Music videos

Isha Turner

Establishment of music videos

Music videos were initially absent when artists released songs many years ago.
But due to the industry and technology becoming increasingly better, artists are
now able to produce music videos that go along with the songs theyve released.

The Little Lost Child - 1894

The first rise of music videos actually goes back to 1800s in which Edward
B Marks and Joe Stern used a magic lantern to create a short piece of film or
illustrated song as it was called to create a visual experience for the
audience to watch.

Progression

Although the illustrated song was a success as a form of entertainment, it

lacked promotion of the artist. Using the magic lantern, meant that the
audience could only see drawn pictures to accompany the song without
showing the artist.

During 1926, a form of visual music entertainment called talkies were

created and used by Warner Bro studios in which many vocalists and dancers
were seen participating in these short films.

Short sing-along cartoons were then popularized by Walt Disney in the 1930s,
however it was only the studios that were gaining attention.

During the 1940s, short sequenced videos involving dancers performing a

piece of choreography were used and named: Soundies. These were a
major success for audiences.

The first music video

Tony Bennett claimed to create the very first music video in history.

The song Stranger In Paradise from the musical Kismet, was accompanied
with a music video of Bennett featuring him walking along The Serpentine
lake in Hyde Park. This footage was sent to American and British music
stations which were then aired on well known TV shows.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzA8gwfJr9I

The Second music video

Elvis Presleys Jailhouse Rock was the song that was used to accompany a
short piece of footage involving Presley dancing against a black and white
drop with jail bars in 1957.This was also seen as the first time audiences
could actually see the artist involved and being promoted in the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj0Rz-uP4Mk

The Beatles

The Beatles were known for their involvement in the music video
establishment. They filmed in various locations and their short films were
included in an American TV show called The Monkees.

From this, bands such as The Kinks and The Rolling Stones led on to producing
music videos for their songs.

The first music video to be aired

The first official music video to be aired and broadcasted on TV was Video
Killed the Radio Star by The Buggles on 1st August 1981 on MTV.

This video cost around $50 000 to make and was the debut of MTV which also
first aired on 1st August 1981.

Early concepts had been created in the 60s to produce music television but
this only came to light in the early 80s.

After becoming a major success, MTV became bigger and several channels are
being broadcasted even still today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8r-tXRLazs

How have music videos changed over

time

Music videos have drastically changed over the decades theyve been around.

For example, Kate Bushs Wuthering Heights music video from 1978 in
comparison to Miley Cyrus We Cant Stop is very different and we can see
how music videos have evolved over the years.

Kate Bush Wuthering Heights - 1978

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1pMMIe4hb4

A lot less sexual compared to modern day videos.

No sexual content
No sex appeal, Kate is seen wearing a long white dress, covering
her completely, and showing anything revealing.
Black backdrop with lots of lights centring Kate.
Close up of Kates face, not her body.
Less sexualised dancing / choreography
Quality isnt as good as modern music videos, some parts look
distorted.
No CGI/ animation
Special effects only include motion blurs.
Smoke machine is used to make Kate appear godly as she
appears brighter.
Her facial expressions give the image of Kate being weird and
unearthly

Miley Cyrus We Cant Stop - 2013

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrUvu1mlWco

Much more sexual

Sexual references and raunchiness throughout
the video
Clothing is much more revealing
Dancing is more sexual compared to Bushs
dancing
References to violence, the woman pretending
to cut her fingers off and Miley grabbing the
woman on the floor.
Product placement is featured, the EOS lipsticks
and the Dr Dre Beats pill.
Shots are more focused on Mileys face and
body.
Quality is better, more defined.
Both Cyrus and Bushs videos are more focused
on the artist and their image however, Cyrus is
more sexualised compared to Bushs

The purpose of music videos Focus

group

The purpose of music videos

There are three main purposes of music videos are promotion, image and
income.

Promotion: Music videos are used as a way to promote an artist by making

them bigger and more well known. Some artists became bigger after their
music video went viral e.g. Miley Cyrus Wrecking Ball

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8

This way mainly because the video was deemed controversial as it included
sexual content.

The music video received 19.3 million views in the first day of being shown
and the clip was had the most views in the time frame across Vevo platforms,
beating Nicki Minajs Anaconda video.

The purpose of music videos

Sometimes, music videos are used to promote an artists image. For example, Lady Gaga is
known for her quirkiness and unique fashion sense. She is shown and perceived this way
through her music videos. In Applause she is shown dancing in an odd manner and pulling
weird facial expressions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pco91kroVgQ

Artists can also use music videos to change their image. For example, Nicki Minaj was known
sporting blonde hair and bright clothes. She was seen as a somewhat pop Barbie artist. This is
seen in her Super bass video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JipHEz53sU

However, more recently we have seen Minaj appearing more natural and less ostracized as
she has changed her image again. She is now perceived as more mature.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXtsGAkyeIo

The video was voted as one of the sexiest videos of 2014 by VH1 promoting Minaj as one the
sexiest female rappers in Hip Hop.

The purpose of music videos

Furthermore, music videos are used to increase an artists income. These

videos can make an artists get more money and increase their profit. For
example, PSYs Gangnam Style has hit over 2 billion views on YouTube and has
given him great publicity and a substantial amount of money.

Psy has also earned over $40 million through social media and music viewings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0

Outlets

There are many ways to view music videos and we call these outlets.

At first people only viewed performances through Top of The Pops, a British
TV showing the chart show music through a 30 minute show of live
performances.

This later progressed to MTV (music television). Now there is more than just
one music television channel, there are a variety in which different audiences
can watch certain genres they like. For example, there is MTV Rocks where
viewers can watch and listen music videos of the rock, alternative and indie
genres.

Furthermore, we also use YouTube to watch music videos. Artists can have
their own subscription page where audiences can view all of their videos.

Extension of income

As audiences can now watch music videos on YouTube, artists can increase
their income, the more viewers on their music videos, the more money they
make.

Adverts promoting artists such as Vevo are now advertised as short

commercials just before the start of a music video. This could used as a way
of getting the audience to click onto that artists page and buying their music.

Synergy

Synergy is where two forms of media come together. For example, a

soundtrack for a film. An artist can become more popular if there is song is
featured in a well known film.

For example, Charli XCX became more popular after her song, Boom Clap
was featured as the major single released from the soundtrack from The Fault
In Our Stars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOPMlIIg_38

Producer Strategy
Major Label

The major label in music is normally for mainstream artists and music.

This is for artists who mainly produce pop music or some r n b, this music
takes up the majority of the top music charts which means the artists have a
higher income, higher priced tours and merchandise.

Larger budgets for music videos and other promotional material.

For example, Meghan Trainor is signed to Epic Records which promotes many
mainstream artists like Paloma Faith and Olly Murs.

Independent Label

Independent record labels are much smaller than major record labels.

A lot of indie and alternative artists are signed to these labels.

This means these genres are more specific and have a niche audience.

Smaller budget for promo material which means the artists receive less
money, their concert tickets are cheaper as well as the budget for their music
videos.

For example, Two Door Cinema Club were signed to Kitsune records.

The Artist (as the producer)

Some artists actually produce their own music videos.

This is usually because they are unsigned to a record label.

They create their own music videos because they dont have a budget for a
music video so by producing one by themselves usually gains them attention
and recognition in the hope that they get signed to a record label.

Style and interpretation

Music videos come in all different styles and interpretations, some are more
appealing to audiences than others. The style can reflect the artist depending on
how the audience interpret it.

Styles In concert/ in live performance

Some music videos consist of the artist/ band playing as just a live
performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo5aZYdSqxI

For example, Tonight Alives Listening video shows the band performing
live. The use of showing the instruments and having the lead singer perform
to a microphone gives the audience a personal experience in which they feel
part of the video and are not involved as just the audience viewing the video
but the performance itself.

Animation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQCQnARnKbc

Some artists produce animated music videos, these are normally released
after the artist has had more recognition or and/ or mainstream success. They
are also used to hide an artists identity. The benefit of having an animated
music video is that stylistically you can do whatever you want with whatever
narrative you want.

Interpretive

This is where the music video can be interpreted by the audience without it
actually having to be related to the lyrics. The video is left for the audience
to decide and interpret it as however they want.

Sias Chandelier video may come across as weird or absurd however, it can be
interpreted as being beautiful and showing a moral or a narrative through the
choreography shown.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vjPBrBU-TM

Narrative

This is simple and straight forward, the music video has a plot consisting of a
beginning, middle and end.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYSVMgRr6pw

Impressionist Videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoQYw49saqc&ob=av2e

This is where the music video makes references to provoke the audience and
to gain an emotional response.

Surreal videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6P0SitRwy8

This is where the video appears strange and disordered and normally in a
different version of reality.

Pastiche / parody

This is where the music video is leading on from another music video
(pastiche) or where a music video is taking the mick out of other music videos
for a humorous effect.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_qKaiGqALo

Referencing

This is where the music video makes references to other media mostly films
that include the song in the soundtrack. For example, Charli XCXs Boom Clap
music video includes clips from The Fault In Our Stars film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOPMlIIg_38

Homage

This is where the music video appears to respect other artists by using either
costumes, choreography or iconography within the music video that
symbolises or references artists.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V2GzYcRK9E

Techniques

Cutting to the beat - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4dx42YzQCE

This is where the transitions cut to the next the clip on the beat of the song,
in time.

Effects

Many producers use certain effects to create different atmospheres in their

music videos. Special effects and even CGI to reflect an artists voice o the
style of the song. For example, in David Guettas music video uses special
effects to make Minaj appear to be robotic as this reflects Minajs auto tuned
voice in the song to fit the steampunk atmosphere in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVw7eJ0vGfM

Similarly, Kanye Wests music video for the song Power uses similar effects
to create a heavenly atmosphere and make Kanye appear God like or kingly.
This is a reference to the artists belief in which he is God.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L53gjP-TtGE

Miming and lip synching

A lot of the time in music videos in which the artists are usually the main
focus of the music video (pop music) the artists will normally lip sync for the
track to be played over, so it appears that the artists is actually singing. This
is sometimes done in actual live performances too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyx6JDQCslE

Multi Image

This is where there is more than one image focusing on one target. For
example, in Eminems music video, a split screen technique is shown where
there are two different images portraying different parts of the song at the
same time. This can sometimes appear to look like a comic book technique
and are usually used in narrative style music videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVkUvmDQ3HY

Camera movement

Tracking shots are becoming more popular in music videos. Kieza used a one
shot tracking shot video for her song Hidewaway. This technique was
praised by critics as it was unique and we saw Kieza throughout the video as a
performance video promoting her as the artist as the main focus was all on
her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESXgJ9-H-2U

Also, Ariana Grandes One Last Time featured this technique.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPgEgaPk62M

Use of the green screen

This is where the music video uses a green screen as a backdrop. Although the
artists may actually be somewhere else, the green screen could be for a
completely different place, this is used in most surreal or interpretive videos.

E.g. Green Day Boulevard of Broken Dreams

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Soa3gO7tL-c

Angles

Lots of different camera angles are used for different music genres, and these
are seen as conventions within music videos. For example, close ups are used
mainly in pop music videos, as they are focusing and promoting the artists.
These are also used in performance videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOQDsmEqVt8

Low angle shots are used in Hip Hop videos to promote the artist and to make
them seem bigger.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFLow5StvvU

Biblography

http://gotmilk1123.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/styles-of-music-video.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

http://www.lavideofilmmaker.com/filmmaking/film-techniques.html
https://www.youtube.com/