Is when music videos draw upon exsisting media texts in order to spark recognition in the audience.
Intertextuality is all about visual reference and this can come from a number of sources: -Cinema
-Fashion
-Art/Photography
"Incorporating, raiding and reconstructing" is essentially the essence of intertextuality. Intertextuality is most explicitly evident in music videos. However intertextuality is subjective to the audience, meaning that each viewer might have a slightly different association with the video, and some viewers may not recognise the references at all!
Here are some examples of music videos that use intertextuality:
The Red Hot Chili Peppers use the form of a video game in their music video for their song 'Californication'. This specific use of a video game format could be to appeal to their archetypal fan base (Young males and females).
Another example of intertextuality in a music video is A-Ha!'s 'Take On Me'.
A-Ha! Take on a comic book style video to display the narrative of the love story that is taking place in the video. The ending scene is based on 1980's movie 'Altered States'. This means that the band have referenced 2 types of media text in their video, making this a good example of intertextuality.
Here is another example of a music video that fully incorporates intertextuality:
The song itself is named 'Buddy Holly' therefore the 1950's style of the music video related to the context of the song. The video is an imitation of famous American 1970's show Happy Days which is set in the 1950's-60's. However the only lyrics that is linked to the visuals is the repeated line 'I look like Buddy Holly' whereas the rest of the video is not particularly related to the song. Perhaps the band used intertextuality of Happy Days in the hopes that the audience will associate the popularity of that Sit-com with their song and makes the audience feel as though they are watching an actual episode of the programme. The references to 'Happy Days' and the 50's is shown by the use of location (typical 50's diner) the costumes and mise-en-scene, the use of choreography and the cameo appearance from Happy Days cast member Al Molinaro as well as the use of film of the character 'The Fonz' entering the diner to dance. The video also follows the conventions of a 50's music video in that is it performance based and is very successful as it sparks recognition to its audience.
Voyeurism
Is the pleasure of watching the star of the video. Voyeurism is also known as scopophillia. Goodwin states that female performers are sexually objectified by camera work and editing with fragmented body shots emphasising a sexualised image of the performer. The goal of voyeurism is to help sell the product and the star, and create interest in the audience.
Here are some examples of music videos that use voyeurism:
Britney Spears - 'Slave 4 U'. Spears is known for her sexualised image and therefore provocative music videos. Artists similar to Britney Spears use voyeurism in their videos in order to create interest for the viewers and because their images are risqué they need to live up to this expectation in their videos.
Another example is Christina Aquilera - 'Dirty'
Again, Christina Aquilera is another performer who's image is based on being revealing and provocative, therefore she needs to deliver this in her music videos. Videos such as these are aimed to appeal to both males and females. Males because they will find the star attractive and will gain pleasure from looking at their bodies. Females may feel envious of their bodies and therefore take inspiration from the way these female artists look.
An example of a music video that uses both Intertextuality and Voyeurism is Pink's 'Trouble' Music Video
The narrative of this music video is based on American Western-style movies, as Pink portrays a fugitive galloping on a horse into a small town. We can tell the music video genre is western due to the mis-en-scene. We see the saloon bar, and horses as transport, also the character of the sheriff indicates the western theme. Voyeurism is introduced through Pink's revealing costume and her burlesque dance routine as surrounded by other revealing women. Close up shots are used at the beginning to draw attention to her red lips and dark eyes. Additionally, the flirtatious communication between Pink and the sheriff adds to the videos' provocative nature.
