Textual Analysis

Smoke the Weed- Snoop Lion

Smoke Weed Everyday is a lyrical part from the 2000 rap single “The Next Episode”by hip hop artists and producers Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. The phrase has gained usage in numerous image macros, music remixes and YouTube Poop Music Videos.

The Next episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZXc39hT8t4

Music video by Dr. Dre performing The Next Episode. 1999InterscopeRecords 2000 Aftermath/Interscope Records.

Snoop Dogg is being represented as a Rastafarian and the use of cannabis is also shown throughout the video. the subject has been represented this way because snoop dogg is known for smoking cannabis and supporting the cannabis community. Since the music video is called "smoke the weed" the title clearly symbolises what the main subject is about (marijuana). The music video contains two main protagonists American/Bermudian reggae artist known as "Collie Buddz" who is also known for his famous song "Come Around" in which he also supports the idea of cannabis in the whole music video narrative. Collie Buddz challenges the stereotypes of reggae music since he is white there has been many comments and views that his verse was better than snoops. The audiences are amazed the fact that he is white and hes got a really good Jamaican accent which makes him unique.

the genre that this texts belongs to is reggae because its a remake of a old reggae song but they got som ideas from it and also made it more modernised. this helps with the idea of bringing back old music. this was a clever technique as many older people who were familiar with the old song could recognise the same rhythm so this might be a really effective solution. One of the main conventions of the text is probably the title as it explains it all. it clearly states "smoke the weed" this helps the audience to relate to the idea of the video and also we can relate it to the hypodermic model as the text is injecting thoughts into the audiences brain e.g smoke the weed will be printed in their brains. 

By analysing the first couple of seconds of the music video the audience can clearly what the music video is going to be about e.g the title in the beginning basically explains what the entire video is going to be about. the connotation is obviously cannabis as nearly most of the shots is the music video show the use of cannabis by different people. This video raises a lot of controversy as the chorus is "smoke the weed everyday" The audience is positioned to be part of the overall outcome as snoop dogg is directly telling the audience to smoke weed everyday not only that but we can relate it to the hypodermic needle model as snoop dogg is injecting youngsters with the idea that smoking cannabis everyday makes you a better person. The video shows lots of lip syncing, this is essential for a music video because it shows the artist singing the song as it is being played, making it appear to be live.The video constantly references the lyrics throughout, this makes it earlier to follow along for the audience and makes it more memorable. one of the main iconography in this video is the weed and the plant the plant really symbolises how the weed is presented in the video and it can really be distinguished and also can be identified by the audience. 

Dyer suggested that stereotypes are always about power well in this video its clearly true.The video also represents the effects of cannabis such as getting high. this is mainly the main reason why snoop dogg enjoys  cannabis and also wants to influence other people to smoke cannabis.

The split of both genders in the video is biased as they portray the main protagonists to be men and the females are portrayed to just be a iconic figure in the video. snoop doggs lyrics in the video support nature so this could mean that he do sent only represent bad representation but good ones as cannabis ios a natural product and he also mentions global warming. snoop dogg tells youngsters to look after the nature e.g dont litter we need these plants to grow so we can really enjoy getting high.

Mise en scene

Snoop dogg also wears glasses this is a key convention as the glasses symbolise that he has stoner eyes which mean that his eyes are always stoned by the effects of weed. Many reggae artists are known for wearing a lot of glasses to represent the sensation of high they also do this to hide that fact that they are stoned. One of the main iconography in this video is the weed and the plant the plant really symbolises how the weed is presented in the video and it can really be distinguished and also can be identified by the audience. 

snoop dogg also wears glasses this is a key convention as the glasses symbolise that he has stoner eyes which mean that his eyes are always stoned by the effects of weed. many reggae artists are known for wearing alot of glasses to represent the sensation of high they also do this to hide that fact that they are stoned. The music video is filmed in two location when collie buddz is represented hes in a town where there are a lot of youngsters smoking weed.There are also videos of the cannabis plant which could also be parts of the location and props. in the video they also show behind the scenes e.g the green screen and the lighting  and snoop dogg sitting on a table with the a female beside him. one of the main iconography is marijuana but also smoking joints and weed plants. these are shown secretly from the video. snoop dogg also advertiser his new product the G pen which is a weed vaporiser in which you just need to add the weed inside and the pen burns the weed for you. snoop dogg wants to promote his products that also could be the main reason why hes making this video about cannabis.

Lighting

High-key lighting is used and aims to reduce the lighting ratio present in the scene e.g making snoop dogg look more realistic to the natural light in the scene making it look cinematic . This was originally done partly for technological reasons, since early film and television did not deal well with high contrast ratios, but now is used to suggest an upbeat mood. In this part of the music video is filmed outside so high key lighting is essential to use to reduce the effect of exposure from the daylight and make the main protagonist stand out more.

Low-key lighting is used in certain parts of the video e.g when snoop dogg is smoking the use of lighting really illuminates the smoke It is a necessary element in creating a chiaroscuro effect. Traditional photographic lighting, three-point lighting uses a key light, a fill light, and a back light for illumination. This feature also gives the music video a cinematic feature. As you can see in this part of the music video they have used back lighting efficiently making the main protagonist stand out more creating a sort of volumetric lighting as the smoke is submerged well with the light.

Throughout the music the use of slow motion is used quite often. This is essential for a reggae genre since everything is meant to be slow paced and dramatic. The slow motion really gives the video more professionalism as it expresses the overall vibe as this song is meant to calm and relax people e.g you wont play this song while at the gym because its only made for relaxing or best suitable for smoking cannabis. This song makes teenagers more tempted to smoke cannabis as the representation of the music video is so powerful. 

Even when i listen to this song i really get into the vibe of relaxation. The slow motion effect tells the story also as you can see people dealing weed so by putting these bits in slow motion it really highlights the idea of how cannabis is delivered bought and smoked. The camera angles are used effectively the video has good cinematography too e.g there are a lot of tracking shots and pan-over shots this creates a more cinematic approach rather than just having a still camera focusing on the main protagonist.The idea of camera movement is one of the top key conventions in a music video i believe as it makes the video more interesting and alive.