TASK 6: Yamborghini High by A$AP Mob ft. Juicy J

Yamborghini High by A$AP Mob ft. Juicy J

I've picked this video as my second piece of research because I think it's really interesting to watch and I love the colours and the visuals. When thinking about the technology and editing behind this and how it was put together, comparing it to the first music video ever created is really interesting to me. You could say that Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody is relatively similar in the way all of the clips are layered. But how that video was created compared to this one really shows how far technology has come. 

I love the way the video is so fluent and all the takes merge from one take to the next in such smooth transition. For example in this screenshot you can see how A$AP Rocky has moved into the next clip but everything else in the background stays as it is.

There is diegetic sound in this video, particularly to put emphasis on the Lamborghinis and I think this adds to the playfulness of the rest of the video. The special effects and colour grading have created a type of fantasy land for A$AP Mob to perform in but the sound effects of the car engines help add a tiny bit of reality to the video. 

Although in some parts of the video the women presented are fully clothed, there is still an element of sexualisation as they are dressed in red, a colour associated with passion. 

To add to this, in other parts of the video, the women are clearly being used to abide by the Male Gaze (Laura Mulvey) and are wearing bikinis and revealing swimming costumes whilst amongst fully covered men.

The men shown are then made to look further superior through the camera angles used. This low angle shot shows the men to be high up, above the audience and powerful. 

I think the target audience for A$AP Mob and it's members are teenage boys and young men. Maybe 15-22. With the lyrics and the visuals in the video, for example the gold chain in this shot or the mansion with half naked women in-front of it in the 4th photo, I think boys listening to this song and watching this video are going to aspire to live the kind of life shown. The repetition of the lyrics "this is how it it, this is how we live, b*tches b*tches b*tches" supports this idea.

I'm unsure about how good a message is being portrayed here. From one side it's a good message as it's influencing people to become successful, it's creative, colourful and innovative and so can inspire other creators with their own work. However, from another side, I do think some of the images or language used within the lyrics, particularly towards women could definitely be seen as derogatory or disrespectful. 

A4AP Mob created their group in 2006, Harlem, New York. They now own their own record label and share similar tastes in style, fashion and of course music. The group is collectively made up of rappers, singers and fashion designers. Watching this video and seeing what the artists have created and what they wear, I don't find this at all surprising and I think it's very clearly portrayed through this video. Hip Hop artists like these have made music videos apart of song-making and have turned it into an art form.