Thursday, 24 November 2016

(Task 2.1) Beyoncé - Formation: Analysis

A brief insight on Beyoncé's career would that that overall she has been a very radio friendly and politically correct artist. However not only does Beyoncé talk about controversial topic(Black lives matter) she also uses unfriendly and what could be seen as offensive language in her lyrics with words such as "Negro". 
Implications to women's rights are also made. 
This theme of women's rights can be seen in the lyrics "Okay ladies now lets get in formation". This lyric signifies the unification of women to stand together. This connotes to unifying to fight for equal rights in modern dilemmas such as equal pay and discrimination. However her exclusion of white females and exclusive use of African American women throughout the music video suggests that her connoted message is for black women only. This exclusivity could be due to the idea of white privilege. Highlighting and connoting to the fact that Black women have it 'worse' compared to their white female counterparts.
Genre
The genre of her song is that of bounce music. As can be seen declared on the songs wiki page. Bounce music is a style of 'New Orleans' hip hop style which is said to have originated in the 80's. This choice of genre is fitting due to the depiction of location in Beyoncé's music video. The location depicted is that of New Orleans in the time of disaster it faced when the devastating Hurricane Katrina. The Hurricane took many lives and caused a shock wave through Black communities due to them feeling abandoned and mistreated by their government. This is due to the lack of effort the government had to help prepare for the Hurricane

Characteristics
Beyoncé's formation has a couple of solid characteristics. Her music video is constructed as a live performance. Beyoncé performs with back up dancers in her usual style of dancing, which is also a common convention in pop music in our modern industry. This is due to the fact that it engages the audience and catches their attention when watching the music video, whether it be on TV or on the internet resulting in more exposure.
Her music video is also very abstract due to its non linear nature as it is shown going forwards and backwards in time with little coherence or clear direction.
Style 
Beyoncé uses mise en scene to show different time periods in black culture. This can be seen in scenes such as that which depicts her being in a slavers house. Which were primarily large estates surrounded by,more often than not, cotton farms, where the slaves would pick the cotton and stay in manor. Furthermore the apparel and costumes used also give a strong indication on what time period Beyoncé is trying to express. However not only does Beyoncé use mise en scene she also uses editing to tell the audience what time period we were currently looking at. This can be seen where an overlay is used to give the impression that we are looking at an old TV due to its grainy display and flickering lines. Furthermore, by having the word 'play' displayed in the bottom left of the screen this strongly gives the impression that we were watching a VHS tape. Which indicates that the time period would be the 70's as it was one of the main media formats used at that time.




Meaning
Beyoncé conveys meaning in her music video through connotations in her lyrics and also with her provoking use of imagery. She gives meaning to the empowerment of women, discrimination against black people and meaning to the issue of police brutality.
The issue of police brutality is most clearly seen in the shot where the camera slowly pans from left to right to reveal a wall with the graffiti denoting "Stop shooting us". This slow pan from left to right draws our attention as an audience to the message, the shot is left long enough for the audience to acknowledge and think about the message. 
This shot of the graffiti is then immediately  proceeded by a shot of Beyoncé on top of a police car. By being on top of the police car, Beyoncé sends the message of how black people will triumph over the adversities presented by police brutality. The shot of Beyoncé sinking with the police car symbolises that black people will 'go down' with what they believe. And will take the police down with them if need be. This can be seen throughout America in areas with large black communities, outrage and riots have become a common occurrence throughout the black communities. An article by the national review  furthers this by exploring and discussing the violence and how recently its been on the rise.
Taking a look at her lyrics we can see how Beyoncé promotes the empowerment of women and the reversal of gender roles.

"When he fuck me good, I take his ass to Red Lobster, cause I slay"

"If he hit it right, I might take him on a flight on my chopper, I slay"

"Drop him off at the mall, let him buy some J's, let him shop up, 'cause I slay"

"I dream it, I work hard, I grind 'til I own it"




Beyoncé, with these three lines, challenges the norm of gender roles and flips it to a bipolar opposite. In modern society it is often seen that men are seen as providers/the more dominant sex. However Beyoncé goes against this by saying she will take out her 'man' to treat him to nice things. Take him shopping, take him out to meals and let him ride in her helicopter if he 'satisfies' her. She states how she'll work hard and earn her dreams, expressing how she doesn't need a man to live her life. And also that she is an independent hard working black woman.
This is further conveyed in the line
"You just might be a black Bill Gates in the making, 'cause I slay
I just might be a black Bill Gates in the making"
This lyric tells the audience that her independence and hard work to fulfil and pursue dreams is a message to all her fellow black women. Beyoncé's empowerment of woman however can be seen as racially excluding due to her lack of empowerment for white women  and focus on Black lives only.


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