Independent Learning - Music Video Fact Sheet

The Purpose of Music Videos in the Digital Age

- The purpose of a music video is to sell products, most obviously the song which is featuring over it, however a lot of other things can be sold through music videos.

- Other things which can be sold are things like, the album the song is on, a film that song might be featuring in, an upcoming tour the artist is doing or things like merchandise or clothing brands.

- Music videos are a very different way of marketing to normal forms of marketing as the consumer is actually getting the product they are being sold. For example when you see a car advert on TV, the advert is making the item desirable to you, and not actually giving it to you, however a music video is giving you the song and the video.



YouTube Homepage

- Giving people full access to the product in marketing before the digital age was far to problematic as songs where only available to listen to at certain times in certain places like Top Of The Pops.

- However due to advances in media technologies people are able to watch music videos on portable platforms like YouTube by viewing them on their Mobiles or I-Pods.

- However the fact that people can view things online and on mobile platforms means that people are less likely to buy physical copies of an album/song as they can listen to it online for free.

- At first artists and record companies were reluctant to allow people to upload videos to sites like YouTube due to copyright, however they realised it was impossible to control who uploaded what so they ended up allowing it but by controlling who does it.

- Artists have realised that having their own channels and linking things like iTunes links to buy their songs or links to their social media sites actually helps with publicity and making money.

Conventions of Music Videos

'Haim - Don't save me' - showing one of the main convention
of featuring the band.

- A music video adds something to the experience of listening to the song it is with.

- Although music videos can be extremely varied due to genre there are conventions which are evident through out.

- Movement is essential to music videos and usually complements the rhythm of the song.

- Most music videos have a narrate
ve, the narrative links to the lyrics and illustrate what is being said or be independent from the song and tell a different story.

-Most music videos feature the band and the artist as they are also a product to be sold. The artist is usually seen playing an instrument or lip syncing to the track, depending on their role in the band.

 

- I got this information from a fact booklet which was put together informing people about the purpose of a music video and the conventions you find in a music video.