Analysis of Chris Brown ft Ariana Grande's music video- Don't be Gone Too Long, which was released a few days before the X release date.

1. DON’T BE GONE TOO LONG
X (09.14)
CHRIS BROWN FT. ARIANA
GRANDE
EURO-POP
MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS
BY AMINATTA SYLVA
13H

2. WHAT ARE THEY WEARING?
• As part of the costume for the narrative based music video, that has been set in a fantasy medieval period.
The male (Chris) is wearing a long mesh medieval shirt, her princess (Ariana), is wearing a long lavender
dress. Binary oppositions are clearly established here, through their clothing. Looking at their clothing, you
can tell that Ariana is more wealthy than Chris, as he is wearing dark, peasant like clothing. This could be
the reason why they are not allowed to be together.
• They are together in a desolate fantasy like environment. We can infer this because the moon is too big in
the sky, as well as the stars being fully visual. As they stand out in their dark, high key lit area. Here, the
camera pans around the couple, which goes with the beat of the music. The cuts to the dance scenes also
go with the bass that we hear. At these scenes we see Ariana and Chris (sometimes just Chris) dancing to
the beat. However, we cannot see their face, because they are dancing in the dark. This further suggests
that they are forbidden to see each other, that’s why are a dancing in the dark. The use of cross fades,
makes the lovers seem as one.

3. WHAT ARE THEY DOING?
• This music video is based around the elements of love, magic, royalty and is set during the
medieval period.
• The princess and her lover sing to each other until their peace is disrupted by the antagonist,
preferably the King’s guard. They remove the princess away from her lover, and throw him in
jail.
• The lover have duet amongst each other from different locations, this is a typical convention
of duets. This signifies to us that they might be apart, but their hearts are not apart.
• Brown is trapped in a medieval prison, mean while Ariana is singing at the top of a castle.
This again is another binary opposition, wealthy vs. the unfortunate and trapped vs. freedom.
• Then there is a close up of Brown stealing the keys off a guard, before then strangling him,
in order to go to his princess.
• Low angle shot of Brown walking in slow motion, past the unconscious guard. He is wearing
a dark long robe, to hide his identity. However, the cinematography of this shot suggests to
us that Brown is now empowered after escaping jail to go find his lover.

4. WHAT ARE THEY DOING?
• Shot of the antagonist doing black magic, this is suggested to us because his eyes go black.
We also get close ups of witch craft objects; potions etc.
• Behind the antagonist we see skull faces appearing in the fog behind him. This further
suggests to us that he is letting evil spirits inhabit him, so that he can stop Ariana being with
Chris.
• Whilst the evil fumes are entering him, two shirtless men are ritualistically dancing to the
music, with fire lit between them.
• We are then shown shots of Chris and Ariana together in a flourished and magical forest like
setting. The colour of the setting reflects the mood of the couple, as now they are free and
happy together.
• The final shot, Chris gets to the castle to see his princess, but just after they kiss, the
antagonist appears. This is where it ends. However, this is enigmatic because we want to
know what happens next.

5. WHAT IS THE SONG ABOUT?
• This song is about love growing into something beautiful, such as a
rose, or perhaps love maturing by time. It is also about being afraid of
being lonely, thus the title of the song.

6. LYRIC ANALYSIS
I dug a single seed into the ground
I hope it grows, grows
In a year or two if you're around
You'll see a rose, rose
The single seed is a metaphor for hope and new love. It’s
a small thing which can turn into a beautiful flower, here
— a rose.
Roses are a common symbol of love (especially red
ones), but in order to grow a rose yourself, not only
would you need to find good ground with enough
sunlight, but you’d need to take care of it every day.
On a train to Paris going nowhere
Trouble bridge behind me
Given the distance though, he is almost explaining
how he would even flee the continent if it meant
escaping his problems. But running away from them
will not fix anything, and he knows it. Fleeing to a
different place or country could make Chris feel like
he can start new life and forget about all the
controversy he may be facing.

7. LYRIC ANALYSIS
Don't be gone too long (too long)
'Cause you won't be there to love me
when you're gon
Chris is known for his lust for women. He is afraid of being
lonely and it leading to either of the sides cheating.
He doesn’t want that scenario to happen. In a way he asks
her to be there for him, so that he can stay faithful. “Tell me
who’s gonna love me when you’re gone” sounds more like
a rhetorical question than a regular one. Chris wants to
remain loyal but he also knows that if the girl is not around
he will be all alone.
Golden leaves are dancing on the
ground
It's getting cold, cold
Safe from time, will be forever
young
Never old, old
The golden leaves signify fall, a season symbolizing decline.
This is the main concept of another track on the album —
“Autumn Leaves”. Also, the word “cold” applies to both fall’s
cool temperature and love’s wavering passion.
While people’s bodies aren’t safe from time and everyone
grows old, the spirit and the feelings can stay young and
fresh forever.
Even if the two are away from each other or their relationship
ends, their “Young Love” will always be in their hearts, immune
to the destructive force of time.

8. CINEMATOGRAPHY
• This music video was technologically challenging to create,
as it was created through the use of a green screen, as
shown in the BTS.
• In this music video long shots were used to establish the
setting/environment of the place, so that the audience can
clearly establish which time period it has been set in. Close
ups were used to allow the audience to clearly see objects,
or characters’ emotions. Much of the filming was done
through the use of a crane shot.
• In some of the shots shallow space focusing was used to
make the audience pay attention to what the directors want
us to do. Deep space focus was also used in the music
video.
• Lighting was effectively used in this music video, especially
during the dance scenes and prison cell. Silhouettes are
used to make the music video look cinematically appealing,
as well as make Chris’ freestyle look good.
• Editing featured cross fades, graphic matches and cuts, that
went in time either with the narrative or the beat of the

9. TARGET AUDIENCE
• The target audience for this music video is a mix between the two genders.
As the majority of Chris’ fans are women, and same goes for Ariana.
However, we might get an increase of male viewership because Ariana is
looking really pretty in this video, their would want to be her love interest.
Whereas in terms of Chris’ role, girls would want to be Ariana.
• They are both huge recording artists, therefore, the viewership will be very
high, as a result of their fanbases coming together- teambreezy and Ariana’s
fanbase.
• Chris’ audience would be females because he is portrayed in a
sexy/charming way/cute, similar to Ariana.