What is a music video?

What is a music video?

Music has many different genres, some being rap, RnB, Drum and Bass, House, Reggae, Garage, Soul, Indie, Rock, Pop, Country and Hip/Hop. There is also different purposes that a music video has; to market the song to an audience, to create a short narrative/representation, to buy into the artists lifestyle i.e. 50 Cent in the video P.I.M.P. This is to show the various conventions of a genre/music video, for the audience to remember the music video e.g. Fatboy Slim- Praise You. This for the audience to understand more about a song and also to build a relationship with the artist such as Justin Bieber's video Beauty and a Beat.

In Justin Bieber's video- Beauty and a Beat, it reveals more about the artist and also builds a relationship with the artists as he speaks directly to the audience with the point of view camera angle. It also gives the audience an insight into his life, 'In October 2012 three hours of personal footage was stolen from musician Justin Bieber'. The footage included a video of Justin when he was young and this shows the path of his career, this was done to connect (build a relationship with) the audience. The artists lifestyle is also conveyed throughout the party atmosphere, girls in bikinis and alcohol. The location also highlights the target audience, it is set in a water park which appeals to the younger audience with the concept of fun conveyed throughout. This shows the style of life that he is living and this is appealing to the audience, as they get to interact with him on a more personal level.

There are also different various styles of a music video. One being the performance (singing/dancing), narrative (tells the audience a story) and also the concept (selling the audience an idea/theme or ideology). Some videos contain a mixture of styles. For example, in the Christina Aguilera video Beautiful various styles are conveyed. The narrative styles is depicted as she addresses real world issues, she addresses the gay audience, transvestites, rock fans and anorexia in order to convey a story, with the message being that everyone is 'beautiful' regardless of their background, interests or what they look like. This message therefore connects with the audience and this therefore makes it easier to market this song and the video. The video also includes the burning of a magazine, this suggests that she is getting across that the media tabloids should not be taken notice of, this concept reinforces that this song is not only performance based (her singing into camera), but more importantly that it is a marketing tool utilized to connect with a mass market.This is because this gives the artist a good image and reputation, inevitably meaning more record sales and acquiring a large fan base. So although the performance plays a big part, the narrative accompanying the performance in the video is also vital in order to fabricate a successful music video.

There are also different codes and conventions of a music video, they are all different with different genres and different target audiences. For example RnB connotations are rich, African American, a love concept, expensive cars, expensive/popular brands and money. For example in the video by Trey Songz - Heart Attack, brands such as Louis Vuitton, a luxury house, a relationship with a woman, a song about love (flashbacks of good memories with love companion) and a popular star in the video: Kelly Rowland. The featuring of Kelly Rowland in the video gives the video a greater ecognition and status, therefore attracting a large audience as they would have recognised this artist. The use of big brands such as Gucci handbags give the audience an insight to his lifestyle, the big house he is in also gives the audience an insight to the type of life he lives, and although he has all these luxury brands, he still feels pain and emotion, highlighted in the name of the song 'heart attack'. This therefore enables the audience to connect and relate to Trey Songz as he becomes more accessible through his emotions. So his luxury lifestyle of beautiful woman and expensive brands are juxtaposed with negative emotions. 

The video I have chosen is by Fatboy Slim- Right Here Right Now. It is a dance genre with multiple purposes as a video. It's purpose is to market the song to a large audience, this is because it conveys a narrative style, the narrative included depicts the evolution of time, highlighted by monkeys turning into men, and dinosaurs turning into alligators. This message is to portray that we are constantly changing. It's purpose is also to learn more about the song, it has a deeper message, it is almost educating you as well as entertaining as it captures the concept of Darwins theory of evolution. The video is catchy and bold and the theme of dinosaurs would attract young members of society which gives a good idea of the target audience of the music video, which is everyone. The lyrics are also repeated to engage the audience with the repetition of 'Right Here Right Now'. This concept of repetition suggests that FatBoy Slim wanted to convey that we are constantly evolving as human beings, the video shows the constant change of the Earth and the organisms on the planet. This connects with the audience on a more personal level as it would make them think about life with idea of things changing on a constant basis, such as the monkey changing into a man. Ultimately the message is that 'we are evolving' and the 'world is changing'. Although the narrative is the main focus in the video, it also sticks to the conventions of a dance video, with bright colors, fats movements and a deeper message.