The genre of this music video is hip-hop and is also the genre of the artist. There is also a typical narrative which is followed throughout the duration of the music video. What we could expect from this video, would be close up's and long shots of the artist preforming, and shots to show the location he is in, what we wouldn't expect from this video would be slow paced editing, as the song itself is fast in tempo. The narrative which seems to be seen within this music video is the following of the artist throughout his location, which ends with people being placed in jail, and himself being shot. The themes presented within this narrative are of stereotypical views on ethnicity, and more precisely the young African-American population within the location the music video is located to be filmed in. In regards to TODOROV this music video shows the stages 2-4 are used with regards to their being a problem, with the artist, the recognition of the problem by the police, and then the resolving of the problem by the police when they shoot the artist.
This could also be taken to show connotations of how people still deal with racism, and that it is still a problem within society as, for example, the artist has been shown to of committed no crime, however he is being shot down like a criminal. The characters are also recognizable, for example, the male artist and such smaller characters such as the policeman, are shown to be recognizable to audience members.
The lyrics are reflected by the music video which also falls into the codes and conventions of Godwin's theory, which is point number two, with the relation between video and lyrics. This is point number two, because on the lyric 'I've got 99 problems but a bitch ain't one' we are shown a group of obscenely dressed women, who are represented to be the 'bitches' he is talking about in the lyrics. The representation shown within this music video is the stereotypical view on age and gender. Age, when shown in this music video, is stereotypical as the younger generation are seen to be spray painting buildings, and causing havoc around the location (for example huddled within intimidating crowds and preforming styles of dance outside of an abandoned building), this then leads on to the connotations of the younger generation to be seen as violent and to have no self control or responsibility to their actions, therefore hitting the criteria of a stereotypical representation. Gender is also shown to be a stereotypical representation due to the women being obscenely dressed causing the music video to fall under the stereotypical view that women and seen to be elements of beauty and possessions for the alpha-male to, in theory own. (This can be shown with the shots of the three women all dressed in obscene clothing which could be associated with underwear and/or bikini's.) The artist has been constructed to be shown as a celebrity, and is therefore shown in many close up's and low angles which has connotations of his power, and dominance over the locations the music video has been placed. When looking at visual codes and where the location is, we are able to understand that we are within New York, or more to the point Brooklyn Bridge, which is shown within a low angle of the artist as he walks on the bridge, and also the close up on the sign saying Brooklyn Bridge.
The piece is not set within a period (such as the 1800's) which can be shown due to the shots of cars, and the artist within a shop containing technology.
A dominant colour used within this music video is the colour grey which shows connotations of neutral surroundings, and lack of energy, which is shown to connote the artist's feelings towards the issues in the lyrics, for instance women and also other authoritative figures. This lack of energy towards women can be explored to shown deep connotations of how he has been in love and been hurt, and therefore, since the love ended he hasn't been himself, and feels drained from the whole aspect of 'love' and therefore '99 problems but a bitch ain't one' and the use of grey is his way of putting his feelings on paper, and is also then able to move on to enjoy life with the type of women he labelled as 'bitches'
There is iconography used within this music, for example the Brooklyn Bridge, which allows audience members to identify where the location is set. By using Brooklyn Bridge it allows identifies to the audience to where the music video is going to be set, and also has connotations of power when shown with the artist walking in the centre, this is because it allows audiences to see the connotations of power and dominance that the artist has over the location, for instance the meaning from the low angle shot could also have the connotations of how the artist has control over the city of
Brooklyn, and by showing the artist on a very iconic part of the city, allows the audience to identify his power and control.
Using a low angle of the artist on the Brooklyn bridge and also in the middle of a street which has connotations of his power that he has over the city, and that he 'owns the streets' which again shows connotations of his male dominance over the and those within the street he is shown in. Also the use of a hand held camera at points in the music video allows to have a more of an element of verisimilitude compared to some music video's who do not contain hand held footage. The editing used in the music video fits the song, and also helps tell the narrative, for instance when the artist is talking about a police man pulling him over, there are shots from long, to medium of that happening. For the video itself, and not the lyric content, I would put the video to have the audience of young adults (15+) because however the narrative and structure does not present themes some may find disturbing, there are some scenes of a sexual nature, e.g. the obscene women.
The audience is targeted by this video due to using codes and conventions from Godwin's theory which the target want and expect from the video, for example the use of obscenely dressed woman, and hand signs and gestures made by the artist. I would also place this target audience in terms of demographic at E-D. This will help me with my editing as this music video has a lot on editing, and therefore I can use this music video in aid for when I come to editing on the beat of the song I choose.
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