Why do we have music videos & what are they used for?

Why do we have music videos & what are they used for? What is a music video?A music video is a way that the artist can express the song visually, as well as brand their identity.Music videos are an important way in which an artist can advertise themselves and get the more publicity by doing things such as make the music video controversial, for example including nudity.AWhen were music videos first established?History of music videosFirst music video The duck video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05-dgkiUHj4MTV MTV was the first major music video broadcasting channel, with its first music video being broadcast in 1981 was Money for Nothing by Dire Straits.The second major music video was Elvis Presley in Jail house RockIn 1980 the song video killed the radio star was released which was a sign that the music video was ready to take over as the main source of media for music. In 1974 was the first music television

How have music videos changed over time?Music videos was evolved over time into much higher production with a lot more advanced technology with advances in thing such as animation and quality of overall production.Music videos in the 1970`s compared to now are very different both in quality and ideas, in the 1970`s they were just getting an understanding of all the animation and the idea of making a music video controversial, were as now most videos attempt to be unique in some sort of way in order to catch some attention.In 1982 Michael Jackson turned the music video industry into a film style with ThrillerIn modern day almost every music video has a unique feature and utilities the technology in order to make the video unique.

Why are music videos important?Music videos play a huge role in the growth and promotion of artists. Music videos now have a main goal of promoting the song and artist , however used to be mainly for creative purposes.MTV played a vital role is the growth of music videos.Music videos are also important in developing the music industry.

What is the main purpose of a music video?The main purposes of a music video is:Change their imageExpress their creativity Promote their brand Give them a reputationAdvertise the song & artistPromotion and a change of image Music videos in modern day usually have it main purpose to promote the song & artist. They do this by making the music video controversial, they can do this by thing such as including nudity, swearing , or including relevant topics in society such as black discrimination. Any of this can gain publicity which will help the song & artist.

Some artists use the music videos in a way to show them change their image, a perfect example of this is Miley Cyrus. She was originally seen as the perfect Disney singer Hannah Montana, then she brought out song such as wrecking ball and we cant stop which includes thing such as nudity drugs and sex. This dramatically changed her image and gained her publicity.Focus group researchIn focus groups I looked into questions based around the way a music video can help the artist

OutletsIn the past MTV was the main outlet of music videos by a long way.Today YouTube is by far the biggest outlet for music videos with VEVO taking on all the biggest artists channels.

Extension of incomeMusic videos that promote can make a lot of money, not only form promoting the song which will get more sales, but the more views a music video gets, the more money the artists a label will get.Promotion plays a key role in extension of income due to it causing more and more people to watch the video and gain in more money.If the video gains the song a massive amount of view on a media outlet such as YouTube it is very likely that the video will include a link to where they can buy the song on something like ITunes which would further increase the songs income. As well as this the artist also gets paid for the amount of views they get on YouTube.The best example of this is the most viewed video on YouTube PSYs Gangnam style which famously became the first video on YouTube to receive 1 billion views, it has been said by Forbes that PSY has now earned just under $2,000,000 through view income alone. The figure would be a lot more if you included thing such as sponsorship deals.http://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2014/06/16/at-2-billion-views-gangnam-style-has-made-psy-a-very-rich-man/#4ef8052875aaInfluence of commercials In lots of music videos there is a lot of product placement and this is mainly what influence of commercials is. A lot of artists show themselves drinking or eating these products. An example is DJ Khaled with all of his alcohol endorsements. This can gain the artist huge amounts of money just form accepting items to include in their video, which can benefit the artist and the product when used properly, such as DJ Khaleds video in which he would want to include the alcohol and the product would most likely gain increased sales due to the influence of the artist on his audiences.

Synergy Synergy is when to forms of media come together to help each other promote and make money. A good example of this is Adele making the soundtrack to Skyfall This can help both the artist and the film as the more one gets popular the more the other one, so they bounce of each others success

Role of the producer in a music videoA producer has to think of ways and create a unique idea that will gain publicity and make their clients brand identity improve. The producer will also have to plan the way the video will be filmed and organize nearly all of the factors in the advert such as the finances. They also manage everything that is going on throughout the making of the video. The producer is also responsible for the visual representation of the artist .Producers will also be in control of the whole casting. The producer also has to think about things such as budgets and publication on the media, which is an essential part of the video becoming successful. They have to make sure that the video is advertised in the right way so that not only will people hear about it but also want to watch it, this can be done with techniques such as teaser trailers or social media build up. An example of social media build up was Justin Bieber getting numerous celebrities to hold up the writing What do you Mean every time count down the days. The producer will also have to check through with the editing at the end to ensure that everything is how he/she wants.

Self produced artistThis is usually an artist who is starting out or by choice. This is an artist who produces their own music. An example of big artist who had to start of as self produced is Ed Sheeran. This is a lot together to get publicity, due to no major labels sponsoring you and getting you publicity. However due the up rise of YouTube it has becoming increasing successful to become popular through YouTube, with artists such as Justin Bieber being discovered through YouTube.

Different labelsDifferent artists have different according to their situation, mainly on where they are in their career. Different labels can offer different pros and cons from financially to influence of the artist. Artist may want to switch between labels due to where they are on their career, so for example if they feel like they are become very successful they may switch from an independent label to a major label.Major labels Major label This is the highest label in terms of financially and getting the biggest artists in the world such as Justin Bieber and Adele.ProsMore money to make the music videos Professionals to help make your brand image goodDirectors making sure the music videos are goodConsLimited in expressing your own ideas.Some profit taken awayMay not agree with whats happeningPeople may call you a sell-out

Independent music labels An independent music label is lower in the ranking order to Major label but still has a financial factor for it to allow its artists to create music videos as well as give the artists more creativity and influence than a major label would give it. An example of an independent music label is Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.ProsMore create influenceMore share of profitGood for establishing artistsStill give you good money to help make the videosConsBudget not as big as major labelsWill still take some profitStaff will not be as good as majorMore time.

Self-produced artistsSelf produced artists are the lowest rank and have no label sponsoring them and helping them with music videos and publicizing. Instead they have to do everything them self. An example of a self produced artist was Ed Sheeran in his early career.

ProsComplete artistic control Good way to start outGain experienceHave all the profitConsHave to use your own money to create videos May bay bad ideas with no one to tell you its badHard to gain publicity

In ConcertConcert is the main revenue source for the majority of artists, it is also a way of artists improving their reputation and making people like them more by showing more of their personality in real life and showing that they really have talent and can sing in real life. The artists can sometimes use allusion which is saying something sublimely without actually saying it , they can do this due to the audience being so submerged with the experience.

HomageHomage is paying tribute and hinting to a past video by using some of its styles and techniques in your video. It can often become very popular due to attracting audiences from across different generations, meaning they will receive more views on YouTube and then sales on their single.Blur payed homage to last year at Marienbad with their classic style of music video. They did this by using techniques such as using black and white and dramatic slow shots. The music is quite similar in style and

Videos homage

Bittersweet symphony may homage to unfinished sympathy due to its style of music video. The idea is to take the idea of one person waking down a street , but instead of it being a more happy street they take on the a realist London street which his much more real and brutal, however he enjoys this so its bittersweet. The lyrics contrast quite a lot as the idea in The Verve`s song and massive attacks. The lyrics also contrast the video.Homage Blur The universal song only links in with the other song with its visual style.

Animation Animation is a technique of creating a world with no limits and to invoke a reaction to the audience. It is made through computers instead of with cameras in real life Some artists have made this a trademark of theirs, for example The Gorillas. Netsky used animation to make himself in the video as an animated person. Another example of a less computerised animations is a green screen which puts an artists or actor in front of a green screen and them can change the background to whatever they want.

Impressionist videosThese are often quite random videos which can be viewed with different ideas by different audiences. This can gain media attention due to people debating what the video means, causing it to have more publicity thus more income.

Interpretive videos This is a video that can be seen and interpreted differently by different audiences. An example of a interpretive music video is The Killers Humans

Pastiche This is very similar to homage but the artist pays direct tribute to the past artist. An example of this is Arianda Grande. This can become popular as not only will it attract the audience who already are fans of the artist, but it will also bring in an audience who like the person who the artist is paying homage/using pastiche for.

SurrealUnreal elements / fantasy which are hard to believe. Example is Lady Gaga who uses a lot of surreal music videos and has almost made it her trademark. These videos often become popular due to people talking about them a lot mouth to mouth and through social media.

Intertextual ReferencesMaking hints and paying tribute to another song or artist. For example is Iggy azalea in Fancy who makes references to mean girls. People can enjoy these videos a lot as they like to see something like their favourite movie, for example Mean Girls, included in a music video , then they may share it, giving the video more publicity.

ParodyMaking a remake of another song or artists style while making it funny and taking the mick out of it. Blink 182 in the video Feeling this parodied the boy bands of the 90s with the scenes of them on a beach. This can become popular due to sometimes gaining publicity for being controversial in that they are making fun of someone else, which may cause the person or band they are parodying to respond and cause an argument in the media which will only give the music video more public attention

Narrative music videosThese are music videos with a story from beginning middle and end, which have a narrative and story which is usually relevant to the song. An example of this is the music video Gives you hell These type of music videos help to give the audience a context with the video as well as a visual idea of what is going on. They can also associate the music to what is happening in the video.

Style and techniquesStyles: popular music genres; in-concert and as live footage; animation (stop motion, digital); interpretative; narrative; impressionist; surrealist; pastiche; parody; referencing; homage; influence of commercialsConventions: lyric interpretation; extending or consolidating songs meaning; allusion; links to other artistsTechniques: cutting to beat; effects; miming and lip sync; playback and lip sync; multi-mage; camera movements; camera angles; Chroma key

Multi-imageThis is having two or more separate videos shots on screen at the same time. An example of Multi-image is Style by Taylor Swift when she has her face merged into a cave.In my focus group it was said that There was no Multi-image in the video

EffectsThis has a very broad scope of possibilities it can be, from typography to CGI.Effects can be used in a visual style as well as sound.An example is Fireworks by Katy Perry when Fireworks are seen coming out of peoples body.In my Focus groups it was said Not many effects were used, perhaps colour correction maybe Cutting to the beatCutting to the beat is a technique used to connect the music and the video. Cutting to the beat is when the music videos cuts at the same time as the beat beats. In my focus group it was said that The on part when it did cut to the beat it was effective as it was a main part of the song which added dramatic effect This backed up my original idea about how the cut to the beat was only one cut but was an important cut which game a lot of dramatic effect to the video.

Camera movement In the music video I did a focus group on it was said that The camera movement was very good as there was a lot of continuous shots which panned around the scene There were a few good camera angles in the video which showed a lot of the scene and got across the idea of the scene well. The different angles are used to achieve different objectives with the video, such as the establishing shot to show the main characters struggles and give her some context.

Questions

1.Does the video cut to the beat? Is it effective?2.What effects are used?3.In the video is there any miming or lip syncing?4.Is there any multi-mage?5.What sort of camera movement is there in the video?6.What different angles are used?

Focus groups

1.Does the video cut to the beat? Is it effective? The use of cups going with the beats was effective, however there was only one cut which cut to the beat2.What effects are used? There were not many effects used except for color correct.3.In the video is there any miming or lip syncing? There is clear evidence of lip syncing as the artist sing along to the song4.Is there any multi-image? No5.What sort of camera movement is there in the video? The camera movement was impressive as there was a lot of continuous camera shots.6.What different angles are used? There were a lot of mid shots and shots of a lot of people.

Focus group analysisThe focus groups helped to understand what the music video was aiming to achieve, in terms of technicality of editing and camera work.The focus group gave me a rounded overview of what was good and bad in the video in terms of techniques used.The music video did use a fair few of the techniques but also lacked in other departments such as effects.

Secondary research The Cup Song became a YouTube sensation , with thousands of people attempting the cup song with their own cups and voices.The cup song received a staggering 264,126,033 views at the time I researched on YouTube.As found by secondary research I found that the song was used and publicised in the film Pitch Perfect Which helped it gross into a top 10 hit.Due to it being in a movie it could be seen as synergy to an extent