An Analysis of the Influence of Music and it’s Contrasting Message on the Youth of Today

Music is a way of life, it is all around us. It can influence who you are and how you go about your daily lives. Music can manipulate the emotions in a powerful way, which can sometimes determine your mood and your conscience. Sometimes different cultures adapt different music into their lifestyle. Example, Reggae is usually listened to by the Black Caribbean Community. Their music is relaxed and optimistic, as is their lifestyle. The style of music quite often reflects the culture. Music in the 21st century can have positive and negative influences. Different types of music give off different impressions on how the youth of today should live their lives. An example of how diverse cultures can influence a music style can be found in artists such as Ms. Dynamite and 50 Cent. In this essay I will be contrasting the different messages both artists give out through what they say and how they present themselves in their videos. The image they convey is partly determined by their background. Both Ms. Dynamite and 50 Cents music were prompted by their own/previous lifestyles. They were both brought up in dominant cultures, but although it had strong influences on them the cultures themselves were very different. Ms. Dynamite aka Naomi Mclean-Dayley, was born in London in 1982, and lived on a council estate. The eldest of 11 brothers and sisters, she was raised by her primary school teacher mother whose passion for roots, reggae and soul had a profound effect on Naomi. This early part of Ms. Dynamite's journey differs from 50 Cent. 50 Cent was born Curtis Jackson and raised in Queens, New York. He grew up with his grandmother after his mother died under mysterious circumstances when he was 8, and his father left shortly after. The influence placed upon 50 Cent from theses early-life tragedies left him with a sense of insecurity and lack of self-esteem, eventually luring him into the Gangster lifestyle. When he was 12 he was used as a runner and at just 15 he owned his own gun. This all left him with an immense amount of responsibility. This was a diverse contrast compared to Ms. Dynamite. She always had that support wherever she went and whatever she did, as she states, â€Å"My life generally, I've bin lucky to have a lot of Intelligent, loving people around me who will take out five minutes to teach me things about myself without preaching at me just showing me naturally. â€Å"Niomi passed up an opportunity to study social anthropology at Sussex University in order to concentrate on music. Her first single ‘booo! ‘ hurled Ms. Dynamite into the spotlight swiftly establishing her as one of the hottest young talents to emerge from the UK Garage scene. On the contrary 50 Cent was entrenched within the gangster industry, so it wouldn't surprise anybody why he'd been shot 9 times. It was only after his first born baby he became a rap artist. Curtis' first album wasn't a success at all. It wasn't until Eminem noticed him and took interest that 50 Cents career took off. After signing a deal with ‘Shady records' he immediately went to work on his new album entitled ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin. ‘ 50 cent soared to popularity with the first single from his new album ‘In Da Club. Ms Dynamite and 50 Cent both introduce past experiences and elements of their cultures into their songs. The songs that most strongly illustrate these elements are Ms Dynamites ‘It takes more' and 50 cents ‘P. I. M. P'. The titles set the foundation of the songs, and have to be well thought out to interest and catch the attention of the audience. The song ‘It takes more' generally promotes an opposing view of the gangster lifes tyle, unlike 50 Cent, who promotes it in ‘P. I. M. P'. Even though both songs have similar themes the artists themselves express the message in very much different ways. The first twenty to thirty seconds of a video can determine what the remainder is about, and how it impacts the audience. In ‘It takes more'Ms Dynamite starts her video with a strong contrast. As she steps out of the trailer there is a background of a divine scenic beach, but as she carries on walking reality begins to kick in and the beach is replaced with strippers and run down sets. Ms Dynamite is wearing casual clothing portray the message of not flaunting yourself. This makes a statement that you don't need to be made up to feel good or be happy with yourself. That is a good approach in to setting the scene and following the message through. 50 Cent however, starts ‘P. I. M. P'by arriving straight into the master bedroom surrounded by girls in underwear. The room is large and white symbolising wealth and a type of heaven on the outside, relating to the phrase ‘don't judge a book by its cover. ‘ Compared to Ms Dynamite's video, 50 Cent gives the audience a false impression because Ms Dynamite expresses the true reality of the gangster lifestyle through her opening scenes The core of both videos is where the biggest influences are established. In ‘it takes more' the image moves from inside the car to a newspaper picture which transforms to a colour image of a man with two women in a club. The camera zooms in on a tattoo on one of the women. It changes from saying ‘Sadie' to ‘aids. ‘ The message put across in that scene is meant to enlighten you to have self-respect and not get caught up in the gangster lifestyle. A complete opposite message is put across in ‘P. I. M. P. ‘ A later scene in the video shows a man holding several dog leads with women on the ends as though he owns them. This implies his control, and lack of respect shown for women. A quote the lyrics that backs up this point is, ‘ I could care less how she performs in bed,' meaning as long as she's good in bed and making money for me, that's all I care about. The message conveyed in that incident is that women are treated no better than dogs in the organised crime business. Comparing the videos the colours illustrated are very different. In Ms. Dynamite's video there are very dull and dry colours, (such as black and grey) giving the effect of gangster life in reality. The contribution of the colour red symbolises death in that joining the lifestyle can mean you are gambling with your life. 50 Cent in P. I. M. P however, uses totally opposite colours like bright whites. This gives an impression of a heaven like environment. White can also signify his involvement in drugs, because the majority of drug colour is white. The camera angles used in both videos accentuate the ways each person wants to be perceived. Ms. Dynamite focuses the camera level with her face to portray the message of equality. In opposition to this 50 Cent uses camera angles from his feet looking upwards. This gives the message that he's bigger than everyone else, God like and worthy of adoration. The way both artists present themselves in their videos gives us an insight into the kind of message they are trying to communicate. The messages and implications of the artist's videos and lyrics are influenced by their similar early life experiences. Whereas Ms. Dynamite presents the reality of the lifestyle, 50 Cent exaggerates and embellishes it into something quite out of the ordinary. The impact both artists have on the audience differs. Ms. Dynamite promotes a social conscience and 50 Cent promotes his underground street culture, by romanticising the gangster image. He relies on people's fascination with violence and the criminal element. In conclusion my essay shows how easily influenced the youth of today can be, through the medium of music. The messages are quite often designed to be relevant to them whether their content is good or bad. I understand that music is important and we all need it as part of our lives, but we need to realise there are many other ways to be motivated and challenged concerning life issues.