50 Cent music video research (rap)

50 Cent ‘Candy Shop’ Analysis

 

Genre Characteristics

There is the objectification of women which is typical in a rap video, it also enforces the idea of patriarchy as women are seen as objects rather than people and shows the man to have power over them, an example of this would be when 50 is performing his song there is a woman in a pink sexy nurses outfit dancing for him, her purpose is to please him and make him look good in the video. Another characteristic of this genre would be his flashy car and big mansion, it is typical for a rapper to use these sorts of things to attempt to show how rich they are. In the video 50 is rapping about sex, which is also typical for a rapper as they like to have a reputation for getting girls, so for him to be rapping about sex is helping his reputation. His clothing is also very typical of a rapper, it's large and baggy, which is showing where he originated from as that type of clothing is associated with the rough areas of america and the 'streets'.

 

Relationship between lyrics and visuals

50 is rapping about sex with Olivia (the singer who features on the song) and she is being seductive in the video, as are the other women, they all dance in a seductive, sexy way which links into the lyrics. An example of the lyrics and visuals relating is when the video begins the sign on the gate says 'Candy Shop Land', another would be at the end of the video as it turns out that he is daydreaming, the shop that he's at is a candy shop with Olivia being a server.

 

Close-ups of Artist & Star Image Motifs?

There are some close-ups of 50 Cent this is so the audience can recognise who the main artist is and to make sure the audience is aware that he is the main performer. There are mostly mid shots of him with other women which again is enforcing the idea of patriarchy as it is showing the women as though they are owned by him and he is superior, it is also connoting that as a rapper he usually has women around him wanting him, so it also shows him as an object of desire as well as the women. There are also close-ups of Olivia, these are mainly used to show her as a sexy woman to aid them in selling the video to the audience, so she is again used as an object rather than a person.

 

Is there any reference to the notion of looking?

Yes, they have used sexy women in the video to keep the audience, who i've interpreted as being 17+ males, they have objectified the women, this enforces Laura Mulvey's idea of 'the male gaze'. However, it's not only the women that are objectified in this video as 50 doesn't wear a shirt a in parts of the video so he's also objectified for the purpose of selling the record.

 

Performance, Narrative or Concept based?

This video is mostly performance based as 50 is looking into the camera and rapping towards the audience for their entertainment, this, again, is for the purpose of selling the record as it draws the audience in.