research into existing products: music video

Deconstruction of a music video: Lady Gaga- Bad Romance In the music video for the song ‘Bad Romance’ Lady Gaga takes the opportunity to give her opinion on the running of the music industry as well as referencing product placement and her own fandom. Firstly the opening scene is a spa: generally it is associated with women and the idea of them being beautified. This therefore suggests that the music industry focuses on the appearances of women rather than their music which gives the impression that female musicians are mainly viewed upon in a sexual way and therefore have to be attractive for the company to sell records. Gaga shows this by having a sign for a spa in the opening 30 seconds and it is followed by faceless women coming out of pods, this helps construct this denotation as it shows the music industry gives female artists a rebirth that turns them to a faceless sexualised object with little or no identity. She also suggests that women in the industry can influence other female artists. She does this by showing herself in a spa bath and being different in her actions as well as appearance then two faceless women drag her from the bath and force a drink down her throat. This shows that identity is not accepted by some women in the music industry and that women may generally conform to the expectations of the industry. By doing this it suggests there is also the problem of peer pressure in the industry which highlights that there are multiple problems for women who are trying to be a success in the industry. The fact they force her to drink water can be making a reference to, not only the music industry, but the modelling industry to as both have being scrutinised in the past for supporting women in the industries to go on water diets and this image symbolises that it is forced more than anything and violates a woman’s human rights. Gaga also represents the people involved in the music industry through the perspective of the public. This is because she sets a scene with a spa and we naturally associated that with relaxation, wealth and self-indulgence. Therefore she is stereotyping the people within the industry, most likely other musicians, as being very relaxed towards the sexist treatment that women receive in the music industry and accept it because they care more about the money they are making rather than the image they are creating for themselves. Lady Gaga also uses lyrics to connote and denote the industry, first in denotations with the line ‘leather studded kick in the head’. This seems innocent but when we put it into the context of her views on the industry based on the video we expect that this is a reference to the music industry also. The clear images of her being dragged out of a bath shows pain and suffering which compliments this line perfectly. It is obvious that a kick to the head is going to be painful but knowing the focus of the video it is a metaphor for her treatment and therefore the emotional pain she has suffered rather than the physical pain. It is key that there are images of her being forced into something she doesn’t want to as that image is the context for this line. She also uses the idea that men focus on the sex appeal of women in one scene where she is forced to the floor in front of a group of men. It shows that women in the industry are constantly being judged upon by their appearance by men and that it is cowardly to do so. This cowardly idea comes from the fact that a shot from over the shoulder of the men is in a dark lighting which suggests that they are viewing her from a different area or room much like the expectation and stereotype of men judging women from the comfort of their home on a computer or phone. This therefore highlights how easily women can be objectified. There is also a scene that pans around Lady Gaga and shows diamonds surrounding her then around that a circle of men. She seems as though she is completely anonymous to the presence of men and that she only sees diamonds. This denotes that women in the industry are often blinded by money and fame so often don’t realise that their fame is partly due to a sex appeal created by the industry. Therefore they begin to care less about how their popularity rises and care more about becoming richer as they focus more on material items. It therefore suggests that people in the music industry should be more careful on protecting their images in the industry rather than just focusing on the business side of the industry. Finally the video ends with Gaga sat on a bed with a skeleton burnt to a crisp. This can be interpreted in one of three ways: she fights back. The industry has had power for so long but this video is exposing them and it is like a fire, once it catches alight the outcome is inevitable. Therefore this is saying that the music industries grip over women within it is now a little weaker due to being more exposed. However it can be argued that the burnt skeleton is her because she feels tortured and burned by the industry so in light of this she has let that part of her die, therefore the Gaga we see by this body is her new state of resurrection and in turn more power for women in the music industry. Finally it may be her giving up to the power of the industry. This is because it shows her burnt, broken hopes and dreams lay across the bed and what is left next to it is just her body, the sole and love for the industry is gone and replaced by a lifeless shell only fuelled on anger.