research into existing products: music video

Deconstruction of Beyoncé- Formation: In the music video Formation by Beyoncé she challenges the ideas of the south, where she grew up, which in turn highlights the black lives matter campaign that is also focused on by more modern controversies. On top of this she makes reference to the natural disasters that has affected the poorer demographic in the south. The first shot in the video is of Beyoncé on top of a police car: generally seen as a symbol of protection and justice. However she destroys this idea of justice based on the long shot of her on top of a half submerged police car. This suggests that she is putting herself, the civilian, in a higher position of respect than the police. Therefore this fits with the idea of ‘Black Lives Matter’ campaigns, which focuses on the inequality to black people in the USA and has direct influence from how the police operate. This is because the police are often seen as being discriminative and stricter towards black people so many see it as racial stereotypes. Therefore because of the way the police act Beyoncé suggests in the black community that police are not respected well unlike their own ethnic group who are treated like family. She also has a scene that uses a long shot of the house she is stood outside which is viewed as a plantation home where black slaves would be forced to work in the cotton fields. This was common in the 19th century before slavery was banned. Therefore the image of her, a black woman, standing there representing the powerful position of the plantation owner shows how far people have come in a short time because it shows black people can now stand in real positions of power. However because we know in the context of the video it is challenging racism it is a message to the black population too. It is saying that as a group black people have come so far in so little time, therefore its almost a plea to keep the faith as it shows they have come through difficult times to prosper so they can do so again. Another connotation that can be made is referencing the disaster of Hurricane Katrina by seeing the police car submerged underwater because during the disaster in the US most of the land below sea level, generally poor areas that ethnic minorities lived on, were flooded and had homes destroyed, therefore leaving families with nothing. However Beyoncé gives a voice to this deprived area of the South that has been horrifically affected by natural disaster and in many ways ignored by the rest of the US as it has taken years to recover from. She creates this voice by repeating the word ‘formation’ as its purpose is to get the community to stand together and rebuild to what they once had and then aim for a better future by doing so. Beyoncé also uses irony in the video to show how she feels about race equality. This is shown in the scene where a Latino man is wondering the streets sat on a horse, which is reminiscent of the Wild West and the 1870’s and 1880’s where the railways were built. During this period the ethnic minorities, mainly Black, Latino and Asian men were the people that had to work long hours while white men watched over on horses to keep them in order. However this camera pan following the Latino man on the horse symbolises change through time because 100 years ago this would not have been accepted but now is perfectly normal behaviour so it shows the progress made. This irony of change though demonstrates that despite some thing’s improving for ethnic minorities there is still an inequality because it raises the question, why is he on a horse? Why not a car? It provokes this idea that he may not be able to afford a car, suggesting that he is not as well off as a white man. Therefore this scene can be used to depict inequality through its irony. However it opens up the idea that it is not just Black people that suffer in the USA but all ethnic minorities to some degree, which therefore shows that the WASP (white Anglo Saxon protestant) movement is still relevant today in a country that claims to focus on equality. Due to this Beyoncé’s interpretation of multiple ethnicities shows the white population still heavily influences America. Her use of lyrics are also used to inspire other black people, this is evident when she uses the lyrics ‘black Bill Gates in the making’ which fits well with the idea of inequality and hope to ethnic minority groups. The thinking behind this is that it suggests firstly minority groups can be a success, using her as an example (despite it being seen as vain by some). Then it also suggests inequality by suggesting that if she were white like ‘Bill Gates’ then she would not be in the making but would already be ‘made’. Therefore her lyrics fit well with the images created in the video that highlight the inequality of black people in America, whether it be past or present.