Monday, 15 December 2014

Historical Text and Research



NWA - Straight Outta Compton

This rap video is from 1988. The comparison between a video like this and those of Odd future are largely different. The conventional and historic rap music videos like this by NWA demonstrates and encourages violence and negative stereotypes that are not as strong in todays media. The video shows rebellious nature by those performing as the performers look serious and the main content is opposing themselves against the police, by doing this they are giving a negative connotation to the area they are proud to be representing... Compton, LA.

The negative stereotypes are emphasised by the use of lyricism, in which the performers express their hatred of the police by swearing and cursing. The name of the band also emphasises their rebellious nature as they are called Niggaz wit Attitudes.

Comparing this to an alternative rap music video like those of Tyler The creator we can see how the rap genre has evolved and other forms of rap music can still be accepted as these modern groups are also successful. In todays hip-hop there has been a rejection of some of the conventions that were one day making it seem like a negative genre. The rejections are those that of street videos and rapping about such raw content.

Music like that of Odd Future is more personal where rappers are talking about various other subjects rather than representing certain areas and being gangsters. the content of todays hip-hop is much more diverse than when the genre was still establishing itself. The music videos are not as serious as hardcore street videos and they are now produced on sets where the music video can be altered with
effects.

The clothes worn by NWA seem to be simple and plain sweatshirts that do not make them look like celebrities at all however an artist like Tyler, The Creator would wear colourful clothes including high socks and shorts as he enjoys skateboarding also. A rapper in this attire would have been heavily rejected by traditional rappers as this would make them look feminine and would not support the conventions of the genre.






Monday, 8 December 2014

Ferguson, R. (1998). Representing "race": Ideology, identity, and the media. London: Arnold. Gauntlett, D. (2002). Media, gender, and identity: An introduction. London: Routledge. Lacey, N. (1998). Image and representation: Key concepts in media studies. New York: St. Martin's Press. Malik, S. (2002). Representing black Britain a history of black and Asian images on British television. London: SAGE Publications. Perry, I. (2004). Prophets of the hood: Politics and poetics in hip hop. Durham: Duke University Press. Wingwood, G M. (2003). Prospective Study of Exposure to Rap Music Videos and African American Female Adolescents’ Health [http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.93.3.437] Johnson. J D. (1995). Differential gender effects of exposure to rap music on African American adolescents' acceptance of teen dating violence [http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01544683#page-2] Brown, J D. (2006)Sexy Media Matter: Exposure to Sexual Content in Music, Movies, Television, and Magazines Predicts Black and White Adolescents' Sexual Behavior [http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/117/4/1018.short] DuRant R H. (1997). Tobacco and alcohol use behaviors portrayed in music videos: a content analysis. [http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.87.7.1131]

Bibliography

Rap music and street consciousness
By: Keyes, Cheryl Lynette.
University of Illinois Press
2002



Black noise: rap music and black culture in contemporary America
By: Rose, Tricia.
University Press of New England
1994


Bleep! censoring rock and rap music
By: Winfield, Betty Houchin.
Greenwood Press
1999


Droppin' Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture by William Eric Perkins

The Hip Hop Years: The history of rap By Alex Ogg

Free Stylin': How Hip Hop changed the fashion industry by

Hip Hop Culture in College Students Lives by Emery Patcheur



Culture and gender inequality. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Jan. 2014
Children & Violence – Calouste Gulbenkian
Continuum – Vol 18, 2004, 4th Dec 2004
Discrimination in wealth and power intergroup structures. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Jan. 2014.
Rose, Tricia. The hip hop wars: what we talk about when we talk about hip hop--and why it matters. New York: BasicCivitas, 2008.
Clay, Andreana. "Keepin' It Real: Black Youth, Hip-Hop Culture, And Black Identity." American Behavioral Scientist 46.10 (2003): 1346-1358. Print.
Keyes, Cheryl Lynette. Rap music and street consciousness. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2002. Print.
Railton, Diane, and Paul Watson. Music video and the politics of representation. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2011. Print.
Weitzer, Ronald . "Misogyny in Rap Music." Misogyny in Rap Music. N.p., 19 Feb. 2009

Magazines

Media Magazine Issue 45, September 2013.

Media magazine Dec 2012, Issue 42.
Internet


G. Armstrong, Edward. "Gangsta Misogyny by Edward G. Armstrong - JCJPC, Volume 8, Issue 2." Gangsta Misogyny by Edward G. Armstrong - JCJPC, Volume 8, Issue 2. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013. <http://www.albany.edu/scj/jcjpc/vol8is2/armstrong.html>.
Revisionword.co.uk, AS & A2 Sociology, Revision Content, Young.



Authenticity within hip-hop and other cultures threatened with assimilation


by K McLeod


http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=2HkEnRhRPCkC&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=alternative+hip+hop&ots=eAFSzkRkTz&sig=uJGNLYtKF6DU6Vs_DGgJMQ5UtlU#v=onepage&q=alternative%20hip%20hop&f=false

Contextual Analysis




The music video starts of with a still image of  a 'GOBLIN' logo. This may tell us that the artists represent a brand called goblin or could even connote that the viewer is about to watch something scary. The video then starts with a close up shot of a road sign saying 'nil bog' which is 'goblin' backwards, now indicating the video does represent a brand. There is also diegetic sound as we can hear cars go past. In the same scene the camera zooms to the right hand side of the road showing a long shot of three men gambling, one of the men starts to sing, indicating he is one of the artists in the song (Frank Ocean). The scene then changes to a close shot of the man rolling dice and holding money in his hand that makes it clear he is gambling. The scene then changes to a woman moving into a house, and we can see the that the three men are looking at them. This gives us a indication that the song is about this woman. The scene then changes to a close up of her face and she is smiling at Frank Ocean meaning that she is happy to be moving in near him, or suggesting that they may have had a previous relationship of some sort. The girl is then escorted into the house by an elder man. The scene then changes to a shot of the artist and the woman in bed however he pushes her to the side and looks out the window and we can now tell that time has passed because it is now dark. He also sees this man in a balaclava and therefore rings the police describing that he has seen some kind of goblin. there is a slide scene that shows a policeman listening to him on the phone. The next scenes show that the girl is angry because the man is not with her now and she even seems to be angry with her dad, she lies down in her room alone with the door shut meaning that she needs her own time. She eventually falls asleep and the man seen at the window with the balaclava has appeared and is now also rapping indicating he is the other artist (Tyler The Creator). He then reveals his face raps the song to this woman even though she is sleeping and cannot hear him, while doing this he also smells some of her clothes and tells her to meet him by the lake by writing the message on her window. He has probably avoided waking her up because she would freak out and cause an uproar within the household. The next scene is a 180 degree pan that shows Tyler running out the house, so fast that he trips to a wall where frank is sitting down near some flowers observing what is happening. The scene then changes to a daytime of a shot of Tyler riding his bike really fast with some of his friends behind him, this switches to a shot of the woman riding her bike calmly with her friends, indicating they are both going to the lake. The scene then changes to both of them at the lake until the music stops and tyler realises it is a dream. Tyler and his friends get arrested which could be a result of Frank calling the police earlier. The scene next shows Tyler in the police car eventually being brought to the neighbourhood he was stalking this woman. The police men get into a brawl with an elder man that could be the woman's dad, This is a distraction so tyler starts to speak to the woman and now she looks unimpressed until he compliments her, there is nothing else to say and they are both smiling and Tyler is looking at the camera. The video finishes by zooming out into a television frame making out that all of this was a short film. We can then see the same woman watching this on her sofa. The camera then slowly zooms out to show Tyler again in his balaclava looking down at her. Throughout the video the lighting was tinted slightly blue in the daytime to give us a feeling of gloom. whereas other shots were mostly at night or inside with very dim lighting.

Overall this music video has amazing cinematography, the video in various scenes makes the viewer intrigued by the way scenes have been moved on the the other. The eccentric concepts in the video also make it appealing to viewers. We can also relate that the 'Goblin' logo and 'nilbog' sign post are parallel with the theme and concept of the whole video. The video also leaves the viewer on the edge due to the cliff-hanger at the end when we find out that all of this was being watched on a television by the same people in the film.

Monday, 24 November 2014

Equillibrium Theory by Todorov

Two step flow model

Anti Feminism

Narrative Theory 

Mulvey - Male Gaze

Vladmirr Propp - Characters

Genre 

http://ishannandraunit4.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/tutorial-targets.html

Thursday, 20 November 2014

Tutorial Targets

Tutorial Targets mainly consisted of using media theories and more examples to be applied to research carried out

Equillibrium Theory by Todorov

This can be related to Tyler the Creator as he started of as an alternative hip hop artist, and then he broke through to the mainstream ideology of hip hop when his name began to grow however he is now establishing himself as an alternative hip hop artist. 

Two step flow model

Tyler the creator is an opinion leader with different views of the genre and music. This can be supported by interviews like those on the Larry King show, in which he describes his diverse nature. He is a successful opinion leader as he is capable of selling out shows and he has pop up shops throughout parts of Europe.



Anti Feminism

Antifeminism is an ideology that is broadly defined as an opposition to feminism or some aspect of feminism. The meaning of antifeminism has varied across time and cultures and it has attracted both men and women. Antifeminism may include beliefs such as general hostility towards women's rights, the belief that feminist theories of patriarchyand disadvantages suffered by women in society are incorrect or exaggerated, or that feminism as a movement encourages misandry and seeks to harm or oppress men.

Tyler has been accused of being an anti feminist due to some of his lyrics in songs that oppose women, however in interviews he has stated that it was nothing of a serious nature. 

Narrative Theory 

Tyler, in all videos has a different concept and does not just make a video for the sake of it. there is always a story with some acting besides the music. His albums which are named as Bastard, Goblin and Wolf all have a narrator who is called The Therapist. So even his albums are known as being one big story.

Mulvey - Male Gaze

Generically in hip hop music videos there is a male gaze as women are mostly portrayed as sexual objects however this is not the case with Tyler as his videos are alternative. However after mainstream success he has altered this slightly and there are women who are apparent in his videos. However they are not portrayed in the way how other rappers would want to portray females,


Vladmirr Propp - Characters

Tyler the Creator is often accused as being the villain in hip hop culture due to his adverse feelings about the genre and the way he chooses to make music and connect with his fans in a different manner compared to everyone else. 

Genre 

Tyler, the Creator makes Hip-Hop/Rap music. He often mimics the generic themes of 

rap in his own music like mocking other rappers that talk about typical things like 

money, women and power. Generally in Hip-Hop music  artists like to glorify things 

they find amusing however Tyler, the Creator mainly speaks about family problems 

and how he feels towards his friends which is an alternative approach of lyricism. I 

think that the general hip hop audience would not have initially regarded Tyler as a 

proper rap artist thus he is also regarded as a maker of alternative hip hop.

Monday, 3 November 2014

Notes and Quotes

Media Texts

Tyler, the Creator; a controversial artist in the industry and may do things differently to his musical peers.


"How can we make Odd Future look as edgy as possible, if losing all sense of self-respect isn't an issue?"

"Odd Future, or as their aunties know them, the Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All expletive expletive" 

"Is this the future of rock'n'roll? Teenagers queueing politely for a shop?"


You can't really ignore Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. Well, you could, but you'd have to not use the internet and not read any press. They are everywhere

And you should hear their records. No, you really should. For sustained and diverse brilliance, only the Wu-Tang Clan with their numerous side projects come close, and even they weren't this precocious (Odd Future are aged 17-23) or prolific.

There are two albums by the Jet Age Of Tomorrow, who specialise in light'n'breezy cosmic lounge funk; two collections of by turns psychotic and psychedelic crunk by MellowHype; two albums of hi-tech latterday G-funk by Mike G; some blunted beats and experimental studio play courtesy of Domo Genesis; even a suite of exquisite R&B with soul-baring lyrics from Frank Ocean

Then there are the three Odd Future compilations (The Odd Future Tape Vol 1, Radical and Some OF Shit) that have hinted at what OFWGKTA are capable of, and the two solo works that have made it explicit: Tyler's Bastard and Earl by Earl Sweatshirt.

Bastard is ghoulish, but it's also rather gorgeous, with its stark piano lines and pillowy keyboards. There is misogynous loathing of the most extreme kind, and there is suicidal despair, all wrapped up in murderous tunes and expressed in that viscous growl, like Rakim with all the nutritional elements removed. In this writer's opinion it is one of the best rap albums ever made, free or otherwise.

What about Tyler: how does he do it? Inspiration for the plaintive atmospheres and mournful violins, he explains, comes from "a bunch of French jazz, old soundtracks, library music, shit with crazy chord progressions and changes in it." He adores Roy Ayers: "Listening to him, it's like, 'How the fuck did he find that?' That shit's tight." There are elements in his productions that rap fans will recognise – the murk of Cannibal Ox, RZA's haunting strings – while others may hear in its billowing synths echoes of chillwave

 (Toro Y Moi even produced a "chopped and screwed" version of Tyler's track French). "I listen to Washed Out, Beach House andBroadcast," says Tyler. "That's what I'm influenced by. [That's why] the music is a mixture of pretty chords, fuckin' hardcore drums and basslines, and really nice strings."

It was Fader and Pitchfork who first picked up on OF. They were rejected by the hip-hop blogs, and Tyler is less enamoured of the form ("I respect it but I don't really like it"). He seems happier with the notion of OF continuing a legacy of rock radicalism rather than fitting into rap history
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/mar/17/tyler-the-creator-arrested-claims-incited-riot-sxsw

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/may/08/odd-future-tyler-creator-rape

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jul/25/tyler-the-creator-review-offensive-base-level-brilliance


From their earliest videos to their DIY aesthetic and the punk energy of their shows,Odd Future are a shining example of success for creative young people everywhere. Their commitment to creativity across mediums has put them in an enviable position—they have incredibly loyal fans who will buy their music, go to their shows, proudly wear their clothing, and be sure to watch their Adult Swim TV series, Loiter Squad. 
OF have turned an online following into a real, tangible movement, and it doesn't hurt that they have a fantastically talented young rapper, an incredible R&B singer, and a genuinely magnetic leader in their ranks.

Genre

Tyler, the Creator makes Hip-Hop/Rap music. He often mimics the generic themes of rap in his own music like mocking other rappers that talk about typical things like money, women and power.

 Generally in Hip-Hop music  artists like to glorify things they find amusing however Tyler, the Creator mainly speaks about family problems and how he feels towards his friends which is an alternative approach of lyricism.

I think that the general hip hop audience would not have initially regarded Tyler as a proper rap artist thus he is also regarded as a maker of alternative hip hop.

Lyrics


Music Videos

Yonkers

Video shows eating a cockroach, something that rappers would not normally do, the eccentric video caused him to revieve an award beeting wiz khalifa

She

jazzy chord progression and syrupy vocals from Odd Future associate Frank Ocean sneakily conceal its stalker vibe and crass lyrical conceit.

A music video named “She” starts of with a still image of  a 'GOBLIN' logo. This may tell us that the artists represent a brand called goblin or could even connote that the viewer is about to watch something scary. The video then starts with a close up shot of a road sign saying 'nil bog' which is 'goblin' backwards,

 now indicating the video does represent a brand. There is also diegetic sound as we can hear cars go past. In the same scene the camera zooms to the right hand side of the road showing a long shot of three men gambling, one of the men starts to sing, indicating he is one of the artists in the song (Frank Ocean).

The scene then changes to a close shot of the man rolling dice and holding money in his hand that makes it clear he is gambling. The scene then changes to a woman moving into a house, and we can see the that the three men are looking at them. This gives us a indication that the song is about this woman.

Tamale

Whole video set on stage, bright colours used and there are no normalites of a generic hip hop video.


Certainly, the beats have improved – Tyler's devilish gurgle drizzled like honey over bright jazz-funk keys and thunking J Dilla-like percussion. In part, it's deeper storytelling . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . .


If you can get past that tic, there's plenty to admire on Wolf, particularly in Tyler's self-produced beats, where jazzy chords rub up against fractured noise. 


This relatability and strong audience/artist bond, and the diaristic nature of his rhymes, make him as much emo as hip-hop.
 His place in the indie music landscape is oddly most reminiscent of Salem, another gothic, often-derided group beloved by a core of committed young listeners but shrugged off by those with a more developed perspective.
In short, he's made this record for alienated kids like himself. If you don't already like his music, you probably won't like Goblin. And that's apparently the way he wants it.
But musically, it’s almost oppressively mid-paced, veering between Neptunes-style beat minimalism ([b]‘Nightmare’[/b], [b]‘Tron Cat’[/b]) and curdled takes on silky ’70s rare groove legend Roy Ayers (notably, the actually rather gorgeous [b]‘She’[/b], featuring Odd Future’s R&B crooner Frank Ocean).
Over eerie piano and synth notes that drip-drop like Japanese water
torture, he zigzags through the story of his 20 years to date

One of those stations will be FlyLo FM, hosted and mixed by Flying Lotus. It features the new track "Garbage" by Tyler, the Creator, as well as new music from FlyLo himself and his rapping alter-ego Captain Murphy, plus music from Clams Casino, Hudson Mohawke, Aphex Twin, Outkast, and more. Check out the tracklist for the station below, plus a montage of what to expect from the station, above, along with the station logo. We also have photos of FlyLo and Tyler recording for the station, below.
Shows how alternative music and hip hop is being accepted on massive platforms including big video games like grand theft auto that are available on ps4 and xbox.
Producer and rapper Flying Lotus has been given his own radio station in the forthcoming Grand Theft Auto V computer game. 

FlyLo FM will be one of 17 different stations featured in the game, and as well as featuring his own music - including tracks under his Captain Murphy pseudonym - the station will play songs by 
Tyler, The Creator, Outkast, Aphex Twin, Hudson Mohawke and Clams Casino, reports Pitchfork. 

Institutions
Tyler was first signed to XL recordings and they were responsible for the release of his first album called Goblin.
 He also signed a joint venture deal for his own label called Odd Future with RED distribution and Sony Music Entertainment. His latest album released on his own label sold more than 90,000 records in the first week of sales.
The albums were released digitally through iTunes. They were also made available in retail stores such as HMV.

There is also music that has been released under the Odd Future label that can be available for free download via the odd future website.. . . .