CONVENTIONS | a2media

CONVENTIONS OF MUSIC VIDEOS

Oh hi, you’ve joined us on our search for conventions to make our perfect music video. A convention is something that makes a music video typical of that genre. It’s done through camera angles, movement and composition and mise-en-scene to give construction and interpretation. We are looking for as many conventions as possible to make sure our music video is the best it can be.

As essential convention for pop music videos is props and costumes. They can either be really extravagant or really simple. Simplistic ones are used to reflect the character of the artist, and so keep the focus on the song specifically. Whereas extravagant and really bright costumes and props can be used. This can also be shown in the location. This keeps the focus on the artist, and can be really brightly coloured. Come on, I’ll show you some examples.

EXAMPLES: LADY GAGA - POKER FACE, ARCTIC MONKEYS - ARABELLA

Another convention of music videos is sound. There are two main types of sound that you’ll need; diegetic and non-diegetic. Diegetic sound is something that is natural to the environment, and so an example would be an artist singing, however, non-diegetic sound is something that is added in after. An example of this would be footsteps or a police siren added into the scene. Hey look over there I see some diegetic and non-diegetic sound, come on!

EXAMPLES: THE VAMPS - CAN WE DANCE, KAISER CHIEFS - I PREDICT A RIOT

Another convention of a music video is that there is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. For example if you see a drum solo, you’ll also hear a drum solo. Another convention of sound is sound parallel, this is where the sound reflects the music video. For example, if there is a sad part in the song, the cuts will be slow. Oh my god, there’s an example of it, lets go!

EXAMPLES: KAISER CHIEFS - I PREDICT A RIOT, PALOMA FAITH - PICKING UP THE PIECES

Another convention of music videos is the use of transitions. The main transitions used in music videos is fade-to-black. This is where the camera fades from one scene to another. Effects of this show a change in the music video, and is often followed by a change in location or a change in clothing. Therefore, we must include this in our music video. Other transitions used include dissolves or cut-away, however, these are not as common. Here’s some examples.

EXAMPLES: ALICIA KEYS - NO ONE, EMELI SANDE - NEXT TO ME

Another convention is high and low angled shots. High-angled shots look down on the artist, giving them a certain vulnerability, so that we emphasise with them through the narrative and the storyline. Low-angled shots look up to the artist, giving a sense of strength and power over their audience. Here’s some examples over here, look.

EXAMPLES: JESSIE J - DO IT LIKE A DUDE, RIHANNA - STAY

Hey look, I found another convention over here which is lighting. There are many different types of lighting used throughout music videos, such as artificial. This is a type of lighting that is added on to highlight certain key moments or points. In a pop music video, lighting is usually natural, it makes the music video flow. Whereas, in a rock music video the lighting might be black and white to portray the genre. Furthermore, the lighting sets the mood of the music video, for example if it was bright outside, you’d know the mood was happy, vibrant and energetic, whereas if it was dark you’d understand it as a rock music video. Here is an example.

EXAMPLES: KARMIN - BROKENHEARTED, LITTLE MIX - SECRET LOVE SONG

Conventionally, close-ups are used at the beginning of pop music videos, to link the artist with the song. They will have their eyes opening and be looking directly down the camera, to establish that it is their song. In ballad-style songs, close-ups will be used to reflect the pace of the song, often slow, to convey the emotion of the artist. They can also be used within the narrative, to tell the story of the artist, rather than in the performance, where they will be used as medium or long shots. Look, an example.

EXAMPLES: MILEY CYRUS - WRECKING BALL, FOXES - YOUTH

Cut shots are used in music videos to tell a part of the story. They can be used as extreme close-ups or close-ups to show a part of the narrative, rather than the actual lyric. Cut shots won’t be used throughout the music video, but they can, and they will quicken the pace of the editing. They will only be shown for a few seconds, but if a song lyric is about fire, then we might see something about fire. Here’s another example.

EXAMPLES: PALOMA FAITH - PICKING UP THE PIECES, TORI KELLY - DEAR NO ONE

Oh look, I’ve found another convention. Another convention of a music video is the screen-time and who the camera privileges. The screen-time is given to all of the people throughout the music video, however the person with the most screen-time is the main artist/the protagonist. They know that this is who the main artist, and that it’s their video, as they are the main focus, because the camera privileges them and they have the most screen-time. Here is an example.

EXAMPLES: TORI KELLY - DEAR NO ONE, CHERYL COLE - FIGHT FOR THIS LOVE

Another convention of music video is the use of narrative continuous editing. This is when there is a link between the narrative and the performance, so there isn’t a split over what is there. This makes the music video flow between the narrative and performance, and also with the artist. Come on, let’s go and find an example. Oh look, here’s an example.

EXAMPLES: AVRIL LAVIGNE - GIRLFRIEND, THE VAMPS - WILD HEART

Wide angled shots are used as an establishing shot at the beginning of a music video. It will show the location, create a setting, and set the tone for the entire music video. It can also be used in a change in location throughout the narrative.

EXAMPLES: PALOMA FAITH - PICKING UP THE PIECES, AVRIL LAVIGNE - GIRLFRIEND

Although not typically a convention, some music videos can be parodies. This means they’ll have a spin on a film or act as a soundtrack to a new and upcoming film. For example Fancy by Iggy Azalea, that is a play on the 1995 film Clueless, you can tell that by the mise-en-scene and outfit, whereas the Fifth Harmony song I’m In Love With A Monster that’s a soundtrack for Hotel Transylvania 2 released earlier this year. Here is an example of that.

EXAMPLES: IGGY AZALEA - FANCY, FIFTH HARMONY - I'M IN LOVE WITH A MONSTER

Another convention is using eye-line. This is especially important for a performance in a music video, as it builds a connection between the audience member and the artist that you wouldn’t usually see at a concert environment. Whereas in a narrative, this is shown through close-ups, to add the emotion. Eye-line match is especially important for building that connection between the audience and the artist. This is really important for sales at the end of the day, as the audience feels so connected with the artist they’ll just want to buy their music. Here’s an example.

EXAMPLES: MILEY CYRUS - WRECKING BALL, KAISER CHIEFS - I PREDICT A RIOT

Another convention of music videos is over-the-shoulder shots. Although not used all of the time, they’re really good for illustrating where the artist is looking or even in conversation, especially if there is a narrative between them and another character. Like this.

EXAMPLES: LITTLE MIX - BLACK MAGIC, TORI KELLY - DEAR NO ONE

Thanks for watching.

TRANSCRIPT:

In order to find specifically what is conventionally used in existing music videos, we planned and filmed the following conventions video. We looked at features through camera movement, angles and composition, editing, sound and mise-en-scene that were typically found in our music video analysis'. We looked into these further, as to what they conveyed and how they were used by the artist. Once we did this, we found examples for each one from various pop music videos. To present this, we filmed a treasure-hunt style video where both myself and Uchechi searched for and found all the following conventions in and around London.