RESEARCH: Overview of Costume, Settings and Location

The first music video I chose was Leona Lewis 'Run'. 
This music video is very simple and not complicated at all. 

Use of costume:
Throughout the entire video, there is not a single costume change. She is in the same dress for the whole video and her hair and make-up is also the same throughout. Although there are no costume changes, the dress is symbolic and links very well to the lyrics of the song. The dress is black and dark purple which are two dark colours, that are perfect since the song is about a broken heart. The costumes link to the locations as they also have low-lighting and reflect a saddened mood. 

Use of setting and location:

The video contains two main locations; a rocky road by the mountains and the forest. Both locations are very gloomy and seem like they are distant from civilisation, which curiously matches the dress as it is also something that we would not wear on a day to day basis. Both locations seem to be quite unknown and that makes the video more revealing and interesting. The locations definitely match the the song and are not too typical. Also, there is a moment during the song where the sun shines through the forest trees when the song begins to get louder. It also matches the lyrics of the song at that moment and made me appreciate the idea of the video much more. 






Use of props:
This video does not have any props at all. I think this is appropriate as it is a ballad about a heart break and the focus is solemnly on her dress and the locations. I think if there was to be a prop, it would perhaps just be a microphone or an old love letter. 


The second song I analysed was 'Kiss Kiss' by Chris Brown.

Use of Costume:
In this music video, Chris Brown plays two different characters and as a result of that, there are 8 costume changes. The costumes are very well arranged and thought our and match the songs structure. For instance, whenever T-pain's verse comes up, we see him and Chris Brown together on screen. Also, when the chorus comes up, we often see Chris Brown and a group of boys dancing in the school gym; this happens frequently.The costumes are perfect for the settings and locations because it is set in a school and the clothes he wears resemble young teens. There is a scene where he is playing rugby and he is wearing the appropriate clothing to do so in. Some of the things he wears are very typical in the RnB genre. He wears big jackets, bandannas and trainers which is typical in this genre.

Use of setting and location: 
There are a few locations through this video. They are all in an american high school. The locations consist of a school gym, a school corridor, the outside area and the school's car park. These locations are not too typical in the RnB genre since the videos are usually in clubs or more adult venues. However, the locations do link to the costumes Chris Brown is wearing as they both resemble high school and teenagers.


Use of props: 
In the video, there are many props that help to determine the genre of the song. Although I mentioned the locations not being very RnB typical, there is one main prop that is very typical. The use of the car in the video although it is set in a school shows some conventions of RnB music videos. The use of the car links in with a specific verse that talks of a car. It also links in with the locations as there are props like a rugby ball that links in with the fact that they are on school grounds. 



The third song I chose was 'Hot and Cold' by Katy Perry

Use of costume:
Throughout this video, there are three major costume changes. The first costume she is in is a wedding dress. Since the song is about commitment and making decisions, I think the costume is appropriate. There is no specific verse-chorus-verse structure, the costumes simply change as the video goes on, however it does come back to the bride dress at the end of the video. As the song is a pop song, the costumes are quite typical as usually they go along with the song and according to the story. 

Use of setting and location:
Whilst watching the video, I realised that there were roughly 5 different locations. The first location of the music video is in a church. The location goes perfectly well with her first costume and therefore allows us to make sense of what is going on. The locations used are not very well known to me as i do not live in America, however it may be for people who live in that area and that may attract them to watch the video. 


Use of props:
Katy Perry uses a variety of props to make her video come all together. One of the props she uses is a bouquet of flowers when she is at the church. She also uses a microphone and a microphone stand. Having a microphone stand is extremely cliche in pop videos. Also, it was very appropriate to use the microphone in that specific scene as she was on a stage and the location seemed to be a concert hall. 




I noticed that when the songs are slower, there are fewer costume changes as well as fewer locations, When I was analysing Leona Lewis' song in comparison to Chris Brown's song, I noticed how different the costume and location changes were. Chris Brown and Katy Perry's songs had many more location and costume changes as they are faster songs. 

Leona Lewis's song was a pop song, nevertheless it was a ballad. Chris Browns song has  influences from RnB and Katy Perry's song was also a pop song. The fact that Leona Lewis's song was slower immediately affected how many times there was a costume change and how it was styled. It was expected that Chris Brown's and Katy Perry's songs would have more costume changes because they are faster and the story of the songs are more positive. 

The use of setting and location were different in all three videos. The locations in Leona Lewis' video were darker and fewer. This is due-to the fact that it was a ballad and the lyrics were related to a heart break. Compared to Leona Lewis' video, Chris Brown's video and Katy Perry's videos are much faster and the fact that one is RnB and the other is pop means that they are faster songs and will therefore have more costume changes. This is also because RnB and pop songs will usually have a more positive message or be more happy in comparison to ballads. 

The use of props in ballads are not very significant because they want the focus to be on the artist at all times and the artists facial expressions, If there were props, they would steal some of the attention. However, in Chris Brown's video, the props made a huge difference and gave a whole new meaning to the song. The car was the most important prop in Chris Brown's video and without it, it would not have perhaps attracted certain people to watch the video. In Katy Perry's video, the props like the bouquet of flowers at the church and the microphone on the stage helped the video to make more sense. Without these props, the video would have not been as believable and fun to watch.