impression, we would not expect him to act like this. This relates to Bauman's representation theory, which states that identity as a reflection of society is problematic; there are too many variables. This means that we shouldn't judge people based on their apparent similarity to others because not everyone within a certain group is the same.
This is similar in ‘Titanium, as we imagine that the boy has something to do with the shooting. There is even a shot of a teacher on the phone who hurriedly closes the door after she sees the boy. The police also chase him throughout the video, however the boy comes across as quite innocent. If, for example, you were shown a picture of him, you would not expect him to be related to a school shooting.
One difference between the two is the speed and tempo of the songs, and consequently the frequency of cuts in the videos. ‘Titanium’ is quite a fast-paced song, so in the video there are lots of quick cuts to create a sense of excitement and speed. Added to the fact that the video is about a chase, this quick editing matches the video very well. ‘Stop Where You Are’ is quite a slow song, and as a result, a lot of the editing is very slow. There aren’t as many cuts as there are in ‘Titanium’, and the whole video is almost in slow motion. The speed of the videos suits the tempo of each song.
Another difference between the two videos is the way in which they are presented. ‘Titanium’ is more of a story; it is a sequence of events that all link together. ‘Stop Where You Are’, however, isn’t a story as such. The video shows many scenarios which don’t link together, but they still give an overall message (to not judge a person by what society perceives them to be). ‘Titanium’ follows Todorov’s theory of equilibrium. There is an initial disruption (the school shooting) that changes the original balance. There is an attempt to repair this (the police chase the boy), and at the end of the video, when the police find the boy, we estimate that the original equilibrium has been restored. The music video for ‘Titanium is presented as quite cinematic right from the start as there are black bars at the top and bottom of the video, which are used in films. This shows right from the start that the video will be a short film that will tell a story.
In Titanium, neither of the artists appear in the video. Sia is known for not showing her face, so by not appearing in this video, she is continuing that theme of not revealing her true identity. Fans of Sia would know this about her and would not expect her to feature in the music video because of this. It is all part of her persona that she portrays to her audience.
Corinne Bailey Rae is represented as a kind, loving and almost angelic person. There are lots of shots of her with the light shining over her shoulder. By singing the lyrics, she is teaching the audience of the message. The music video teaches us to act and behave like Corrine Bailey Rae does in the video. She doesn’t shy away from people that many of us may think appear unwelcoming or unpleasant.
There are many instances in the video of people that you would try to avoid who, as the video develops, are shown to be kind and loving (not how you would expect them to act on first glance). Corinne Bailey Rae said about the video: "I was just trying to write a song about being optimistic, really, about grabbing opportunity where it falls." She is trying to encourage the audience that not everything is as bad as you may fear it is.
When some people, particularly American people, first watch ‘Titanium’, I’d imagine that they would instantly draw comparisons with the Columbine school shooting in 1999. The whole video may evoke different thoughts from different audiences, however due to the amount of attacks like this that occur in the USA, the audience may react in this way. This reaction would be different to the reaction of a British audience, as we haven’t grown up seeing these stories in the news, so we may take a different glance at it.
‘Stop Where You Are’ would provoke a more general reaction from its audience, and the same can be said for the demographics and psychographics that make up that general audience. The message of the song does not change according to the type of person you are, or the type of life that you live. Your job or class can be completely different to another person, but you will both recognise the same message being presented.
In ‘Titanium’, there is intertextuality of the film ‘Home Alone’. When the boy is walking down the school corridor, it is very similar to a famous shot in that film. This film is very popular and well-known, so when people watch this video, it is likely that they will recognise this reference.
Also in ‘Titanium’, as the boy is riding his bike, there is a shot of two overweight women running in the street. The video up until this point was quite serious, so this moment of humour provides some comic relief for the audience.
The setting of ‘Stop Where You Are’ is all man-made. This reflects on the message of the song that all of our problems are man-made and can be solved.
In ‘Stop Where You Are’, as the first chorus is sang, Corinne Bailey Rae stops the group of angry girls in slow motion. This is to tell them to stop and think about what they are doing and whether it is really necessary. This reflects on the overall message to the audience; that sometimes, an angry reaction to the bad things in our lives is unnecessary.
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