Kiss Me - Rhetorical Analysis

Madewell 1
Mitchell Madewell
Professor Leonard
English 1201
20 February 2022
“Kiss Me” Rhetorical Analysis
“Kiss Me” by Sixpence None The Richer, and “Kiss Me” by New Found Glory are both
music videos that were created to describe the desire to kiss someone again. The videos that
accompany the song are very diverse and made for different audiences. The original music video
by Sixpence None The Richer has a slower, rock type flow, while New Found Glory’s version is
a fast paced, punk-rock style adaptation. The audience differs between these two videos because
of the more playful feeling found in New Found Glory’s style compared to the contrast of the
more mature, sentimental theme of Sixpence None The Richer.
Sixpence None The Richer’s music video opens up with the band members sitting on a
bench under the glow of the moon and dark sky. The main singer, Leigh Nash, stares into the
viewer’s eyes and sings the first verse of, “Kiss me out of the bearded barley nightly, beside the
green, green grass swing, swing, swing the spinning step you wear those shoes, and I will wear
that dress” (Slocum 0:20-0:37). This verse is the beginning of a repeating phrase of ‘kiss me.’
This phrase begins every verse and closes out the last verse. The first verse is essentially an
anecdote of the first time the main character in the song kissed this unknown person. These lines
illustrate how the main character of the song fondly remembers kissing the person in an
apparently secluded, grassy field, in a dress.

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In the opening of the “Kiss Me” video by New Found Glory, it quickly opens up with the
same first verse. The singer, Jordan Pundik, seems to almost be making fun of the original lyrics
and is singing them with a bit of a sarcastic tone. Compared to Sixpence None The Richer’s
video, in this version, the opening scene shows numerous teenagers running out of their homes
with mattresses under the warm summer sun. One of the teenagers strolls in front of a tour bus
carrying his mattress. The bus contains the members of New Found Glory. The band seems
intrigued by what the teenagers are doing with the mattresses, so they get out and follow them.
They follow them to see the teenagers putting the mattresses on top of each other to make the
walls of a fort in the woods. The band then opens up the fort and starts performing the second
verse of the song with their punk-rock style flow. The style that New Found Glory is performing
is a more fun, less serious tone, packed full of playful energy.
With these examples and little background information, the viewer can start to unpack
that both of the songs are meant to appeal to Pathos, or emotion. In the original video by
Sixpence None The Richer, the viewer can tell that the lyrics are sincere by the tone and music
style. It is meant to draw out a memory of the viewer’s own first kiss or similar recollection.
When a viewer starts to think of their own memory, they can begin to become attached to the
song. New Found Glory’s video also appeals to Pathos but in a different way. The video is meant
to be more playful, fun, and not as serious. An example of this is all of the teenagers running
around the fort and chasing each other around with lots of energy. The video is meant for the
viewer to recollect on imaginative childhood memories and high energy. This type of video can
be very nostalgic to viewers as it almost gives back a taste of their childhood.
After discovering the appeal to Pathos, the viewer can then start to recognize that each of
the songs were meant for different audiences. The original video by Sixpence None The Richer
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appeals to an older more mature audience. Not only by the style of music but also being released
ten years prior to New Found Glory’s version. The more mature audience will relate to the tone
and originality of the song. New Found Glory’s video was created for a younger adult audience
based off of the fast style of punk-rock. Punk-rock soared to the top of the charts in the 80s and
90s where the younger to middle-aged adult audience can relate. These reasons contribute to the
nostalgic effect that this video creates.
Both of the videos were designed to explain the feelings of kissing someone, but in their
own ways. Each video had a specific tone and music style that appeals more to one audience than
the other. The producers’ choice of audience contributed to how prevalent each of these videos
are. The lighthearted, nostalgic tone in New Found Glory’s version related more toward younger
adults, compared to the more emotional, sentimental tone of Sixpence None The Richer’s video
which relates more toward a mature audience.

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Works Cited
Nash, Leigh. “Kiss Me.” Sixpence None The Richer, The White House, 1998,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N-qO3sPMjc. Accessed on 13 February 2022.
Pundik, Jordan. “Kiss Me.” From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II, Rosewood Studios, 2007,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1fe_v4N3gY. Accessed on 13 February 2022.

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Madewell 1

“Kiss Me” Rhetorical Analysis

more mature, sentimental theme of Sixpence None The Richer.

apparently secluded, grassy field, in a dress.

is a more fun, less serious tone, packed full of playful energy.

be very nostalgic to viewers as it almost gives back a taste of their childhood.

nostalgic effect that this video creates.

which relates more toward a mature audience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N-qO3sPMjc. Accessed on 13 February 2022.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1fe_v4N3gY. Accessed on 13 February 2022.

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