Music Video: Old Town Road CSP

 Lil Nas X: Old Town Road Official Movie





Lil Nas X - Old Town Road: Blog tasks

Background and cultural contexts

Read this Vox feature and podcast transcript on Lil Nas X and Old Town Road. Make sure you read the whole thing - including the podcast transcript - then answer the following questions: 

1) What is the big debate regarding Old Town Road and genre? 

The song has been classified as 'country rap' - a hybrid genre not usually seen in the mainstream. The Billboard magazine country chart disqualified in on the grounds it was not country, sparking debate about genre-bending records. 

2) What do you learn about the background of Lil Nas X and Old Town Road from the podcast transcript?

He started out as a soundcloud artist then eventually bought the track of Old Town Road for 30 bucks and turned into a song which went viral on TikTok.

3) What is the Yeehaw agenda?  This is a social movement started by online pop culture archivist Bri Malandro. She created an Instagram account to celebrate black cowboy aesthetics in popular culture and reclaim black identity in a notoriously white genre. 

4) How did the story become a debate about race in America? 

It started off from the Yeehaw agenda.

5) How does Charlie Harding sum up the whole thing in the final part of the podcast transcript?
This initially started off as a meme and caused a debate on whatever or not this was country music.

Now read this Salon feature on Lil Nas X and LGBTQ+ identity. Answer the following questions:

1) How did Lil Nas X announce his sexuality on social media? He came out as gay in a series of tweets and encouraged fans to listen to his new song c7osure.

2) Why does the article describe Old Town Road as 'genre-blurring'? 

This doesn't fully convey the stereotypes of country music and also conveys the stereotypes of rap music.

3) How has country music demonstrated the social change taking place in American culture and society? 

Country music has now broken the typical stereotypes. 


Old Town Road textual analysis

Watch the video again and answer the following questions. Use your notes from our in-class analysis to help you:

1) How is the narrative features used in the music video? Apply narrative theory here.

disequilibrium- homeowner attacks Lil Nas X and his friend BIlly Ray Cyrus while they are crouching next to his house. 

equilibrium-  He jumps through a portal to escape and lands in some random black neighbourhood.
2) What examples of genre conventions and intertextuality can you find in the video?

The cowboy hat and clothing connotes western country genre. This also conveys back to future vibes due to the time travel aspect.


3) How are technical codes used to create meanings in the video? Analyse camerawork, editing and mise-en-scene and make specific reference to moments in the video.

The pink suits questions typical masculinity conventions and potentially altering it. 

4) How are representations of race and ethnicity constructed in the video?

The homeowner in the start may be constructed to be somewhat racist due to getting overly aggressive to him. The line dance scene constructs a sign of equality due to all the white people following the dance to Lil Nas X.

5) What other representations can you find in the video? You may wish to comment on gender, sexuality or America/American culture. 

Masculinity can be played on upon here because Billy Ray Cyrus is often seen through in a pink suit. Lil Nas X seems to wearing an exotic suit which can be purposely wore in order to question his sexuality.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mise en scene analysis

Image
  1) Find a distinctive   still image   and write an analysis of the mise-en-scene. Use each of the aspects you've learned in the lesson. The lighning is very bright and vibrant to emphasise the danger upon the human at the top and it is much darker in the bottom to show the ominous nature of the shark.The setting is in the ocean which conveys the normal area for a shark to attack in. The actor is placed directly above to the shark to foreshadow the upcoming doom they are about to face. The actor is shown to be in a swimming motion and is desperate to escape. 2) Find  TWO  film or TV extracts on YouTube from different genres (e.g. horror, sci-fi, costume drama). Embed them in your blogpost and write a comparison of the mise-en-scene in each.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3lSvJ5RXKA -Scream. The actor is wearing a very casual clothing to express the normality of  the household setting.The main prop being used is the mobile phone to call the stranger. The prop of popcorn is used
Read more

400 words for script for page 4

The wait has finally ended ladies and gentlemen! We are pleased to welcome director Bob Smith into our home studio for a short interview about his new crime drama "Mercenary" interviewed by the one and only Mark Steve. MS: It's a pleasure to meet you Bob, tell us about your new crime drama release featuring on Netflix. BS: Nice to meet you Steve! Yes, I'm thrilled to be here today so the name "Mercenary" is actually a synonym for the word "hit-man" which sounds much less exciting and exhilarating to the audience. Mercenary isn't like your typical action drama like Top Boy. The show is trying to highlight that even these stone-cold killers experience emotional trauma and draws onto the dark nature of that industry.  MS: That sounds interesting! Never heard anything like that before. I view that as you adding a twist onto the crime drama specially after viewing that spectacular trailer that has the audience all hyped up behind. Tell us more about
Read more

Music Video: Introduction

Image
  This week's work requires  Media  Factsheet #69: Music Video . You'll need to log in to Google using your Greenford Google account to access this.  Read the factsheet and answer the following 10 questions: 1) What is the purpose of a music video? This is meant to be a form of promotion to sell music copies to the audience. 2) How has the digital age changed the production and distribution of music videos? In 1981, you would need to the assistance of a large music industry firm to produce and distribute the video onto MTV. However, in 2005 this all changed due to the release of YouTube. Anyone could produce and distribute music videos globally. 3) Which three major record labels are behind VEVO? What is VEVO and why was it created? UMG, SME and Abu Dhabi Media. It was formed to bring all music videos together. 4) What are the key conventions of a music video? The style The lyrics connecting with the visuals Objectifying women Scene en mise Narrative 5) How can narrative be use
Read more