Naughty boy works in the genres R&B, UK garage, and hip hop. His music videos tend to be narrative. However in this particular clip it is a very abstract narrative. I had to watch the video repeatedly to get an idea on what the concept might mean. After reading the comments on the YouTube video I realised I wasn't the only one that didn't understand.
My interpretation was that the characters are being represented as the fictional characters from the film The Wizard of Oz. This being because within the first minute were introduced to a dog, the breed of it is known as 'the lion dog'. We then meet a man covered in grey make up and is wearing nothing other than the colour grey. This could be presenting him as the tin man. Another peculiar character is given to us dressed from head to toe in fabric. This is a similar look to the scarecrow. At 1:58 a man passes a heart to the tin man, this is similar but also contrasts to the old classic The Wizard of Oz as its the scarecrow that receives the heart. The four then begin their journey and follow a dirt track, similar to the yellow brick road. They then reach a worshipping figure in a cave, this could represent the wizard.
Using the theme of The Wizard of Oz, this will entice the generation that grew up around the era that the film was released, so they will be very familiar with the film and the story line. However, not only is the video based on the old childhood movie, but its also the atmosphere is very modern with the roads signs and cars etc. This then intrigues them to watch the whole video, meaning that they're listening to the whole song.
The first 10 seconds of the clip were given a tracking shot leading to a door which reveals a dark room. During this we hear a negative sound, this builds up the tension knowing that who or what we are going to see is bad. This is something you'd typically see in a horror/thriller film, it gives the impression that its a point of view shot and a demon or negative spirit is entering. The tracking shot then leads to a man smoking alone in a dark room, we know that he plays the villain in this narrative, purely because of the build up to being introduced to him.
The second character we meet is a boy who is represented as innocent, purely because of his age. We then see another point of view shot, but this time its coming from the man. This could mean that the roles have swapped over and revealing that the demon has taken over the mans body which then causes him to shout at the boy. The boy then blocks his ears and sings the chorus 'La La La' this is obviously his way of blocking out the negative energy.
At 1:15 we see a group of ladies doing some sort of work out with their make up running. The boy sings 'La La La' again, this could be to release the negative energy from them. At 1:37 we see a reverse shot between the leading lady and the man covered in grey. This is very similar to the shot we saw of the man shouting at the boy. Exactly the same as the boy, the man in grey begins to sing 'La La La' this immediately makes us connect the two together and realise that the man in grey is also playing an innocent character.
When being introduced to the last character 'the scarecrow' he also sings 'La La La', this makes us associate him with the other two innocent characters. We then follow them on their journey, which makes us connect with them and give them sympathy.
At 2:50 there is a pan around which reveals an empty and lonely desert, this isolates the characters from the world. The director could be representing them as different and outcasts.
At the end, we see the boy singing to sculpture that they had travelled to see, this gives it a god like power as the boy is on his knees.
After watching this music video several times I was intrigued to find out the real story behind it so I researched it.
I found out that the video was inspired by an old Bolivian legend which goes back to the 20th century about a young boy who was deaf fled from his abusive home. He then found a dog on his journey and became his closest friend and accompanied him on his journey. The boy lived rough for a while but then found that he had a special talent of helping people with their troubles through shouting. Legend believes that it was so loud that it blocked away the sound of the demon who was controlling these people. It was said that his shout was 'as loud as an earthquake and a tornado.' The demon was the lord of the underworld and was found in an old abandoned town where people would worship him. The boy then went to sacrifice himself to defeat the demon by shouting at him. He took his talent to an advantage knowing he is the only one able to stop him from causing trouble to everyone in the town. However, there were hints of The Wizard of Oz for viewers that were unfamiliar with the Bolivian legend. I think that using the two themes is good because it widens the target audience. For example legend lovers who know about the legend of Bolivia would find this music video intriguing. As well as the younger audience who are familiar with The Wizard of Oz.
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