Research: Genre

 

Music Video Genres

How many genres are there and why are there so many?

There are multiple genres of music within the music industry including mainstream and hybrid genres. Some existing genres include: Pop, Jazz, Rock, R&B, Rap, House, Metal, Indie, Country, Latin, Folk, Reggae, Classical etc. There are numerous genres in order to meet a mass audiences expectations as different  people prefer different types of music, hybrid genres  including folk rock, country rock, blues rock etc, therefore fulfil these expectations as they meet the audiences expectations and create something new for the audience to listen to. Also, artists have different and individual styles of music, therefore, their voices appeal to different genres placing their music into particular genres. Genres help to separate music making it easier to identify particular songs and artists, and allow the audience to compare similar artists who create music from the same genre.

List of genres, key conventions and target audience. 

There are multiple genres with key conventions and particular target audiences
including:

• Rock- Conventions of the rock genre include, a band, drums and guitars, black/ dark, leather clothing, older, white males, concept and performance based.

- A conventional target audience for the rock genre is usually older to middle aged males around the ages of 18-50,  who enjoy listening to loud, dominating music which is supported by loud instruments.

• Pop- Young male/female artists, bands, fashionable clothing, happy lifestyles, colourful music videos, narrative and performance is likely to be seen in their music videos.

- A conventional target audience of the pop genre is usually teenagers and young adults, particularly females aged 13-25, who can relate to the artists and enjoy watching their favourite artists, who have large fan bases perform.  

• R&B/Soul-Conventions associated with R&B includes Male artists, jewellery, tattoos, females wearing minimal clothing, young women dancing, expensive, urban locations.

- The target audience usually consists of teenagers/young adults and are usually females, generally aged 15-25, as they are likely to enjoy watching the male artists who are visually appealing, making the video more interesting and entertaining for them.  

• Hip Hop- Conventions of the hip hop genre include large amounts of people involved within the narrative usually dancing and getting involved, appealing mise en scene to promote wealth, such as money, expensive cars, jewellery, dominant male artists, powerful and independent female artists, urban locations such as the inner city.

- The target audience of the Hip Hop genre includes male teenagers and adults aged from 15-35, who can relate to the music videos and the lyrics due to most of them having  associations with popular themes such as poverty, violence and females. Artists such as 50 cent, Jay-Z, Drake etc. are popular within the music industry and therefore may be seen as role models by the male audience.

• Indie- Common conventions include a calm and relaxed atmosphere, performance and concept based, low budget, suburban locations such as studios, and parks/forests, instruments.

- The target audience of the indie genre usually includes young males and adults who can relate to the male artists and enjoy listening to instrumental music.

• Jazz- Male artists, instruments including a saxophone and piano, smartly dressed in suits, performance based.

-The target audience for the Jazz genre is usually older males and females who enjoy listening to distinctive voices and instruments playing.

• Techno- Electronic instruments, bright colours, unclear narrative, strobe lighting effects, upbeat atmosphere, artists wearing casual clothing. 

- The target audience are young, males and females, more so males, aged between 18- 28 who find upbeat, club music appealing and enjoyable to listen to. 

• Country- Narrative based, simple melodies, artist acts as main character, rural locations, mise en scene includes, trucks and cowboy boots etc, natural lighting. 

- The target audience that listen to country music are middle aged females who are likely to be family orientated and enjoy upbeat music.

• Reggae- Off beat rhythms, slow tempo, black male artists, bright colours, stereotypical locations such as Jamaica, narrative and performance based. 

- The target audience is likely to be black, older males who are from Jamaican descents/ backgrounds who can relate to the lyrics and possibly the artist. 

Mainstream and niche genres

Genres can be divided into mainstream and niche according to particular music videos and artists that are promoted more frequently due to being from the mainstream genre in contrast to music videos and artists that are less popular as a result of being apart of the niche genre. The mainstream genres are the genres that the wider audience are all familiar with and continuously listen to music from the this genre, which includes Pop, R&B, Hip hop, Rap, Dance, Rock etc. Whereas the niche genre consists of swing, alternative R&B, Western, Blues, Bhanga etc. Songs within the niche genre are less likely to be heard on popular media platforms such as radio and on TV in comparison to mainstream songs. The two types of genres also appeal to different audiences, for example music that is from the mainstream genre is more likely to have a younger target audience, whereas the niche genres are likely to have an older target audience. This is due to mainstream artists consistently being in the public eye and therefore perceived as role models to the younger generation. Whereas the older generation are likely to be able to relate to the niche artists who are more likely to produce niche songs with deeper meanings.

Table of conventions 

Importance of genres for an audience 

Genre is important as various individuals  have different expectations and prefer particular genres in comparison  to others. It is important that the audience should be able to identify with the genre immediately in order to keep them entertained. If the audience are satisfied and they enjoy particular music videos in a certain genre , they are likely to watch similar artists who also produce music from the same genre. This is likely to make the genre more popular and could increase its fan base. Keeping the audience satisfied is also likely to secure the loyal existing fan base which is particularly important for artists as the audience have certain expectations and artists cannot afford to lose them. Finally, conventions of music genres are important as the audience may be able to relate to one music video due to it having a narrative and the video containing realistic themes, therefore, all music in the same genre should ensure they follow conventions so the audience are able to relate to all in the same way.

Conclusion 

Overall, the genre of a song is particularly important as the music video to the song must follow conventions and meet the audiences expectations, allowing the video to receive viewings and for the artist to secure a loyal fan base. Conventions such as character representations and mise en scene should be clearly portrayed in order to make it easy to identify a music videos genre. Without genres, music would not be categorised correctly in an orderly form and the audience would not be able to distinguish between artists and songs. Therefore, genres enable order and audiences can identify the genre of songs easily according to conventions. Researching genres and their conventions has developed my knowledge regarding genres as I now know what conventions I need to include to ensure that my music video appeals to the target audience, encouraging them to watch the music video and keeping them intrigued. As a result,  I intend on creating my music video according to the R&B genre, as this is a popular genre of music and is listened to by a young, female audience, who I can relate to. Therefore, I will be able to follow conventions accordingly and ensure that the video appeals to the female audience. The conventions I Intend on including within my video include, urban locations that the audience are popular with and can relate to such as busy, fun clubs and buildings, expensive mise en scene such as expensive jewellery and clothing, young artists, particularly males that the female audience will find attractive encouraging them to watch the video. 

Research: Goodwin's Theory

 

                      Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin identified certain features linked with music videos that he proved to be reliable after testing various music videos. Goodwin's theory is likely to apply to all mainstream music videos and some niche music videos. The features he has identified are evident within most mainstream music videos, even if they do not include every single feature. The features involved within Goodwin's theory include:

1) Genre Characteristics

2) Relationship between lyrics and visuals

3) Relationship between music and visuals

4) Star image motif's

5) Notion of looking

6) Intertextual References

7) Performance, narrative or concept based?

8) Technical elements

The eight main features associated with Goodwin's Theory are explained: 

• Genre Characteristics: Music videos often reflect their genre through the use of specific characteristics making them conventional. Each genre contains differing conventions including:

- Pop genre- Young people, popular culture, unrealistic, exaggerated.

Dance music video

- Dance- Backing dancers, star performance, extreme and long shots, concept based, edited backgrounds, green screen, don't rely on narrative, happy people, upbeat, colourful, undefined genre.

Rock music video

- Rock- Dark, passive aggressive, black leather clothing, male dominated genre.

- Hip Hop- Promiscuous women, fancy cars, mansions, expensive costumes.

R&B music video

-R&B- Topless male artists with tattoos and jewellery, females with minimal clothing, provocative lyrics, dancing.

-Swing- Old fashioned, formalised, classic instruments such as saxophone.

- Relationship between lyrics and visuals:  A connection is shown through the visuals relating to the lyrics. Either being illustrative; explaining the lyrics visually, amplifying, exaggeration of the lyrics linking to the video and lastly contradicting; being the opposite visual to the lyrics heard.

• An example of a music video showing a relationship between lyrics and visuals Includes, Katy Perry's music video 'Last Friday Night' which contains lyrics associated with the artist reminiscing on her Friday night, and describing the events that took place. She says 'Yeah, we danced on table tops, And we took too many shots', the visuals support these lyrics as the video contained a narrative consisting of the artist acting as a geek and having party with lots of other students. The narrative involved the students drinking and behaving rebelliously. 

- Relationship between music and visuals:
Visuals show a connection to the actual music. If the music is upbeat, so are the visuals, whereas if the music is monotone, so are the visuals.

• For example, in Ed Sheeran's music video 'Thinking Out Loud' the music is slow and mellow and the visuals reflect this as the artist dances with a female in a professional and ballroom manner. Therefore, the music and the visuals compliment each other.

-Star image motifs: The music video includes many close-ups of the artist, demanded by the record labels to make them popular and identifiable.

• For example, in John Legand's music video, 'Tonight', the artist is perceived frequently through the continuous use of close ups surrounding him, giving him full control and allowing the audience to identify him and his music effectively. 

- Notion of looking: This is when there is particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body, women that are seen as a sexual object. There are a huge amount of music videos that use the notion of looking nowadays, particularly songs in the R&B, and hip hop genre.

• For example, The Weeknd's music video, 'Earned It' contains a huge amount of notion of looking as there are various females who have minimal clothing and act in a promiscuous manner as they hang from ropes attached to the ceiling. The camera focuses on the females specific body parts to ensure that the notion of looking can be adapted. 

- Intertextual references: In many music videos there are often links with other films, TV programmes or other music videos etc. This Is called intertextual reference.  

• For example, in the 'Lalala' music video by Naughty boy, intertextual reference is evident as the narrative reflects the 'Wizard Of Oz', which is reflected through the heart and the strangers the young boy meets on his travels.

- Performance, narrative or concept based?-  A music video is likely to either be performance based, narrative based or concept based, however, it is unlikely for all three to be evident in a video.

• For example, Taylor Swift's 'Blank space' music video includes performance and narrative as the artist is portrayed to be singing but also involved in the narrative playing as the main character.

- Performance- Focus is solidly on the artist/band allowing the audience to perceive them properly without the distraction of a narrative.

• For example, the music video 'Four Five Seconds' by Kanye West, Rihanna, and Paul McCartney consists of pure performance as the artists are perceived to be singing the song without a narrative involved. This allows the audience to identify which singer sings which part of the song and the audience can listen to the song and the lyrics effectively without being distracted by a narrative.

- Narrative based- A narrative based video  has a story that is related to the lyrics of the song and this is portrayed through the characters acting it out.

• For example, Rihanna's 'Man Down' music video includes a narrative consisting of Rihanna  as a rape victim getting revenge on her rapist by shooting him. This is reflected through the lyrics which repeats "Man down" proving that she kills the antagonist.

-Concept based- A concept based music video usually revolves around a  single idea which is obscure and surreal for the audience further attracting  them and, encouraging them to want to watch the music video. The video is likely include special effects.

• An example of  a concept music video includes Sia's video 'Elastic Band' which is creates uncertainty for the audience due to the confusing content. The video consists of a young female and male who have minimal clothing on, dancing in a cage, and acting in a weird manner. The audience are unable to relate to the video and are left bewildered by the content.

• Technical Elements: Technical elements consist of the use of micro elements including cinematography, sound, editing and mise en scene within a music video. All music videos are likely to have technical elements which will make their music video conventional to it's genre. 

As a class we analysed Will Smith's music video  'Miami',  where we identified the features and examples from Goodwin's theory within the video. 

I analysed Chris Brown's music video 'Strip' and identified Goodwin's theory within it, in order to see if his theory was reliable in all cases.

My research into the two music videos proved that Goodwin's theory can be applied to all  mainstream music videos even if all the features are not evident in the videos, It is likely that more than one will be as these features  are what make a music video effective and conventional to the music industry. Both of the analysed music videos include all the features from Goodwin's theory, although the 'Strip' music video does not include an intertextual reference unlike the 'Miami' music video. Intertextual reference is the least obvious feature, and some references are difficult to identify in the way they are portrayed. Despite intertextual reference, the other features differ in the way they are presented in the music videos, however are evident. Overall, the music video that applies to Goodwin's theory most is Will Smith's, Miami music video, as this video includes all of the features the theory identifies, suggesting that this is the more conventional music video out of the two. 

Opinions on Goodwin's theory

Goodwin's theory has positives and negatives.

Positives:

• Easy to apply to all music videos, even if a music video does not contain all the features, they are likely to contain at least two.
• Allows you to consider and analyse all aspects of a music video.
• Allows you to break down the content of a video.

Negatives:

• Very reliant on the mainstream music and popular culture. This is evident in 'The Weeknd's' 'Tell you friends' music video, which is from the alternative R&B genre which is niche. As a result, this music video has a lack of features from Goodwin's theory, as it does not contain intertextual reference or the notion of looking due to the video being based on his life experiences rather than being made in order to follow the common conventions.

• It can be questioned as to whether Goodwin should even be credited for his theory as the features he states are natural to mainstream music videos. For example, iconography such as guitars and drums are conventional to the rock genre and are therefore commonly found in rock music videos, however, without these instruments the music would not have the same impact. Therefore, his stated features are likely to come naturally to directors of music videos most of the time without them having to consider Goodwin's theory. 

In my opinion, Goodwin's theory is reliable in that he identifies conventional features within his theory which are popular and easily found within music videos, therefore, at least one feature is likely to be evident in many music videos despite their genre of music and popularity in the music industry. Although the theory has some negatives such as being reliant on mainstream music and it being questioned as to whether Goodwin should be credited for his theory, I believe that his theory is useful and should be used when creating a music video, as it will ensure that a music video follows conventions and will prevent the video from lacking popularity. 

Conclusion

My research into Goodwin's Theory has allowed me to identify that the theory can be applied to all music videos as the features Goodwin identifies are all useful and make a music video conventional to the music industry. As a result of this research, I will ensure  that I take Goodwin's theory into consideration and use particular features he has discovered within my music video, even if my music video is not mainstream, as these characteristics are all significant and are conventional to music videos. I will ensure I have conventional genre characteristics evident  in order to promote my video to my target audience and ensure it is easy for the audience to identify the genre of my song, for example, if my genre is hip hop, I am aware that my target audience are teenage and adult males who can relate to particular themes, and therefore, I will ensure my music video identifies themes such as poverty and relationships. When i create my music video I will also try to ensure that my music video is made of narrative, performance or concept to make my music video more unique and appealing to a larger audience. I will also try and include intertextual reference within my music video, as this is not a common feature evident within all existing music videos, therefore using an intertextual reference that is linked with my song choice, can create audience reaction, which is likely to make my video more popular. 

Research: Media institutions

 

Media institutions 

What are media institutions?

Media institutions  are companies who help to produce and fund music videos for their signed artists. There are many media institutions, although there are some that are more popular than others. The media institution an artist is signed to is extremely important as the artist is more likely to highly successful and their music videos are more likely to be viewed if they are signed to a popular media institution, in comparison to artists who are signed to less popular and less successful institutions. Without media institutions the audience would be unable to view music videos on YouTube and other forms of media, therefore, a media institution is vital to an artists success.

What are the main media institutions?

Main institutions within the music industry includes:

EMI: EMI is one of the world's leading music companies and is internationally successful. They own multiple record labels including Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capital, Capital Latin etc. They like to work with bands and slightly alternative mainstream artists who are not consistently in the public eye. Artists signed to EMI include Katy Perry, Kylie Minogue, Tinie Tempah, Lilly Allen, Cold Play etc. EMI are able to serve their artists, consumers, and partners all over the world. 

Sony: Sony was founded in 2004 and are formerly known as Sony BMG Music Entertainment and then changed its name to Sony Music Entertainment in October 2008. They provide music labels for international superstars and labels include Arista Records. Sony music has a worldwide distribution for music artists who want to be well known globally, which involves artists promoting their music in different countries. They offer Hip Hop, Country, Classical, Gospel, Pop and rock archival recordings and labels. Sony music tend to work with global and internationally popular artists who have been in the public eye for a number of years, some since their teenage years. Artists signed to Sony music includes Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Will Smith, Beyoncé, Calvin Harris, One Direction, Pitbull, Chris Brown, Britney Spears etc.

Universal: Universal is the largest music corporation in the world and operates as the subsidiary of media conglomerate, Vivendi. The recorded music business discovers and develops recording artists and then markets and promotes their music across a wide array of formats and platforms. They own a number of different record labels such as interscope Records, Capitol Records, Virgin records ect. Universal tend to work with popular artists who are constantly in the public eye. Artists signed to Universal include Taylor Swift, Jessie J, Akon, 50 Cent, Demi Lovato, Drake, Cheryl Crow, Mariah Carey, Florence And The Machine, Nicki Minaj, Justin Bieber, Rihanna etc.

Warner: Warner are not as popular, however, they are an international institution. Record labels include Asylum, Atlantic, Cordless, East West,  Elektra, Sire, Roadrunner, Rykodisk, Reprise, Nonesuch and Warner Brothers. They help artists to achieve long term creative and financial success by providing consumers with the highest quality music content available. Warner tend to work with a variety of artists, both popular and new artists, who sing different genres of music. Genres that Warner cater for include: Dance, Hip Hop, Holiday, Pop, Rock, Alternative, Americano ect. Artists signed to Warner include James Blunt, Ed Sheeran, Paramore, Wiz Khalifa, Kid Rock, Estelle, Bruno Mars, B.O.B, Bjork, Clean Bandit, Gorillaz ect. 

Advantages and disadvantages of being signed to an institution:

- Advantages:

• Being signed to an institution allows an artist to remain popular and in the public eye for a long time as the institution will advertise the artists music making them highly successful and popular. 

• An artist is more secure and have less worries if they are signed to an institution as the institution is responsible for making the artist successful and rich. 

• New artists that are signed to institutions are likely to become widely popular immediately due to the institution providing them with a platform for success and using mass synergy to increase the artists popularity. 

• Institutions invest lots of money in providing artists with many opportunities, including: recording, touring, video shoots ect, which are all popular techniques to make an artist more successful. 

• Established institutions, such as Sony, EMI, Warner etc, are likely to have built up many connections over the years, which is beneficial for artists, as the connections help them to reach their music career goals. 

- Disadvantages:

• Once an artist is signed to an institution they must follow the rules and listen to the institution, restricting them from making independent decisions regarding their music. 

• If an artists music is struggling to receive success, the institution may consider letting go of the artist or not renewing their contract. 

• Getting signed to an institution is likely to be difficult as they may lack interest until the artist proves to be making professional music that has potential. 

Conclusion:

Overall, all media institutions sign different artists, despite them individually producing different genres of music. When I create my music video I would choose Sony as a media institution, as they are highly popular and have access to worldwide distribution. Therefore, my music video would become viral and globally viewed by various audiences, also increasing my fan base. Sony also caters for different genres of music, allowing me to choose whatever genre I want for my music video. Popular artists signed by Sony including Beyoncé and One Direction have become incredibly popular and globally identified due to their music videos being distributed by Sony to mass audiences. Therefore, having Sony as a media institution would guarantee success and popularity for my music video as it would gain mass viewing on popular platforms and social networking sites.

Research: Purpose of a music video

What is the purpose of a music video ?

Intro 

A music video is a short piece of visual image that accompanies a song. Music videos are used in order to promote an artists newest single, ensuring that the audience become aware of the songs existence. They are primarily used as a marketing device, and without one a song is unlikely to become popular or teach the music charts. Therefore, a music video is necessary in order to support a song and encourage it to sell.

What is the purpose of a music video?

A music video has many purposes, however, the purpose is likely to be associated with the artist. Purposes of a music video include: 

• Encouraging the artist to maintain a relationship with the audience and music industry- This is important as the audience may lose interest in an artist if the artist fails to make music videos, this is due to the increased competition that exists. Music videos also help the artist to also maintain a relationship with the music industry as they keep themselves relevant and popular. For example, One Direction have made many music videos which has helped them to maintain both a relationship with the audience and music industry as they continue to win popularity and become more widely known across the world. 

• To attract the audiences attention and to entertain them- This is vital as music videos are popularly viewed across the world, and therefore an exceptional music video is likely to entertain and attract the audiences attention immediately which could also lead to word of mouth, widening the artists fan base and increasing the views the video achieves. 

• To help sell albums- Music videos help an artist to sell albums as they give the audience a taste of what to expect in an album. Without music videos, it is unlikely that an album will sell, due to the audiences lack of knowledge revolving the artists music. 

• For the artist to reinvent themselves or make a comeback- if an artist has been outshines by newer artists and has not made music for a long time, creating a new music video that is of a high quality is likely to help the artist to make a comeback and allow the audience to view the artist in a new light. 

• For publicity- Music videos that stand out or contain controversial elements are likely to promote publicity for the artist, through many forms of media, including the internet, newspapers, magazines, radio, and TV. 

• To promote a film- Artists that are liked and popular may be requested to create a music video in order to promote a new film,which will encourage the film to get watched and it will also have a positive impact on the artist as their video will be watched widely for the audience to achieve a greater insight into the new film. An example of a artist who promoted a film was Ellie Goulding who made a music video for the song, 'Love me like you do', in order to promote the new, and highly talked about film, '50 Shades Of Grey'. 

Classic conventions of a music video

Music videos have various conventions that are necessary in order to make a music video of a high standard and to meet expectations of the target audience. Common conventions include:

- Dancing- Dancing is a popular convention of a music video as it is expected for the artist or for backing dancers to dance to parts of the song. 

- Narrative- A music video is likely to have a narrative which follows a clear structure, including a beginning, middle and end. The narrative is usually associated with the lyrics, for example, a love song usually has a narrative associated with two lovers and their relationship is followed throughout the video. 

- Lip syncing- lip syncing is a common convention as it is expected for the artist to mouth the words making it look as if they are singing the song throughout the music video. Lip syncing makes the music video look more effective and realistic. 

- Artist- An artists presence within a music video is a classic convention and is vital to the videos success as the audience are more likely to react positively if the artist is involved and makes an effort in the video. An artist is usually involved in the video by singing, and some artists take part in the narrative by playing the main characters and singing at the same time. For example, Taylor Swift is seen to sing and play as the main character, a girl who breaks up with her boyfriend in the love/breakup narrative in her music video 'Blank Space'.

-Special effects and glamour- Special effects and glamour are common conventions of music videos as they encourage a video to possess professionalism and to look visually appealing. Special effects are   achieved through editing and glamour through the use of mise en scene the video possess. For example, in Katy Perry's music video the narrative unfolds in a large location with attractive iconography, including a large, diamond chandelier making the setting and video look glamorous. 

- Editing to match the beat- it is conventional for the editing to match the beat of the song. This ensures that the video follows a neat and professional format as it looks common and expected. If the editing did not maths the best of the song, the video would lack professionalism and it would fail to meet the audiences expectations. 

Synergy 

When producing a music video, the use of synergy is likely to be used as an advantage for the artist, allowing them to maintain a relationship with a number of different medias. The various forms of media may include; Radio, TV, print media, film and the internet, which are likely to support the artists success along with the music video. These are popular forms of media and will therefore, increase the artists popularity and encourage their music video to get viewed. A lack of synergy could lead to an artists music videos getting a lack of viewings due to the audience having a lack of awareness about the videos existence. 

Examples of synergy used: 

Synergy has been used to promote Cheryl's singles in the past through popular media, including: 

Radio Adverts

TV

Print Media 

Radio 

Audience impact 

The impact a music video has may differ as each viewer reacts in a contrasting manner. 

• A particular impact a music video may have is it influencing the audiences opinion, which may be positive or negative depending on the way the video is portrayed. A positive impact may be the audience having a positive opinion on the video and therefore the artist to, which may lead to them buying the artists albums and becoming a fan of the artist. A negative impact however, may be the audience reacting negatively to the video due to the videos features or the narratives development, this could also affect the way the audience perceive the artist, which could be negative to. 

'When your gone'- Avril Lavigne

• 

  'Happy' - Pharrell Williams

  Moreover, another impact may be the music video evoking emotion from the audience. Depending on the atmosphere of the video, the audience will react, for example, if the song is sad and the narratives portrayal supports this then the audience are likely to feel saddened and depressed to. For example, Avril Lavigne's 'When Your Gone' music video evokes sympathy and sadness as it is about saying goodbye to someone you love which the audience is able to relate to. Whereas, if the song is upbeat and the video also supports this, then the audience are likely to feel cheerful and entertained. For example, Pharrell Williams' 'Happy' music video evokes happiness as it puts the audience in a positive mood due to the jolly lyrics and dancing within the music video.

• A negative impact of a music video includes the video being regarded as controversial by audience due to certain decisions made by the artist for the video. For example, Robin Thicke's Blurred Lines music video created controversy due to the content involved, which included young girls half naked and the lyrics which were described as 'rapey'.  

Overall, a music video is generally received well by a mass audience, although certain cases such as controversial decisions used in a video may evoke negative criticism from the audience. 

Technology advancements 

Due to the increasing technological advancements that have formed and improved over time, music videos have improved in numerous ways:

• Due to visual and sound quality rapidly improving over time, this has allowed the audience to view the video in HD and better quality.

• Technological advancements has also led to audiences being able to view music videos using different websites and apps, providing them with greater choice. 

• Advancements in technology has also led to artists becoming more popular and earning more money as certain apps such as iTunes charge the audience to buy or download music.

• Technological advancements allow the audience to use social media such as Facebook and Twitter in order to share music videos they like for their friends to see. This is likely to reach international audiences and  increase the views the video achieves and it may increase the artists fan base. 

• Technological advancements has been beneficial as music videos are now able to reach a mass, global audience, making a music video widely popular and allowing it to receive lots of viewings. For example, the 'Gangnam Style' music video reached over 39 million views, suggesting that it was watched globally due to the hype and popularity the video received due to the advancements in technology. 

Threats caused by technology advancements:

• Due to technology advancements, Independent singers are now able to make music in a more efficient and cheaper manner, and therefore, covers of existing songs are being viewed more than the existing music videos from large fan bases.

• Certain advancements allow the audience to listen to music on the move, without having to watch the music video, therefore, this could lead to videos receiving less viewings.

• Another threat may include a music video receiving negative criticism from a mass audience which could jeopardise an artists future and their future music videos.

• Apps such as ITunes and Spotify can also put a music video at risk as the audience may use them to download or listen to music. This leads to the audience not having to watch the music video.

•  Another threat includes the impact of technology causing a rift between the audience and the artist.

• Technology advancements make censorship harder and allows all audiences to access uncut versions of music videos, which puts vulnerable audiences such as young viewers at risk of watching music videos which contain inappropriate content, nudity and bad language. 

The future of music videos

I believe that the future of music videos is likely to be in jeopardy if there is a further rise of improvement in technology advancements as audiences will be unlikely to watch a music video if they other sources that are easier to access in order to listen to music. This will influence where music videos are placed in the industry, as they may become the last resort of access, and may only be viewed by loyal fans and intrigue smaller audiences rather than a mass audience. If this happens, the amount of music videos that are produced will be reduced due to it being a waste of money and the lack of viewings it receives. On the other hand, music videos still remain highly influential despite technology advancements as they present the artist in a unique manner and portray the lyrics and song as having meaning, influencing the audiences opinions. Whereas, simply listening to a song without visuals evident, results in it having less meaning and the audience having an obscure understanding. 

Conclusion 

Overall, music videos are a vital part of an artists success, as the more videos an artist produces, the more likely the audience are to watch the videos and recognise the artist, becoming potential fans. Despite certain threats music videos may encounter, they generally remain highly popular as they are viewed by a global audience and are useful in a number of ways. My research into the purpose of music videos has influenced my opinions for my music video, as I will follow the classic conventions which are vital in making a music video effective and enjoyable to watch. The conventions I will promote in my music video include: the artist being evident within the video, lip syncing from the artist, dancing evident, special effects and editing that matches the beat. Before researching this in detail I was unaware of all the conventions, therefore, this insight has increased my knowledge and ideas. I will also take into consideration the audience impact, as I am now aware that different genres and portrayals of music videos have various impacts on the audience. I want my audience to react positively and therefore I will ensure my music video includes elements that give off a positive vibe. Moreover, due to the technology advancements and music videos being under threat, I have decided to ensure that I make my video appealing and entertaining to gain a large amount of viewings by making it unique and ensuring that the video has a meaning with the audience being able to relate to it.