2. Uses and Gratifications Theory
Many music videos like other pieces of media apply the uses of gratifications
theory which is the reasoning for the audience to watch the music videos or
use other pieces of media.
these include:
• Education: This is when people use media to gain knowledge or to educate
themselves by taking information from the media e.g. quizzes on TV, internet
searches
• Affective: People use different pieces of media to satisfy their emotional
needs e.g. watching soap operas with a sad scene
• Socialise: The need to socialise with family and friends and form relations
in society however recently this has been done through media e.g. social
media such as Facebook and Twitter.
•To represent their personal identity
• Escapism: Some people use media to escape from reality for a while e.g.
watching TV, listening to radio, watching music videos.
3. Laura Mulvey
• Laura Mulvey’s theory of the “Male Gaze” looks at how woman
are perceived/portrayed in media. She believes that this occurs
as the camera puts the audience into the perspective of a
heterosexual male.
• Feminists think of this three ways:
• How men look at women
• How woman look a themselves
• How woman look at other women
• Laura Mulvey looks at the theory as:
• Active male - Passive male
• Women as objects – Men as viewer
• Features of the theory include:
• Camera lingering on the curves of the female
• Events which occur are greatly in the context of mans reactions to these
events
• Regulates women's status as objects
4. Andrew Goodwin
• Andrew Goodwin identifies 5 key elements that
audiences should look for in music videos:
• Through Beats – seeing the sound
• Narrative and performance
• The Star Image
• Relation of visuals to a song
• Technical aspects of a music video
• Through Beats:
o Step 1: Look at the music itself. Look at the structure of the song e.g.
choruses – versus
o Step 2: The voice of the song. The artists voice is extremely unique and
can form identification or trademarks that work well with the star image
o Step 3: Goodwin highlights the artists have a mode of address for their
songs/music videos. Songs can be perceived as stories with the artist as
the storyteller, therefore the music video is the communication device as
its telling us the story while we listen.
5. Continued:
• Narrative & Performance:
o Songs fail to give us the complete narrative.
o Goodwin explains that music videos should ignore common narrative.
o Narrative and performance work hand in hand its make it easier for the
audience to watch over and over without loosing interest.
o The artist acting as both narrator & participant helps to increase the
authenticity however the lip sync and other mimed actions remains the
heart of music videos. The audience need to believe this is real.
• Star Image:
o Star image is vital in music videos
o Meta narratives are sometimes used to illustrate the development
of the star over time
• Relation of Visuals to the song:
o Illustrate: Use a set of images to illustrate the lyrics in the song and the genre
o Amplify: Meanings and effects are constantly shown throughout the music
video
o Disjuncture: Where the meaning of the song is completely ignored
• Technical aspects : Hold the music video together through use of camera,
editing, mise en scene, sound and special effects.
