The main purpose of music videos in the digital age is to sell products, the most obvious product being the song features in the video itself. In a music video, other products are marketed too. An example would be the album the song is featured on. This being said, by people hearing one song from an album, it may influence them and make them want to hear more from the artist and in turn buy the artists album. Another example of a product that the music video can sell is a film that the song may feature in. This is also a type of cross media convergence. This is effective as it enhances sales for both the film and the song. Am example of this would be the song 'Let it go' which featured in the film frozen. This song also went on to become number 1 in the UK top 40. This shows hiw cross media convergence can help enhance sales for different media products.
Music videos have a very unique type of marketing, this is because when the music video is played, the audience can hear the song that the video is for and therefore can consume the product. This is very unique as if we consider other types of marketing such as an advert for Costa Coffee, they may suggest that there product is desirable, but the audience doesn't actually get to taste the coffee and make that decision for themselves. Therefore, music videos are very important and must be top quality in order for a song to be successful.
Prior to the digital age, allowing audiences full access to the product was much harder than it is currently. In order to do so, record companies would have to approve media platforms where it could be shown such as shows like 'Top of the Pops'. However now, since e development of technology, it is easier for audiences to access music as they can stream it online on sites like Youtube and Spotify.
The problem for record labels now is that there artists music came streamed very easily online for free. As a result meaning they don't benefit. To begin with record labels tried to stop there artists music from being put onto these sites, and would try to prosecute those who uploaded videos to Youtube etc. However, this was deemed to expensive and time consuming and meant that record labels have stopped this. To try and counteract this, record labels now allow music videos to be put onto these sites but under stricter conditions. An example of this is Sony BMG who have a Youtube channel which hosts there artists videos and they offer links to sites like iTunes where songs canbe downloaded legally and is beneficial to both the artists and record label.
Due to the issue of uploading music videos to Youtube, before I chose a song that I wish to use for my music video, it is vital I ask for permission from the record label. This is so that they know what I plan on doing, and to ensure that they don't try and claim copyright against the piece.
Conventions of Music Videos
The aim of music videos is to encourage viewers to purchase a copy of the song features and other products associated with the artist. In order to do this most videos follow similar conventions that work effectively to attract audiences. Although music videos are all very unique and different to one another, they will all follow similar generic conventions (based on genre).
Movement is essential to music videos and usually complements the rhythm of the song (the movement is often in time to the beat of the song). There are 3 main types of movement:
- The physical movement of the camera
- The movement of people or items within the video
- Through the speed of editing
An example of a good music video that relies heavily on the movement to create a sense of excitement to the audience is Justin Timberlake's 'Rock Your Body'. The rapid editing complements the variety of shots that the audience can see, many being less than one second long.
Another example is Rihanna's 'Rude Boy' music video that uses special effects behind Rihanna when dancing and playing the drums which creates movement that matches the beat of the song.
Many music videos will have narratives to them. The storyline may relate to the songs lyrics and illustrate what is being said or be independent from the song and tell a different story. Both can help engage the audience with the music video and help keep the audiences interest.
Most music videos will feature the band or artist in it as they are also a product to be sold. The artist may feature performing their music, either lip syncing or playing instruments in the case of a band. Sometimes the artist may act rather than perform, or the video may feature both. An example would be Plan B's 'She Said' music video. It features a narrative linked to the songs lyrics that the artist acting out as well as performing the song.
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