Janelle Monae
Nov. 13th, 2010 11:14 pm![[personal profile]](http://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
drewbearA few months ago, one of my friends linked to a music video by this artist, Janelle Monae. I was (and still am) greatly impressed by the vision presented in her videos, especially considering that Ms. Monae apparently has a significant amount of control over what the videos look like and how well they conform to the concept of her albums
Apparently she has a concept behind her first 3 albums (2 of which are already out) wherein they tell the story of a future civilization that depends on the labor of intelligent humaniform androids and how one particular one by the name of Cindi Mayweather becomes their savior. It definitely sounds like the kind of concept that could easily be turned into a decent sci-fi novel or three and the music and videos (especially the one for "Many Moons") showcase an intriguing glimpse into that world. The visual references to the classic scifi film "Metropolis" are clear and intended throughout, and present an interesting contrast, in that while in "Metropolis", the female android messiah was presented more as a threat and "villain", Ms. Monae's vision presents her as a true heroic figure.
"Many Moons"
"Tightrope" (this video isn't enabled for embedding, sorry)
"Cold War"
ETA I had a lengthy post here with analysis of each video, but LJ ate everything after the "Many Moons" embedded video and I can't remember exactly what I wrote. Suffice it to say that I'm impressed by the many and subtle influences and references in the music and videos. Rather than try to recreate, I'll just present the videos for your edification. Please feel free to let me know what you think about them
Apparently she has a concept behind her first 3 albums (2 of which are already out) wherein they tell the story of a future civilization that depends on the labor of intelligent humaniform androids and how one particular one by the name of Cindi Mayweather becomes their savior. It definitely sounds like the kind of concept that could easily be turned into a decent sci-fi novel or three and the music and videos (especially the one for "Many Moons") showcase an intriguing glimpse into that world. The visual references to the classic scifi film "Metropolis" are clear and intended throughout, and present an interesting contrast, in that while in "Metropolis", the female android messiah was presented more as a threat and "villain", Ms. Monae's vision presents her as a true heroic figure.
"Many Moons"
"Tightrope" (this video isn't enabled for embedding, sorry)
"Cold War"
ETA I had a lengthy post here with analysis of each video, but LJ ate everything after the "Many Moons" embedded video and I can't remember exactly what I wrote. Suffice it to say that I'm impressed by the many and subtle influences and references in the music and videos. Rather than try to recreate, I'll just present the videos for your edification. Please feel free to let me know what you think about them
