Genre Research - Hip Hop

Hip Hop / Rap Hip hop music also called rap music is a music genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted.

The term hip hop music is sometimes used synonymously with the term rap music, though rapping is not a required component of hip hop music; the genre may also incorporate other elements of hip hop culture, including DJing and scratching, beat boxing and instrumental tracks.

Origins:
Hip hop as music and culture formed during the 1970s when block parties became increasingly popular in New York City, particularly among African American residing in the Bronx.


Rapping is a vocal style in which the artist speaks in which the artist speaks lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized beat.


DJ Kool Herc, was one of the earliest hip hop artists.



The Golden Age of Hip Hop:
Hip Hop's golden age is a name given to a period of mainstream hip hop usually cited as between mid 1980s and the 1990s said to be characterised by its diversity, quality, innovation and influence.

Here are some artists from the golden age of hip hop:

• Public Enemy
• Boogie Down Productions
• Gang Starr
• Big Daddy Kane
• The Jungle Brothers
• Wu Tang Clan
• N.W.A

Modern Hip Hop:
The popularity of hip hop music continued through 2000s. Dr Dre is an important figure in the hip hop genre and in the year 2000 he produced The Marshall Mathers LP by Eminem. Dre also produced 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' in 2003 which debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 charts.

There are many successful hip hop artists today:

• Kendrick Lamar
• Eminem
• A$AP Rocky
• Jay Z
• Drake
• Kanye West
• Action Bronson
• Joey Bada$$
• Chance The Rapper
• Danny Brown
• Childish Gambino

Some of the main video conventions of hip hop music include:

• Voyeuristic images of women
• Close ups of artists
• Dancing
• Editing on the beat
• Frequent drug use
• Exotic setting
• Connection between lyrics and visuals

Initial Ideas

As a group we discussed what we would like to be shown in the music video and what ideas we have in our heads that we would like to incorporate. We suggested the idea of having the video location set at the beach with a female lead. We would include close up shots of instruments such as a guitar being played to split up the shots involving the female singing the lyrics. Another shot we would like to use would be having the camera placed in a car whilst driving to result in a moving shot of a country road. 

Permission for use of track

We asked our artist, Emma Stevens, for permission of use of her song 'Riptide' via Facebook. We found her Facebook page and thought it was a good opportunity to send her an inbox message explaining our situation and why we would like to use her song. Her response was this.

Research Genre - Pop

POP

Pop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of "popular") originated in its modern form in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll. As a genre, pop music is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles including urban, dance, rock, Latin and country nonetheless, there are core elements which define pop. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), as well as the common employment of repeated choruses, melodic tunes, and catchy hooks.

David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as "a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz, and folk musics". According to Pete Seeger, pop music is "professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music". Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. Thus "pop music" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.

Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre:

• an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology
• an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal "artistic" qualities
• an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance
• a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments.
• much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythms

Some music critics, social commentators, and music industry insiderS give indication that modern pop music is declining in quality. This decline can be seen in the waning music sales, public opinion polls, time studies and declining concert attendance. Furthermore, research shows that pop songs are becoming more homogeneous—that is they are tending to sound the same—and "that the number of chords and different melodies has gone down", as musicians have become less adventuresome in their songwriting. Specifically, since 1955, "Musicians today seem to be less adventurous in moving from one chord or note to another, instead following the paths well-trod by their predecessors and contemporaries."

CONVENTIONS OF POP VIDEOS:-

-Pop music videos are generally performance based
-More or less about the artist and the artist will be the spotlight of the video through performance or narrative.
-Full of lots of bright colours, clothing, props and a lively way of editing the video
-The pop genre itself is very upbeat, fun and light hearted to appeal to a younger audience
-Artists are usually dressed in the current trends and fashion in stylish mainstream outfits.
-The videos will show close ups and mid shots of the artist to show innocence
-In a location which shows positiveness and good mood, for example friends houses, beaches, clouds etc.
-Usually have some sort of narrative like parties and teenage crushes e.g. lady gaga, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift.

CONVENTIONS OF POP GENRE:-

They are clothed in fashionable, stylish and mainstream outfits.
-They are normally portrayed as happy, and that they are enjoying life.
-Music genre is normally conveyed through the video dressing and setting.
-Pop songs are usually between 3-5 minutes long with a set structure and a consistent beat,
-Follow the current trends rather than being independent and making something new and unique.
-The form of pop songs will most usually follow a verse, chorus, verse structure making the song catchy and therefore it will stick in audiences minds. 

Emma Stevens-Riptide Lyric analysis

Similar Artists

  Similar Artists to Emma:

Taylor Swift:

• Taylor Swift is a country / pop singer songwriter signed by big machine records. As we can see from the two pictures, they look very similar. not only do they look similar but they are very similar artists as they both are country / pop singer songwriters. 
• Emma's song riptide is very upbeat and catchy just like Taylor swift's 22, Shake It Off. In this aspect these two artist are very similar.

In one of Emma's music videos we can see her singing on a beach whilst playing with a guitar. Taylor swift's videos also feature her singing whilst playing the guitar. videos from both of these artists included mid shots of the artists with their guitars plus close ups of instruments.

• Both Emma and Taylor are in there 20s and this is reflected in their style of music as their songs very catchy and in the pop genre which tends to appeal to younger people. Therefore their target audience and the main demographic of people who listen to their music are the same.

Three Music Video Analysis

Budget Britney