Analysis Of Indie/Singer-Songwriter Music Videos #4 : Please Don't Say You Love Me by Gabrielle Aplin

Song: Please Don’t Say You Love Me

Artist: Gabrielle Aplin

Director:

Genre Characteristics:

A couple are driving on the road and then get stuck because they don’t have gas and go to the nearest place. While dancing, the girl looks at some other guy so her ‘supposed’ boyfriend leaves to sleep in the car, leaving the girl feeling guilty but makes up for it when she comes back to the car and gets a break down truck and they are happy again.

What is the relationship between lyrics and visuals? :

Key lyrics are portrayed through the visuals such as ‘presence’ is shown with a shot of both of them. The first few lines of the second verse, it says ‘these things can break’ and so the next few seconds of the video displays that the couple’s relationship breaks a bit. Near to the end, the lyrics say ‘look at me like that’ and she looks at him ‘like that’, like she is in love.

When the lyrics is ‘Please, Don’t Say You Love Me’, you see Gabrielle as the singer.

What is the relationship between music and visuals? :

When the music is slow, the visual editing cuts are slower. When the music is fast then the visual editing cuts are faster.

Are there close-ups of the artist and star image motifs :

There are close-ups of the artist when in particular parts of the lyrics such as ‘Please, Don’t Say You Love Me’ especially at the end. It gives off a feeling that this has happened to her and although she was in a relationship like this, she still didn’t want that personal to say ‘I love you’ etc…

Is there reference to the notion of looking? :

There is not reference of looking.

Are there intertextual references? :

There is not intertextual references because the video does not show any gender references in any way.

Is it performance-based, narrative-based, concept-based? How much for each?

It is mainly narrative-based because there is a storyline to the video as said in the general characteristics of the video. But you could suggest that it is somewhat of a performance because Gabrielle Aplin, herself is singing. Although, she is not performing to a crowd with her guitar she is still singing throughout the whole video seen through the visuals.