This document discusses key codes and conventions used in music videos. It explains that music videos are designed to sell albums and can be performance, narrative, or concept-based. Genres like pop music often feature dance routines while metal videos show extravagant performances. Lyrics and visuals in videos may be related through illustration, amplification, cutting to the beat, repetition, or close-ups of the singer. Labels aim to connect videos to albums through artwork and imagery. Videos also reference other works through techniques like screens within screens or allusions to films.

1. MUSIC VIDEOS
Key Codes & Conventions

2. My sources for music videos:
• MTV
• Directors Label

3. • Music videos are products designed to sell
albums
• Performance based:
• Narrative based: The video for this song was
inspired by works of Austrian artist Erwin
Wurm called "One Minute Sculptures." which
are a series of sculptures made in a very
creative way, using the human body as a part
of the composition.
• Concept based: http://vimeo.com/27948543

4. Music videos demonstrate genre
characteristics:
• Dance routines in girl/boy bands: Pussy Cat
Dolls (Buttons)

5. • Stage performance, extravagant light shows,
outlandish behaviour in metal video like:
You Me At Six
Live at Reading Festival 2012 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0JtmGssrZw

6. • Lyrics and visuals are
related:
• Illustrative: is the simplest
and easiest concept to base
a music video around as it is
just a literal meaning to the
song’s lyrics in visual form.
Owl City have used
illustrative ideas in their
videos before, for example
in ‘Fireflies’ when Adam
(The artist behind Owl City,
Adam Young) is singing and
as he says ‘fireflies’ the word
fireflies comes up on the
screen to a little toy gadget.

7. • Amplifying: is closely related to disjuncture,
but amplification is just the enhancement of a
concept while still retaining a link to it, this
technique works brilliantly in marketing and
advertising the band in question.
http://www.vevo.com/watch/christina-
aguilera/beautiful/USRV80400020
‘Beautiful’ music video Christina Aguilera

8. Music and visuals are related:
• Cutting to the beat: ‘You Make Me’, Avcii
http://music.yahoo.com/video/official-203159607.html
• Chorus & repetition: ‘Bang’, Will.i.am
Bang, bang,
Got him with a bang,
Love him down, down
I shot my baby with a bang, bang,
Got him with a bang,
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.
Bang, bang,
Got him with a bang,
Love him down, down
I shot my baby with a bang, bang,
Got him with a bang,
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.

9. • Vocals with close-ups of singer: ‘Wrecking
Ball’, Miley Cyrus

10. • Instrumental with
close-ups of
performance:
• ‘Skinny Love’, Birdy
• The record label needs
to sell the artist close-
ups of the artist:
• ‘Daddy’, Emile Sande

11. • The artist may have a distinctive visual style:
Lady Gaga
• Maryiln Manson

12. • Labels use artwork & video imagery to
connect video to album

13. Goodwin identifies ‘notions of
looking’
• Screens within
screens, cameras,
telescopes
• Voyeuristic treatment
of the female body
• Camerawork,
costume, dance,
framing imply
sexualized display
(Rihanna, Beyonce)

14. Intertextual references
• To films: Ashanti and
Ja Rule album
borrowed its name
from a line of Tupac
Shakur poetry…the
music video was a
parody of a scene
from the film
Grease.
• To other genres
(Bjork Human
Behaviour)