Gender Representations in Music Videos

In pairs we looked at a gender representation of our choice, and Odelia and I chose to look at the representation of powerful yet innocent women who focus on their voice more than their image when selling their product.


Very few female artists (especially in the pop genre) don't use their body to sell their music, but we found artists such as Adele, Leona Lewis and Kelly Clarkson who's music is more about female independence and in their videos they are normally quite covered up compared to someone like Kesha.

In this music video, Kelly Clarkson is the powerful one within the relationship, throwing the guys stuff out of the window, and not letting him get away with anything. It's rare to see the female in the dominant position in music videos and so this makes the video even more interesting. Even though the song is about how her life would suck without him, she doesn't act pathetic and weak in the video, rather the opposite, choosing to take matters into her own hands. In general, within pop music videos, the female goes along with the male character but in this video Kelly Clarkson's character drives the video's narrative and at one point she even hits the boyfriend with a map, and even though it's a tiny, inconsequential act of violence, this is not normally shown in music videos.

Adele is an artist who is known for being quite sophisticated and 'classy' and this is shown in her music video for 'Rolling in the Deep'. The song mentions 'we could have had it all' and is clearly referencing a previous relationship, but instead of having a man in the video playing the boyfriend, the video focuses on the cinematography element and keeps it simple. She wears a black dress which isn't revealing, and there is no choreography for the artist. She is well respected for staying out of trouble and being composed and she is a role model to a lot of women who don't fit a stereotype.

Leona Lewis is know primarily for her voice (as well as being on the X Factor) and so in her music videos she is quite reserved in showing off her body or using it to sell the song/video. She relies on pure talent which is her voice and so in her videos she is normally quite covered up and is not necessarily seen as 'sexy' but as more of a nice, kind person who is more family-friendly. In her videos she often portrays a powerful, independent woman, and this is showcased particularly well in her 'Better In Time' music video. She first appears in plain clothes and little/no make-up and presents a very natural image, rather than the made up persona most pop artists go for. As the video is black and white throughout some of it, it also adds to the simplicity and means the video relies on her voice rather than flashy effects or dancing.

Both Ke$ha and The Pretty Reckless are examples of the complete opposite from the other artists we looked at. In their videos they wear revealing clothing and the main feature of their videos are their bodies. They present a very sexual image and this contributes to why their music sells. This doesn't present a good role-model for young girls who aspire to be like artists in the pop industry, especially Taylor Momsen in The Pretty Reckless who is only 17. It is artists like these who make it harder for artists who aren't comfortable with selling their body as they have to have far more talent to compete.