How and why is Beyonce represented in her music videos?
I have looked at four of Beyonce’s music videos and I have noticed that Beyonce takes on different personas for each of her music videos, which are chosen depending on the theme of the song. In Single Ladies, her persona is confident and saucy. This is because the song is essentially her saying ‘look what you could have had’ to an ex. This is strengthened by the simplicity of the video. Because there is nothing in the background, the focus is entirely on Beyonce and to a lesser degree the backing dancers. This would appeal to her fans because it is likely that they are watching the video just to see Beyonce. On the other hand, in Halo Beyonce is portrayed as being innocent and gentle. This reflects the theme of the song which is being in love. The video is a lot slower-paced than some of the other videos and it portrays Beyonce as very elegant and well-cultured. In Crazy in Love she has a promiscuous and seductive persona. Again, this reflects the theme of the song. In this case the theme is a woman being so in love that she acts out of character. In Telephone Beyonce’s persona was probably chosen for her so she would be more like Lady Gaga, who has a very unique style. She also creates different personas for her videos but they often have similarities i.e most of them wear abnormal clothing and dance sexually in the videos. Lady Gaga creates this personas in order to differentiate herself from other artists and to appeal to as many people as she can across the world. Just like Lady Gaga, and many other artists, by taking on a variety of different personas in her videos Beyonce appeals to a wide range of people. It also grants them some kind of longevity. Other artists have also used this technique, such as Madonna who has often taken on radical changes to her persona. Another way in which Beyonce represents herself is through her alter-ego ‘Sasha Fierce’ who was ‘born’ when Beyonce did Crazy in Love. When the car explodes with Beyonce inside and then she appears next to Jay-Z, it is meant to be the ‘death’ of beyonce and the ‘birth’ of Sasha Fierce. According to Beyonce, Sasha Fierce is the more fun, sexual and aggressive side of her. By having a alter-ego, Beyonce is able to act sexy and seductive when on stage and in her music videos to appeal to her fans but can leave all of that behind when she goes home. It also means that Beyonce can ‘kill’ off Sasha Fierce or any of the other personas she has created and still be left with ‘Beyonce’.
If the ‘Effects Theory’ is to be believed then girls around the world would dress and act like Beyonce does in her music videos. Her videos also appeal to the needs mentioned in the ‘Uses and Gratifications Theory’. As lots of people listen to her music, personal relationships can be formed by talking about her music and lifestyle. Similarly to the ‘Effects Theory’ people may try replicate Beyonce’s dancing and the personas which she shows in her videos in order to form their own personal identity. Also, as Beyonce is an attractive women, people may watch her videos as a means of diversion.
I have looked at four of Beyonce’s music videos and I have noticed that Beyonce takes on different personas for each of her music videos, which are chosen depending on the theme of the song. In Single Ladies, her persona is confident and saucy. This is because the song is essentially her saying ‘look what you could have had’ to an ex. This is strengthened by the simplicity of the video. Because there is nothing in the background, the focus is entirely on Beyonce and to a lesser degree the backing dancers. This would appeal to her fans because it is likely that they are watching the video just to see Beyonce. On the other hand, in Halo Beyonce is portrayed as being innocent and gentle. This reflects the theme of the song which is being in love. The video is a lot slower-paced than some of the other videos and it portrays Beyonce as very elegant and well-cultured. In Crazy in Love she has a promiscuous and seductive persona. Again, this reflects the theme of the song. In this case the theme is a woman being so in love that she acts out of character. In Telephone Beyonce’s persona was probably chosen for her so she would be more like Lady Gaga, who has a very unique style. She also creates different personas for her videos but they often have similarities i.e most of them wear abnormal clothing and dance sexually in the videos. Lady Gaga creates this personas in order to differentiate herself from other artists and to appeal to as many people as she can across the world. Just like Lady Gaga, and many other artists, by taking on a variety of different personas in her videos Beyonce appeals to a wide range of people. It also grants them some kind of longevity. Other artists have also used this technique, such as Madonna who has often taken on radical changes to her persona. Another way in which Beyonce represents herself is through her alter-ego ‘Sasha Fierce’ who was ‘born’ when Beyonce did Crazy in Love. When the car explodes with Beyonce inside and then she appears next to Jay-Z, it is meant to be the ‘death’ of beyonce and the ‘birth’ of Sasha Fierce. According to Beyonce, Sasha Fierce is the more fun, sexual and aggressive side of her. By having a alter-ego, Beyonce is able to act sexy and seductive when on stage and in her music videos to appeal to her fans but can leave all of that behind when she goes home. It also means that Beyonce can ‘kill’ off Sasha Fierce or any of the other personas she has created and still be left with ‘Beyonce’.
If the ‘Effects Theory’ is to be believed then girls around the world would dress and act like Beyonce does in her music videos. Her videos also appeal to the needs mentioned in the ‘Uses and Gratifications Theory’. As lots of people listen to her music, personal relationships can be formed by talking about her music and lifestyle. Similarly to the ‘Effects Theory’ people may try replicate Beyonce’s dancing and the personas which she shows in her videos in order to form their own personal identity. Also, as Beyonce is an attractive women, people may watch her videos as a means of diversion.
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