This document discusses different styles and conventions in music videos. It explains that music videos commonly promote a single, artist, or album. They entertain audiences and help set the meaning of songs through visual imagery. Typically, music videos are 3-4 minutes and combine live performance, narrative elements, and visuals like computer graphics. Videos often contain performances by artists, narratives that relate to the song lyrics, or conceptual themes. Conceptual videos may focus on themes, symbols, or interesting visual ideas rather than narrative or performance. The document provides examples and further explanation of different music video elements and styles.

1. Music Videos – Styles and
Conventions

2. Why have music videos?
 Draw a star diagram to show a number of
different purposes of a music video……

3. The purpose of the Music Video
 Promotes a single and, normally, an album
 Promotes the artist or band
 Creates, adapts or feeds into a ‘star image’
 Entertains the audience
 Sets the ‘meanings’ of a song by the use of
images

4. Basic structures
 In 3-4 minutes a typical music video combines a
mix of live performance, narrative, and other
visual imagery including computer graphics and
animation.
 It does this to advertise the band/artist and song

5. Music Videos
 Often contains a number of different elements:
 Performance
 Narrative
 Concept:
 Thematic
 Symbolic

6. Performance
 Many music videos include performance of the
artists as part of the video
 It was from clips of performances that music
videos developed
 Bon Jovi – You give love a bad name

7.  Often contain shots of the artists performing
 Can be a live stage performance, with shots of
artists and audience
 Can be the artists in “real life” situations eg
warming up, talking, fooling around
 Often includes lots of close ups of the artist
 There can be a particular visual style that goes
with the artist (a motif) eg particular clothing,
actions, props, type of images.
 Often the artist can appear to perform in an
unusual place - all lip-synched eg a field, a
rooftop

8. Narrative
 Often the video tells a story either that features
in the lyrics or is suggested in the lyrics eg girl
dumps boy
 This narrative can be like a Mini film, with a
beginning, middle and end
 Or it can suggest some links to a story
 It can promote a film with clips form the film
included telling a story
 Taylor Swift – You belong with me

9. Narrative
 Because it is only 3-4 minutes it can be
very fast paced, lots of shots and cuts
use inter-textuality with films, tv and other videos
mimic other film and tv genre eg horror or sci fi
sometimes the story can contradict what is seen
for effect
sometimes the artist is a part of the story, or an
observer or completely separate

10. Concept
 Thematic
 Symbolic
 Idea based
Narrative or performance is not the most dominate
aspect.

11. How would you define these Concept
Videos?
In your Arms – Kina Grannis
Red Hot Chili Pepper - Outside
Sledgehammer – Peter Gabriel
White Knuckles - OK Go
Once in a Lifetime – Talking Head
Her Morning Elegance - Oren Lavie
Sophie - Goodshirt
Walkie Talkie Man - Stereograms

12. Concept - Thematic
 There are lots of common themes in music videos
 Depends on the genre of music
 Eg Heavy metal bands go for perfomance
dominated clips
Rap has lots of “street” images
dance routines are common for many female
artist performances

13. Concept - Symbolic
 Use of lots of symbols to build up meaning eg
graveyard…death
 Lots of use of montage -lots of images to create
meaning sometimes often contradictory
 Lighting often used to suggest mood
 Fast paced - often only a few seconds per shot to
build up meanings

14. Concept – Interesting Idea
 Visually stylish – ‘artistic’ mise-en-scene
dominates
 Experimental use of camera/editing
 Fast pace
 Conspicuous lighting and cinematography
 Often break the rules of continuity editing

15. Some Other Codes and Conventions
 Visually stylish – ‘artistic’ mise-en-scene
 Cutting related to the rhythm of the music
 Intercutting between performance and images
or story
 Experimental use of camera/editing (hand held
camera, distortion of colours)
 Often break the rules of continuity editing. Can
use lots of jump cuts
 Lots of use of digital effects

16. Homework Task
 Create a post for your blog which outlines and
demonstrates you understanding of the music
video styles discussed today. Find your own
examples to illustrate the points that you make.
 Engage in analysis of the micro elements, try to
make links to Goodwin and representation.
 Discuss what are the pros and cons of each style
 Explain what you favourite style is and why