Comprehensively explain the purpose of music videos,

with reference to expansive examples.

A music video is a short film that has been created to accompany a song
or piece of music. It allows the artist to use imagery to help express the
meaning of the song or simply to help with the narrative. When releasing
a single or album, creating a music video is seen to be good marketing,
this is because of four main reasons; having an interesting music video
helps to make the song more memorable, it helps to give the audience a
better understanding of the meaning/message within the song lyrics, to
show off the artists talents and creative style and finally because it helps
the exposure and expansion of an artist's profile. Overall, music videos are
used for the purpose of promotion and for generating the company/label
money.
Promotional: Nearly all music videos are made for promotional purposes,
fundamentally it's a form of advertisement.
Extension of income: The use of music videos can help to generate
money for an artist long after the release of the single or album. Watching
a music video may encourage the audience to purchase more than just
the single, for example the video could also be a way of advertising
merchandise as well as any possible albums, therefore helping to boost
profits for the artist or recording company. Again because the music video
promotes the artist/band's profile, it means that there could be possible
opportunities for the band/artist to go on tours or be featured at festivals.
Some music videos feature footage of the artist/band playing at concerts
or festivals to inspire viewers to purchase tickets for both events, again
generating more money.
Music videos also offer the opportunity for product placement. The
artist/band not only promote themselves but they can also either promote
a merchandise or products they have made, such as perfumes, as well as
promoting other products. An example of this could be the band using a
certain drum kit, the owners of the drum kit company would pay the
band's company to feature their product within the video. This type of
promotion works for both the band/artist and the company of the product.
Extension of outlets: Having a music video to accompany a soundtrack
allows the product to extend it's outlets. For example a single without a
music video is most likely only going to be played on the radio, this is
because it can't be featured on TV or YouTube because it isn't something
that an audience can view. In some circumstances, a lyric video will be
released while the official video is in production, so that the song is still
being promoted. A music video means that the song can be featured on
television (music channels), the internet (YouTube) and is more accessible
on devices such as mobile phones and tablets. Creating music videos also

means that the company could go on to produce a short documentary that

they could then distribute in the forms of DVD and CD. The more outlets,
the better chance of increasing the number of fans.
Synergy: Another purpose of a music video is to provide the opportunity
for synergy. Synergy is what happens when to media products work
together to mutually benefit each other. An example of this would be the
number 1 single by Ellie Goulding, "Love Me Like You Do", being featured
in the new movie Fifty Shades Of Grey. Now because Ellie's music video
features scenes for the movie, she is therefore promoting the movie. So in
retrospect, because the movie features "Love Me Like You Do" it is
promoting Ellie Goulding. Because both Ellie and the producers of the film
are working together , they both stand to benefit from each product. As
well as both media products gaining promotion, they also get to stretch
their fan base wider to include the singer and film's fans.
Producer's strategy: In the music industry there are 3 different types of
artist; independent, major label and self-produced. Although each of these
use music videos for a different purpose, it is still a vital marketing tool.
Major labels: An example of a major label would be Universal. As well as
dominating the film industry, it also dabbles in the music industry too. The
main purpose of music videos for major labels, such as universal, is
advertisement. Vevo is a YouTube channel owned by Universal Music
Group and Sony Music Entertainment. Their channel hosts music videos
that have been produced by the founding companies and play
advertisements at the beginning of the video, from which they produce
revenue.
Independent: There are numerous small companies that have little or no
financial connect with the major labels. The companies usually harbour a
small number of artists and don't have a budget, unlike the major record
producers and often only focus on one genre of music .The purpose of
music videos, for independent recording companies, are simply to attract
more fans to the artist and their music. Independent or "indie" producers
see their work as an art-from rather than an advertisement as well as
stepping stones for young and upcoming director's careers.
Self-produced artists: Self-produced artists often have little to no
budget and aren't that well known. YouTube is a vital platform for these
artists if they are trying to kick-start a career in music. Broadcasting a
music video on their channel allows them to make sure that the video
does get some sort of audience. Social networking sites are also a good
way to distribute any products.

Comprehensively explain the styles, conventions and

techniques of music videos with reference to expansive
examples
Styles
Performance: Performance is when the artist or band feature footage of them
performing live music, either for the purpose of the music video or by using clips
of them performing live at concerts. An example of this is Biffy Clyro - Bubbles.
The majority of this music video is the band performing. Performance within
music videos is a good way to promote the band because it allows the
bands/artist's fan base to see what they are like live and possible persuade them
to buy tickets to upcoming concerts, tours and festivals.
Narrative: Narrative is when the video tells a story to accompany the music.
Often the video is created to give imagery to the lyrics within the, helping
audiences to understand the meaning or theme behind the song. An example of
this would be "Irreplaceable" by Beyonce. Although her lyrics depict her break
up, the video also helps the view to see how the relationship broke down.
Surrealist: A surrealist music video would appear to be fantasy like or considered
weird/strange. An example of a surrealist music video would be "come to daddy"
by The Aphex Twins. This is considered to be a surrealist music video because of
the content within the video. For example nearer the end of the video there is a
weird demon like creature that screams at a passer by. Surrealist videos re good
for promotion because they are eye-catching and memorable.
Pastiche: This is where an artist's work is inspired by or imitates another artist's
work. Michael Jackson's thriller is the most famous pastiche video in history.
Because he was a big fan of horror films he decided to interoperate the genre
within his music videos. Another example would be Fall out boy's "Beat it". The
lead singer is dressed like Michael Jackson as they cover his song "Beat it" and
have dancers in the background displaying some of his signature moves.
Parody: Parody like pastiche is one media form imitating another, however rather
than creating the music video as a tribute, a parody mocks the original video or
song, but either re-writing the song to make it more comical or by re-creating the
music video. An example pf a parody would be Blink 182's "All the small things".
Although they don't imitate a whole video they do make references and act out
certain scenes from a Britany Spears video.
Homage: Homage isn't to different to pastiche, they both aim to create product
that shows respect or interest in a particular person or thing. An example of
homage is 30 seconds to mars' "The kill". This is because Jared Leto basically
takes on Jack Nicolson's role and features a lot of scenes from the movie. The
lead singer is seen to be throwing a ball against the hotel wall, just like Jack did
in the movie, alongside depicting Jack becoming insane and his band members
running into similar situations.

Popular music genres: The term popular music stretches across various different
genres. Although it has a wide appeal, it doesn't usually stay popular for too long
and is often forgotten about. An example of this would be "Gangnam style", even
though it was considered to be a hit, the craze only lasted a few weeks because
something newer an better had been released.
Artistic creativity: Artistic creativity within music videos is generally based
around certain interests or emotions of the artist or band. Some bands even have
a particular style such as animation to help their videos stand out against other
products in the same genre. An example of this would be most of Lady gaga's
music videos. Each video is different but has the same element of creativity
about it. In her video "Judas" she expresses herself through a religion based
music video. She mentions how she has fallen in love with a bad person but she
can't help it and asks for forgiveness.

Conventions
Lyrical interpretation: This is when either a scene or the whole video itself relates
to the lyrics in a song. Eminem's song "Stan" is a good example of this because
the music video literally interprets every word he raps, not just through the way
he portrays the story but by the way he has his actor mime the words. The video
depicts a fan of his becoming very obsessive over him to the point where he
commits suicide, the video is Eminem telling his story and him trying to help him
before he finds out that he's too late.
Links to other artists: Links to other artist's is when one artist makes reference to
another either within their music video or the song it's self. This can sometimes
be something as simple as a cameo appearance.An example of this is how Iggy
Azalea being mentioned in Eminem's song "Vegas". The way that she is
mentioned within the lyrics sounds negative but by doing this he has broadened
his fan bases by addressing fans of Iggy as well as by addressing people that
don't like her music.
Allusion: This is when something in the music video is made to give the
impression that something has happened, even if it is visible on the screen. This
is usually done by editing. They film a sequence but you don't see the ending,
it's left up to the viewer to interpret what has happened. An example of this
would be "Grenade" by Bruno mars. At the end of the music video you see him
walkout on to a train track in front of an oncoming train but you don't see the
impact happen, therefore leaving the viewer to decide whether he survived or
not.
Extending or consolidating the song: This is when the music video portrays the
songs meaning. Conventions such as these are often used to engage the
audience and to get emotional responses. An example of this is "The A team" by
Ed Sheeran.

Techniques
Cutting to the beat: This when a certain clip is matched to a certain part of the
song. A series of clips are often edited to land on a beat to give the video more
pace and makes it look smoother.

Lip sync: Lip syncing is often used in music videos to give the impression of
performance. By using this technique it allows the audience to get an idea of
what they artist would be like live. It also helps to give the video more depth and
can provoke an emotional response in the viewers.
Camera movement: Camera movement within music videos is a key element. By
using a range of different shots, it makes the video more interesting to watch.
Most videos usually on stay on one clip for no longer than 3 seconds, unless the
whole video is one continuous shot. By also using shots such as worm eye or
canted a music video can become a better product.
Effects: Using effects in music videos can make them a lot more eye-catching
and memorable. Simple things such as filters and transitions can really add to
the quality of a music video. It can also help o set the tone or mood of the video.
Blue screen: Blue/green screens are used to provide backgrounds, locations and
special effects. Again using this technique it can heighten the quality of the
music video.