The Chainsmokers - Don't Let Me Down - Video Deconstruction

 The Chainsmokers

The Chainsmokers are an American DJ duo consisting of Andrew Taggart and Alex Pall. The duo reached an international breakthrough with their 2014 single "#Selfie", which peaked No. 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart. The Chainsmokers were formed as an EDM DJ duo in 2012 under the management of Adam Alpert in New York City. They started out by making remixes of indie bands

Disruptor Records

Disruptor Records is a joint venture with Sony. Disruptor Records are based in New York. They represent some of the most prolific and talented young songwriters, producers and artists from many different countries around the world. Artists which are signed to Disruptor Records apart from 'The Chainsmokers' include Lost Kings, XYLO and Life Of Dillon. The Chainsmokers are also signed to Colombia Records which is owned by Sony Entertainment - parent company to Colombia Records.

Columbia Records is an American label company owned by Sony Entertainment. Artists currently signed to Columbia Records include but are not limited to Adele, A R Rahman, Barbra Streisand, Beyoncé, Bring Me the Horizon, Bob Dylan Bruce Springsteen, Calvin Harris, Celine Dion, Daft Punk, David Gilmour, Earl Sweatshirt, Electric Light Orchestra, Ella Henderson, James Arthur, J. Cole, Juicy J, Lavengro, Little Mix, Madeon, MKTO, One Direction, Passion Pit, Patti Smith, Pharrell Williams, Rachel Platten, the Neighbourhood, The Script, T.I., Train, ZHU.

'Don't let me down'- Music video from Youtube

'Don't let me Down' - The ChainSmokers Lyrics

Crashing, hit a wall
Right now I need a miracle
Hurry up now, I need a miracle
Stranded, reaching out
I call your name but you're not around
I say your name but you're not around

I need you, I need you, I need you right now
Yeah, I need you right now
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
I think I'm losing my mind now
It's in my head, darling I hope
That you'll be here, when I need you the most
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
D-Don't let me down

Don't let me down
Don't let me down, down, down
Don't let me down, don't let me down, down, down

R-r-running out of time
I really thought you were on my side
But now there's nobody by my side

I need you, I need you, I need you right now
Yeah, I need you right now
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
I think I'm losing my mind now
It's in my head, darling I hope
That you'll be here, when I need you the most
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
D-Don't let me down

Don't let me down
Don't let me down, down, down
Don't let me down, down, down
Don't let me down, down, down
Don't let me down, don't let me down, down, down

Oh, I think I'm losing my mind now, yeah, yeah, yeah
Oh, I think I'm losing my mind now, yeah, yeah

I need you, I need you, I need you right now
Yeah, I need you right now
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
I think I'm losing my mind now
It's in my head, darling I hope
That you'll be here, when I need you the most
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me down
Don't let me down

Yeah, don't let me down
Yeah, don't let me down
Don't let me down, oh no
Said don't let me down
Don't let me down
Don't let me down
Don't let me down, down, down


Synopsis

The music video for 'Don't let me down' begins with a young woman singing and two young men who are sitting in a car. Th Music Video is about how the woman is saying 'don't let me down' to the men or about how possibly a past lover has literally 'let her down'. The young woman is singing throughout the whole video while watching the two men in the car as if she is talking to them.


Timeline

00:00-00:10 - the music video begins with two men sitting in a car. Initially showing how two men are going for a drive through the forest. This is a mid-shot of the two men sitting in the car as the music begins to play. Visually 'The Chainsmokers' comes up as they are the artist which the song is by.Then written on the screen overlaid over the two men sitting in a yellow car is the name of the song; 'Don't let me down'. This is then cut to a P.O.V shot from one of the men's shoulders who is listening to music with headphones on to a Samsung mobile phone with the album cover of the song.

00:10-00:25- The next cut is to the woman who is singing the song. This is shown as a close up of the woman as she is seeing the lyrics of the song which the man is listening to on his headphones while sitting in the car.  The next shot is of a man listening to the song with his eyes closed which shows how he is listening intently to the song as the woman sings.

00:25-00:50 -At this point in the music video the next shot  shows a close-up of the woman lip-syncing the words of the song as she turns around accordingly to the words in the song - 'I say your name when you're not around'. This is then fast cut back to the two men in the car with a mid-shot. The next shot is P.O.V from the mens' shoulders showing the man driving the car, which is then  cut to a long-shot showing the car with both men in it and the woman standing in front of the car.

00:50- 1:10- At this point in the music video the next cut is to a mid-shot of both men staring at the girls and the main girl who is lip syncing throughout the whole of the music video, as she is established as the main person in the music video. The camera then pans across all the women who are dancing in front of the boys and the main girl, cutting to extreme close ups of each girl as the camera pans around.The next shot is of the main girl who is singing  throughout the music video to a close up of her showing how she is angry at the men as they have 'let her down'. The lyrics at this point are very much in synchronisation with the music video and correlate to one another.

1:10-1:45- The next cut is fast paced cuts from the women to both of the men while the other women are dancing and the men are on a getaway from the women - almost as if they are trying to escape the problem and get out of the situation. The next shot is  an extreme close up of the main woman singing in the music video to express her emotion as this is then cut straight to a mid-shot of both the men sitting in the car. The camera continues with fast paced cuts from the girl to the men sitting in the car as they are dancing and the men are just staring at them.

1:45-3:00- The video continues with mid-shots to close ups of both the two men and the woman, occasionally extreme close ups of the woman who is singing the song. There is then a mid-shot of the woman in a field with overgrown grass as she is shown with an extreme close up of her facial expression to also show her emotion of how she feels about how the men have 'let her down' hence the name of the song.

3:00-3:37- The music video continues again with mid-shots and close ups of the girl singing and the men still in the car as it is moving up and down. Then the video ends with both men up in the air as a long-shot with dark lighting to end the music video. The dark lighting could possibly have correlation to the background meaning of the song and how the relationship could not have worked out so well as either one in the relationship keep letting each other 'down'.

Mise en Scene 

Setting

Despite a lack of geographical markers, the music video begins with this image. It is quite evident that the music video is shot in a  forest ( or a natural park). The opening shots introduce us to natural scenery and we know that the music video is going to be mainly in an outside natural open space such as a forest due especially to the lighting.

The image above supports the setting of a forest or a natural park due to the natural lighting shown in this part of the music video. Having the sun shown through the trees could represent that sense of nature and freedom. Even though the meaning and lyrics of the song contradict this, in my opinion this is important to show where the music video is set.

Again, this image from the music video for 'Don't Let Me Down' is important in establishing the setting of where the music video is set. From the shot above it is quite clear that the woman is standing in the middle of a field with overgrown grass, again showing the sense of nature and establishing the setting of being out in the open and in nature.

By  showing the Samsung phone (assuming it is the newest model). This is important to the music video as it is marketing the mobile phone well. As well as having 'The Chainsmokers' own music album in their music video is promoting their name as an artist as well as the song.

Costume and Makeup

In the video, both of the men portray a very relaxed/chilled out look to them. Considering one of them is wearing a hoodie underneath a jacket portrays an almost rebellious look. The other man displays more of a laid back look with the costume of a plain white t-shirt and a black shirt on top. By both men illustrating a chilled out/rebellious looks in the music video, it could suggest how the lyrics of the song and the name 'don't let me down' reflect on their choice of costume as they might be too chilled out to give the girl any attention.


It is noticeable that both men are wearing similar clothes to the natural lighting in the forest. The colours which they are wearing are quite warm and coincide well with the natural lighting which serves to highlight where the location/setting of the music video is and also how they present themselves as quite laid back/chilled.

 The sleeveless leather jacket has long been associated with rebels, by the woman wearing a sleeveless leather jacket helps to signify that she is defiant. Her face is very well made up, especially with her red lipstick, which serves to depict and allude to a seductive defiant look to her almost as she is fed up of being let down in relationships and is being set free out into the open suggesting why the music video is set in a natural forest.

The fact that the woman is wearing all black clothes in conjunction with the light natural lighting/ warm colours makes her look displaced in the setting. It could also suggest that she is trying to be different and 'letting herself go' in the open space which is in fact a forest.

Key shots, Camera movements, and Edits



Key Shots- Setting- Establishing Shot 

This shot above is a key shot as it is an establishing shot of which the music video is set in. It shows to the audience  what the music video is going to be like (a drive through a natural forest). This is important as then the audience is aware of what they are going to be watching -throughout the whole of the music video. This is key for any music video in my opinion in order to establish the setting.

Camera Movement / Editing-

The camera movement in the shot above is important in my opinion as the camera moves from both of the men directly to woman. The way the camera moves across from them to the woman is significant as it is showing the difference between the men and the woman, indicating how the lyrics of the song are significant to what the visuals is showing to the audience. The way this shot is edited is interesting as it includes straight/fast cuts from the men to women.

Focus Group

Members of my focus group had the following things to say about the music video "Don't Let Me Down" by The Chainsmokers.

"I really enjoyed the way that the lyrics are matched to the girl who is singing. I also like the way the video is well thought out to match the meaning of what the music video is trying to portray and that in actual fact is how some relationships don't always work and one person from the relationship may put one another down."

"I really like the fact that the car starts bouncing up and down as the main beat starts to build up. I think this gives a really good effect to the overall music video."

Lessons to be Learnt

It is worth combining certain lyrics of a song to match the visuals in the music video. This will then hopefully catch the audience's attention when watching the music video.

It is very important to match the mise en scene to the tone of the song.