Research: What is a music video?

Purpose of a music video. 

Intro. 

A music video is a short piece of visual art that accompanies a song. Music videos are made for the target audiences of certain artists. They are used as selling points in an artists career to create hype around their musical campaign. The goal of most music videos is to share the thoughts and views of an artist.

Purpose of the music video. 
Music videos do not hold only one purpose in today's industry:

• Artists use it as a comeback.
• Videos are used to create hype and also interpret meanings of songs
• They promote the song and bring the artist publicity 
• Artists use music videos to entertain their fan base and also make a profit 

Impact of Music Videos

• A music video has the power to effect the audiences opinion on the artist 
• If a music video has a certain message it can effect the audience personally and emotionally
• Understanding and interpreting a song can be made easier after watching a music video 
• Certain videos can make a target audience feel as if they are closer to the artist 

Classic conventions of a music video. 

Music videos hold many different conventions that become more and more apparent as I carry out my research. All videos follow at least one of these preferences:

• Thematic
• Narrative 
• Performance 
• Symbolic

A typical music video will show...

• The star lip syncing 
• Background dancing 
• Romantic scenes 
• They usually follow a narrative 
• Also rely heavily on the genre of music; for example a hip hop song will have conventions that are extremely glamourised. 
• Most videos express the lyrics in the song visually 

More Conventions...

• Mainly music videos are known to be visually stylish and trendy, this is done by following mise en scene that lives up to the target audience's expectations. 
• Editing is also seen to be rhythmic so that it matches the beat of the song 
• Ideas are also proven to be extremely experimental and the use of cameras and editing is adventurous as well as conventional 
• Unusual lighting and cinematograhpy to grasp audiences attention. 
• Main focus is on the artist 
• Most common for there to be a mix between the two elements of narrative and performance 

Synergy.

In an artist's career the use of synergy is vital. Spreading their promotion campaign across various types of media will encourage their success to heighten. Synergy is used the most in this industry when the artist is promoting a new single, album or tour. A successful example of this is Ariana Grande:

 Tv Interview...

Radio Interview...


Magazine cover...

Promotion performance on youtube...

Social Networking...

Song was featured in a film.. 

Audience Impact. 

• Almost all music videos are made to appeal to the target audience of an artist 
• There is a high demand for music videos meaning artists have a high responsibility when it comes to supplying them 
• Sometimes the target audience is left to anticipate the release of a music video, this creates hype around the artist and their work 
• The artist's work is often received well by their audience however sometimes some subjects involved in the video can be seen as controversial  

Technology advancements. 
When it comes to music videos technology has it's advantages and disadvantages. It can be seen to enhance success and also take it away...

Disadvantages:

• The impact of technology is creating a noticeable gap between artists and their audience. 
• Ipods and other devices are proving that it's becoming easier to listen to music without actually having to watch the videos
• Censorship is making it a lot more difficult for artists to pursue ideas and images they want their audience to see

Advantages:

• Websites such as YouTube are creating a platform for independent artists allowing them to promote themselves without a lot of money spent 
• Technology also makes music videos available instantly as well as worldwide
• It's free to share and watch videos on social networking sites.

Conclusion.

On a whole I believe music videos will stay extremely popular within todays society because the relationship shit it builds between the artist and their audience is vital on both sides of the industry; proving the typical routine of supply and demand still works. However I think this will only work if things such as subscription websites do not take over and make it a difficulty to watch popular music videos.