Music Video Analysis: New Americana (Halsey)

"New Americana" is a song by American singer and songwriter Halsey taken from her debut studio album, Badlands (2015). It was written by Halsey, Larzz Principato, and Kalkutta. Categorised as an alternative pop song, "New Americana" focuses the normalization of aspects of counterculture in the United States, including recreational marijuana use and same-sex marriage. The song was released on July 10, 2015, as the second single from the Badlands album. 
Critics described this song as a "generational anthem" for millennials.

The mise en scene consists of a rural background (harsh mountains and thick forests) coupled with a military style base and atmosphere that denotes a dystopian setting and time of conflict. This is illustrative of the combative narrative the video tries to portray to its audience. The artist, Halsey, is placed in this environment to reflect her activist and social justice fighting attitude. Contrasts between the environment and behaviors of the actors are made through the use of mise en scene throughout the video. For example, at one point during the video the footage quickly cuts from a clip of a male actor’s head being shaved to another male actor with his back turned to the camera urinating against a wall – this is interesting as we can see a contrast between the stereotype of disciplined militant behavior and the behavior expected of an unruly youth or drunk. This is continued throughout the video with shots of actors training being coupled with steamy love scenes and clips of actors smoking and gambling for Marijuana (as mentioned in the lyrics of the song ‘high on legal Marijuana’). This is effective as it effectively portrays to the audience the idea of millennial activism and fighting for our beliefs in a way that is both effectual but still in our own unconventional way and would appeal to those who may associate themselves with this kind of message and approach.

The costume furthers this idea, as it conveys a military-esque style and combative attitude (the colour black used connotes power and formality), but the revealing cut of the clothing also shows the edgy and provocative side of this narrative.  This would appeal to an audience (of young adults) as it’s a style they would identify with and want to replicate.

Dark atmospheric lighting is used during scenes that take place inside and at night and this is usually created through the use of fire this is contrasted with the lighting in the final shot where the ‘rebels’ escape breaking out of the woods where natural lighting is used. This use of lighting creates a tense atmosphere throughout the video and a sense of relief in the audience when the danger seems to have passed. There are also moments of colourful/neon lighting used in some sections of the video which denotes passion and fits in very well with the rebel image portrayed throughout the video.

This music video is narrative based; this is slightly unconventional as artists often elect to use hybrid narrative-performance videos this however does suggest that Halsey, as an artist, cares more about her music and telling a story to her audience. The inclusion of a dialogue scene furthers the story-telling element of the narrative and creates a movie feel to the video and engages the audience with the story.

Many cuts are made throughout the video to portray the chaotic lifestyle of the rebels, the arc of the story and to display the other actors in the video (a mixture of males and females to appeal to both genders and show unity). Continuity editing is used to create smooth story-telling experience for the audience. The lack of special effects used, minus the old film style filter used in the opening sequence of footage, shows that the artist wanted this to be a genuine portrayal of the story without the narrative being shrouded by such distracting editing techniques.

A variety of angles are used throughout the video with many of the levels in scenes that involved the rebels being shot head-on which suggest equality among comrades. When Halsey’s character tries to escape from the clutches of the men who capture her this is shot using an up-angle which shows the power of those who hold her hostage. Tracking shots are utilised to follow the action in combat scenes and the panning of the camera as the actors to turn their heads to look at the artist before she is captured emphasises the sense of betrayal she feels from her comrades. Establishing shots of the rebel base and the village help to introduce the audience to the setting/action and fabricate an image of the surroundings. Close ups of supporting actor’s faces are featured regularly to show the wider picture and reaction to the audience. This effective in creating a sense having a wider knowledge of what is happening within the narrative and shows the reactions of the ‘society’ in this alternate world. Much of the video appears to be shot using a handheld camera, with many of the clips appearing to be shaky and almost amateur, this gives the video a more candid ambience, as though you are viewing it with your own eyes.