2. What is a music video for?
O To promote the song; By having a music video there is a greater chance
the song will be heard through music TV Channels, Youtube, Twitter,
Facebook...etc
O Appeal to a reaction from the audience; Leaves an impression on the
audience so they remember the song and may even buy the song.
O Entertainment purposes; At the end of the day singers are entertainers!
O Marketing strategy for more money; Music videos can be bought on
'iTunes' which means the artist will make more money.
O To anchor the song; the song may not be as good without the video e.g.
Nicki Minaj- Anaconda
Screenshots from Nicki Minaj - Anaconda
3. What is a music video for? Continued
O Integrates the song with imagery; gives music visuals.
O To give the audience a better understanding of the song
(narrative/lyrics) e.g. Eminem- Headlights
O To link a song with a film or TV show e.g. Boom Clap by Charli XCX
contains footage from 'The Fault in Our Stars' and was made to
promote the film.
4. O The purpose of a music video is to give a visual
representation of the music that is played alongside it,
O Something to leave a mark on a person which gives the
song its own unique selling point, this also allows for the
music video to be a selling point, allowing the songs to be
played in music channels and allow people to know the
songs.
O Sometimes a music video can also create a better
understanding for the song (this only applies to songs
which the narrative in the music video illustrate or amplify
or even disjuncture.)
O A music video can also allow the artist to expose
themselves, this is because of the availability of the
internet and who are able to watch your video.
What is a music video for?
5. O For the song to be heard within a global
scale e.g. Tulisa - (Young) currently has
20 million YouTube views worldwide; for a
British based artist the music video has
helped Tulisa to be heard and seen with
the mass market.
6.
7. O Andrew Goodwin, one of the
theorists we looked at, talks
about three main ways in
which a video can be
constructed. He states that a
music video can illustrate,
amplify or contradicting lyrics-
all three of these focus on the
relationship between the lyrics
and the visuals and focus on
the conventions.
8. With this specific heading the visual
moving image portrays/represents
the exact lyrics sung by the artist. For
example, if the lyrics are “… I’ve
bought a big shiny car for you
because I love you” under this
specific heading we expect the actor
to be standing next to a big shiny car
pointing at it while mouthing the
lyrics- making this an exact
representation of the lyrics
Illustration
9. Amplification
With amplification, lyrics are also represented but not
in the traditional way as with illustration. With
amplification the artists/director gets to experiment a
little with new conventions and instead of
representing the lyrics word for word, the director
chooses different things with to represent it but within
the same category. For example, if the lyrics are “…
I’ve bought a big shiny car for you because I love
you” the actor can be standing with a smashed
car/motorcycle or even a miniature car, mouthing the
lyrics- this although isn’t an exact representation still
falls into the same category as it’s still a vehicle of
some sort.
10. Disjuncture
O According to Goodwin disjuncture (unlike the other two)
completely rejects the lyrics and their original meaning
and creates an abstract, sometimes random as well as a
…. music video that has nothing to do with the lyrics. For
example, if the lyrics are “… I’ve bought a big shiny car
for you because I love you” the actor can be swimming in
the river in the meantime- this is no way a representation
of the lyrics and adds a different meaning to the song.
11. Example of Disjuncture
O Disjuncture is creating a
contradiction between the lyrics and
the image shown. This is done by
ignoring the whole song’s lyrics and
creating a whole new set of
meanings – for example fat boy
slim’s “praise you” video in which he
just ignored the song and instead
just decided to choreograph a dance
routine in which they performed to
the music.
Fat Boy Slim ‘Praise You’
12. Example of Disjuncture
FUN - “WE ARE YOUNG” MUSIC
VIDEO
The lyrics for this specific bit are:
‘…carry me home…’ the action of the
performer is completely different and
random. The actor instead of following
the lyrics (which of course instructed
by the director), randomly tears the
bear apart- it has nothing to do with
the lyrics
13. Goodwins Conventions of Music Videos
O 1) There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals
(with visuals either illustrating, amplifying or contradicting the
lyrics.)
O 2) The second convention is that there is a relationship
between the music and the visuals (Illustrating, Amplifying or
contradicting the music)
O 3) Particular music genres may have their own music video
style and iconography
O 4)There is a demand on the part of the record company for
lots of close- ups of the main artist/vocalist
O 5) The artist may develop their own star iconography
O 6) There is likely to be reference to voyeurism, particularly in
the treatment of women7) There is likely to be intersexual
references, either to other music videos or to films and TV
texts.
O 7) There is likely to be intersexual references, either to other
music videos or to films and TV texts.
14. 1) There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (with visuals either illustrating, amplifying
or contradicting the lyrics.)
e.g. with illustrating
Example used :Tulisa - Young
The lyrics are about being young and living life on the edge, the music video shows this as
Tulisa is seen jumping around and having fun with her friends .
and she is seen going into a art gallery and
vandalising a piece of art, before being escorted out
this links back to the living on the edge of life.
15. 1) There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (with visuals either illustrating, amplifying
or contradicting the lyrics.)
e.g. with amplifying
Example used : Sam Smith - I'm not the only one
The lyrics are about a relationship where one person is
cheating on the other. 'You say I'm Crazy...Cause you
don't think I know what you've done....But when you call
me baby I know I'm not the only one'
However in the video it is seen that the man is cheating on the woman this is striking at first as
a man (Sam Smith) is singing the song so you'd expect the woman to be cheating on the
man... In addition in the video the woman being cheated on is seen to cry, go crazy, get drunk,
burn the husbands clothes and then cry while sitting on the floor in her wedding dress; She
then opens the door for her husband and is all cleaned up in a white dress. The video adds
more layers to the meaning of the actual song. The video plays up to stereotype that women
are the weaker gender and will let men do whatever they like and still accept them at the end
of the day (literally, as seen in the video)
16. 1) There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (with visuals either illustrating, amplifying
or contradicting the lyrics.)
e.g. with amplifying
Example used : Rihanna – What Now
The lyrics are about being in love, and Rihanna talks about how she’s playing all the
guys she talks to and therefore is lonely and has no one to love. She also talks
about past relationships as seen with this lyric - ‘And he just happened to come at
the right time I'm supposed to be in love’
The video however breaks itself from the lyrics and shows a demented
Rihanna, twisting her head and lip syncing the lyrics. There are flashing images
and quick cuts to give a sense of horror and a twisted nature.
The video however does have a connection with the ‘MUSIC’ when the chorus
plays the cuts get faster and Rihanna’s movements also change more quickly.
17. Another example of Amplification
Vance Joy ‘Riptide’ music video
‘…all my friends are turning green’ it’s an
amplification as it doesn’t show his actual friends
turning green but dollars instead. This may
suggest that his only friends are in fact dollar bills.
Or it may suggest that his friends are jealous
because of the money that he has that display on
screen
‘… she’s been living on a higher shelf’ we
see the woman on the balcony instead of
an actual shelf- this may implies that she
thinks highly of herself and is quite well off.
The low angle as well as the highly placed
balcony imply she’s looking down at us>
the video hence represent these specific
lyrics by suggesting she’s superior.
18. O Upbeat fast faced music with distorted
lines, colours;
O Fast paced changing shapes and colours.
O The music correlated directly with the
visuals.
2) The second convention is that there is a relationship between the music and the visuals
(Illustrating, Amplifying or contradicting the music)
e.g. with illustrating
Example used : Len Lye - A color box
19. 3) Particular music genres may have their own music video style and iconography
Hip Hop videos have the convention that the videos contain the artist with or around
expensive/posh cars as if to put it in the face of the audience that they are rich.
e.g. Hip Hop Genre
20. 4)There is a demand on the part of the record company for lots of close- ups of the main artist/vocalist
This is so that the artist gains recognition especially if their new, it's all about them, the song is
theirs. To the record company the artist is a brand and therefore needs to be at the front of the
video in order to pursue brand awareness.
e.g. Eminem - Not Afraid
21. Close Up’s Continued
O There is a push of using close ups by the record companies as it creates a
sense of intimacy for the viewer- developing a relationship between the
fan and the artist. Like a TV commercial- lots of close ups and correct
lighting- advertising not only the music but also the artist themselves and
their voice/talent eg. Janelle Monae- Cold War taken inspiration from the
music video by Sinead O’Connor ‘Nothing Compares to You’
(intertextuality) – constantly recorded at a close up not only makes it
intimate but also authentic because the lip syncing is in time (apart from
the part where she stop to laugh) The artist is clearly ‘beautiful’ and
involving the ‘beauty shot’ seems like the obvious thing to use.
22. O However a music video that challenges this theory/
convention is one of the first videos created by Ed
Sheeran ‘You Need Me, I Dont Need You’ Where the
record company asked the director not only to avoid
close ups but avoid showing Sheerans face! Instead
the video used a silhouette of Ed Sheeran- because
they’ve decided that he simply didn’t have ‘the look’
and wasn’t attractive enough to have his face
shown- they were quite worried about the audience
reaction and the fear of rejection due to the way he
looks. Instead the music video focused on his music
and other visual elements of the music video
23. 5) The artist may develop their own star iconography
Over the years Nicki Minaj has created an iconography with her hair.
She is always expected to have crazy hair with neon colours. She is
now known for having bright hair, and it is associated with her brand
image.
24. 6) There is likely to be reference to voyeurism, particularly in the treatment of women.
AN EARLIER EXAMPLE: Scopitone 1960s -
copacabana scopitone
• Woman dancing – used as an aspiration (man with woman dancing
around him)
• Sex on the beach
• Camera focuses on Showing woman’s legs, tracking down on
woman’s body
• Taking 2 woman into the plane (aspirational)
• The woman are used as puppets to entertain people
25. 6) There is likely to be reference to voyeurism, particularly in the treatment of women.
MORE MODERN EXAMPLE
Fat Joe ft Lil Wayne - Make it Rain
Shows women dancing sexually in bikinis as money in cash is in the air. The
woman are shown on long shot and are the only thing in the frame and therefore
cannot be missed by the audience. The women acting sexually are particularly a
convention of hip hop music videos and therefore is shown for the target audience
e.g. 15 - 30 year old men.
Screenshots from Fat Joe ft Lil Wayne – Make it Rain
26. Voyeurism Continued
O For voyeurism, Goodwin says that female artists (specifically)
will try and be made to look like objects- this coming from the
ideas of Freud of looking and getting pleasure. Many female
artists will have close ups (beauty shot) of their faces and
other body parts to sexualise the whole video.
A good example of this would be
Madonna’s video ‘Justify my love’
which shows the artist being
‘‘sexually provocative’’ and at the
same time being in control which
experiments with the ‘male gaze’.
This was also used by Beyonce in
her ‘Haunted’ where her video was
inspired by Madonna’s ‘ Justify My
love’
27. Voyeurism – Nicki Minaj ‘Anaconda’
O Another example of Voyeurism in
contempary music is the recent
music video ‘Anaconda’ by Nicki
Minaj. In this video we see
various amounts of medium
shots as well as close up/ beauty
shots of the rappers face as well
as butt cheeks- this very
sexualised video consists of
mainly close up footage of the
female ‘jiggling’ buttocks- which
is currently a trend within the
male population- and is there to
please the targeted audience
(males, as well as aspiring to be
like Minaj, females)
There is also a great emphasis of Minajs
necklace which purposefully emphasises on
the size of the artists chest and mostly
underlines the body parts men look for.
Furthermore the outfits worn by Minaj and
the dancers over expose them specifically
the “workout outfit” where Nicki is wearing a
bikini like pink costume- revealing quite a
large chunk of her body
28. 7) There is likely to be intersexual references, either to other music videos or to films and TV texts.
This is when reference is made to other films or TV shows in music videos. It is usually reflected in
the style of the video.
e.g. Taylor Swift - Love Story
'That you were romeo, you were throwing pebbles and my daddy said 'Stay away from
Juilet'
In this lyric Taylor swift makes reference to Romeo and Juliet a famous play by
Shakespeare. The whole video is then a modernised Romeo and Juliet setting. Shown by
the costumes, (classic old, Shakespearean era clothes) Location (castle)...
29. Simon Frith's 3 Typologies:
Performance: to convey a sense of in-concert
experience, 'authenticity'
Narrative: Linear Stories- love stories are the
most popular
Conceptual: Metaphors to create mood, offer
multiple meanings
.
30. Performance
O By performance Firth means the use
of rehearsal room/studio/ concert etc
settings/mise en scene to create this
authentic feel when it comes to the
band/ artist and the music they
produce. This is used numerously in
rock/ alternative music videos where
the artists show that the music they
play is produced/ played by them- that
it’s real.
31. Narrative
O The music video contains some sort of
linear story, with love stories being the
most popular. This is like the video
accompanies the music and tells us a
short story. This is used to ‘emphasise
an aspirational lifestyle for the audience’
making them aspire to this type of
lifestyle/ situation.
32. Mise en scene
O According to Simon Firth the Mise en scene adds
authenticity to the music video and is the main
reason for the bands/ artists selling point. By
authenticity in music videos, Firth means the use
of ‘live performances’ or intimate settings such as
shots in the rehearsal room. This adds authenticity
as the bands performance feels ‘real’ it’s as if
they’re actually playing their music (though it’s a
playback) the use of ‘stage performances’ or
‘rehearsal rooms’ hints to the audience that the
artists are real and suggest they produce their own
music (way of saying ‘this is us, this is the music
we produce’)
33. Performance is where the artist will be performing to the camera or to a live
audience. It gives the illusion of a concert and makes the artist seem more
authentic/real/musical.
Example of Performance: Arctic Monkeys -
'Teddy Picker'
- Classic rehearsal room video
- Guitars/drums give a real sense
of seeing them perform
-Handheld camera gives a feel of
authentic and real (not planned out
or staged)
- Close up on the band members
e.g. singers and drummer showing
their importance
- Shows the day in the life of the
band which gives the
audience/fans an insight to behind
the scene footage
34. Example of Performance: Arctic Monkeys - 'Teddy
Picker‘ Continued
-Them performing shows their music
virtuosity
- Backstage/Studio shots where the
band members are playing
instruments and singing.. Authenticity
of the bad that they
-Mise en Scene: Music instruments/
Unique style of clothing (Shirt)...
Guitarist is wearing a leather jacket
Conclusion: The music video gives a
real authentic feel to the band, and
shows off their skills ( e.g. playing the
drums). It feels like a backstage pass
to a recording session for the band.
This illusion is made through the
handheld camera technique and
simple editing techniques (cuts).
35. Another Performance Example
O Examples go from the older bands such as Metallica to
the more recent such as Paramore. The artists that fall
under this genre usually use both performance as well
as narrative and cut between them to engage the
audience as much as possible and to make their music
video interesting. This is seen in the video by Magic
where there is a constant cross cutting from the
intimate garage room (where the music is played) back
to the narrative which the actors take part in. This
makes us more sympathetic towards the band
members and creates positive images of them which
makes us like them and look up to them.
Metallica- Nothing Else Matters
Paramore Decode
36. Another Example
O Another example of this is the music video by the Little
Comets with the song ‘Jennifer’ the video starts with the band
tuning their instruments and talking amongst each other trying
to put their instruments together to form the song. The group,
like with the ‘Teddy Picker’ song are in a small room- this once
again is very intimate and traps us there in the room- the
editing and close ups don’t let us leave. The editing and
specifically the way the music video starts (with the tuning)
makes it seem like the music video was taken in one take it’s
as if the band played the song start to finish, in this sense the
editing is sophisticated as the shots flow continuously making
us unaware the editing is taking place- has an authentic feel to
it
37. Experimentation
O This idea was experimented with by the
1975 ‘Girls’ music video: the band is set
up and ready to play in this crisp white
a room however it’s not a room that we’d
usually expect this alternative band to
play in (we’d expect a normal, small
studio room with not as advanced
instruments such as used by the Arctic
Monkeys) instead we see them in a
film/video recording studio- this plays
around with the conventions as well as
the mise en scene and takes the
rehearsal to a more ‘fancy’ location.
38. O We also see shots of girls playing the
same instruments in the exact same
position- which breaks the convention of
authenticity as we question if the artists
are playing the music as the girls are as
capable of pretending to play it as well.
39. Simon Frith's 3 Typologies:
Narrative: Linear Stories
Example of Narrative: Tulisa – ‘Sight Of You’
Storyline: Tulisa plays the role
of a woman in love with a man
who doesn't treat her right, he
steals money from her and
cheats on her, but after she
leaves him he realises that he
still loves her (pushing away the
woman he cheated with). Tulisa
is then seen with another man,
her ex boyfreind becomes
jealous and starts a fight with
Tulisa's new love interest. She
is then seen going back to him
by hugging him.
40. The video links with the lyrics of the song 'After all you've
done, I'm not over you yet'. It gives the song a visual meaning
and therefore anchors the song as a more entertaining type of
media. The narrative helps to explain the song and make it
more powerful by evoking emotion out of the audience. The
song along with the video is more emotional and powerful.
41. Mise en Scene
-Tulisa on the floor outside crying with a bin
toppled over and paper and cloth tipping out.
-Casual clothes worn by all in the video making
the audience able to relate to the video more as
there are no designer clothing's wore (which
majority of people can't afford to wear)
-Photo of the two with glass shattered on it ( the
photo frame has been thrown on the floor)
Camerawork
-Close ups on Tulisa and her
boyfriend
-Extreme close up on their
matching tattoo
-Close up of Tulisa crying
42. Another example of narrative
O A more recent example of a music video
that uses narrative typology is ‘Rude’ by
Magic. Where the artist is part of the
performance as well as the narrative and
as his lyrics suggest, he is fighting for the
hand of his loved one.
43. Simon Frith's 3 Typologies:
Conceptual: Metaphors to create mood, offer multiple meanings
Conceptual music videos rely on poetic forms, they aim to
evoke emotion from the audience without a narrative. These
videos tend to have more than one meanings, therefore it
allows audiences to interpret the video how they want.
Adele – ‘Someone Like You’
44. -Visuals link with music
- Black and white/ slow walking looking miserable linking to
the lyrics of the song (breaking up with someone)
-Handheld Camera used making it more personal
-Body language - Adele has given up
- Camera tracks around her so we can see her face
- Suddenly at the end there is narrative where a man is
walking away. I believe the reason it was kept till the very end
was because Adele's trying to show that at the end everyone
leaves.
45. Another example of
Conceptual
O Ben Howard – Keep your head up. The video is about
uplifting a certain feeling due to the lyrics “keep your head
up , keep your head strong” and the video shows the band
going down a hill in a self-made water slide which I
interpreted that instead of falling down and being brought
down by the fall , why not go down having fun and trying to
keep positive which the video clearly shows and therefore
allows the viewers too , to feel calm and collected which is
the point of the song.
47. Rock/Metal:
O Dark colours/themes contrasting with bright
colours/lights to emphasise symbolism with colours.
O Live performance/concert to give a more authentic feel
to band and it is much more energetic and engages
audiences better
O Long Shots of crowd and band all seen in one shot
O Narrative videos, however clips of performance of the
band in the middle
48. Rock/Metal Continued
O Depending on the music tempo the video can be
aggressive/dark/loud/flashing lights/performance or a
slow rock song where it is dark/depressing/emotional
O The band/artists tend to wear black clothes (usually
leather)
O They tend to have face piercings/ black eye make up
O The conventions together create an atmosphere of
aggression, energy and passion
49. Indie:
O Codes and conventions vary depending on artist
O Live performances - keeps attention of the audience on
the music and gives a more authentic feel.
O The reason for live performances in indie videos is due
to the origin of the genre - it was about the passion and
love for music rather than money and success. Using
live performances in videos also helps to promote live
gigs as audiences will want to see them live after seeing
the how lively it is in the music video.
O Black and white camera effects used.
O Reality Settings
O Vintage clothing
50. Indie Continued:
O There may be a narrative in between where we see
clips of performance and then narrative.
O Retro look
O Diegetic sounds used at beginning or end to set the
scene
O Close ups on main singer and other band members
O Long shots so audience can see the costumes worn
51. RnB:
O Generally set in Night
Clubs/Mansions/Beaches/House Parties
O Men are usually topless (targeted to teenage girls)
O Women wear minimal clothing (targeted to teenage
boys)
O Bold defined make up for women/usually wear
high heels to show of their legs
O Men usually have tattoos and keep jewellery to a
minimum
O Tone of the music is usually light
52. RnB Continued:
O Normally background dancers (mostly
women) synchronised through rhythm of
music
O Cars, Swimming pools, designer clothing, big
houses - shows wealth
O Narrative usually follows lyrics e.g. love songs
O Extreme close ups on artists
O Long shots to see clothing
O Lip syncing
53. POP:O Performance based with lip syncing
O Dancing
O Usually a narrative reflecting the lyrics however the
artist will always be seen singing to the audience too.
O Bright Colours e.g. yellow/pink
O Modern fashion/designer clothing
O Fun filled video
O Makes audience want to dance
O close up on artist
O Normally about love/friends
/having a good time
54. Hip Hop/Rap
O Usually low angled close up shots to establish that the
artist has power and authority.(looking down on
audience)
O Crowd usually shown dancing or bouncing arms to the
beat of the song.
O Cars/jewellery/hats/designer clothes/brands e.g. Beats
Headphones establishing that they are rich
55. Hip Hop/Rap Continued:
O Close up of artist to establish who they are
O Normally the artist is lip syncing directly to the
camera/audience
O The artist's crew or childhood friends are normally
around them
O Women dancing or sexually moving (voyeurism)