Video Analysis: Leftfield - Afrika shox

The music video, Afrika Shox, is by British band 'Leftfield' - the name of the band itself, highlights the political view of the group. It can be related to a left-wing mentality (people who are against consumerism and capitalism) and could therefore show their ultimate hatred towards racism.

The featuring artist in this song is Afrika Bambaata who is an American artist responsible for the growing popularity of this genre. This together with the constant references to America and the city of New York in this music video, demonstrate how this band are aware of the roots of they genre and they respect this in their products.

The opening shot of this music video is of the twin towers in New York City. The low angle of this shot makes the audience feel vulnerable. This accompanied with the misty weather that surrounds the buildings, helps to connote a daunting feel to the beginning of the video. This is known as pathetic fallacy (where the weather reflects the mood of the mis-en-scene). This shot is accompanied by the diagetic sound of street noise e.g. sirens, horns etc. As the music has not started, this shot proves highly significant as we are forced to focus solely on the image rather than any form of music. The symbolism of this shot perhaps came coincidentally, quite a while after the video was in fact made. In 2001 the twin towers were destroyed by a terrorist attack. Anybody who is anybody knows this and this iconic landmark is immediately associated with this and negative connotations when seen. It creates a sense of doom amongst an audience.

The next shot is of a police car with it's sirens on. Not only do the sirens suggest crime and therefore chaos (adding to the negative vibe of the video) but they are also used to symbolise the lights used in a club/disco. This relates to the genre of the music of the video which I would label as electro/pop in which dance is a big element - this aspect will be brought up again later on in the video.

A shaky handheld camera that comes into the video after this shot adds to the chaos and constant movement that the video contains. It again fits with the dance feel that this genre of music attempts to give off to it's audience.

The African American man in this shot is severely struggling to walk. This highlights the historic events of slavery that took place concerning African American people in times where racial supremity was present. This shot immediately springs the poem 'Limbo' by Edward Kamau Brathwaite, to mind. His poem describes the similarity of the game 'limbo' and the movement of African American slaves to the West Indies and America. There are a number of quotes taken from the poem that could be associated with this music video. "and the music is saving me" - many people in modern day society view music as a form of escape from the chaos of the world. Music played a similar role on the slave ships when people would sing and dance in order to forget reality. This perhaps shows that the audience for this video is mainly African American people as the video focuses on their roots.

An editing technique is used so that the man is in focus in the crowds of NewYork meaning he stands out. This is used to highlight his inferiority as it is easy to see how he is struggling to move freely and meet the demands of society. He is also surrounded by a huge field of white people, which highlights the superiority of the white race over the black perhaps.

 

The medium close-up shot of his legs proves quite shocking to look at. His body is abnormally skinny and this connotes weakness. In a bigger picture, the weakness of the African American race is symbolised here and their inferiority in society is suggested. The focus on his legs also refers to the times when black people were made to walk when travelling to America as slaves, again highlighting the inferiority that this race has experienced throughout history as well as suggesting that it is still present in modern day society.

There is a shot of the African American man falling to the ground which is immediately followed by a shot of a 'walk' road sign. Not only is this shot ironic because the walk sign is emphasising that the man is incapable of doing so as he lays on the floor, it is also juxtaposing as the sign is white whereas the man has dark skin. These factors all aid towards the negative representation of the African American race and underline the division that is obvious between cultures.

A close up shot of the mans broken arm falling to the floor suggests that America holds a fractured society. The breaking of the mans arm directly correlates with the way that America as a society and it's morality is disintegrating because of it's racial views that are stll present. Although racism is not a highlighted topic in the city of New York and the vast majority do not feel this prejudice; it is still associated a major problem in southern American states such as Texas. Perhaps Leftfield are attempting to portray the message that until racism is eliminated altogether then it is still the whole world's problem.

This shot shows the man walking alongside a metal fence. This could perhaps again be related to the slavery theme of the video because it is representing the black man, and therefore the black community, as trapped. It is also sugesting a reference to the holocaust in which millions of jewish civillians were practically caged within the confinements of metal fences. It is again a shot that is used to represent the African American man and the culture he is part of, as an inferior group whose historical weakness in society is still present.

This perspective shot of a taxi driver allows us to see the black man standing in the middle of the road. It shifts our sympathy momentarily so that we victimise the black man just like the civilians of New York have done throughout the video. It can be considered a message from the band which suggests to us that we also are culprits of the unforgivable prejudice and discrimination that still takes place in the world today and the blame is on ourselves as much as anybody else. The shot that follows is an extremely powerful close-up shot of the African American man's face. The fear and terror that is etched on his vulnerable face is emphasised because of the zoomed camera and for a split second we experience the same emotions that he does. A clever technique used by the producers that allow us to sympathise with this character and think seriously about the message that is being portrayed.

The final shot of the video adds to the overall irony of the video. The man is hit by a car which, not coincidentally, happens to be a classic New York taxi. This is considered an iconic symbol of the city of New York and for it to be represented in this way (responsible for murder) it shows the corruption and the disorientation of society.