Music video review

This song right here, is one of my favorite UK songs growing up. Due to the factor that I'm a black female who has a number of black brothers and a black father too. This came out around 8 years ago, so I was 10 years old. Even at a young age, to hear and watch this music video, it has such a strong message. Embracing and strengthening the black community, just pure positivity. As a whole the black community has faced so much struggles and still face some up to date. But it's lovely to take a step back and notice all the great things we have managed to achieve through time and just striving to do right by our poeple. It just really helped to empower the black community.

What I love about this music video is how gentle it is, the lyrics speak volume and there doesn't have to be so much going on within the music video to hear the message. The mixture of the younger generation and the much older, helps to unify the community in this music video. Though some could critque it has being ethnocentric to the black community, but it's godo to remember that the UK Rap scen is predominately black artists.

It features within the music video, many black artists such as Akala, who has been around for such a long time, brother to Ms Dynamite, Both born in the same hospital as me, big up! Akala himslef, is know for his political views, as he is also a journalist. He's very passionate in terms of the black community and the inequalities we still face and what not. Meanwhile, the vocalist was Loick Essien, who at the time wasn't known like the way he is now and was so much more attractive back then too, until he hit the belly once the real money started to come in. It is interesting in the sense that even the vocalist, was a black young man as well as the rapper. I feel as though, it wasn't just due to Loick's great voice, but it was also to reinforce the strength and message of the song.

This song was released at the time when there was a lot of issues emerging within the black community and the media's influence of giving them a bad image, and so this song was like a, "hold on, I know there's many bad things going on within our community, but let's not let that outside all the positive within our community.

The video is affective and building a connection with you, throughout the song, Bashy is seen directly looking at the camera, making it feel as if he's really looking through it and right at you. So you sympathise with ever last word he says and it just makes you sit down and think well shit then. These lyrics really do many something to him and it's meant to have you feel some type of way about it.

Location, in itself, it is significant, it is set in the urban city of London. It is set around areas that is prodominately full of black families. So it helps to add the authencity of the song to the music video.

When he says "Aye look we ain't hooligans, but young, black, talent, nubians" What you see is a group of young black men, riding their bikes. I love this imagery, as it shows that alright cool, they're riding bikes, but where do you see them causing any trouble. It goes to show that the sterotype all full of rubbish. That so much negativity is blamed on this race and that we are, well some aren't anything like that.

Likewise, with the costumes, they help to show how the urban attire was back then. the hoodies and jumpers, t shirt and jeans, the whole lot. It also to me, portrays the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" but in this refference "don't judge a man by his colour". So what if they may be dressed in a way that isn't appealing to the mainstream society, some of these young men are working towards greatness. Some are getting themselves educated and their lives together. Why judge?

What gets to me the most about this music video is the ending. When each individual walks up to the glass wall and writes up a name of someone signicant in the black community. It goes to show that we as a community see the hard work people are doing and it won't go without any notice. It's so empowering and motiviational. The song doesn't forget black females too. It mentions "Shoutout to my ebony dimes, Latie Pearl and Keisha White. Ms Dynamite, Sade, Dezza and Charde, Hang tight Beverly Knight, Black diamonds, what a heavenly light. Soon we'll be getting it right". For a young black female, to see and hear black young men saying such beautiful things, its a lovely thing and it makes you feel good about yourself. As black women are the most oppressed gender and race on earth, so for the males in our race to acknowledge us its gives us so much value, we should stand together as a race, we are stronger in numbers.

Honestly, I have so much to say but I will try to keep this short and sweet. I really do love this song and the message it has. I just hope that more music like this is created and that the black community are inspired by these beautiful words. BIG YOU UP BASHY, MAN LIKE BISH BASH BOSH!

Aspects of Carol Vernalis theor I've identified is as followed:
1)The use continuous editing giving the music video structure throughout.
2)The use of slow motion is featured in this music videos.
3)It has basetracks and jump cuts from scene to scene.
4)obivous editing that I think I've noticed is there are parts of the music video where there's like a tunnel vision like effect, in the centre it is clear and further away fro mthe centre there is like a black hint, but I'm not to sure if that's just my eyes or if it acully there.

From Andre Goodwins definiton this music video is what I'd say is a illustration. As the music video does well at providing a clear connection from the song to what you see.