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Music video case study – Dizzie Rascal: Dream
Genre and audience
Research and summarise the genre – conventions, influence, audience and key artists
Dizzee Rascal is a solo rap artist within the genre of hip-hop and R & B. Dream was released as a single in 2004, taken from his second album called Showtime – The song samples lines from Happy Talk which is a single released in 1982 by Captain Sensible. The music video was directed by Dougal Wilson, who is an award-winning director of commercials and music videos.
- Dizzee Rascal’s target audience would predominantly be young people as the majority of his songs are based around rapping which appeals to young teenagers over adults. By relating the music video to an old children TV show implies that this song may be aimed at an older audience who remember the show as most young people would’ve never heard of it – this shows his music applies to a range of audience depending on the style of song.
Narrative and iconography
What is the main narrative and message of the song, and how is this added to or altered by the visual elements of the video and the techniques? Does this video subvert or confirm the message and content of the song?
- Dream combines both performance and narrative – the narrative is linear (stories in a logical manner) and has several disruptions as well as a resolution to reflect the dominant message of triumph over diversity through commitment to a dream. Therefore saying that if you work hard at something, no matter the stereotypes or what people say you can and can’t to, you can eventually achieve your dream.
- The video features a female pianist who directly addresses the audience, introducing Dizzee Rascal and singing some lines from Happy Talk. She acts as a presenter/ narrator – her views and opinions reflect the ‘typical’ or ‘expected’ response of an older audience to rap music. Throughout the whole video her facial expressions show how she feels towards the language and music involved in the video – there are a variety of camera shots and angles that cut to her face during the video which shows contrast between older people and young teenagers.
- During the video Dizzee Rascal performs and directly addresses the audience, also commenting on the narrative and actions of the puppet characters. By directing the lyrics to the audience it shows the message he is trying to get across is important because he is trying to involve the audience in the situation.
- The images are highly illustrative, often featuring a literal interpretation of the lyrics e.g. ‘off license’, ‘young babymother’. This adds to the sense that a vivid story is trying to be told – it also means that the audience can understand and piece together the meaning of the video.
In the music video, there are two ‘worlds’ the respectable 1950s sitting room and the contemporary city setting – through the use of props and puppets on the grand piano. The period setting of the sitting room is established through the mise-en-scene of the striped wallpaper, floral curtains and grand piano connoting a middle-class environment that contrasts dramatically with the contemporary setting of the narrative. The stereotypically socially deprived, inner-city environment is constructed through the set and props on the piano e.g. off license building with letters missing, graffiti. There are many props that reference childhood:
· Pastel coloured building blocks at the beginning and end of the video.
· Musical box from when Dizzee Rascal emerges and returns to it at the end of the video when it is covered in stars connoting his success as a music artist
· Toy police car and helicopter
· Puppets – Muffin the mule, youths, policeman etc.
The use of iconography of childhood establishes a sense that the video is a story with a clear moral message. This coupled with the juxtaposition of the 1950s references, helps to distance the audience – there is little attempt to create the truth of illusion of reality – it is clear that it is a constructed narrative.
- Dizzee Rascal begins to use the microphone prop, where he talks about gaining air time. The microphone connotes power – Dizzee Rascal’s voice can now be heard both literally and metaphorically which signifies a move away from deprivation and rebellion towards achieving his dream and becoming a respected member of society. The use of simple props and iconography such as the nightclub signified by the disco ball and dimmed lights, constructs distinct and recognisable settings to illustrate the lyrics and communicate meanings.
- The video reinforces the stereotypes of young people misbehaving and anti-social behaviour as well as reinforcing the idea that old people disagree with the rap genre of music. When he says the lyric “In the days hanging outside the off-license” – described when he was younger and used to socialise with his friends outside the shop that sold alcohol. The following line also exclaims what he used to do in his teenage years and how he now regrets the way he acted. The lyrics and video progress as he become more popular in terms of his music and he craved the fame so he carried on in clubs, radio stations etc. The songs last verse is Dizzee motivating people like him to chase their dreams and “put their mind to it” because it is exactly what he did. So, there is a close link between the lyrics, the video and the stereotypes they are trying to present in the video, the progression of the song starts quite negative as Dizzee feels stupid and corny about what he wants to sing about but by the end he is happy with what he said as it is both encouraging and reassuring.
Representation
How is ethnicity, age, gender and class represented in the video? What binary oppositions are created or shown in the video between stereotypes?
The video features many postmodern elements, juxtaposing 1950s children’s television characters with familiar modern iconography such as the nightclub and off-license, and a matriarchal older female with a young male grime artist. This creates a fable-like quality to the video, as Dizzee Rascal tells the story of the development of a successful career.
- Postmodernism is a movement that was developed in the mid to late 20thcentury and refers to the fact we no longer have any sense of the difference between real things and images of them – media reality is the new reality.
The pianist is constructed as a stereotypical, 1950s white, middle-aged, middle-class woman through the mise en scene of her upright posture, formal jacket and hairstyle. She fulfils a matriarchal role and uses quite a patronising mode of address ‘hello boys’ and girls’ – especially when she says ‘he’s such a rascal’. She looks horrified when the helicopter flies past her face which shows her stereotypical British reserve – she doesn’t like invasion of her personal space and is not used to encountering antisocial behaviour. She reinforces dominant messages and ideologies – smiling her approval on the positive elements e.g. when she holds her his album.
- Dizzee Rascal is represented as a rebellious young black male through his dress code of wearing a tracksuit and a hoodie with trainers. He appears to be stereotypically defiant youth who challenges authority through the lyrics ‘reckless with no shame’. As the narrative continues a more positive representation of Dizzee Rascal is constructed as he describes his strong sense of purpose, hard work and achievement. The positive representation of a young black male rapper challenges many negative stereotypes of this social group. Other parts in the video show creative, less destructive behaviour such as kicking around a football and break-dancing which establishes him as a role-model.
- Positive messages and values are within the representations: the power of pursuing a dream is connoted when he is in the recording studio and the police officer is banging on the window but cannot reach him which suggests that music offers protection from the harsh realities of the outside world. Similarly, in the night club scene, the puppet characters, including the policeman are all dancing harmoniously which connotes the power of music bringing people together. Many clear stereotypes are constructed through the puppets to create recognition and humour as well as conveying specific messages and values. Youths are constructed as irresponsible and having no purpose in life – skateboarding, spraying graffiti, stealing the TV. The scots character - in tartan and red hair – is constructed as a drunk with a lager bottle. The police officer is constructed as a brutal, baton-wielding white male, beating a youth in a style that references ‘Punch and Judy’.
- The puppets are attached to strings linking to the notion that this story is a story but also suggesting hierarchies of power and control are stereotypical, possibly pre-ordinated roles. This raises questions about key issues in modern society such as crime, antisocial behaviour, underage sex etc. and how these can be tackled. Therefore the lady is seen as the puppet master controlling the lives of the young teenagers as they are the puppets – which reinforces stereotypes of the views and relationship of the old and young generation.
Intertextuality
What cultural or media references does the video and song make and why?
Cultural contexts – the video references the 1950s television show Muffin the Mule, which was a children’s TV show which aired on the BBC from 1946 -1955. It was presented by Annette Mills who sand and interacted with a puppet mule and other characters who appeared on her grand piano – in the music video there is a clear resemblance between the female actress and Annette Mills, the puppet mule is also featured as well as a similar set to Muffin the Mule. The use of these references creates an innocent, child-like backdrop to the video which contrasts with the contemporary issues and problems depicted.
- The references to the 1950s children’s television, especially the use of direct mode of address by the pianist, ironically position the audience as children being told a story. Dizzee rascal also intertextually references Captain Sensible, who recorded Happy Talk in the 1980s when he says ‘This is too sensible for me, man’ as he climbs out of the musical box – these references could create a sense of nostalgia and pleasure for viewers who recognise them.
Social and cultural contexts
The representation of the white, upper middle-class pianist reflects 1950s Britain when people in positions of power tended to belong to hegemonic (dominant in political and social context) social groups. Dream is also interesting to consider in the context of the post-war period in Britain when many people from the Caribbean, as well as India and Pakistan, moved to Britain to work and British society was becoming more ethnically diverse as a result of this period of immigration. The 1950s reference create a sense of distance and allow the audience to view the video as an symbol and understand the use of quite extreme stereotypes as a way of exploring modern/contemporary issues e.g. police brutality was a common occurrence in the past but it has also become more frequent in contemporary society.
Theories
Barthes – Semiotics
Many of the images illustrate the lyrics but connote deeper meanings in relation to the more abstract notion of working to achieve a ‘dream’. The idea of myth relating to the use of iconography such as the ‘hoodie’ which, over time, has become recognisable as a symbol of youthful rebellion.
Levi-Strauss – Structuralism
There are many binary opposites such as the young black male vs the older white female which can reflect the idea of hierarchies of power in society. The female is physically bigger than Dizzee, due to the difference in scale – the older lady shows disapproval of the anti-social behaviour and approval of the positive actions. She retains this power as he gets back into the box at the end despite his success in his music. Other oppositions include youth vs police – this has some/better resolution because they are all dancing together at the end. The central message of working hard to achieve the dream is another binary opposite – anti-social behaviour vs hard work and dedication – by trying to achieve a ‘dream’ it reflects the dominant ideological message that hard work offers an escape from social deprivation.
Hall – representation
The video deliberately constructs the puppet characters as stereotypes to exemplify the way in which these social groups are often represented and also to demonstrate that these stereotypes can mispresent individuals from these groups.
Gilroy – postcolonialism
The construction of the white matriarchal children’s TV presenter and the young black male ‘rascal’ is interesting to explore in relation to postcolonialism theory especially in the social and historical context of the 1950s and increasing ethnic diversity in Britain. The narrative embeds positive messages as well as values which creates the representation of a successful rapper and subverting the negative stereotypes of ethnicity. However, the female can be seen as in control since Dizzee is miniscule – but arguably he uses her for endorsement as the end of his album. While the story suggests that 21st century Britain is an inclusive and multicultural society, the repeated shots of the TV presenter looking shocked and her patronising tone towards Dizzee Rascal imply that society is not yet fully integrated – there will always be that tension between the young and old generations and how they/ we act to certain behaviours.
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