Introduction
The music video This is America, released in 2018 by Donald Glover under his musical alter ego, Childish Gambino, is a musical and visual masterpiece bursting at the seams with meaningful details. The video masterfully illuminates the problem of violence against the African American community in the United States, particularly violence and police brutality. This essay is dedicated to This is America and analyzes the visual story of the music video.
Analysis
The video under consideration utilizes impactful imagery to showcase the issues that have plagued the United States for generations. One such issue is gun violence, with numerous pieces of weaponry being featured throughout the video. For example, at the beginning of the video, Gambino shoots a guitar player in the head execution style. Not a minute later, he mows down a church choir with a machine gun, highlighting the problem of attacks on African American people in their places of worship.
In addition, unprovoked police brutality that the community regularly faces is depicted in the video. At one point in the depicted riot, a police vehicle is seen being escorted by a dark, hooded figure riding a pale horse (Gambino). Thus, it can be stated that for the community, the arrival of the police does not represent help and protection but violence and death. The presence of various empty vehicles in the scenes of the video can be argued to represent traffic stops of African American men that often resulted in those men being killed by police officers.
Furthermore, some of the poses chosen by Childish Gambino refer to the racist and bigoted portrayal of African Americans in 18th and 19th-century America. For instance, Gambino’s pose as he kills the guitar player is the infamous Jim Crow pose, the minstrel character, and a stereotype of an enslaved person (Public Broadcasting Service). Moreover, the “silly” face Gambino pulls in the video references different racist minstrel characters popular and acceptable in the country just over a century ago. These small details enrich the visual storytelling in the video, although previous knowledge of the history of the portrayal of African American individuals in the United States is required.
This is America skillfully juxtaposes violence against the African American community with the entertainment provided by that community. In particular, dancing is featured prominently in the video, with Childish Gambino showing remarkable dance moves between shootings and rioting (Gambino). Moreover, the artist is followed by a group of black children wearing school uniforms who dance throughout all his antics and even a riot (Gambino).
It should be noted that these uniforms are reminiscent of uniforms of private schools that are less likely to be diverse and inclusive. The dancing reflects how the culture of the African American community is routinely appropriated and utilized as a distraction from the brutality inflicted upon it. In fact, people become numb to the violence they see, to the extent of filming it rather than trying to stop it, with the video featuring teenagers who casually film the riots unfolding beneath them.
Finally, the sound is cleverly employed to contrast the violence and entertainment points of the narrative. The song incorporates several styles, with traditional singing at the beginning being followed by a rap chorus with deliberately grammatically incorrect lyrics. A strong reggae influence can be noted throughout the song. However, Gambino’s most impactful sound is the sound of silence, as all music and singing cease in the middle of the song. These seventeen seconds of silence can be dedicated to all the victims of violence and brutality in the United States.
Conclusion
In summary, This is America is an outstanding artistic work that cannot leave viewers unaffected. In his work, Gambino draws attention to the problem of violence, specifically police violence, that the African American community experiences on a daily basis. Moreover, he highlights the continuous exploitation of the community’s culture in the media and its utilization to distract American society from the problems that plague it.
Works Cited
Gambino, Childish. “This is America.” YouTube, Web.
Public Broadcasting Service. “Jim Crow.” PBS: Public Broadcasting Service, 2019, Web.