2. What is a Music Video?
• A Short film integrating a song and imagery produced for promotional
and artistic purposes.
• Music Videos mainly came into focus in the 1980’s as MTV based their
format around the medium.
• The origins of a Music Video came from 1849 when sheet music
publishers Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern wanted to promote their
song “The Little Lost Child” through using a magic lantern to project
images onto a screen simultaneous to live performances. This became
a popular form of entertainment known as the illustrated song – the
inspiration for the first music video.
3. How Can We Analyse Music Videos?
The 8 conventions of a music video include:
• Lyrics – establish general mood of the song
• Genre – reflected in colours, themes, mes en scene
• Music – tempo of music drives the editing
• Camerawork – moving/tracking shots, close ups to gain connection with
artist
• Editing – fast cut montage
• Intertextuality – a reference within the video with makes a connection with
viewer
• Movies – Inspiration for music videos often comes from movies
• Exhibitionism – how people are portrayed in a provocative way
4. Media Theorist: Andrew Goodwin
• Wrote book called ‘Dancing in the Distraction Factory’ – 1992
• A meta-analysis – bought together secondary research
• Critiques effect on music videos on culture
• Proposes an analysis for how music videos should be analysed
• He references that music videos – On MTV – are a form of advertisement for an
artist and the production companies
Theorists Goodwin Looked at Include:
• Mercer – all music videos fall under the cinematic genre.
• Fry + Fry – they are an advertisement for artists and their media products
• Fiske – they are a form of Post Modernism Television – emphasis on style of
shooting rather than content
• Marcus – hip hop/rap, semiotic pornography – include a lot of exhibitionism
5. Andrew Goodwin: Analysing a Music Video
1. Music Videos demonstrate characteristics of the genre
2. Relationships between Lyrics and Visuals – visuals illustrate, amplify
or contradict the lyrics
3. Demands of record company are displayed in music video –
promote artist
4. Often themes of voyeurism are present – acts of looking
6. Andrew Goodwin: Narrative
In Music Videos the artist is responsible for telling the narrative/story. Goodwin explains
that a music video is a mix of performance and narrative enabling a blend as it is a form of
advertising, essentially the narrative is normally ignored and the mix makes the medium
easier to consume. A Narrative can be analysed using this method:
2. Rising Action –
event/change, conflict
arises
1. Exposition – characters
introduced, atmosphere
and plot revealed
3. Climax – main action
happens/ Turning point in
narrative
4. Falling Action – sense of
stability is regained
5. Resolution
7. Music Video 1: Ed Sheeran – The A Team
• This Video uses the convention of there being a relationship between the lyrics
and the visuals – as Goodwin states.
• Additionally during the video we see advertisement of the artist as he talks to the
girl in the video and sits with her on the street – this scene is used to make the
audience see Ed Sheeran as a gentleman and make us like the artist further.
During this snapshot the lyrics that are sung are
‘and we’re all under the upper hand, go mad for a
couple grams’ indicating a drug addition and the
visual reflects this in a transaction of money and
drugs. Additionally the snapshot to the right shows
the artist interacting with the call girl.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAWcs5H-qgQ
8. 2: The Script – The Man Who Cant Be Moved
• This music video contains a blend of performance and narrative as Danny (lead singer) lip syncs the lyrics
throughout and we also get scenes of the band performing as a montage alongside the narrative story of
him waiting for a girl at a place they always went. Additionally the music video contains themes of voyeurism
as we are watching the music video and the artist is looking at a photo of the girl and also he is on the news
so we are watching him on the new through the medium of the music video. The relationship between lyrics
and visuals is also present through the snapshot of him on the news and talking to a man on the street and
additionally when he is talking to the police officer. Additonally if we look at Goodwins use of narrative and
how he uses the 5 points to plot the storyline, this music video follows as: 1. exposition – artist is established
and plot of him walking down street, 2. rising action – people start to notice him and talk to him, 3. climax -
he waits in wind and rain for girl and gets on the news, 4. falling action – the publicity dies down he is still
waiting for the girl, 5. resolution – although it follows the previous 4 the resolution is not quite there as he
hasn’t found the girl.
‘If you see this girl can
you tell her where I
am?’
Performance element
of the video mixed
with the narrative to
create a blend
‘policeman said
“son you can’t stay
here”’
‘maybe you would
mean to, but you’ll
see me on the news’
– also theme of
voyeurism.
9. 3. Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dog – California Gurls
• This music video features the genres of pop and rap as it features snoop dog. Marcus – a
media theorist in Goodwin's book – highlights that the genre of rap often is seen as
semiotic pornography and involves scenes of exhibitionism. In this video Katy Perry is
made out to be a sex symbol in short outfits and near nudity in one scene. Additionally
the shot of Katy eating an ice-cream is highly sexualises.
Examples of Exhibitionism
used in this music video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F57P9C4SAW4
10. 4. Iggy Azalea ft. Charlie XCX – Fancy
• One convention of a music video is Movies – music videos are often inspired by
films that are out at that time or in the past, sometimes this can be the
soundtrack for the film. In this case Iggy Azaleas video for Fancy takes inspiration
from the film Clueless.
Same Outfits.
Similar Lunch Set up Similar sports uniforms
Similar shot set up
