Ed Sheeran (consideration of tracks)

Ed Sheeran

Ed's album '+' was released on the 9th September 2011.

Track List:

1. The A Team
2. Drunk
3. U.N.I
4. Grade 8
5. Wake Me Up
6. Small Bump
7. This 
8. The City
9. Lego House
10. You Need Me, I Don't Need You
11. Kiss Me
12. Give Me Love
13. Autumn Leaves
14. Little Bird
15. Gold Rush 
16. Sun Burn

Ed Sheeran has already released music videos for the following tracks: 'The A Team', 'Drunk', 'Small Bump', 'Lego House', 'You need me, I don't need you', & 'Give Me Love'.
I have highlighted the songs that do not have music videos yet, as these are the songs I will be considering for my own music video.

I am considering using either 'Kiss Me', 'U.N.I' or 'Sun Burn' for my chosen track. They are all about love, however 'U.N.I' and 'Sun Burn' are about a break up. They use a lot of metaphors and similes, which create imagery. This gives me lots of initial ideas for a video.

My artist consideration

Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran is an acoustic, pop/hip-hop, indie singer/songwriter.  

Background Information

• Birth Name: Edward Christopher Sheeran
• Born: 17th February 1991, Halifax England
• Occupations: Singer, Songwriter, Musician, Producer
• Genres: Pop, Acoustic, Indie, Hip-hop

Albums: 

• +                         

This is his deluxe edition cover. 

I decided to chose Ed Sheeran as my chosen artist because his music is very versatile, as are his music videos. His lyrics always tell some kind of story, influenced by his own personal experiences. 

I am considering his song 'Kiss Me' for my chosen track, because it is one of my favourites and I have a few initial ideas for the video. However, there are some other options I am also considering. 

His music videos range from humerous videos for entertainment ('Drunk'), to more serious videos which tell a story or gain awareness of a subject ('The A Team'). This leaves a lot of room for creativity when creating my video, as there are less restrictions on his image. 

I have a lot of initial ideas for a video when i listen to his music, as he uses a lot of metaphors and similes, which create imagery. 

The 1975

The 1975 are an English Manchester based, alternative/indie rock band.

This is The 1975's self-titled album cover.

The album cover is monochrome which relates to most of their videos. They are known for having a black and white theme. 

The rectangle in the centre of the cover is a used throughout their music videos, like a logo for their brand. For example in their video for 'The City', this symbol is shown in the first shot. 

The track listing to this album is as follows: 

• 'The 1975'
• 'The City'
• 'MONEY'
• 'Chocolate'
• 'Sex'
• 'Talk!'
• 'An Encounter'
• 'Heart Out'
• 'Settle Down'
• 'Robbers'
• 'Girls'
• '12'
• 'She Way Out'
• 'Menswear'
• 'Pressure'
• 'Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You'

I did not choose The 1975 for my chosen artist, because they have a very precise star image. Their music videos all include similar features and themes, and always have clips of performance based footage. Realistically, I couldn't recreate the performance based footage, as i would need instruments and people to imitate the band. Without this element, the video would not fit in with their usual image. 
If I were to have chosen The 1975, I would have chosen either 'Settle Down' or 'Robbers' as my track. 'Settle Down' is quite upbeat, however I imagined the video mainly performance based which would have been hard to create. 'Robbers' is a lot more calm and slow. I imagined a narrative based video, but the band members singing the lyrics while acting. I decided I couldn't narrow down my ideas to just one for this video. 

James Blunt

James Blunt is an English musician, singer/songwriter and former Army captain. His music is slightly difficult to put into a specific genre. It is a concoction of Folk, Pop and perhaps slightly alternative.  

Albums: 

• Moon Landing, 2013
• Some Kind Of Trouble, 2010
• Le Sessions Lost Souls
• All The Lost Souls
• Chasing Time: The Bedlam Sessions

I did not choose James Blunt as my chosen artist, simply because I didn't have as many initial ideas for a video as I did for Ed Sheerans music. 

If i were to have chosen James Blunt, I would have probably used the song 'I'll Be Your Man'. I would have chosen this song because it is upbeat and catchy, and one on my favourite songs. 

Class Notes 2

These are my notes on my peers Artist presentations.

Demi Lovato

• American singer, songwriter and actress.
• Her albums are 'Don't Forget', 'Here We Go Again', 'Unbroken' and 'Demi'. She started as Demi Lovato and is now known well enough to just be referred to as Demi. This shows she has built up a strong identity and a strong fan base.  
• She is always herself in her videos. If any other characters are required they are played by other actors.
• The majority of her videos are narrative based wit clips of her either lip synching, or performing (like in 'Heart attack').
• She started off with a sort of teenage punk/rocker girl look, and has now grown into a mature, respectful woman. It almost as if she is a 'good girl gone bad' reversed.

Adele

• Jan 2008 'Chasing Pavements' was released. It was inspired by a personal experience with an ex-boyfriend. Shows a car crash, and a series of high angle shots which shows the crash victims 'coming to life' on the pavement. They replay their story of falling in love and then falling out of love.
• Nov 2010 'Rollin in the Deep' was released. This song was inspired by a break up. The video was directed by Sam Brown. He uses symbolism, like the plates breaking to represent her heart being shattered. There is also footage of cups of water rippling, which coincides with the beat of the music. There is a lot of white in this video, which has connotations of a fresh start.
• Jan 2011 'Someone like you' was released. The video is monochrome. It shows Adele walking down an empty walkway, which suggests she is lonely. She is dressed in black, as if she has dressed for a funeral. This reflects the death of her relationship.

Class notes

These are my notes on my peers presentations.

Disclosure feat Eliza Doolittle-You  & Me

• The video is narrative based. It shows a young couple travelling around Europe.
• The boy is called Tim Shieff, and he is a professional free runner. In the video he is shown using his free running skills to impress his girlfriend.
• The video advertises the artists new album. In the background, a Disclosure album promotion poster is shown saying "Coming Soon"
• Locations would have had to have been taken into consideration. The director had to pick locations which best represent the places the couple are visiting.

Jake Bugg-Broken

• This video is both performance and narrative based. It shows the artist performing this song, however it is set in a bar full of individuals who are dealing with their own problems.
• The video coincides with the lyric repetition of "I'm broken". His performance is being ignored by the audience, which represents his feeling of being worthless. Also, close-ups of each individual in the audience suggests that hey are each broken in their own way.

AC/DC-You shook me all night long

• Performance based (like the majority of their videos). The noise from the audience can be heard as well as the performance.
• The video does not link to the lyrics.
• Each piece of footage only lasts a few seconds.
• Symbolism of the band can be found this in video, such as red devil horns worn by the fans, the colour red and the bands logo.

Miley Cyrus-We can't stop

• This video is narrative based, with lip synching included.
• In the beginning she is wearing white clothes, but later changes into black clothes. This may represent her transformation from angelic Miley to rebellious Miley.
• This video portrays her new reputation and shows off her new appearance.
• "We can do what we want to", "I can say what I want to". The lyrics may be Mileys way of establishing a sense of control as an artist, an adult, and her own person.

Kings of Leon-Use somebody

• The video/song is about getting lonely while travelling on tour.
• This video has a lack of colour, with very dull lighting. This could represent their mood while being on tour, and the loneliness.
• The video also reflects their lifestyle, with busy roads, cars and concerts.
• There is a strong use of props and locations which would have had to have been taken into consideration.