Before doing anything else, I researched music videos in the past and present to give me an idea of what I'm going to be working on.
What is a music video?
A music video is short film or story filmed to accompany a song which was originally intended to market and promote the sales of the artists songs. The earliest music video films were created in the 1950's with Tony Bennet who claims he created the first music video named ''Stranger in Paradise''.
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He filmed this when he was in London, walking in Hyde park however, history was made when MTV, the first ever 24h video music channel launched onto everyone's television sets on the 1st of august, 1981 when MTV played their first ever ironic song ''Buggles - Video Killed the radio star''
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First ever music video created, Tony Bennett - Stranger in Paradise First ever MTV music video, Buggles - Video killed the radio star
What is the purpose of a music video?
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To tell the song and evoke a reaction:
One big reason artists like to use music videos is to tell a story behind the meaning of the lyrics. Camera angles usually vary as they emphasis on different scenarios of the story such as on the artist, location and emotions. A music video is a visual aid in helping us as the audience know what is going on. A great example of a song which uses video aid would be 'Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time'. |
To leave the audience remembering that song:
It has become popular amongst artists to make a music video no matter if its bad or good just so it is remembered by the audience. An audience likes something they can talk about whether to their friends or their family members. A great example of a song which leaves the audience remembering the song due to the video would be 'PSY - Gangnam Style'. |
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For artist's to show off their other talents:
There are many different talents artists have besides singing. Some talents may include dancing, modeling or even acting. In a music video, the artist has a chance to record their song while showing these talents to their audience which in a result, draws more attention to them. A great example of artists showing off their talents would be 'Michael Jackson - Thriller'. |
Using music videos to promote and extend their incomes:
In order to get an increase in their overall profit, they have to promote themselves. They do this by including themselves in their videos which usually draws in a crowd. Lady gaga is an excellent example of using music videos in order to promote not only herself but also the fashion labels she uses. She gets a lot of attention from her audience because they always want to know what shes gonna wear next. |
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Different styles of music videos
Performance based music video : Mumford & Sons - I will wait
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Album: 'Babel' Released: 2012 Genre: Neo-Folk/Rock In a performance based video, it's all about the artist performing, whether that's dancing, lip syncing, live concerts or even musicians playing their instruments, they never really have a specific message or any concept behind their music video. I will use 'Mumford & Sons - I will wait' as an example for a performance base music video. They use various of angle shots and movements such as low angles to show how the audience may view them or it may resemble their dominance as the band making the audience look smaller. They also use full shot to show all the band playing all together showing an fuller view of the entire stage and mid-range to show an individual band member show casting their skills as you may have noticed when they play the instruments sometimes they may do actions such as playing over their head. This fully diegetic song shows us they are equally as good live as they are in recordings. |
Album: 'Take me to church EP' Released: 2013 Genre: Folk/Alternative-Indie In a concept based video, the music video is usually based on a specific theme or concept. Usually, an audience would be attracted to unusual content as they would have more to talk about and to remember. Unlike the other two, these videos are not as easy to understand and usually are more difficult to produce. They usually have a specific class or target audience according to the idea of their music. A great example for this would be 'Hozier - Take me to church'. This video uses a grey scale which changes the contrast in the past and present to set tones for the scene. The grey scale portrays how religion and the girl compare their love because she wants to be seen unobtainable in an aspect of no matter how much praying you do, you can't obtain heaven though church. You can also see tilting, panning, tracking and wobbling which makes the piece stand out and look professional. |
Concept based music video : Hozier - Take me to church
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Album: 'O' Released: 2002 Genre: Acoustic Rock Synergy is when two areas of the media work together. This usually helps promote both the artist and a film/trailer which means a wider audience would view it. An example for this would be 'Damien rice - The Blower's Daughter'. He promoted his debut album being one of his first singles from his own label 'Damien Rice Music' in 2001 while also featured in the film 'Closer' in 2004. He got a narrative message across while also promoting the movie. As a result, his song was featured in the movie and he managed to get a wider ranged audience; increase in profit for his own label. |
Synergy: Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter
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History of music
Today's Music:
Unlike before where it was all about the amount of CD's sold by the artist, today's music has become all about the promotional factor and every song needs a music video in order to become on the top ten charts or even the amount of views they earn on YouTube. In order for the artist to get more money, music video has to be able to make it into the charts and even for the ones that don't, they still are required to make a music video for their song.
Unlike before where it was all about the amount of CD's sold by the artist, today's music has become all about the promotional factor and every song needs a music video in order to become on the top ten charts or even the amount of views they earn on YouTube. In order for the artist to get more money, music video has to be able to make it into the charts and even for the ones that don't, they still are required to make a music video for their song.
History Of Distribution
Sheet
The first ever music was created on sheets before any recording studios or live radio stations were invented. This however was available mainly for those who could read musical notations which was used to recreate the most popular compositions of the day.
Physical Recording
The phonograph was invented by Thomas Edison in 1877, which was where poor-sounding records became popular however, popularity increased when vinyl records were introduced in the 1930's that the format started to become seriously popular and an increase in profit.
The Advent of the Digital Era
The digital era started to become cheaper as internet connections improved. As this occurred, recorded music fell over 50 percent as the illegal sharing of music through the internet increased in popularity.
Torrents and Download Sites
When Napster arrived, it disrupted the industry as the industry refused to accept the change. Sites used for downloading and torrent services began taking chunks out of things such as record label sales. Napster came a large amount of other sites and services allowing people to download music and other copyrighted files for free.
Digital Download Stores
In 2003, Apple released iTunes store which at the time was the only way to download the music from famous major record labels which by 2008 was the biggest musical vendor which within 2 years became the worlds largest which took time to develop into what it formed. It passed physical sales in 2014 in the UK.
Streaming Platforms
Spotify was first introduced in 2008 which let users listen to music of wide ranged category uninterruptedly for a monthly fee which became popular when it got a fully licensed streaming service. They still receive criticism along with other musical streaming sites for how low their revenue-per-stream is. YouTube however, is still the worlds most known and biggest music streaming platform. The problem is, a big amount of the songs posted there has been uploaded without the owners consent which means they do not earn profit for their work.
The first ever music was created on sheets before any recording studios or live radio stations were invented. This however was available mainly for those who could read musical notations which was used to recreate the most popular compositions of the day.
Physical Recording
The phonograph was invented by Thomas Edison in 1877, which was where poor-sounding records became popular however, popularity increased when vinyl records were introduced in the 1930's that the format started to become seriously popular and an increase in profit.
The Advent of the Digital Era
The digital era started to become cheaper as internet connections improved. As this occurred, recorded music fell over 50 percent as the illegal sharing of music through the internet increased in popularity.
Torrents and Download Sites
When Napster arrived, it disrupted the industry as the industry refused to accept the change. Sites used for downloading and torrent services began taking chunks out of things such as record label sales. Napster came a large amount of other sites and services allowing people to download music and other copyrighted files for free.
Digital Download Stores
In 2003, Apple released iTunes store which at the time was the only way to download the music from famous major record labels which by 2008 was the biggest musical vendor which within 2 years became the worlds largest which took time to develop into what it formed. It passed physical sales in 2014 in the UK.
Streaming Platforms
Spotify was first introduced in 2008 which let users listen to music of wide ranged category uninterruptedly for a monthly fee which became popular when it got a fully licensed streaming service. They still receive criticism along with other musical streaming sites for how low their revenue-per-stream is. YouTube however, is still the worlds most known and biggest music streaming platform. The problem is, a big amount of the songs posted there has been uploaded without the owners consent which means they do not earn profit for their work.
History between male and female singers throughout the years
Controversy: Why are some music videos getting censored?
- Violence:
- Sexual Content:
- Parody Issues:
- Objectifying Women:
How a music video is constructed case study: 'Beyoncé - Sorry'
Artist: Beyoncé
Album: 'Lemonade'
Released: 2016
Genre: Pop
Album: 'Lemonade'
Released: 2016
Genre: Pop
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Lyrics:
Beyoncé's audience is firstly introduced to the music video with the first lyrical verse narrated which is very dramatic. It states '' So what are you going to say at my funeral now that you've killed me''. This verse already gives the audience an overall visible theme of what to expect in this music video. However, some of the lyrics do not correspond with the visuals. This is proven as there firstly, are no males in the video and secondly, as Beyonce sings '' headed to the club'' we see her in a large room sitting on a chair. |
Music:
The music is in a steady slow tempo. The beats correlate with what we see visually on the screen creating a match on action effect. Beyonce and her dancers dance in a way which allows the audience to gain an understanding and emotions in every frame. The video hugely focuses on the dancers and this leads to an overall more relaxed feeling to it but as the video progresses, the beat becomes more tensed and increases in pace. In some areas, Beyonce slows down the pace and allows the audience to focus more on her suggesting that particular place is more important which overall gives the video and the song a base.
The music is in a steady slow tempo. The beats correlate with what we see visually on the screen creating a match on action effect. Beyonce and her dancers dance in a way which allows the audience to gain an understanding and emotions in every frame. The video hugely focuses on the dancers and this leads to an overall more relaxed feeling to it but as the video progresses, the beat becomes more tensed and increases in pace. In some areas, Beyonce slows down the pace and allows the audience to focus more on her suggesting that particular place is more important which overall gives the video and the song a base.
Mise en scene / color and setting:
Beyonce used black and white color theme throughout her song which emphasizes the mood and seriousness throughout the song. The black and white connotes emptiness and could be associated with the right and wrong and they are contradictory because she ends up making her audience question what has gone wrong and pulls them in creating a longing to complete watching the entire video to see what happens with beyonce. Usually, when we think of pop songs, we think of bright colors matching the beats which is visually appealing. |
Mise en scene / costume and prop:
Not a lot of props is seen throughout her music video but the main prop used would be the bus that Beyoncé stands on top of while showcasing her dancing talent. This portrays how she has lost her sense of caring about the entire situation shes been through. Its quite an iconic prop as she is the only one dancing on top of the bus which shows shes the most important part of this video making her the center of attraction. When it comes to the costumes, all of the costumes are quite unusual and eye catching which matches the entire atmosphere created in this video. |
Camera work/Editing:
There has been a major motivation in camera work editing as it follows Beyoncé at a different location in each clip. A frequent camera angle used in the music video is close up shots. Close up shots allow the audience to focus on Beyonce and her brand image which promotes it. There is also a lot of low angle shots which tends to portray dominance. Extreme close ups also allow us to see all of her emotions which makes us feel like we are stuck in her dreadful situation. Editing needs to cue on each beat correctly and also needs to keep on pace with the video so its easier for the audience to follow. If it wasn't edited in that manner, it would be very difficult for the audience to understand as it would come across odd. There is a big mystery due to the editing in the beginning of the song because it hides the identities of her and her dancers making the audience get very curious. It also is very slow editing as it pan to establish the location which lets the audience understand the genre of what this music video is going to be about.
There has been a major motivation in camera work editing as it follows Beyoncé at a different location in each clip. A frequent camera angle used in the music video is close up shots. Close up shots allow the audience to focus on Beyonce and her brand image which promotes it. There is also a lot of low angle shots which tends to portray dominance. Extreme close ups also allow us to see all of her emotions which makes us feel like we are stuck in her dreadful situation. Editing needs to cue on each beat correctly and also needs to keep on pace with the video so its easier for the audience to follow. If it wasn't edited in that manner, it would be very difficult for the audience to understand as it would come across odd. There is a big mystery due to the editing in the beginning of the song because it hides the identities of her and her dancers making the audience get very curious. It also is very slow editing as it pan to establish the location which lets the audience understand the genre of what this music video is going to be about.
Difference between Diegetic and Non-Diegetic Sound
Diegetic Sound:
Sounds that the camera picks up while filming, just natural sounds:
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Non-Diegetic Sounds:
Sounds that do not have a screen source, sounds that the character cannot hear
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Now only analysing a music video of a female artist won't expand my knowledge to the maximum capacity as we have already established the history between male and female artists realising their similarities and differences. Therefore, I will now analyse a song sang by male artists.
Music Video Analysis: The Script - Hall Of Fame
Source one: They all share a dream to accomplish fame, hence the title name ''Hall Of Fame''.
In source one, we see one of the main characters sleeping and it seems like shes are dreaming of what she wish to be. You can also see a man who wishes to be a professional boxer. Lastly, we also see a girl who seems to dream to become a professional ballerina. So far the starting of the video is a concept of what we will see in the future as all the characters similarly have a dream making us as the audience see that the music video is all about not giving up.
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As the video progresses, the produces show obstacles the main characters have to face in order to accomplish their dreams. The video shows us how the man's mother is a smoker. This portrays that the man lives in a household of chainsmokers which can't be healthy even for the man himself. We also learn that the girl is deaf. As seen in source two you have a glance of her picking up her ear piece. As she wants to be a ballerina, this is a major obstacle which she has to face and learn to train around and deal with it in order to accomplish her dreams. When the obstacles are shown, close up shots are used to focus on the obstacles they have to face which makes it easier for the audience to understand what difficulties and challenges they have to overcome.
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Source 2: The two close-up shots show the obstacles they have to overcome.
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Main sites used for research:
https://www.slideshare.net/Khaulafaisal/types-styles-of-music-videos
https://www.slideshare.net/JessicaLoader/history-of-music-1950-2010 https://prezi.com/opnoznqgkyby/music-video-purposes/ http://www.thefader.com/2016/06/02/pup-toronto-music-videos http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=4985 https://www.slideshare.net/LucyhonorgeorgiaRoss/beyonce-music-video-analysis-79813416 https://www.slideshare.net/Pedz97/representation-of-men-and-women-in-music-videos-1 |
https://www.slideshare.net/Jishant1/walt-disney-success-story
http://mentalfloss.com/article/82972/10-music-video-milestones-predated-mtv http://irenefilmbtec.weebly.com/research3.html https://vacherfilms.weebly.com/planning--research.html http://matheussiqueira.com/a-brief-history-of-music-video/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_video https://www.slideshare.net/mattwako/presentation-on-music-videos-and-their-importance https://www.slideshare.net/emlouiise/diegetic-and-non-diegetic-sounds-44132408 |
https://www.slideshare.net/Guypolo/music-video-analysis-hozier
https://www.slideshare.net/AshiqAjith/diegetic-and-non-diegetic-sounds https://www.slideshare.net/08thowe/music-video-analysis-14600293 https://mn2s.com/news/label-services/the-history-of-music-distribution/ https://connectusfund.org/8-most-valid-pros-and-cons-of-music-censorship https://connectusfund.org/8-most-valid-pros-and-cons-of-music-censorship https://maithapricefilms.weebly.com/research.html https://www.britannica.com/topic/MTV |