History of music videos

1. HISTORY OF
MUSIC
VIDEOS
A L E V E L M E D I A
O P T I O N 1 : M U S I C P R O M O T I O N P A C K A G E
A D A D Z A M I C

2. WHAT IS A
MUSIC
VIDEO?
• A music video is a short film format, of different length, that
combines a song with imagery and whose function is to either
promote the artist or to showcase the artist’s artistic point.
Contemporary music videos are essentially made and used as
a marketing tool with an intention to advertise the sale of music
and build the artist’s brand.
• Although the birth of the music video dates to musical short
films that first appeared in the 1920s, they again became
prominent in the 1980s when the MTV (originally Music
Television) created the first TV channel dedicated just to music
videos. Before the 1980s, these types of videos were described
through a variety of terms including ‘’illustrated song,’’ filmed
insert,’’ "promotional film," "promotional clip," "promotional
video," "song video," "song clip," or "film clip."

3. CREATING A
MUSIC
VIDEO
Music videos use a wide range of styles and
contemporary video-making techniques,
including CGI and stop-motion animation, live-
action, documentary, and non-narrative
perspectives such as abstract film.
Some music videos merge different styles with
music, such as animation and live-action.
Incorporating these styles and techniques has
become more popular due to the diversity of the
audiences and cheap technology.
Many music videos like to include images and
scenes from the song's lyrics, while others aim for
a more thematic approach. Other music videos
may not have any narrative concept and are only
a filmed version of the artist’s live performance.

4. 1920s AND 1930s
• In the 1920s and 30s, many music videos were
based on a performance. It was frequent for the
videos to be filmed in one take. Something that
resembled the music video began to take place on
the big screen, however short films appeared
where artists performed during their time span.
Bessie Smith’s ‘St Louis Blues’ (1929) is a key
example of a two-reel short film which comprises
of performance and narrative.
Bessie Smith (1894-1937), “Empress
of the blues”, one of the most successful
African-American musicians of the time.

5. 1940s AND 1950s
• The 40s and 50s continued with performance-
based videos; however certain performances
incorporated a dance routine to accompany the
music. Elvis Presley was unquestionably the most
well-known individual to display this in his music
videos. His videos were often extracted from the
full-length films in which he had a major role.
Elvis Presley – ‘Hound Dog’ (1956)

6. 1960s
• This was the period of the dancing culture
throughout society and music videos. The videos
remained in pure black and white, however
technology had significantly advanced, and the
music videos exhibited a wider range of camera
shots. Chubby Checker’s ‘Let’s Twist Again’ contains
panning and close-up shots with assistance from a
crane.
Chubby Checker – ‘Let’s Twist Again’ (1961)

7. 1970s
• The 1970s saw the rise of Rock and Roll with artists
such as The Rolling Stones or Jimi Hendrix, in highly-
dynamic performance videos. However, Queen’s
‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ made music video history. The
use of awe-inspiring effects, for example the
‘kaleidoscope’ effect and the blend of two images,
were ingenious at the time. The emergence of the
British TV program ‘Top of the Pops’ was also a huge
landmark in the history of music videos as it
empowered artists to promote themselves
additionally and perform ‘live’ on the program. The
use of color film further increased the production of
music videos. Music videos were no longer only a
performance of the song.

8. 1980s
• With the launch of the MTV channel in 1983, artists
became mega stars through their creative music
videos. The 1980s saw the re-emergence of Michael
Jackson, the phenomenal success of Prince and the
appearance of Madonna. Their videos became an
enduring feature on MTV and attained a global mass
audience. This was also the time when the artists
started pushing some of the boundaries of the mass
culture. Madonna’s ‘Like A Prayer’ is an excellent
example, as a Jesus is represented by a black man.
Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ was the most prominent
music video of the decade.
Prince– ‘Purple Rain’ (1984)

9. Arguably the greatest music video ever made. The release
of the "Thriller" video in early December 1983 was an event.
It was essentially a short film, running more than 13
minutes and directed by John Landis ("Animal House," "The
Blues Brothers," "An American Werewolf in London"). The
zombie-themed video and more innovative dance numbers
helped propel Jackson's legendary album to astronomic
status. The video is still considered one of the key moments
in the genre.
Michael Jackson, ‘Thriller’ (1983)

10. Peter Gabriel, ‘Sledgehammer’ (1986)
Also regarded as one of the best videos of all time
and a creative breakthrough by a master artist. The
video won many awards and was groundbreaking in
its use of many of the techniques of the ‘old school’
animated films, especially the ‘stop motion’
animations using clay models and still photos to
create visually spectacular sequences. In one place it
even ‘quoted’ the Renaissance painter Arcimboldo
who created portraits from fruit and vegetables!

11. 1990s
Janet & Michael Jackson– ‘Scream’ (1995)
• The 1990s was the golden age for music videos.
Music videos in the 90s offered a new beginning for
innovative directors to develop an image for an artist
or song that could become as catchy as the song
itself. MTV had the power to place a song, as well as
the musician, into the pop music spotlight, after
which followed a wave of financial and creative
investments in the music video. Bjork’s ‘All Is Full Of
Love’ and Michael Jackson/Janet Jackson’s ‘Scream’
are good examples of this.

12. Bjork, the Iceland music star, is one of the most
consistent high performers in the area of music
videos for several decades now. From animated
lesbian robots in the ‘All Is Full Of Love’, to the
recent Virtual Reality (VR) experience for her
recent project ‘Notget’, Bjork has constantly
pushed the boundaries of what is possible in the
music video both artistically and technologically.
Her videos are often little magical stories, feeling
as if they are taken out of the bigger cinematic
universe.
Bjork, various videos…

13. 2000s
• For the first time ever, most music videos went
directly to the web and were accessible on a vast
number of sites. Due to this, budgets for videos
became significantly smaller. This decade saw the
peak of the use of the ‘male gaze theory’, prominent
in the trend of Hip-Hop and R&B music. 50 cent’s
‘Candy Shop’ is a perfect example of the male gaze
theory being put into full practice. Dance music
additionally embraced this visual and aesthetic
approach, in a way bringing the videos back to the
1960s, but with radically different aesthetics.
50 cent – ‘Candy Shop’ (2005)

14. 2010s
Chainsmokers – ‘Closer’ (2016)
• Today, up and coming artists normally begin to be
noticed through videos uploaded on YouTube, social
networks or on Tik Tok, most often consumed via
mobile phones. The full social media and mobile nature
of modern videos is seen in several aspects, such as
vertical videos (mobile), lo-fi videos (imitating old VHS
quality) and lyric videos where the ‘hero’ of the video is
the words from a song. ‘Closer’ by Chainsmokers is the
most watched lyric video on YouTube – showing the
visual revolution of the internet.

15. Vertical videos: made for viewing on
mobile phones
Lo-fi videos: old VHS style Lyric videos: karaoke culture on
YouTube