Today I was set the task of analyzing three music videos, identifying the conventions of different genres within music videos in the music industry today.
Video 1: Bad Blood- Taylor Swift (Pop)
This is the music video for Bad Blood by Taylor Swift, it contains mainly narrative and this is due to its nature of being a pop song. This is because the music video follows a story of how a group of strong women are being trained to become warriors and more powerful. Bad Blood is also a narrative due to musical instruments and a performance on stage not being seen present through the duration of the video. This music video is not a concept due to the fact that it does not include for abstract concepts but instead is a way of showing the power of strong women. Concept music videos are usually for the genre of Indie due to them trying to put across a meaningful idea. The editing seems to be a montage of multiple clips of all the different female characters throughout- so causes the editing to become fairly harsh, which is usually stereotypical for a rap video. The mise en scene is a counter-type for what women are usually perceived as in the music video industry, in this video they portray strong, independent women. Which is not normally seen in a pop song, due to its cliche nature.
Video 2: Gold Digger- Kanye West ft. Jamie Foxx (Rap)
This music video is not a narrative video but instead a concept video. This is stereotypical for a rap video due to them not usually following a story line. This is the same for this video due to it not following a general story line but can see the artists singing to the lyrics in front of montage of clips of real women posing on a magazine. This type of music is fairly aggressive as the artists sing very loud and very aggressive towards the viewers. This is to create the effect of a traditional rap song with the mise en scene of women in small, short outfits and heavy make up. Its location is stereotypical for a rap song with it being set in dark rooms with lots of women in short clothes and dancing women, which shows the male gaze and how the modern age men see women as an object and not a person. It contrasts to an indie music video because it is fairly in your face which is the opposite for indie video which are usually more simplistic and plain.
Video 3: Panic at the Disco- Lying is the most fun... (Indie Rock)
This is a music video by Panic! At The Disco who are a very famous indie rock band, this is a narrative video. This is not stereotypical for an indie music video due to them not usually following a story line. Whereas in this video it follows the story of a man and women who are in love and can not live without each other in their lives. The costumes of the characters is very smart and formal with an old fashion approach with long skirts and smart suits- this contrasts with the costumes in a rap video were clothing is loud, garish and flashy. This shows that this indie music video is trying to reach out to a more romantic audience who appreciate an alternative approach to a music video. The video also has very vivid and bright colors which is not very common for an indie rock video which are usually shown in dark tones because they are trying to be subtle.