Melodysheep, The New Education
“MelodySheep” is one of those few who have transformed these snippets into works of art. “Melodysheep” is a YouTube channel created by John D. Boswell, a Washington State based musician and professional remixer. His videos have received over 97 million views and have accrued nearly 350,000 subscribers, including me. He has a collection called “Symphony of science” which has made him most famous. This collection contains all aspects of science, anything from the moon landing to evolution. In most of these videos he uses credible scientists such as Richard Dawkins, Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Lawrence Krauss. Each of who are distinguished theorists and physicists who have challenged their select fields and forever made a mark on our society. Seeing such passionate professionals sing rather than talk about their findings and research is both mesmerizing and hilarious. Perhaps one of the best examples of his remixes is called “We are stardust”. Lasting roughly 3 minutes the video displays colorful videography from Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” and auto-tuned scientists singing about the stars. Melodysheep cuts slices and mixes these singing scientists into songs that either act as learning tools, tributes or even musicals. His most popular genre of music is under the science category. The 3 minute video is a perfectly blended song about how the atoms in our body are the same atoms that are found inside stars lightyears away. Similarly to how Bill Nye makes science interesting and easy to follow for children, Melodysheep has turned science into music that’s addicting and exciting for all ages.
Melodysheep is also able to twist the messages of the scientists. This could be perceived as a negative and made to question the credibility of the message, however this is not the case. Instead, the message is heightened. Melodysheep is able to nitpick the phrases and lines of most importance, then connect them through music. This is no different than how poetry is made. The most important information is taken and arranged to tell a story. Music is just another medium.
Form
What happens between these phrases and lines is what connects it all into one seamless story. Scott McCloud, American cartoonist, and comic’s theorist, calls the breaks in between clips: closure. Closure is not just a one way street, it requires work from both the artist and the audience. McCloud explains that closure can take many forms, one of which is how our brains will attempt to connect images that may have little relevance. The fact that the remix is turned into a song, it is important that there is little room for interpretation and filling in of the gaps. The video needs to blend as seamlessly as possible in order to develop and avoid a break of character. In the case of “We Are Stardust” we are dealing with short 3-5 second clips. These clips would seem quite irrelevant to one another had melody sheep not combined them through audio. Melodysheep has a few tricks which help the audience find closure. One of which is by overlapping audio from one clip into the next. For example at 00:10 there is a clip of Neil DeGrasse Tyson singing, then the imagery transitions into a perspective of space, however in this transition the music and singing continues. Another trick which helps these transitions is autotune. Autotune is what allows singers to reach and stay in correct keys. Without the use of autotune in Melodysheep’s work, it again would seem like a collection of unrelated clips. Autotune can match the keys of all of the scientists to make them seem like they are singing. More importantly, it matches their notes to a background tune or melody. This is the real magic behind the curtain when it comes to Melodysheep’s work. In a way, autotune allows the audience to do less of the mental closure required for connecting the dots. If these tricks were ineffective the video would fall flat.
The composition of the visual elements can be broken down to tell a similar story. National Geographic’s “Complete Photography” is a comprehensive outline of the does and don’ts of taking good pictures. “Complete Photography” offers a set of rules to taking powerful and memorable shots. Although Melodysheep uses video, it can be directly linked back to the same principals. For example, one of these principals talks about how to properly showcase focal point. The rules are simple; set the object or person slightly off center of the screen, get close, let the background set the context. All three of these rules are followed out perfectly by Melodysheep. One of the more popular clips is of Neil DeGrasse Tyson sitting in what appears to be his office or study. In this clip Melody sheep has re cropped the video to zoom in on Tyson, set him slightly to the right of center, and allow the audience to observe the background context: a bookshelf of science.
Content
Melody sheep has been creating media for over a decade and has figured out the winning formula for creating entertaining, meaningful and emotional remixes. Even his oldest videos have stood the test of time and continue to receive high praise. “We are Stardust” can almost be thought of as an educational jumpstart into the realm of science. Although watching his videos will not make you a scientist, it may intrigue you to learn more about the topic. If a 3 minute YouTube video can motivate a child to ask more questions, then it has played it part.
I think that this remix holds several lessons. The most important lesson however is that remixes like this can be used as a teaching method. Kids have grown to love entertainment and in some cases have learned to accept it as religion. Learning entertainment such as “We Are Stardust” is perhaps one of the newer mediums to grace society. Marshall McLuhan; Philosopher, professor and intellectual, writes in his book “The medium is the new message” about how new ideas are often treated with little respect and disregarded. He explains how the new is often rejected by the old before we can even judge it. The idea that “We Are Stardust” Perhaps is not the only message being conveyed, but also that remixed media can be used as a learning tool. Typically what may happen next is that the new idea is rejected by the society for it is new and threatening. However, I believe that the reason this message is not being forgotten and abandoned is because it is entertainment. Entertainment seems to bypass these laws that McLuhan speaks of and is immediately met with an open mind. For an educator, this is good news because it can save time in the classroom.
One might then ask, what exactly makes this entertainment? For this answer one might look to back to Scott McCloud. He explains in his book “Understanding Comics” the science behind the arts of comics, however these lessons can be applied to many other mediums such as videography. In chapter 5 of “Understanding Comics” McCloud explains that emotions can be expressed and made visible on paper. However, in the case of “We Are Stardust” the medium is a 3 minute video. Melodysheep is able to bring these lessons through in his works with proper timing and set up. In “We Are Stardust” the clips shown are all roughly 3-5 seconds long. Swapping back and forth between videos of scientists speaking, hypnotic footage of space and spellbinding explosions of stars. Melodysheep uses video in a corresponding manner with the audio. During the chorus there is a build and then a dramatic crescendo, in this explosion of sound there is a simultaneous visual explosion such as a star going supernova. This visual and audible correspondence guides and heightens the emotional journey of the video.
Evaluation
Understanding how to reshape and repackage information is a careful and precise art. Melodysheep has spent over a decade fine tuning his technique and experimenting with different styles and formats of his remixes. His greatest strength is his ability to quickly capture the attention of any audience and present an idea or concept to the viewer in an entertaining and immersive experience. This technique should not be taken light heartedly, his medium could indicate a new direction in which entertainment could be used for education. Many would argue our modern day education system is dated and requires an upgrade into the 21st century. Melodysheep may have that upgrade we are looking for. Our society has become addicted to constant gratification and entertainment. The media satisfies and feeds this addiction through short entertainment while the education system struggles to engage and hold the attention of our youth. Melodysheep has combined the enticement of entertainment with the informative tools of education. Although Melodysheep may not be used directly to educate, he helps interest and inspire us to learn more. He allows us to easily open the book into a new genre we would have otherwise overlooked.
Work Cited
National Geographic Complete Photography. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic, 2011. Print.
MacLuhan, Marshall. The Medium Is the Message. Corte Madera: Gingko Pr., 2005. Print.
McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics:. New York: HarperPerennial, 1994. Print.
"Symphony of Science Collector's Edition, by Melodysheep." Melodysheep. N.p., 26 Feb. 2013. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8g4d-rnhuSg&t=109s