Andrew Goodwin - Music Video Conventions

Music videos are published for promotional or artistic purposes that integrate a song or album. Listeners often associate their favorite artists with their music videos (visually) and that is one of the reasons why they are so popular. Andrew Goodwin's theory works in tandem with this as he proposes the idea that all artist's music videos utilize similar key conventions. These key conventions are:

1. There is a link between the lyrics in the song and the visuals on screen. Whether this is metaphorically, symbolically or  literally, they action on screen runs parallel to the vocals. A literal example of this is Taylor Swift's song 'You Belong With Me' released in 2009. Lines such as "You're on the phone with your girlfriend" (the opening line of the song) is immediately shown on screen, setting up the link between the lyrics and the visuals from the start. This structure is followed throughout the music video and has a story-telling element to it as a result, this is really popular among young audiences and is very typical of the pop genre. 

2. There is a link between music and visuals. Although it sounds similar to the first convention, this is to do with the rhythm, pace and atmosphere created in the song and is often controlled in post production through editing. This is because it is here where the editor can change the shots on beat to the music and control the pace/ shot lengths. The song I chose for this example is Dayglow's 'Close To You' from 2021. This is because the opening of the music video is extremely fast paced as the shot changes on each beat, although to a similar shot, the color changes and this has a satisfying, though more subtle than cutting to a completely different shot, effect as a viewer. As the song develops it gets slower and the editing through follows with this. 

3. That they reflect common features of the genre. Different genres have different audiences and, as a result, they have different features, codes and conventions. Examples of this being: Pop with a lot of bright colors and high energy compared to rock often being quite dingy with low lighting. The example I will be focusing on is 'Love Me' (2015) by the 1975, this song being a part of the alternative genre. This music video is littered with key conventions of alternative music videos, starting with the angles and camerawork. The constant movement of the cameras and often use of high and low angles are key to the alternative genre. Additionally, they draw attention to the lead singer, Matthew Healy, interacting with cardboard cut outs of celebrities and directing himself directly at the camera - this makes it feel as though he is singing directly to the viewer. The color palette, although bright and similar to the pop genre, integrates well with the atmosphere created by the genre. 

4. The use of intertextual references. The most common reason why this is used is for popularity and to increase the amount of views as it draws in, not only their loyal fans but also people who are fans of the product being referenced. Another reason why referencing one text within another text is often used is

because, as Katz' 'Uses and Gratifications Theory' suggests, it is self-gratifying for the audience members that understand the reference as it makes them feel clever and 'in on the joke'. The most popular example of this recently is Ariana Grande's 'Thank U, Next' as the whole music video references films with iconic female characters such as Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, Bring it on etc. However, there are many other music videos that do a similar thing, for example, Iggy Azalea and Charli XCX's hit 'Fancy' from 2014. The intertextual reference here is to the iconic 90's romcom 'Clueless'. The music video sees Azalea as Cher and XCX as Tai, the reference is extremely clear as they wear the same outfits from the film as well as the mise-en-scene of the classroom and corridors. Even a scene in the film, as Cher debates against another student in class, is mimicked as Azalea sings the words to her song at the camera in the classroom as if the camera is a student. 

5."Notions of looking" and voyeurism. This is when viewers enjoy something as they watch others sexually expose themselves. A stark example of this is Cardi B and Meghan Thee Stallion's 'WAP' music

video that was released in 2020. Both women wear revealing outfits with sexual connotations (was suggested by the song), this pays homage to Cardi B's previous time as a prostitute and empowers her and other women. Nonetheless, this video largely appeals to men as it fits into Laura Mulvey's

'Male Gaze' theory which suggests that the sexual inequality and social power men have over women means that almost all media is made to appeal to them. However, the 'Man! I Feel Like a Woman' (1999) by artist Shania Twain subverted this as the men in the video are in tight clothing - shown off in closeups of them, and avoid eye contact with the camera, making Twain (the only female on screen) appear superior, subverting the idea of the male gaze. As the music video develops, she is seen in less and less clothing however, at the end the shots flicker between her outfit at the beginning of the video vs. the end, signifying that she is the same strong woman regardless of her clothing. 

6. Reflective of the record label. The record label that an artist is signed to is very important in terms of the production of a music video. This is because the budget has a large effect on what they are able to produce. A clear example of this is the Arctic Monkeys. You can see their early videos such as 'I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor' is a very low budget performance based video, it is intimate and it is as if the viewer is at one of their concerts. This benefitted them as people felt comfortable with the band, but, the low budget is clear as the camera work is shakey and you can see other cameras move in and out of shot. This was when they were just beginning their careers, however now they're signed to Warner Times and the production of their videos has increased massively. This is evident in the quality, smooth camera and transitions as well as being able to have extras and changes in location. Additionally, in the bathroom scene where we see the lead singer look at himself in the mirror, there is special effects to double him. - 'Why'd You Only Ever Call Me When You're High'.

7. The use of star image. This builds off of Richard Dyer's star theory as this convention is based off of the construction of the artist(s) and their individual image(s). Music videos that strongly follow this convention are often made up of mostly closeups of the artist. A clear example of this is Rex Orange County's music video for 'Sunflower' as it is made up of him singing in medium shots. This correlates with his relaxed and lighthearted 'vibe' which also matches this song specifically,

Another example of this is the Spice Girl's classic 'Wannabe', this 1 shot video follows each of the girls

and occasionally them as a group. Throughout the video viewers watch as the girls have fun together, reinforcing their image of fun loving girls who prioritize friendship. Furthermore, this allows the viewer to identify themselves, again taken from Katz' 'Uses and Gratifications Theory', and fit one of the 5 girl's personas. 

8. Focus on the style that the music video is in. There are 3 main styles that music videos follow. These are performance, narrative and concept based. A clear example of performance is 'Girls' by the 1975 as the whole music videos is them performing, however, it also links to conventions of the genre as the opening of the video is dialogue about how the set is 'too pop'. Also, the convention of voyeurism asa the women that take the band member's places are dressed in little to no clothing, stripped to their undergarments. 

The next style is narrative. This is when the music video has a story (narrative) running throughout it. It is very common for these videos to have performance shots interspersed throughout them, an example of this being Carrie Underwood's 'Before He Cheats'. This video links to the first convention where the lyrics are synchronized with the visuals.

Lastly, the final aspect to the style convention is concept based. Gotye's 'Somebody That I Used To Know'.  The concept for this video surrounds paint and vulnerability (being naked). The paint fills his body, as if "he wears his unhappiness like fitted clothing", he loses himself in the breakup as the dark lines take over his body and is filled in. As the female comes in she is already covered in paint, but as she verbalizes her pain the paint begins to fade from her, as if she is finding herself as he loses himself. They juxtapose each other in the video as he begins clean and ends covered in paint, broken and bruised, whereas she has the opposite journey.