Lady Antebellum 'Need You Now' Goodwin & Vernallis Analysis

The third video I chose to analyse is Lady Antebellum's 'Need You Now' music video as it also conforms to 4 of Goodwin's conventions. 

The first being the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals whereby the lyrics are amplified and partially illustrated through the use of two people being separated and looking lonely but also seeking someone for comfort as they both sing 'I need you now'. As they sing 'I'm all alone' these lyrics are illustrated by them both being in a big room by themselves which also amplifies the lyrics at the same time. 

Secondly, thought beats are included in the video as the piano is one of the main instruments used throughout the video and in parts the video cuts to the actual pianist as you hear the piano in the music. A few of the cuts/ transitions also move in-time to the beat of the music creating more thought beats throughout this video. 

Multiple close-ups are used during the video to create the star image of the women who appears to be the lead singer. The close-ups are used to specifically make her look more important compared to the other band members and this helps to make her stand out compared to them. 

The last of Goodwin's conventions used in this music video is genre relations and iconography. The partial narrative used portrays a love story and so tied into the music video were 'romantic props' such as roses, bottles/glasses of champagne and rose petals scattered. The genre was obviously romance and this was particularly portrayed through the use of props. 

The music video also conforms to all 4 of Carol Vernallis' theories as it has narrative though it is not chronologically shown but the editing fits, so does the camera work and diegesis is also used. 

The narrative is strong throughout the music video but is not in any logical order so at times it becomes a little confusing, it sometimes appears disjointed. Although the narrative does fit the genre and the theme of the video and the music.

The editing matches the musical phrase and beat of the music and the video does cut generally in time with the beats in the music. 

Camera work is very important and used very heavily throughout this music video to help with the narrative and performance of the music video. Wide shots as well as close ups are most commonly used within the video which familiarise the audience with the face of the lead or individual artist. 

The diegesis is revealed quite slowly in the music video as well as repetition of the lyrics and some shots, in particular when they sing about needing someone. At times it appears there are gaps in our understanding in relation to time and space, and narrative and performance.