Goldie Lookin Chain

This is a parody of the rnb song 'empire state of mind' by jay-z and Alicia keys. What the parody does very well is copying the original music video. For example it has the same shot types of the lead singer and also has black and white images of Newport, not new york city. It is this part that makes the parody so good, it is the fact that they are filming it in Newport, which when compared to new york city, is not glamorous at all. It is this joking side of the video coupled together with the correct shot types that make the parody very good. This therefore means that for my parody to be good, I'm going to have to have a serious side (good camera shots) and a good joking side ( maybe a not so glamorous location).

A Typical Rnb Video: Features

1. lots of bling. In rap music videos they try to show off how much money they have by wearing a lot of jewellery. They are also shown driving very flash cars.
2. Women. The video normally evolves around the main singer wanting a girl or trying to look out for a girl. Also the lyrics are normally about a relationship.
3. Friends. In the video they usually are shown meeting up with their friends. They are also shown with their friends in a party atmosphere.
4. Party. A lot of rnb videos take place at a party or in a club.
5. Dancing. There is normally a lot of dancing, especially with the main singer.
6. Camera shots. In most videos the camera shots of the main singer are low angle shots. This is used to make the singer look important. The camera also never stops moving and sometimes rotates around the singer as he is singing into the camera. Also sometimes the main singer will stand sideways onto the camera. Changes in shots match the beat of the music.
7. Location. They are normally filmed in a glamorous location. But sometimes they are filmed in a not so glamorous location to show where the rapper grew up and what life was like for him. The main singer is also shown in a variety of locations.

example of a parody

This example works as a parody as it is the complete opposite of other videos. For example they are dressed awfully, they live with their mums, they have old phones and dont have much money as they by drinks for their date. This goes completly agaisnt all over videos and so works well and is very funny. Also they have the same shot as all other music videos with them in the same location. However because its a parody there clothes and dancing is awful.

examples of RnB videos

This is a very typical RnB video. This is because they are in a very glamorous location, dress in plenty of bling, have a lot of money and are hanging around with there mates. Looking at the filming of it i noticed that the camera always moved and also they have a few slow motion shots. Also they continuously go back to one shot of the lead singer in a square singing into the camera with the camera moving around him. This style of shot can be used in my music video to clearly show the main singer. There are plenty of components in this that can be used as a parody, for example driving a cheap car, cheap tacky clothes and with no friends.




This is another very typical RnB video, with again a lot of bling, a fast car and mates. A very interesting point i noticed was how again they had a shot of the main singer in another location singing with the camera panning around him. Also the camera is normaly low down, looking up at the singer which makes him seem important. From this i have gathered that this shot of the main singer on his own is very important as it is used a lot in the videos. This means that i will have to exploit this in my parody and use it a lot.

Change In Song

As i was struggling for ideas with my song, as it was an unusual genre and hard to find similar examples, i have decided to change my song. I decided to chose an RnB song. This is because i know the genre very well and also as i have decided to do a parody of rap videos, it is necessary to know the genre well. Also there is plenty of examples of rap videos, so i wont be struggling for ideas. The song i have chosen to use is Thank You by Jay-Z. I have chosen this because it will work well as a paradoy. This is because some of the lyrics i can do literally which will look good in a parody and also the songs chorus is the same the whole way through so i can keep to the same scene in the chorus, so it would be something that it keeps going back on. Also the song has a good beat so it could easily flow between shots.

Record label choice

For my record label choice i have decided to use parlophone records.

This is mainly because they specialise in all sorts of music and more importantly jazz. I think my song has a jazz feel to it so to have a label who specialise in jazz is very important. They also are linked to many bands who have similar music to mine, for example the good, the bad & the queen.

Record Labels

When looking at record labels i first looked at artists who have similar music to my song. The first band i thought of was moby, he has the same experimental, classical style music. I looked at the labels he was with and found a UK label called mute labels.


They specialise in experimental, unusual music, which is like my song. The parent company of this label is EMI.


It is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. This does mean then that maybe mute labels is not so independent.
Another similar artist is danger mouse. He worked with Danielle luppi on the album Rome, which is very similar to my music. When looking at danger mouse i looked at what label the album Rome was on, which was Parlophone.


Parlophone specialise in a variety of different acts but are largely involved with jazz. My song has a bit of jazz in it so maybe this label may suit my song. However again parlophone's parent company is EMI.
Another similar artist i thought of was Shirley bassey, especially as she sung some bond songs which i think my song is very similar to. The first record label i came across was Philips.


They specialise in classical music, which i believe my song has a hint of. They also have a parent company in the form of universal music group.