Work through the following tasks to create a comprehensive case study for Michael Jackson's Billie Jean music video.
Media Magazine reading: Billie Jean, birth of an icon
Go to our Media Magazine archive and read the case study on Billie Jean - birth of an icon (MM62 - page 20). Answer the following questions:
1) What was the budget for Billie Jean? How did this compare with later Michael Jackson videos?
The budget for the video was $50,000, which wasn't small but as it turned out not big enough to accommodate Jackson's idea that mannequins in a shop window would come to life and dance behind him. In addition, the record company wouldn't pay an extra cent for backing dancers therefore Jackson had to dance alone. When the promo video for 'Beat it' went into production five weeks after the release of 'Billie Jean', the budget rose considerably to $300,000 and for 'Thriller' the budget was $2 million.
2) Why was the video rejected by MTV?
MTV refused to air the video as the believed it didn't suit their 'middle America' audience. Thankfully for Jackson the president of his record label threatened MTV saying: 'I'm pulling everything we have off the air, all our product...And I'm going to go public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy.' This ended up paying off nicely as MTV rolled over and 'Billie Jean' became the first music video by a black artist to be aired in heavy rotation on the channel which was groundbreaking moment for the representation of ethnic minorities.
3) Applying Goodwin's theory of music video, how does Billie Jean reflect the genre characteristics of pop music video?
Andrew Goodwin provides a useful framework to begin analysing the video. The video contains many conventions of the pop genre: lip-syncing, performance interwoven with narrative, dance routines, high-fashion costume. Regarding the link between lyrics and visuals, the song is apparently based on Jackson's experience of fan-girls claiming he or his brothers were the parents of his babies, mixed in with a missing persons story that Jackson had purposely read in the news at the time. Key lyrics are amplified through the visuals. For example the song is about a girl, Billie Jean. Although we never see her as a character we are presented with various images of females which he never comes into contact with.
4) How do the visuals reflect the lyrics in Billie Jean?
There are many links between audio and visuals. Flash frames accompany synth-cymbal crashes, Jackson's choreography snaps, claps and stamps to the rhythm, often on a pronounced beat. The distinctive adlibs 'ch', 'ooo!' that we associate with Jackson are often accompanied by a distinctive dance move or spin, drawing attention to both.
5) Why does the video feature fewer close-up shots than in most pop videos?
The video assists the star-construction of the artist, not so much through the close-ups that you might expect in other pop videos, but through the focus on the distinctive dace moves (often shown three-fold in the frame) which had not been seen onscreen before.
6) What intertextual references can be found in the video?
The notion of looking can be seen through the use of the private detective which is also an intertextual reference to Noir film and detective fiction.
7) How does the video use the notion of looking as a recurring motif?
Jackson is being watched and followed; a polaroid camera attempts to capture his image but he's elusive and mystical. The audience sees his image multiplied using split-screen editing, he is frozen or isolated in a frame-within-a frame. Towards the end of the video he is spied through a window by an old women in hair-rollers as he ascends a fire escape to stand, somewhat creepily, at the bedside of a sleeping figure, where he then becomes the voyeur.
8) What representations can be found in the video?
The 'everything he touches turns to gold' idea in this video is fairly innocuous and it's sweetly naive when, in Beat it, Jackson pops himself between the ringleaders rival brawling gangs, does a little dance singing, 'it doesn't matter who's wrong or right', causing them to come together as a synchronised dance troupe. As Michael's developed and his power increased he continued to present himself as a Jesus-like-figure. Depicting himself as having the power of healing, this is evident at the beginning of Billie Jean when he tosses a coin into the cup of a dishevelled tramp who, as a result of Jackson is magically transformed into wearing a white suit. We can also detect the beginnings of the ongoing theme of being on the streets. The setting in the music video is urban and is at night time with litter blowing down dark alleys and fire escapes. This is the first in a sequence of videos that explored gangs, crime, danger and the supernatural.
Close-textual analysis of the music video
1) How is mise-en-scene used to create intertextuality - reference to other media products or genres? E.g. colour/black and white; light/lighting.
By using black and white lighting at the beginning of the video is use of intertextuality as they are taking reference to the film noir genre. However as the video progresses we see the video gain more colour when Michael Jackson enters as he is presented as some people say, a Jesus-like character bringing life to the scene. When looking at the costumes used in the video we see Michael Jackson wearing a shirt and bowtie which is very similar to what would be worn in a musical, therefore creating another intertextual reference. In addition the detective in the video is shown to be wearing is reflective of the film noir genre.
4) What is the significance of the freeze-frames and split-screen visual effects?
There is use of the notion of looking as we see through the detectives perspective when Michael is being followed around. The freeze-frames and split-screen effects make Michael be seen as quite mysterious and magical as we see him disappear and reappear constantly, confusing the detective
2) How does the video use narrative theory of equilibrium?
The theory of equilibrium is present in this music video as the disequilibrium is when Michael is being chased by the detective everywhere he goes as the detective constantly tries to arrest him. However the new equilibrium is present when Michael Jackson escapes and can finally be at peace as the detective has to give up with his chase.
3) How are characters used to create narrative through binary opposition?
As for binary opposition we see Good vs Evil through the continuous chase through Michael and the detective as Michael is seen as the protagonist trying to clear his name because of all the false claims and the detective is the antagonist as he constantly tries to wrongly arrest Michael.4) What is the significance of the freeze-frames and split-screen visual effects?
5) What meanings could the recurring motif of 'pictures-within-pictures' create for the audience?
The motifs of pictures within pictures creates a meaning that Michael feels constantly watched and that he has completely no privacy.
6) Does the video reinforce or subvert theories of race and ethnicity - such as Gilroy's diaspora or Hall's black characterisations in American media?
I believe Billie Jean reinforces theories of race and ethnicity. This is because Michael Jackson can be perceived as 'the entertainer' as suggested by Stuart Hall, this is evident through his dancing as he is doing it to provide entertainment for the audience. Billie Jean can also be seen to support the idea of diasporic identity as it is about never feeling accepted in western societies, which this music video supports as Michael is constantly being chased around while he is just trying to live his life, which is especially tough with him being a celebrity as many false claims start to pour out.
7) Does this video reflect Steve Neale's genre theory of 'repetition and difference'? Does it reflect other music videos or does it innovate?
Steve Neale's genre theory can be applied as there is use of difference as Michael Jackson completely revolutionised music videos as he added his way of dancing and movement which wasn't very common in music videos.
8) Analyse the video using postmodern theory (e.g. Baudrillard's hyper-reality; Strinati's five definitions of postmodernism). How does the 'picture-in-picture' recurring motif create a postmodern reading?
Postmodernists claim that the distinction between the real world and the media representation of the real world has become blurred as we live in a world completely influenced by the media. By adding Baudrillard's hyper-reality theory you can say how the music video was made to reflect a certain time period (1940s). The picture-in-picture motif creates a postmodern reading as it reflects how our much the media dominates our lives as we are constantly reflecting or being reflected by it.
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