The Different Elements of Music Videos

Forms and Conventions of Music Videos

These are the seven forms and conventions of music videos according to Goodwin:

1. There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (with the visuals either illustrating, amplifying or contradicting the lyrics)
2. There is a relationship between the music and the visuals (with the visuals either illustrating, amplifying or contradicting the music)
3. Particular music genres may have their own music video style and iconography (such as live stage performance for the heavy rock music genre)
4. There is a demand on the part of the record company for lots of close up shots of the main artist/vocalist.
5. The artist may develop their own star iconography in and out of their videos, which overtime, becomes part of their star image.
6. There is likely to be voyeurism, particularly in the treatment of women, but also in terms of systems of looking (screen within screens, binoculars, cameras etc)
7. There are likely to be inter textual references, either to other music videos or to films and TV.

The Theories Of Goodwin

Genre Of Music

Genre means classifying a text according to its content and style as well as its structure and way of production. From all various media, pop music most depends on genre. It also includes the most varied genres of texts. People always invent, cross and revisit genres, and categorisation important for the fans and producers.

Generally, most music can be divided into these categories:

• Pop
• Classical
• Dance/Techno
• R&B
• Hip-Hop/Rap
• Rock
• Metal
• Country
• Jazz
• Blues
• Reggae

Each of them contains a variety of sub-genres, as well as hybrids and mash-ups. However, each of them has specific characteristics (instruments used for melody, rhythm, lyrics and vocals), and can be connected with other things, such as fashion, hair and lifestyle. Each genre has specific ways of demonstration  including performance venues (e.g. nightclubs), radio stations, record shops, festivals and magazines.

Image is crucial for music genre, and an artist's look categorises them before they start performing. For an artist or band to truly fulfil a genre category, they must be represented visually, on records, photos and music videos.

Looks can be as generic as sound: it is hard to differentiate between many hip hop videos, all showing baggily dressed homeboys sitting on porches or outside houses in a generic 'hood, swinging their arms and grinning at the booty passing by. Or maybe driving slowly in big old open-topped cars around a generic 'hood, swinging their arms and waving at the booty they pass by. Similarly, all girl or all boy groups go for videos in a warehouse, or other similar setting, showing them dancing in formation. If the look works, wear it.

Adele, whose music is inspired by classic pop styles of the 1960s and 1970s, is often photographed wearing classic or retro clothing that connects her with her role models Aretha Franklin or Dusty Springfield and makes her seem a serious, soulful artiste in old school mode. Lady Sovereign, on the other hand, identifies with her genre of music through an outsize baseball cap, weird sunglasses and neon colours.

As well as publishing overall sales figures, the Billboard chart is divided into more than 43 different music genre categories.

• Billboard Magazine Music Chart

Genre has always been a cornerstone of music business because customers often dedicate themselves to a certain style of music (eg hiphop, R'n'B) and are not interested in buying outside of it. Go into your local HMV and look at how it is organised along genre. Although many artists resent being categorised into a particular genre in this way, there is no doubt that retailers and customers rely genre to make their choices. Online music streaming services (like Pandora or Spotify) take into account your past genre choices in order to keep playing you new music that you may be interested in buying.

Genre and Sub Genre

This is all the genres of music that are available.

 

These are all the sub genres of each genre of music.

What Music Means To Me

Rockstar by Nickleback is a song that was released in 2005 and was becoming popular during the period when I was in primary school. The song is about focusing on one dream, in this case a rockstar. At this point during school, i also had a clear focus to be a racing driver, in particular in f1, and I was determined to do anything I could to achieve this. This song was close to being number 1 on the UK chart, and was socially recognised throughout the UK and most of the world, earning the band a large revenue. I bought this song on a CD, but I listerned to it frequently on the radio, and on MTV.
Bright Lights Bigger City is a song by Cee Lo Green, and was released in 2011 and reached 13th in the Uk charts. It has a upbeat tempo, and always makes you feel calm, concentrated yet relaxed when the song has ended. This was reflected  by me at this time in secondary school, when I was in year 9. Throughout the year I worked extremely hard to over achieve in some of my subjects, while still inviting friends around to my house to play sports and watch TV. The song is about a going out to the city at the weekend and having fun. I related to this because I was always looking forward to the weekend, as i worked hard during the week. I constantly listerned to this song on the radio, and bougth the album which features this song, 'The Lady Killer'. As well as this, i watched the video online on Youtube, Vevo and MTV.
Maps by Maroon 5 is a song about using a map to find the object/desire that you want, by using a map. This song was released in 2014, and relates to me during this time, as I am deciding on which direction I am going to take my career. I am also deciding on what my primary goal is, and therefore choosing the right path on the map to reach my goal. When this song was released, I first herd it on Youtube and MTV. I then downloaded it onto my playlist from I-tunes, and reached the top 10 in the UK chart so far.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions