Representation of females in We are The In Crowds The Best Thing (That Never Happened)

Representation of females in We are The In Crowds The Best Thing (That Never Happened)By Thomas Cutmore

Background on the bandWe Are the In Crowdis an Americanpop punkband fromPoughkeepsie, New York, formed in 2009. The band consists of Taylor Jardine (vocals),Jordan Eckes(rhythm guitar and vocals), Mike Ferri (bass),Rob Chianelli(drums), Cameron Hurley (lead guitar and vocals).Their song The Best Thing (That Never Happened) is from their latest released album Weird Kids which was released in Feburary 2014, yet the song itself was first released as a single in December 2013, which went on to reach 29th place on the US Billboard 200 and 5th place on the US Independent Albums at the time.

The representation of females in this videoThe music video has a strong support for females and is anti male, which challenges the conventional idea in music videos where women are objectified as sex objects or pretty things to look at, and only be used for that purpose. In We Are The In Crowds video, Taylor is made to look attractive to the males eye, who may see themselves as being able to dominate her in terms of gender, but yet that is challenge as she is seen to be stronger and smarter than the male in the music video.

Screenshots of the portrayal of power and the challenging of the conventional female role

However so the use of close ups in the other scene (above) show Taylor as a pretty female which is almost centred to be looked at by the males, but in the next scene after that, Taylor is seen to be driving a big, angry Dodge muscle car, which could conventionally be associated with men in other music videos or media text. This could then challenge the females role of being a pretty thing to be looked at.

The representation of females in this videoThere are certain shots in the video where it could have a voyeuristic reference in it, such as where Taylor goes to the back of the car to open the boot, and the camera is set low down but levelled on Taylors bum. This however is only a short cut and Taylor redeems herself after this by overpowering the man in the next set of scenes, such as where she makes him dig his own grave while she watches.The man who is tied up by the hands is also seen to fall out of the boot instead of getting out, which could show her overpowering role in the music video. Taylor is also seen to throw the shovel in front of the man while he is on the floor, this as well emphasises the fact that the female is in full control over the male.

Screenshots of the portrayal of power and the challenging of the conventional female role

The voyeuristic shot of Taylors rear.Moves toThe introductory shot of the man.The way he falls out of the boot emphasises weakness of the male gender.Taylor throwing the shovel in front of the man emphasises her dominance and power in the music video.

Props and objects used to show female powerAs well as Taylor throwing the shovel down on the ground in front of the man, she also holds a gun, which although it is fake, it still represents the changing of the power role of women and men as men are usually seen as the gunmen in other media texts and music videos. After Taylor has used this and spooked the man, it shows that women can still hold power against males and that men are not always the dominating or oppressing gender over females.

Screenshots of props and objects showing power.

The gun brings an imagery of powerThe challenging of the conventional gender in media texts females over malesThe fake gun could show females are more mature than menThe male has accepted her dominance and her power over him is successful as he is spooked, which challenges the conventional idea of men being fearlessly strong

The use of camera angles and movements to emphasise female dominance in the music videoThe video has a lot of low angle shots on Taylor in the bands performance scenes, and this camera angle is only really used on Taylor the most out of the whole band as the rest of the band have mostly levelled shots of them, or their instruments. This is used to mainly focus upon the female in the band, which brings around a sense of power and dominance as the is the only female in the band, and also the lead singer, who could be seen as the leading position in the band. The cuts of the male band members compared to Taylors cuts are a lot shorter, which also emphasises the leading role of females in the videoIn the other scenes of the performance between her and the male, there are still more close ups of Taylor, but when the camera turns to the man, there are little shots when it is just him and not her somewhat in the shot. This could show that Taylors role in this music video is vital as she is the reason for why the male actor is in the situation he is in as he has done wrong and she is punishing him for it, which therefore supports the idea of the Taylor holding the power in the music video.

Screenshots of camera angles emphasising and showing female dominance

Through out the bands performance scenes when the camera is focussing on Taylor, a majority of the camera angles are low, emphasising her role and her power in not just the music video, but also in the band

Screenshots of camera angles emphasising and showing female dominance

When the music video turns to the other male band members, the shots are yet low, but only focus on their instruments (with an exception of the drummer) most of the time, and when ever it does show the face of the male band member, it is only a very short cut. This could show that the females role in the video is dominating and stronger than all of the males overall.

Viewpoints that could correlate to thisFeminists could argue that this video backs up the idea that women should overpower men and become equal in all aspects and not be used and oppressed. Feminist Dorothy Parker would argue that this could be seen as a sign of women fighting back for their equal freedom and that they are becoming more equal, or even overpowering the males who used to dominate them. Parker used a phrase "The first thing I do in the morning is brush my teeth and sharpen my tongue. This phrase could be used with this video as Taylor is seen to be sharp and powerful against the male.

Intertextual referencesThis music video could be linked to Eminems Love the Way You Lie featuring Rhianna. This music video shows the opposite of EchoSmiths portrayal of females and links to WATiCs more independent and stronger female. Rhianna and Taylor are seen to be strong and pro active, who are not afraid to show their power in who they are through the power of their voices, which could go against other conventional female singers in bands such as EchoSmiths Come Together, who show Sydney in a more female and a more voyeuristic view more often. WATiCs music video could also link to Tonight Alives Lonely Girl music video in terms of how the lead singer is represented. The two singers; Taylor and Jenna both follow a self respect rule in both of the music videos, which emphasising more they are not showing themselves off, i.e. no revealing clothing, and instead, following a more mature and casual clothing choice.

Screenshots of intertextuality

There is a difference in how both of the singers are represented; Sydney is all glamoured and wearing a lot of make up, where as Taylor is wearing little make up and looking more naturalBoth Rhianna and Taylor ressemble power in both of the music videos as the two music videos both evolve around the idea of females fighting for their rights/against oppression and standing strong against the male

Screenshots of intertextuality

Both have a similar type of dress for the two different scenes, i.e. one with only arms showing, and then more suited up. However so these two conventions go against the idea of women wearing little and showing off a lot, which is used in many other music videos, such as Eminems Love the Way you Lie