This document discusses analyzing lyrics to create music videos. It aims to investigate the importance of lyrics in music videos and think of new video ideas for popular songs. The document provides an example analysis of the lyrics to Katy Perry's "Roar" and suggests boxing themes and a narrative of a boxer improving their skills for a remade video that matches the song's references. Students are assigned homework to annotate lyrics of another song and add it to their blog.

1. Lyric Analysis
LO:
• To investigate the
importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
• To think of new video ideas
for a popular song.

2. •
•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
What can you tell me about
the genre of this song?

3. •
•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
Roar – Katy Perry
 Pop
song
 Target audience of young girls to mid
twenties
 Catchy tune
 Repetitive lyrics (easy to remember)
 High production value.
 Big budgets
 Often have film-like narrative and
conventions.
 Message of having fun, being strong &
falling in love.

4. •
•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
Analysing and Annotating
Your Lyrics.
 What
do the lyrics mean literally?
 What does the artist mean?
 Are there any existing connotations to the
lyrics?
 What message is the artist trying to
project?
 Does the song have a narrative?

5. •
Roar–Katy Perry
•
I used to bite my tongue and hold my
breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a
mess
So I sat quietly, agreed politely
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
Suggests to the
audience that she
was
restricted/controlled/
scared of saying the
wrong thing.
Rather than upsetting
someone (her
partner? Parents?)
she goes along with
something she
doesn’t believe in to
keep the peace.

6. •
•
I guess that I forgot I had a choice
I let you push me past the breaking
point
I stood for nothing, so I fell for
everything
You held me down, but I got up (hey!)
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, your hear that
sound
Like thunder, gonna shake the ground
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
She let someone
control her. Notice
the lyrics at this point
are in past tense. The
audience knows
something is going to
change in the song.
At this point it
changes to present
tense - the audience
knows this is the
switching point for
her standing up for
herself.

7. •
Task
•
You held me down, but I got up
Get ready 'cause I had enough
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
She realises her
mistakes.
I see it all, I see it now
I got the eye of the tiger, the fire
Dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion, and you're
gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion, and you're
gonna hear me roar!
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Chorus – tigers
represented as
strong, powerful. Eye
of the tiger is 80s
song used in the
Rocky films (about
boxing). Use of the
word champion
connotes that she is
a winner, on top, has
“beaten” the
antagonist.

8. •
•
Now I'm floating like a butterfly
Stinging like a bee I earned my stripes
I went from zero, to my own hero
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
More boxing
references. Image of
being free, light on
her feet. A weight off
of her shoulders.
She is proud of
herself, has self
confidence back.

9. •
•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
The new video…
 If
I were re-making this video, what could
the theme be?
 The narrative?
 Mise-en-scene?



Costumes
Set
Props

10. •
My ideas…

•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
If I were to remake the Roar video I would set it in a boxing club,
this is because there are many boxing references “floating like a
butterfly, stinging like a bee I earned my stripes.” It could mirror the
Rocky films.

Katy Perry would begin the video as a rubbish boxer who always
loses and gradually improves until she becomes a champion at the
end of the song.

As this is a Katy Perry song the costumes and set would be colourful,
extravagant and probably covered in glitter. However, the song
would start in a grey, grotty boxing club and become more
colourful as the song went on, this would show the progression of
the character and keep true to the artist’s persona.

11. •
•
 Has
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
anyone seen the official video?

What is the narrative?

Where is it set?

What kind of character is Katy Perry playing?

How many different performances are there?

What are the costumes like?

Roar Official Video

12. •
•
To investigate the importance of lyrics in
making a music video.
To think of new video ideas for a popular song.
Homework.
1.
Listen to your song again (do not watch
the video).
2.
Annotate the lyrics of your song as we
did today.
3.
Add the completed work to your blog.
4.
Due Friday 6th December.