If you want to brush up on postmodernism, check out this post.
Initial discussion - Famous by Kanye West - postmodern aspects
- Emphasis on intertextuality - presence of famous people, all notable for doing something controversial. For example, Taylor Swift, famous for her altercation with West at the VMAs.
- Style over substance - lack of deeper meaning, simply there to look strange. Intimate, handheld camera, VHS camcorder, connotations of home videos, of private family moments.
- Breaking rules of society/taboos - use of full frontal nudity, absolutely not allowed on network television. Voyeuristic aspect, creepy! Additionally, issues of consent. Individuals not informed of the nature of the video.
- Deliberately trashy aesthetic - despite it's cost, the video LOOKS extremely cheap, nasty and deliberately trashy. Perhaps a connotation of celebrity and glamour????
'Discuss how your three main texts are marketed'
Marketing examples for the music industry:
- Social media
- Music videos
- TV adverts
- Youtube spot adverts
- Spotify adverts
- Interviews
- Gigs/live performances
ARGUMENT - "I shall argue that my three artists use controversial and often outlandish marketing techniques to promote their music and ultimately to make more money".
Point
One example of a controversial and subversive marketing technique is the video to Famous by Kanye West. Released initially on the 2015 album The Life of Pablo, the video could be argued to be the epitome of postmodernism. Traditionally, a music video comprises of artists singing, dance routines and the use of colour. Music videos were popularised in the 1980's through American cable TV channel MTV, though music videos did exist in other forms beforehand. However, Famous differs from conventional music videos in a number of ways.
Evidence
Filmed using a handheld VHS camera as opposed to a modern, high quality digital camera, Famous looks cheap, nasty, and unpleasant. The picture quality is deliberately lo-fi, pixelated and extremely grainy. An extended wide angle panning shots establishes a range of sleeping, nude bodies. These wide angle shots alternate with intimate, voyeuristic closeups of nude body parts, further emphasising how uncomfortable the video is. Two minutes in to the song, the non-diegetic soundtrack ceases, forcing the audience to endure a diegetic snoring noise for a full five minutes before the song resumes.
Analysis
West's primary intention to create controversy by presenting the audience with shocking imagery, in this instance a range of naked, sleeping celebrities. At an enormous cost of $750,000 dollars, West commissioned the creation of a range of extremely realistic wax models. Not unexpectedly, the video instantly started attracting attention. The video currently has 25 million views on YouTube, despite the age restriction that YouTube has applied to it. Interestingly, the video has over 350,000 'dislikes', suggesting that the video is particularly challenging to audiences. The video provides the audience with a powerful gratification, that of social interaction, and allows them to discuss whether or not they agree with the dominant ideology of the text. By using controversial and postmodern elements, the video to Famous has reached a vast audience, and ensured financial success to Kanye West.