Representations of women in rap videos

In rap videos women are presented as nobodies and just sexual playthings or eye candy. Women are presented in a way that they aren't people you would get to know but people you would use for sex. Due to this use of eye candy the video captures a lot more male viewers as they are looking to see the women dancing in bikinis or even half dressed. Women are also presented as being sexually attractive for example in candy shop (by 50 cent) one of the women are seducing 50 cent and wearing hardly any clothes while he is wearing big coats/jackets while leaning on his expensive car with his mansion in the background. These rap videos give young men the impression that it is ok to treat women like they are in the videos and use them for sex.

These images are shown in numerous other types of media like magazines, films, advertisements and television. However music videos are the only type were women are presented in a way that there only used as sexual objects.

A sample of sixty-two videos from 1984 showed, that 60% included "some portrayal of sexual feelings or impulses". The most sex-appealing videos of that year included "Legs" by ZZ Top and "Physical" by Olivia Newton-John. In 1990, suggestive sexual activity like pelvic thrusts, long lip licking or stroking, was present in 89% of MTV videos.

The 1996 research showed, that the hip-hop and R&B were greatest in the sexual variables. In further analysis, videos that mixed hip-hop and R&B displayed sexual content the most frequently, followed by hip-hop itself and R&B itself. The diverse content may occur within the one video, like in Faith Hill's "The Way You Love Me", where she portrayed a waitress, a dominatrix and a nurse.

A survey found that 72.2% of black, 68.0% of white, and 69.2% of Hispanic youths agree with the suggestion that rap music videos contain 'too many' references to sex.

Grading

1/12

B3

What you have here is very good and you have responded well to the question, even posing your own questions. You have used examples solidly. 

T: Try to use more examples and key terminology (see VCOP Blog). Pick out all of the technical aspects (Mise-en-scene, editing, lyrics etc) and how they help you come to your conclusions.