MUSICVID #9: Kendrick Lamar - Swimming Pools

POSSIBLE POINTS OF INFLUENCE

• Mixing black+white and colour
• The room

As can be seen below used as the
thumbnail for the video

ARTIST: Kendrick Lamar
TRACK: Swimming Pools 

ALBUM: good kid, mad city

YEAR: 2012

DIRECTOR: Jerome D
GENRE: hip-hop
SINGLE?: Yes 

Context Within Album

Released on July 31st 2012 just under three months before the album's release on October 22nd as the second single (first one, The Recipe, released three months earlier ).
There was no video released for the first one, only a lyric video.

TITLES

9 seconds Three white on black, name of song, musician and director, without roles, slightly litten up.

NARRATIVE, EXPOSITION

Music starts at 0'11 

• 5 shots of Kendrick falling
• full shallow focus of woman, narrative enigma
• cross-cut between three segments of glass bottles, each different colour of white, brown and green falling on a white ground, woman is in view, male gaze
• alcohol and women, sin, quite conservative view (is this woman Sherane?)
• red lighted club, blood, danger, potential death, but also connected with Red Light district, prostitution, risk, sin, crime in some country
• at 2:32 goes back to original footage (same lyrics, chorus)
• falls in water
• switch to black and white 

Article about Sherane:

...

Two versions of songs

SINGLE VERSION
04'08

ALBUM VERSION
05'13

Relationship with the lyrics

Drank drank, moments of cross-cutting with bottle

"I see the crowd mood", later reflected by the party group scenes. Red lighting, mood/atmosphere being danger with red connotations of blood?

...

[Hook:]
Pour up (drank), head shot (drank)
Sit down (drank), stand up (drank)
Pass out (drank), wake up (drank)
Faded (drank), faded (drank)

[Verse 1:]
Now I done grew up
Round some people living their life in bottles
Granddaddy had the golden flask
Back stroke every day in Chicago
Some people like the way it feels
Some people wanna kill their sorrows
Some people wanna fit in with the popular
That was my problem
I was in the dark room
Loud tunes, looking to make a vow soon
That I'm a get fucked up, fillin' up my cup
I see the crowd mood
Changing by the minute and the record on repeat
Took a sip, then another sip, then somebody said to me:

[Chorus:]
Nigga why you babysittin' only 2 or 3 shots?
I'm a show you how to turn it up a notch
First you get a swimming pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
Pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
I wave a few bottles, then I watch em all flock
All the girls wanna play Baywatch
I got a swimming pool full of liquor and they dive in it
Pool full of liquor I'm a dive in it

[Hook:]
Pour up (drank), head shot (drank)
Sit down (drank), stand up (drank)
Pass out (drank), wake up (drank)
Faded (drank), faded (drank)

[Verse 2:]
Okay, now open your mind up and listen to me, Kendrick
I'm in your conscience, if you do not hear me
Then you will be history, Kendrick
I know that you're nauseous right now
And I'm hopin' to lead you to victory, Kendrick
If I take another one down
I'm a drown in some poison abusin' my limit
I think that I'm feelin' the vibe
I see the love in her eyes, I see the feelin'
The freedom is granted as soon as the damage of vodka arrive
This how you capitalize
This is parental advice
Then apparently, I'm over influenced by what you are doin'
I thought I was doin' the most then someone said to me

[Chorus:]
Nigga why you babysittin' only 2 or 3 shots?
I'm a show you how to turn it up a notch
First you get a swimming pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
Pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
I wave a few bottles, then I watch em all flock
All the girls wanna play Baywatch
I got a swimming pool full of liquor and they dive in it
Pool full of liquor I'm a dive in it

[Hook:]
Pour up (drank), head shot (drank)
Sit down (drank), stand up (drank)
Pass out (drank), wake up (drank)
Faded (drank), faded (drank)

[Bridge:]
I ride, you ride, bang
One chopper, one hundred shots, bang
Hop out. Do you, bang
Two chopper, two hundred shots, bang
I ride, you ride, bang
One chopper, one hundred shots, bang
Hop out. Do you, bang
Two chopper, two hundred shots, bang

[Chorus:]
Nigga why you babysittin' only 2 or 3 shots?
I'm a show you how to turn it up a notch
First you get a swimming pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
Pool full of liquor, then you dive in it
I wave a few bottles, then I watch em all flock
All the girls wanna play Baywatch
I got a swimming pool full of liquor and they dive in it
Pool full of liquor I'm a dive in it

[Hook:]
Pour up (drank), head shot (drank)
Sit down (drank), stand up (drank)
Pass out (drank), wake up (drank)
Faded (drank), faded (drank)