This Is America - Childish Gambino Music Video Analysis

 

Donald Glover, who goes by Childish Gambino on-stage, released his trap/ pop single 'This Is America' in 2018. The music video was released May 5 in the same year while he hosted an episode of 'Saturday Night Live'. The music video was directed by Hiro Murai has amounted up to 763 million views since its release and won a Grammy for 'Best Music Video' upon many other awards. Personally, I think this music video is timeless and has been relevant since the moment it was released. As a result, I feel as though it will be talked about for a long time as the issues discussed won't just disappear and have been rooted in society for centuries, since the slave trade in the 15th century. Even once these issues have been addressed I feel as though it will be used to educate the future generations on how members of the BAME community were treated. Both Murai and Glover did not comment much after the videos release, this allowed the audience to argue the inferences and meaning behind it. The idea that there is not just a singular reference to each element of the video highlights how bad this issue is as there are so many possible references. 

The most prominent element in the camera work is that it all appears to be taken in a single shot, perhaps reflecting the idea that this is an ongoing issue but also that it is constant, whether it is happening in the

forefront on the background - this is how people live. This works in combination with a slow pace to allow the audience to take in the overwhelming amount of action happening in each frame. Additionally, in moments such as shooting the choir, the audience are left in shock while looking at Gambino holding a gun. Specifically, this gun is an AK-47, noticeable as the camera lingers on this moment, this is significant as it is a semi-automatic gun which is often a weapon of choice for most mass shootings as it causes so much damage. Additionally, there is a reference here to the Charlestown massacre as a white supremacist went into a church and shot everyone in their place of peace and worship.  The smooth pan upwards to the children sat above the action at the top of the industrial warehouse presents the idea that the children grew up in that environment which is reinforced later as a child rides past a mass fight on a bike, oblivious to the violence. Alternatively, the phones may be significant as they are a tool to spread awareness, although the music video was released before George Floyd's death, it was the sharing of that video on social media that catalysed and triggered a lot of the 'Black Lives Matter' protests. Another interpretation suggests that it is a reference to the March 18th shooting of Stephen Clark, an unarmed black man holding a phone. 

A subtle detail to the editing is the corners of the screen folding in at certain points, one example of this being when he mimics a gun as the school children dance around him. Once noticed, this visual clue evokes a claustrophobic atmosphere and a sense of unease, subtle details like this have a large overall impact to the final message of the video. The editing works in combination with the camera work as the smooth transitions, achieved within the edit (such as spinning), allow it to achieve a 'single shot' look while being able to change setting. As the camera zooms out towards the end of the video it is as if that all of the action seen is just one component and there is a 'rotating cube' with more shots (the appearance of the transition between that and the final sequence of the video). The darkness before this final sequence
seems to me as though it is a moment of reflection subsequent to an overwhelming reality check. The final shot the audience see is Glover running for his life towards the camera and what appears to be white riot police men chasing after him. In my opinion this symbolizes, not only people of color running from their lives in the 21st century in order to save themselves, but also slaves running through the Southern states in America in order to save themselves and look for a new life in the Northern states. Furthermore,
this shot has been put in slow motion, highlighting the fear in his eyes, as if he is destined to lose because the low lighting also makes his eyes and teeth stand out.

The music video open with Calypso inspired sound, using major chords and an upbeat tempo, however, there is pleonastic sound of a gunshot to transition from the major chord sound and choral singing to trap

music. To me this depicts the stark oppositions and ways of life in these countries and how African people were forced to go to America in the slave trade and eventually lost their lives. Subsequent to the diegetic sound of children screaming, running and shutting doors that make a similar sound to fire escape/ emergency doors as you push down the metal bar, there is silence. As these sounds were mad by the school children it mimics the fear of silence and impending doom as young children run and hide in fear for their lives in events of school shootings. It is believed that the 17 seconds of silence preceding this, after he mimes shooting a gun to the dancing children around him, is to pay respects to the 17 lives lost in the February shooting in a Parkland, Florida high school.

The video is set in an empty industrial space which is, in the end, filled with old 80's cars (also seen throughout the video). Due to the old make of the car rather than flashy new cars often seen in hip/hop videos perhaps references the death of the car industry in some states, especially Michigan known as the motor state, which provided thousands of jobs to black men, who were eventually left unemployed. This theory is enhanced by the door being left open on most of the cars in one of the final shots. An alternative interpretation suggests that it is a reference to the frequency at which black people are pulled over and killed on road-side for doing nothing wrong. Glover shoots the hooded man tied up with rope in the exposition of the video and the pose he does this in has sparked many

conversations. Some interpret it as a reference to Jim Crow, who also wears yellow shows like Glover in the video and they both do a similar Whereas others see it as a reference to Michael Jackson pose in 'Black or White', as in that video he also dances on top of cars. The school children are a key part of the music video as they are at the foreground of the video for most of it. Firstly, they are wearing a school uniform, this is quite unusual for American high schools, perhaps suggesting that the children thrive in places within Africa or the Caribbean where they are surrounded by their culture and learn about key black characters throughout history, rather than the predominantly white history taught in the Western education system. Secondly, they dance in front of the violence for a significant part of the video, proving as a distraction from the violence and problem at hand, just as people often use black art to hide black violence. 

There is so much action within each frame of the music video that runs parallel to the lyrics but there is even more to infer. Some symbolism that stands out to me includes: the gun being handled with care, wrapped in a red cloth while the body is left or dragged. In my opinion the red is significant as it carries so many connotations, one of these is it being the color of danger or blood, perhaps of the victim, or because it is the republicans colour and it is (mostly) the republican state that permits gun use and are the most violent towards the BAME community - typically the Southern states. As a dancer, the dance moves interest me as a lot of them appear to have been trends at one point or another, through social media, however, most of them trace directly back to African culture however, they never got credit. This cultural

appropriation within pop culture reinforces the idea that America 'owns' a lot of their history. In the background during one of the fights a hooded figure rides past on a pale horse which, in my opinion, mimics the KKK. As previously mentioned, the final moments of Glover running for his life illustrate the idea of slaves running away, an 'Insider' article said: "Some people understood it as him running from "The Sunken Place" from "Get Out", a metaphysical place that holds the black consciousness while a white mind takes over a black person's body. (When Glover performed the song on "Saturday Night Live", "Get Out" star Daniel Kaluuya introduced him), it could be read as Glover trying to escape simply being a body to be used by white people for distraction". Lastly, Glover has an exposed torso which represents that he is vulnerable as a black man in society and ultimately has no way of protecting himself.