What is a music video - Miss Miller (will add screen shots of music video in school, couldnt be done on my laptop)

Purpose Of A Music Video:

Different music videos have different purposes in order to relate to target audiences in different ways, there are various purposes of a music video:

1. To bring the lyrics to life visually: Music videos are a very effective way of conveying the lyrics of a song and bringing the story of the song to life visually by using actors to bring the story to life and also by using the artist of the song to tell the story through performance which makes the song more effective to the audience.

2. Makes more money: Music videos are a great way of promoting an artist or a particular song, target audiences of the video being able to listen to a song as well as watch the video would find the single or artist more appealing and would be more likely to purchase their material.

3. Artist Image: Music videos are an effective way of an artist giving their fans a chance to perceive them or their lifestyle in the way that they want to be perceived in order for their music to sell as well as any brands that they are also prom promoting.

4.Build a relationship with the audience: The audience are usually able to relate songs better through music videos because most music videos tend to be based on real life circumstances which makes the song more appealing to the audience.

5.Defines the genre: The genre of a song can be established by the audience because different music genres have different codes and conventions that help the audience gain insight on the genre of a particular song through the music video, for example most music videos by girl bands would generally include provocative clothing, coreography, and singers performing straight to the camera.

6. A short narrative or representation of the artist: Music videos are a way of an artist telling their story or narrating something that they have experienced through visuals.

7.To buy into the artists lifestyle: Some artists like to give their fans and target audiences insight into their lifestyle through music videos for example a generic hip-hop music video would include expensive jewelery and alcohol, attractive women in provocative clothing and flashy cars.


Styles Of A Music Video:

1. Performance (singing/dancing)
2. Narrative (telling the audience a story)
3. Concept (selling the audience an idea, theme or ideology)
4. Some music videos contain a mixture of different styles.

Codes And Conventions:
The codes and conventions of music genres are all different to each other because of different target audiences.

                                     "Pretty Hurts" Music Video (Beyonce):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXXQLa-5n5w&feature=kp

What is the purpose of this music video/ Why this appeals to the particular target audience?:

The concept of this music video is to show women in particular that what society considers as "pretty" or acceptable is not always as glamorous and pleasant as it seems, this is shown through various parts of the music video, for example when Beyonce is having her waist measured and sucks in her stomach in order to appear to be skinnier than she really is which gives the target audience of this music video the idea that sometimes trying to be pretty involves a lot of stress, insecurity and delusion which is not at all pleasant.

The concept of the music video also causes the audience to take into consideration the message behind the song by looking at the visuals which give a better narration the message behind the song. The music video causes the audience to build a relationship with Beyonce through the powerful message of the song.

The music video is mainly narrative based as there are various parts in the music video where Beyonce sings as she acts out what she is singing for example; when she says "pretty hurts" and smiles at the judges of the pageant show, this implies to the audience that in general alot of people that appear to seem to be happy are not as happy as they seem. Using this concept for the song is also an advantage to Beyonce as an artist as the target audience of the music video are given the impression that Beyonce a compassionate and authentic artist, which is favourable to Beyonce because this means that her fans are ore likely to keep buying her singles and supporting her as an artist because of the message behind the song through the visuals in the music video.

What are the codes and conventions of the particular music genre and how are they followed?:

Evidence that this music video is narrative and performance based is throughout the music as Beyonce mimes the lyrics to the song and acts out the occurances in the song which is equally effective because the audience are given a visual aspect of the story behind the song. Most pop music videos by female artists always involve the female artist being glamorously drssed and also being the main character of the music video (as shown in this music video). 

This gives the target audience a clear indication of the genre of the song through the music video which is also an effective marketing strategy to advertise the artist and the single.

Research Into Goodwin's Theory - Miss Georgiou

Andrew Goodwin's Theory:

Andrew Goodwin has & key theories concerning music videos and how they are constructed, which are:

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics:

Producers make music videos as relateable and appealing as possible to the target audience, they include stereotypes and real life circumstances and situations in order to attract the target audience to the music video.

The purpose of the producer doing this is usually to sell a single, promote an artist or to also promote a song.

Audiences are able to identify genres of music through music videos just as much as they can through the lyrics of the song. For example a song with a rock or heavy metal genre would typically involve active movements and imagery of instruments such as guitars and drums being played loudly or aggressively in the music video.

2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals:

Visuals play a major part in conveying the emotions of a song through a music video. It is very important for the visuals in a music video to relate to the lyrics of a song, this appeals to the target audience of the music video as they feel as though they are able to relate to the lyrics of the song through a visual perspective. An example of an effective use of lyrics and visuals is in the music video for "Girls" by Beyonce, the lyrics of the chorus are "Who run the world?Girls" as this is being said Beyonce is shown leading a group of women in a dance, this links in to the lyrics of the song which is more likely to attract the target audience into listening to and purchasing the single because they would have an understanding of the concept of the song by watching the music video. 

3.There is a relationship between music and visuals:

As well as the connection between lyrics and visuals being important to a music video, the connection between music and visuals is just as important, this is because a lot of times, the tune, rhythm or tone of a song can be deceptive for example  generally people associate slow songs with either being, sad songs or love songs being the reason for the importance of producers creating music videos that represent the message within the song and the meaning of the song through the use of visuals in order for the target audience to be sure of what the song is really about and the message of the song.

4. The demands of the need for a lot of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work:

Close-ups being used in music videos show a connection between the main character in the music video and the target audience, it is also one of the most obvious ways of the audience identifying who's perspective the song is based on.

 In some music videos, the audience will find that there are certain motifs that are made by the main character in the music video (usually the artist) that are repeated which gives the audience a sense of expectation.
5. There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, telescopes) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body:
Voyeurism is typically shown in music videos when the someone is staring or looking at someone else without the person being aware of it. This is usually portrayed in music videos with, love, heartbreak or heartache concepts;for example, if someone is staring intently at an ex lover without them being aware of it. This is an example of voyeuristic treatment and the voyeuristic treatment is usually given to the female by male in most music videos. 
6.There is often intertextual reference (films, tv programmers, brands, other music videos):
A lot of music videos feature various designer brands such of items of clothing
 and shoes, brand references are even made in the lyrics of some songs (particularly music videos for songs by famous artists). Intertextual reference 
also include films, tv programmes,magazines,other artists and other music videos.
An example of this is in the lyrics to Rihanna's song "Cheers", she sings "Got my RayBans on and I'm feeling hella good tonight". This is an example of intertextual reference as reference is made to the designer brand. 
Another example of inter textual reference is in the song Billionaire by Travie Mcoy and Bruno Mars, these lyrics of the chorus state "I wanna be on the cover of Forbes Magazine, smiling next to Oprah and the Queen". Three inter textual references are made in this line of song as Forbes Magazine is one of the most popular magazines in the USA and the world and Oprah and the Queen are world renowned public figures.  
7. It is worth considering whether the video is primarily performance based, narrative based and concept based and how elements of each are used in it:
Most music videos include an equal amount of performance and concept. Some music videos include also include visuals of live performances that have been purposely set up for the music video. Performance is in music videos doesn't necessarily only mean live performances, the artist miming the lyrics of the song throughout the music video is also considered as performance in music videos. 

Clean Bandit ft Jess Glynne - Rather Be (Music video analysis):
http://youtu.be/m-M1AtrxztU

The concept of the music video is that the Female is un Japan and adjusting to life there but appears to be missing her friends whilst she is there, which is shown by her friends appearing throughout the music video as she is travels around the Kyoto. One example of this is when she pays for something and the the face of the shopkeeper changes to one of her friend, the female appears to be confuses and stressed out from seeing her friends faces everywhere she goes. This links in with the lyrics "When I am with you, there's no place I'd rather be" suggesting to the audience that these lyrics are based on her missing 
her friends whilst she is in Japan. 
Not many close-ups are included in the music video (if any at all) as the concept of the music video is purely based on the woman missing her friends. 

The "Rather Be" music video includes a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals, this is shown in the chorus of the music video as there is a reference to Kyoto  which is a city in Japan, the lyrics state "we're different and the same, Kyoto to the bay", this gives the audience a chance to relate the lyrics of the song to the music video and follow the story that the song is telling. This is relevant to the music video because it is set in The city Kyoto which is in Japan, the audience of the music video are also able to identify that  the music video was set in Japan from the Japanese writing that is featured throughout the music video (shop signs etc.) as well as the oriental people that are featured throughout the music video. Japanese writing is also shown right at the beginning of the video. The affect that this has on the audience of the music video is that they are able to link the lyrics of the song to the music video. 

Intertextual reference is shown when a the weather man is featured on the television which gives the audience an idea that the music video has a realistic concept. 
There is a performance in the music video as the woman sings the song throughout  the music as we'll as a brief life performance scene where one of the faces of her friends appear once again. There is a crowd in the performance scene which also gives the audience a feeling that the live performance is real. 
The music video is primarily performance based as there is a lot of from the woman as well as others throughout the entire music video.


Analysing Goodwin's theory will benefit me in producing my own music video as I will be able to use his 7 theories, particularly the link between the lyrics and the music for my own music video. The 7 theories have also educated me in requirements needed to produce a successful music video that will sell aswell as appeal to my target audience.