Music Video Conventions (Josh)

Music Video Conventions; 

Costume & Make-up- Costume used within music videos normally represent the style and genre of the artist. Pop musicians tend to dress in very flashy, modern clothes made by expensive brands, whereas rock artists will dress in plain clothes to draw the attention of the audience to the music rather than the artist themselves. Hip-hop artists also where clothes made by big brands however their intent is to make them seem wealthy by the use of fur coats and large amounts of jewellery. Make-up is normally only used by female artists to seem more glamorous, however it can be used by punk or metal male artists to show their act of standing out and being individual.

Lighting- The lighting of a music video can change the entire effect it has on the audience. Usually, the key of lighting will match the genre and desired feel of the song. Kings of Leon’s “Sex On Fire” has very low key lighting and lots of shadows to give it a dark effect, matching their style of music. LMFAO’s “Sexy and I know It” has very high key outdoor lighting to adhere to the lyrics involving beaches and cheerful beat of the song.

Editing Techniques- The pace of editing in music videos will normally correlate to the tempo of the song. For example, a song such as “Hitz” by Chase & Status with a fast beat will have shorter time between cuts and more of them whereas a song such as “Small Bump” by Ed Sheeran has very few cuts at all. Slow motion is also a technique that is used in relation to the tempo of a song. In “End Credits” by Chase & Status again the first 43 seconds of visuals are in slow motion as this part of the song is slower than the rest. This helps add to the effect of the different speeds within the song.

Camera- Camera sizes are used in music videos to convey the generic conventions of the genre of the song. Close-up shots are used to promote the image of the artist in pop music videos and wide shots if they have backing dancers. Mid-shots are used in rock and alternative performance videos to show the band playing the instruments and singing. Long shots can be also used to show the crowd if available in performance videos. 

The Notion of Looking- Eye contact with the camera is used in many genres of music videos that feature the artist. This is used to make a connection between the artist and the audience, a technique that can be universally used in the music industry. For example, Rita Ora’s “R.I.P.” contains many close-ups of her looking directly at the camera and is from the pop music genre, whereas The Prodigy’s “Firestarter” is drum and bass yet also contains eye contact from the performing artist. Within rock and alternative music videos women are generally not featured as the artist will tend to be as ‘genuine’ as they can.

How will this help me with our music video?

When making our music video, this will help us as these conventions will need to be added within our music video, so that it conveys with the generic conventions of our chosen genre. This i will make our video look visually better and also more effective.