Childish Gambino - This is America
This 4 minute long music video vocalised by rapper Donald Glover contrasts the cultural, joyful connotation of traditional music to the violence, and threat of society symbolised through guns. Starting with a traditional, joyful tune suddenly breaking this by producing a gun from thin air and shooting a guitarist. The symbolism through use of guns shows the suppression of society perhaps revealing a message about race or any traditional folk music. Abruptly stopping any attempt by shooting and killing. Replacing the joyful, up beat music with a low base repeated tone. As the song goes on the main actor (being Donald Glover himself) continues to shoot and kill more people. Finally finishing with a simple shot of Glover running through a hallway with lots of people being revealed to chase him at the end. Perhaps further symbolising the oppression message behind the video.
John Legend - Preach
This music video by John Legend is to give a voice to those effected by the criminal justice system. Challenging stereotypes and breaking down barriers, they are helping to end this mass incarnation and invest in just, equitable, and thriving communities across the US. With a moment drawn throughout the video of two black men getting stopped by the police without knowing what they did wrong. One of the young men gets shot and then we cut to a church, with people wearing black, to what we (as the audience can assume) is a funeral. Portraying injustice and inequality. Another moment shows a young white man carrying a large gun into a school. Revealing what the first few shots prior to this, of children running in a school, is all about. This stereotype is challenged as black men are perceived in the media to be far more dangerous than white men, further portraying the injustice and sheer racism rife everywhere.
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