1, Significance of a Music Video
What is a music video?
A music video, like any video, is created to fulfill a purpose. It is essentially a short video integrated with a song to serve marketing purposes and have promotional benefits. These benefits can be several, including, but not limited to, promoting an artist, a song, an album, a record label, a product, or even a film! Along with their use in promotion, they are also widely considered to be a form of entertainment, art, and can even be considered cultural. Music videos are one of the most consumed form of visual languages, and certainly enjoyed by the masses.
Through a music video, an artist gains exposure, and the impression their music video may make to their audience adds to the creation of their star image. Star image refers to the distinct qualities than an artist may have or unique attributes and elements they use in their work, that are recognizable by content consumers. For instance, Ariana Grande is known for having her hair in a sleek pony tail in most of her music videos, which is only one of the few factors that add to her star image. Record labels are able to capitalize on the artists star image, therefore bringing in profits.
Artistic expression is important for many artists, as well as viewers. A chunk of music videos are simply created for artistic purposes, and for the artist to be able to communicate their thoughts and ideas. Many times, music videos help interpret the lyrics of the song and to set a mood according to what the artist wants to portray. An example of this can be the music video of Bruno Mars' Grenade. Other times, the lyrics and visuals don't have to correlate, such as in the music video of I Want It That Way by The Backstreet Boys. At times, music videos are simply created to leave an impression that will stick in the viewers mind, such as Hozier's Take Me To Church music video, where a mob is chasing a queer couple. or the video of Montero by Lil Nas X (which truly is quite interesting to interpret).
Product placements are also common in music videos, especially if the artist is famous enough to attract mass attention to their music videos. according to a Nielson report "product placement within music videos can contribute to a lift of 8% points in purchase intent and improved perception.." An example of this may be the music video of Telephone by Lady Gaga. In around 9 minutes, there were at least 10 different product placements in the video, including Virgin Mobile, Heartbeats earphones, Polaroid, Chanel sunglasses, Beats Electronics and more. Beats by Dr. Dre have been placed in over 40 music videos since 2009, therefore placing products in music videos is certainly effective for brands.
2, The History and Evolution of Music Videos
The refined HD quality music videos that we typically consume today are far from what they used to be nearly a century ago, because like all things, music videos have consistently evolved to become what they are now. To understand how they have changed, we first need to explore the history of how music videos came into existence, and how they became increasingly popular.
1920's
The concept of music videos dates back to the 1920's - when sound was first incorporated with visuals. This was commonly referred to as a silent film. A silent film however, wasn't completely silent in nature (how ironic), as live music was played in them.
In the early 1920's, "talkies" - talking films, were introduced. Talkies were sound-films with motion pictures and synchronized sound. The Jazz Singer, which premiered on October 6, 1927, opened the gateway to talkies becoming widespread. Vitophone, a sound film system, was commonly used for talkies, especially by Warner Bros. In a vitophone, the soundtrack was not printed on film rather kept separately on a phonograph record.
In 1930, the Spooney Melodey series made the concept of short films with live music popular. This music was played before a film began, unlike a talkie (where the audience had to wait till the middle of the film to hear music), which was a huge change for an average film viewer.
1930's
1940's
“Soundies” - short films that were based on one song, were a new way to consume a variety of music in the 1940’s. They were produced during 1940 - 1947, and were shown on 6mm rear projection machines called Panorams, which required coins to be put in it to work. In a panorama, 8 soundies were typically stored on a reel, which played on loop.
With the introduction of soundies, audiences (particularly in the United States) had a greater access to music, considering panorams were kept in amusement parks, clubs, restaurants etc. Performers like Cyd Charisse or Doris Day also gained their fame through soundies. Soundies also included clips of women in being seductive and wearing revealing outfits, or patriotic mentions, which was done to appeal to men in the military during wartime.
In the 1950's, short musical clips were made as fillers for television shows. Apart from that, films that included music performances were also created, such as "Jailhouse Rock", which was a film starring Elvis Presley. Jiles Perry Richardson, also known as "The Big Bopper", has been given the credit of producing one of the first music videos in 1958. In the late 50's, Scopitones were created, which was a type of jukebox similar to a panoram, but had colour and had 36 films (or soundies) to watch.
1950's
Scopitone
1960's
Music videos were made popular on television in the 1960's. "We Can Work it Out" by the Beatles is known to be one of the first music videos to be broadcasted on television. Apart from that, the Beatles had a long lasting impact on the making of music videos, and just music in general. The videos for “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane” included creative elements, such as slow motion, reverse editing, and experimented with different themes and moods, bringing about a change to conventional music videos or short films.
In the 1970's, music videos were displayed on television in multiple countries, and Queen, in 1974 released Bohemian Rhapsody. Therefore, music videos were gaining popularity across the world.
1970's
1980's
It could be said that the 1980’s revolutionized music videos like no other decade (at least as of yet). This was because In 1981, MTV was launched. The first video aired was The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star” (yes they knew what they were doing), and MTV initiated music videos playing 24/7 television. This gave numerous artists a chance to promote their music, including Adam and the Ants and Madonna.
In 1983, John Landis took it upon himself to direct a 14 minute long video for Michael Jackson’s song “Thriller,” costing $800,000 at the time to film. Receiving saturation play on MTV, the popularity of the music video led to more black artists having their music videos promoted on television, along with more r&b music being played.
1992 onwards, MTV listed music video directors in the credits, not limiting them to only the artists and song, giving them a sense of accomplishment, and further pushing their creativity. Spike Zone and David Fincher are two notable directors who rose through directing remarkable music videos.
Viewing music videos was also made easier in 1997, when the U.S based video sharing website iFilm was launched.
1990's
YouTube being launched In 2005 changed the game. Music videos were now accessible on a user’s personal devices, and reached a mass audience. In fact, in 2012 PSY’s Gangnam style was the first music video to hit 1 billion views on Youtube. (no that does not mean a billion people saw it). Youtube also made it easier for indie artists to show their work to the world. Vimeo and other numerous video streaming sites were also launched in the 2000’s, adding to the accessibility of music videos.
2000's
3, Types Of Music Videos
If I tell any of my friends who don’t study media to think of music videos, they would probably have different interpretations in mind. Some may imagine the artists singing or dancing, some may imagine a story that takes place within the video, and some may imagine a milk box coming to life (you may want to watch Blur's Coffee and Tv music video if you're interested)
Music videos can be categorized according to their different characteristics (which are surprisingly many), because of course, why should categorization be limited to the sciences?
4, Star Image
My first Google search of the term “star image'' led to a very literal image of a star.
Richard Dyer (somewhat of a film scientist) came up with the concept of Star Image, which essentially refers to the idea that artists have sculpted (or have made to sculpt) special characteristics to make them identifiable and noticeable, mainly for promotional (and capitalist) reasons. Similar to how products are branded, so are artists, to ensure that they stand out from one another.
An artist's star image is used to make them recognizable in any form of media, and is artificially constructed to be as appealing as possible. This means that an artist's star image may be entirely different from the person they are. According to Richard Dyer “A star is an image not a real person that is constructed (as any other aspect of fiction is) out of a range of materials.
An average viewer is easily influenced by an artist's star image, because generally, the media can give people the illusion that characteristics of a famous artist or celebrity are the ideal qualities to possess. Viewers tend to start seeing artists as role models. For this reason, an artist’s star image is widely used to promote products, such as sunglasses and accessories, clothes, perfumes, and even shampoos (for artists with the picture perfect sleek hair). An example of this can be Pitbull, and the Aviator sunglasses he has on all the time (seroiusly, all the time. does he sleep in those too?).
An artist's star image can also be visual, for example, Ariana Grande has been known for having her hair in a perfect ponytail during all her public appearances, concerts, and music videos, and this has changed only recently, which means that star images can evolve with time.
Artists may also have specific logos to make them even more identifiable. For example, NF has a logo, which he frequently displays on his merchandise, and even his music videos.
5, Voyeurism (the peeping tom)
The abundance of words I see that are difficult to spell whilst researching for this blog is definitely astounding. Similarly, whilst viewing several music videos, I noted yet another unique pattern. A massive chunk of music videos attempt to appeal to the audience by containing snippets of artists or actors partaking in any behavior or activity that may be considered sexually attractive.
Theorized by Freud, the concept of voyeurism focuses on materialistic qualities an individual may possess, which often leads to objectification typically of women by men. Music videos therefore attempt to appeal to the male eye, and the camera usually follows around parts of the body that may be seen as desirable. This phenomenon also intertwines with Laura Mulvey's theory of the male gaze, which is essentially men or viewers consuming content where the woman is shown to be desirable on screen. This puts the woman in a passive position by being the one who is looked at, whilst the male is the active one, being the one partaking in looking at her.
Although in music videos, only a certain extent of sexual fragments aren’t shown (can’t afford the YouTube demonetization). An example of voyeurism may be Can't Remember to Forget You by Shakira in collaboration with Rihanna. Two big names in the pop industry may be enough to know you’ll like what you see, but the video does certainly portray that as well. From shots of the artists in provocative clothing, to zoom-ins of the face and body, and the good old slow motion clips (such as the shot in 0:32 of the video) , the video has been designed to be sexually appealing. Typically, videos that focus more on appeal usually lose a narrative, or have a very loose one just for the sake of having it.
Voyeurism is also used in videos of songs sung by male artists, typically as a status symbol. For example, one would see women dancing provocatively or posing as an accessory along with the artist. This gives the impression that he has something that’s desirable, which viewers may want for themselves. An example may be the video for Pitbull’s Hotel Room Service (or literally any other music video he has). Women are seen dressed up in minimal clothing, and Pitbull can be seen with multiple of them. The camera also tends to focus on showing off the women by close up and mid shots.
The idea of feminism may clash with this considerably. Feminism may oppose the idea of women being seen as objects or subordinates to men, because it directly impacts the opinion that men are more powerful in society (better known as patriarchy). Music videos therefore tend to add to the general perception of women. Post feminism on the other hand, is generally aware that women hold the power to sexually attract men, and tends to use that as a source of empowerment.
Music videos have now increasingly been making the effort to appeal to people of all genders and sexualities (maximum capitalization in my opinion). The inclusivity has certainly incorporated more men being a part of music videos, such as in Princess Nokia’s I Like Him or Marina and The Diamonds’ How to be a Heartbreaker. It can be safe to assume that voyeurism will always be a part of the music video industry, mainly because sexual attraction is a factor that cannot be lost in audiences, which therefore gives producers a comparative edge.
6, Codes and Conventions
7, Intertextuality
Intertextuality, a word I have to write 3 times to spell it right, refers to an idea brought forth by Julia Kristeva, that literary texts generally tend to have a relationship with one another. To explain this to someone who doesn’t know much about literature (me), intertextuality means that new media texts are generally inspired or derived from older texts. This may be on purpose as an appreciation for old text (or just a lack of creativity), or may be completely coincidental.
Intertextuality can be further categorized into the following:
Parody
Parody generally tends to imitate the style of another media text, or possibly the artist. Generally, parodies are made to be found humorous and made for comic effect, and mimic someone’s work. Parodies don’t use someone’s work directly, rather change it and gives another perspective to it.
An example of a parody can be Weird Al Yankovic’s “Another One Rides The Bus” (1981), which is a parody of Another One Bites The Dust by Queen.
Calque
Calque (why isn't it just spelt calc?) is when references from another culture are incorporated in a text. This blends cultures and traditions together, and this may include languages, art, clothing etc.
Coldplay's Hymn for the Weekend is a display of Indian culture, coupled with art and sound chimes typically heard in Indian music, even though the artist's are based in the United States.
Pastiche refers to the “pasting” of one text to another text by combining certain elements. Pastiche generally incorporates different genres within itself, and is rather respectful (unlike parody).
Queen’s “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” is a pastiche of Elvis Presley, made 2 years after his death.
Pastiche
Homage
Homage is an imitation of an older text, mainly to pay tribute and is done as a form of respect to another text or artist.
The video for Stephen Sanchez’s “Until I Found You” is an homage to Marilyn Monroe, and the 1950’s.
Allegory
Allegory is essentially a story within a story. This means that there may be more to the story than meets the eye, and can be objective. Usually, symbolism is used to convey another hidden message.
Total Eclipse of the Heart (1983) on its first glace is about heartbreak, but has a hidden meaning, where it’s truly referencing vampires.
