Analysing a Music Video

Vanessa Carlton- Nolita Fairytale

'Nolita Fairytale' is a song from Vanessa Carlton's third album, Heroes & Thieves, released in 2007. The song is about Vanessa Carlton's  life in Nolita- a place in New York City- and major life changes in the past two years; 'spent the last two years getting to what's real/ and now I can see so clear.' The lyrics refer to her leaving her former record label, A&M Records, on which her previous two albums were made. She said that she led an 'enchanted life' in Nolita; ''Cause I found some kind of fairytale', which relates to the title of the song, Nolita Fairytale.
The video contains an intertextual reference, as at the start of it, there is a step-by-step duplication of her video for 'A Thousand Miles.' The piano which was shown in that video is then hit by an oncoming yellow taxi, after she gets up and walks away from it. This links to her life changing for the better; 'A Thousand Miles' was her biggest hit and signature song, and was when she was with A&M Records. She has also said before that it isn't her favourite, so this represents her almost growing out of her old music, breaking away from it and being herself more. 'To start anew, you have to kind of open the old book and then close it so you can then open the next book.'
Opening of 'A Thousand Miles':

Opening of 'Nolita Fairytale':

There is an obvious connection to the lyrics in the song at many points, as during the video there are many references to fairytales; a man with wings, a girl letting her long blonde hair out of the window (Rapunzel), moving chess pieces and a unicorn. Again, this links to the title of the song and amplifies the lyrics.

The video takes place in the streets in part of Manhattan; this is because she is singing about how moving to a new city and staying there has impacted upon her life. The atmosphere in the video is positive, therefore putting you in a positive mood. She appears to be happy and free, dancing around carefree.
The target audience for this particular video of Vanessa Carlton's would mostly be girls in their teens, though usually her music is more 'grown up,' not containing any reference to fantasy.