Goodwin’s Music Video Analysis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vjPBrBU-TM

Chandelier

• Chandelier is an electropop/electronica song sung by Sia, with R&B and reggae influences. Lyrically, the song is gloomy as it talks about the typical ‘party girl’s’ thought process when dealing with alcohol. The video is obscure which demonstrates the genre characteristics of electronica.

• ‘I push it down’; the dancer drops to the floor representing the fall from being drunk and the party world, to reality.

Relationship between lyrics and visuals

• ‘1, 2, 3, drink’ the dancer grabs out in front of her as if she is taking a glass.

• Before the lyrics ‘I’m going to fly like a bird through the night’ the dancer falls; this is because birds risk injury by flying at night. This lyric compares the character to the bird suggesting that the character will risk injury by not drinking.

Relationship between music and visuals

• The beat of the music is synchronous to the dancer and the cuts.

Motifs

• Sia’s music videos seem to have a similar dark tone and muted colouring as Chandelier shows.

• Although the singer does not appear in the video, the dancer wears a wig that is iconic to Sia

Intertextual References

• The dancer appears on Dance Moms and by appearing in this music video is a slight intertextual reference.