Possible Song Choices

One of the first steps in planning my music video is choosing a song for the video to accompany. After my audience research and my own thoughts I am keen to choose the direction of the Reggae genre. I have spent a lot of time trawling through YouTube, listening to the radio and searching SoundCloud for a song. After not making much progress, and not really being inspired by what I found, I asked myself 'what is the point in finding a song I'd never heard of and had no meaning to me?' I then tried a different approach... searching though my iTunes library!

I found some possible songs that could work well for my music video, and taking into account the information collected from audience research I have created a shortlist:

• Sean Kingston - Beautiful Girls

This song is an exciting fusion of Reggae and R&B coming together, such a classic song from a big Jamaican success, this song has been around since 2009 and it gets better every time I listen to it . It works well because my target audience said they were also interested in the R&B scene as well as Reggae. However, we were asked to avoid songs that already have a music video associated with it, and because of the age of the song it already has an official video, although because the video is outdated I was hoping to create a modern version of the song.  

• Cali P - Don't Give Up

Cali P works with one of Europe's top Dancehall producers, this song really brings out his Caribbean heritage with his strong Reggae style. I like this song because it has real meaning, and would be good to produce a video that has a strong message to it along side this song. However, this song also has a music video, but I could take the video in a completely different direction by analysing the lyrics carefully.  

• Cecile - Rise Up 

Very well known, current Dancehall artist in Jamaica. This song is quite recent so is yet to have an accompanying music video, which would leave options open for a new possible directions. It has a strong message to it, making it perfect for a Narrative music video! However, it is very much the strong Reggae style throughout making it very inflexible, also after my target audience research I feel they would prefer more than just the Reggae genre; a fusion of a few genres.

• Ms Dynamite & Shy FX - Cloud 9

https://soundcloud.com/digitalsoundboy/ms-dynamite-shy-fx-cloud-9

UK Garage and R&B sensation Ms Dynamite has returned to the music scene with this summary Reggae combined with R&B song. After seeing Ms D perform this live at a recent Major Lazer concert, I have fallen in love with this song. Because it is very new, it is yet to have a video made to accompany it. The genres work well together, matching well with my Target Audience's asks! I'm swaying towards this song choice because I think it could work really well and after looking at the lyrics I feel that a strong story line/message could be conveyed! 

Audience Research

Target Audience Profile

• Female 
• Age 16-21
• Middle Class - Student
• Sociable, enjoys partying with friends and visiting the beach
• High interest in music, keeps updated with new music
• Dresses to make an impression; bold patterns and colours, lots of jewelry and big hair
• Part time job, some disposable income
• Spends money on clothes (vintage, also highstreet; topshop, river island etc.), gossip magazines, beauty products; takes pride in her appearance
• Interested in the Reggae, Dance & Hiphop scene
• Enjoys going to gigs with friends

Target Audience research

I asked a number of questions to a sample of my target audience (female, aged 16-21, students etc) and from their responses I was able to identify their preferred genre, favorite artists, importance of the music video and how they find out about new music. I then asked them their opinion on Reggae music if they had not already mentioned it.

I also researched a few sample males of the same age group to compare their results with my female target audience. When asking the males what their preferred genre was they said; Rap and Dubstep, mentioning artists such as Eminem, Dappy, Zeds Dead,  Skrillex, Knife Party and Foreign Beggars. Whereas, when I asked my target female audience group, they said Reggae, Dancehall and R&B, and named artists such as Shaggy, Atumpan, Vybz Kartel, Rhianna, Ellie Goulding, Rudimental, Sean Paul, Sean Kingston, Bob Marley and Major Lazer.

One thing that was similar about both groups was their way of discovering new music - both groups identified the Top Charts on TV & Radio, Radio websites (upcoming artists) recommendations from friends, Soundcloud, YouTube and generally looking at other songs by a favorite artist or related music.

When asked about the Reggae genre, they all seemed to enjoy it, they found it fun and upbeat to listen to, making them feel very summery and positive. Some were unsure what the Reggae genre covered, but when given examples of a variety of artists under this genre they admitted they did listen to some of these on a regular basis.

I also discussed the importance of a music video, and what they felt is vital for a music video to include. There was a mixed opinion on the importance of a music video, some said that they didn't feel they were necessary because they didn't bother watching them anyway, however, others felt they were more useful as they could use sites such as YouTube to discover new music. The majority believed videos are key to an artist's success, that they can make a song more popular and they provide a chance for the artist to show their face and become more recognisable.

Typically the males said that they felt that women were a key part of a music video, and the female target audience group agreed, they also felt that attractive models/actors were vital.

Other key aspects that people thought were necessary were at least a few shots of the artist to help create an artist's persona; some fun or clever twist to keep the audience engaged; a story line to engage the viewer and make it memorable; live footage of a concert with a wild audience enjoying the music.

Other things that people said play a huge part included the idea of money and power; fancy clothing; women; fast cars and aspirational locations. However, a few people said that they didn't like the way artists show off and brag about the money and power they have, and felt they would prefer something that they could relate to, with less materialisation, less sexualisation of women and more positive hidden messages and story lines.

The audience research has been an important part of planning my music video - finding out what people want to watch and widening my views and ideas for my own music video. I will definitely take on board peoples' opinions when creating my final video to make it not only what I would like to see, but also what my target audience would enjoy and want to watch.

Reggae Artists

There are a number of different sub-genres within the Reggae genre, meaning there are also a large variety of different artist styles that produce Reggae music.

The most famous Reggae artist is probably Bob Marley, he was platinum selling and was the ambassador for the genre. He had poor Jamaican roots and promoted peace, justice and brotherhood in his Rastafarian religion. Marley was singing professionally at the age of 16, he experimented with the slow beat of Ska music, later making his own 'Rude Boy Music' and 'Rock Steady Style'. Sadly in May 1981 he passed away due to cancer. However his music lives on today, he is still a very popular, established artist. He is seen as the creator of the official Reggae genre, legend in the history of Reggae music. Here's one of Bob Marley's most famous singles- 'Three Little Birds'. He sings about peace, love and justice, in true Rastafarian style! The music video is very 'old school', a lot of black and white, old style televisions sets, a sense of being free, very un-materialistic which you can compare with a vast number of Reggae videos today where they are filmed in aspirational locations and very materialistic. Shows the change over time.

Another established Reggae artist is Sean Paul, he is more recent than Marley, and has a more Dancehall approach to the genre. He's been scoring top singles since 1996. Whilst growing up in Jamaica, Dancehall had always been his first love, although he was a sporting hero and had other career paths he could follow, he stuck with his love for Reggae music and today is a very well known artist who has worked with the likes of Beyonce, Beenie Man, Kelly Rowland etc. He has a far more modern approach to his music, the rhythm of his music is a lot faster to fit with the audience demands, his videos also feature a lot of materialisation; him in aspirational locations with fancy clothes and cars, women dancing seductively around him, predominately male gaze sexualising woman! In his music video for 'We Be Burnin', it shows him in a large desert with his fancy clothes and cars, also attractive women dancing wearing very little clothing!

A newer established artist is Major Lazer- a particular favorite of mine! The two DJs Diplo and Switch, joined together to form the group of Major Lazer, releasing their first album together in 2009. They combine a variety of genres together under the Reggae genre, usually fast beats and mainly Dancehall and Soca styles. They have a very modern and individual approach to Reggae. They still record and get inspiration from the heart of Reggae; Jamaica. In their video for 'Watch Out For This' you can see a lot of sexulising woman, however they have stuck with the original old style videos by incorporating Jamaican streets, with dancers, portraying a sense of community. Even if it is very materialisic with big jewelry and nice clothes, the roots of the genre still show.

Another of Jamaica's famous dancehall artist is Vybz Kartel (Adidja Palmer), much like the other artists his career started early as a teenager, in 1993 he recorded his first single. He also started his own liquor line of - Street Vybz Rum - how very Jamaican! One of his most famous singles 'Summertime' has a very typical Dancehall music video, the aspirational locations; beaches, swimming pools, the sexualisation of women dancing about in bikinis, and much like the others; him being the centre of attention wearing big expensive jewelry!