Analysis- Wrecking Ball (Miley Cyrus)

For the first 30 seconds of the music video Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus, there is a continuous extreme close up shot showing the artist crying and lip syncing to the camera. Cyrus appears vulnerable and desperate in this shot and this is emphasised by the lack of editing. Only her face is displayed in this shot and the mode of direct address (looking directly and singing into the camera) connects the audience to the artist. This is a main feature of Horton and Wohl's 'parasocial interaction' theory. This connection automatically makes the audience feel sympathetic for her as she is upset and some members, particularly the female section of the audience, may be able to relate to this. She sings/talks about jumping into a relationship with somebody and subsequently falling in love. However, her partner did not share the same experiences. Lyrics such as "we chained our hearts in vain" and "I fell under your spell" highlight this. The colour of her lipstick has connotations with love, passion and relationships so one could make the judgement before the lyrics are heard what the song is about.

Next we are introduced to the main setting for the music video- a studio containing three mortar walls and a dark, low key lit background made to look like an abandoned warehouse or demolition site. I believe this has been used to relate to the song's title at the same time as not taking away focus from the artist. Cyrus' costume consists of a white crop top with bikini bottoms and brown boots. A contrast can be made between the colour of her costume and the surroundings- white vs grey. This is the use of binary opposition with the artist representing good, innocence and purity in a bad, corrupt and badly maintained relationship symbolised by the grey background.
This visually emotional start to the song is completely juxtaposed with the following scenes, especially in the chorus. The artist is wearing an outfit which exposes and shows off her arms, stomach and legs and is seen in later scenes completely nude. This relates to the theories of Exhibitionism and 'The Male Gaze' where female artists can show off their bodies in a subverted form of voyeurism and attract exterior male audience members using sex appeal to do so. This is a common convention used by solo female pop artists. The following sequence of shots denotes Cyrus using a hammer and a wrecking ball to smash down these mortar walls. This is a metaphor for her attempting to break the emotional walls/barriers her partner had. This is a rather destructive action to take in a relationship and this has been visually selected to be emphasised in the video as naturally a wrecking ball is used on demolition sites. The high angled shot of her licking the hammer could metaphorically mean that she secretly loved the pain of not being accepted by her partner. The artist being nude could represent her being emotionally stripped. During the chorus and towards the end of the video, the cutting rate dramatically increases to show the rush of emotions being emitted and to emphasise the lyrics. This sequence is a hybrid between the performance and narrative structures of a music video as the artist performs at the same time as telling a story.
During the bridge section of the song, we see Cyrus lying in the remnants of the mortar walls. The lyrics are as follows:

I never meant to start a war

I just wanted you to let me in

And instead of using force

I guess I should've let you win

Cyrus before and after her 'change'

While this can be related to her relationship struggles, there is also another perspective on the meaning of the song. Miley Cyrus was best known for portraying Hannah Montana, a teenager living a double life as an average schoolgirl by day and a famous recording artist Hannah Montana by night. Her image was a young, sweet and innocent singer and she was only known for playing Montana and being the famous country singer, Billy Rae Cyrus' daughter. It could be interpreted that Cyrus [Miley] wanted to change her former image and create a new one. The modern media covered Miley Cyrus is known for her nudity and 'twerking', exploiting her sex appeal to gain attention and popularity. This change in target audiences is known as a change in an 'Audience Cycle'.  The lyrics could explain her entrance into the music industry, "breaking in", "starting a war" or rather creating an unflattering and sex appealing star image for herself and not being able to return to her former image in fear of retribution.

Whether the song's meaning represents her destroying a relationship or how she broke into the music industry by radicalising her star image, the song vividly shows the audience how she has to cope with what has happened.