Research: Analysis of 'Earth Song' by Michael Jackson

Analysis of ‘Earth Song’ by Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson’s music video for his song ‘Earth Song’ was released in 1995, and through its visuals follows the same narrative as the song it accompanies. The video incorporates both performance (delivered by Michael Jackson), and a narrative, the two of which are intertwined.

The video opens on a bird sitting on a tree in the rainforest. The camera pans and we see great trees, a blanketing mist, the beaming sunshine and a group of monkeys sitting in the rainforest branches. These images all evoke a presence of nature and harmony, along with the prominent green and white colours in this shot. As the melody kicks in, the camera pans across to a destructive grey vehicle tearing down parts of the greenery. The vehicle also acts as a metaphorical vehicle for the setting to transition into a desolate wasteland.

The wasteland setting acts as a binary opposite to the rainforest in its visual presentation. Across the land are a spread of dead tree stumps, the air is filled with smoke rather than mist, and on the ground are a number of small fires. The colour in this setting also is in contrast to the previous setting; featuring primarily reds and dark browns, as opposed to the natural greens of before. The performance element of the video is introduced in this setting, as Michael Jackson walks, looking defeated, through the wasteland wearing dark and heavily weathered clothing.

The scene transitions to somewhere in Africa, where a poached Elephant and baby are being mourned by local people, who are dressed in traditional African clothing. In a similar tone, we see the people indigenous to the rainforest watch as they powerlessly witness trees come crashing down. Both the African and rainforest settings feature desaturated, bleak colours. This brief sequence, through visuals only, demonstrates the grief that the careless and destructive nature of those in power has brought to the native people.

After a series of reaction shots, the camera zooms into a close-up of a young African boy. From his point of view, the landscape suddenly changes: the sky is blue once again, the greenery in the landscape is restored, as is all the wildlife. We see quick images of zebras and giraffes running freely. As the visuals begin to look more hopeful, there is a heartbroken look in the young boy’s eyes as he bows his head and the wildlife fades away, no more than a child’s reminiscent vision.

The next setting is in a more western land in the streets. The landscape features damaged buildings, debris scattered around with a greatly desaturated colour palette. Military personnel followed by a tank enter the streets, suggesting that the land has been torn apart by war. This presents a global message. It is not just in area’s of wildlife that man’s destructive ways have had impact, but it is across the world through the effects of war.

As Michael is singing in the wasteland mentioned earlier, he approaches a tree stump. He briefly sees it in it’s natural, healthy state and, not believing his vision is real, reaches out to touch it, before his hand is denied by a chainsaw quickly cutting at the tree. In the war-torn land, a father looks upon a broken bicycle, closing his eyes in pain. Through his memories we see a time before, where his daughter runs to her bicycle through vibrant, green grass, as the father sits with his wife peacefully enjoying a picnic. Both this father and Michael are brought back to reality, and through their visions we learn that in this desolate future, people everywhere are looking fondly to the past, before the world reached this state. This fits with the message of the song, about treasuring and protecting the Earth we have before it is too late.

In the form of a montage sequence, we see groups of people across the world falling to their knees and clutching soil, as if to physically connect with the Earth and with nature. Following this, a huge gust of wind blows across all areas of the world, so strong that many are seen grabbing hold of things to stay on the ground. From here, time begins to move in reverse, as trees stand tall once again, and the sky reverts to a rich blue colour. In the war-torn land the military is pushed back, powerless to the forces of nature. The eyes of a dead man are bound open, and he stands up. In the African setting, the elephant seen earlier has it’s wounds begin to heal, it’s tusks regrow and it is alive once again. This ending section of the video is very powerful as it shows nature standing up against its destruction at the hands of mankind.

The once bleak and desaturated wasteland is restored to the lush variety of mother nature by the end of the video, as the message is given that if all people attempt to connect with nature and with the Earth, then we can reverse the damage done to the planet and live in a world thats beauty is in it’s nature. This is the overall message of the song, and in accompanying the song, the video for Michael Jackson’s ‘Earth Song’ succeeds with a powerful narrative.