Key Conventions of Music Videos

Hip Hop: Look At Me Now By Chris Brown Ft Lil Wayne And Busta Rhymes

When looking at the key conventions of a hip hop video, one of the most important aspects are the camera angles used especially low angled, close up shots which are used throughout many hip hop videos. These are used to show the empowerment of the artist over the audience as the low angle gives the effect that they are looking down on us and the close ups also give status because they imply that the artist is important enough to get a frame of their own. Another thing you can see in most videos like the Chris Brown one above is having a crowd of people dancing to the beat of the song. This makes it look as though they like the song which gives credibility to the artist and makes the audience impressed that so many people like the song so they like it too. Also the clothing is generally basketball shirts as you can see with Chris Brown wearing a Mets jacket to signify strength and sporting ability. There are lots of references to the wealth of the artist through the mise-en-scene (cars, money, jewellery etc) as expensive things signify wealth and this in turn signifies status and importance. There are also lots of men in the videos as the main artists 'posse' which again shows power as there is strength in numbers and to show he is part of a group and not a loner which will increase his status. Voyeurism is used extensively in Hip Hop videos because the general audience for hip hop is male so applying the male gaze theory to videos ensures they keep viewers and attract new people. 

Pop and chart music: Your Love Is My Drug By Ke$ha

Pop and Chart music is usually aimed at a teenage and young adult audience meaning that

they have to stick to some certain conventions in order for this age range to enjoy and want to watch the music video. In most of the videos I have watched in this genre the artists are clothed in fashionable, stylish and mainstream outfits. This would be so that the audience can relate to the artist as they would be wearing clothing that is easily accessible to them but also so that they can have someone to look up to as a fashion icon as this would be something that is important to people, especially girls, who are of this age. Another key convention would be that the artists are portrayed as happy, content and enjoying their lives. As you can see in the ke$ha video above at no point does she appear to be upset or sad and at numerous times throughout the song you can clearly hear her laughing. This would be to get the audience to be happy too as if they see their favourite artist having a good time then this would rub off on them and make them happy, exactly what the music is intended to do. This also ties in nicely with the convention of using bright and bold colours to show the happy, positive vibes as if the artist and the total mise-en-scene appears to be enjoying themselves then the audience will recipricate that and become happier. In most music these days but especially pop in particular the lyrics are usually based around love and relationships. This is down to the fact that having a relationship of any kind is so relatable and something that most people have experienced in their lives. Even if they haven't, being in love with someone is a happy and fulfilling time so it again brings out this positiveness that the artist wants the audience to feel when listening to the music. During most pop music video, including the ke$ha one above, there tends to be a dance and the dance is usually choreographed to show the artist in a very sexual and seductive way. This is used to lure an audience in and show the artist as something desirable, so it gives the audience something to look up to as most people want to be wanted. Another device used widely in pop music videos is the use of animation which is mostly used to attract a younger audience into the music but also to create the exciting, lively atmosphere that is usually associated with pop music in general.

Rock: Underdog By You Me At Six

In rock music videos there are many conventions that tend to stray away from the pop music genre videos as seen above, the most important and obvious of these is the difference in the main focus of the video. In pop music the videos generally consist of a performance from the artist, an example of this being Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’ video, whereas rock videos tend to concentrate on using multiple camera angles such as extreme close ups pinpointed on the instruments played by the musicians. Examples of this being when the guitarists strum or when a drummer hits the crash cymbal. These are used to show their talent as musicians rather than their talent as showmen or performers. Long shots and extreme long shots are also used, they are used in order to show the whole band as a whole in one single shot to show the bands unity. Showing each of their importance in the band in comparison to solo artists where the dancers are shown sparingly and almost disposable. Another common convention in rock videos is the fast paced editing shown, example of this being jump cuts. Jump cuts are a prime example of how to effectively portray speed in a music video as the jump cut itself is sudden. Rock videos also use both high key and low key lighting, depending of what kind of tone they are trying to set or what story they are trying to tell. Rock is also notorious for their direct narratives shown in their music videos rather than abstract narratives. More often than not the videos are portraying a certain moral or insight into the songwriters life or a past event from their life. The two main styles of music video to stem from rock are both direct narratives or montages of live footage. Live footage is common as unlike most massive pop acts, bands are usually involved in extensive and somewhat tedious live concert schedules. So in a way showing live footage is an intelligent way of advertising your band by showing your talent with montages involving snippets from different nights showing a bands most exciting stage antics and more importantly these  videos tend to show a lot of crowd activity whether it be ‘mosh pitting’ or just general enjoyment from the crowd. If the viewers at home see how much they crowd are enjoying themselves or how good a showmen the band appear to be they will feel inclined to buy a ticket in order to see it for themselves.

Indie: The Kooks - She Moves In Her Own Way

Indie music is all about going against usual mainstream views and enjoying and embracing rebellion. Taking this into account, many of the indie music videos that I have watched including the Kooks video above all use very individual shot types and take full advantage of things like the steady cam and handheld cameras. This gives a sense of their carefree attitudes and the lack of 'glitz and glam' that the other genres like pop have in their videos is to show that indie music is more about the music then enticing a big audience. The videos also seem to be mostly set in calmer and more natural settings such as beaches to again emphasis the feeling of being one with nature and that their music is almost a natural part of their and their fans lives. Throughout the video they use mostly high key lighting with odd shots in low key and all the artists/characters in the video are wearing conventional indie clothing eg. skinny jeans, denim, converse alongside the fact that most of the men in the video seem to have long-ish hair. The director and costume designer has decided to do this as this what they believe people that watch the video would wear and so they can empathise with the artist, in turn enjoying their music. The props used in the videos usually consist of the instruments that are being played to show their performance skills and to remind the audience of the reason behind the video but other props used are things such as alcohol, posters and flags in order to show their carefree and rebellious attitudes. The shot lengths appear to be longer than other genres, particularily pop and rock as the music is not as fast paced and so they want  to create a chilled out atmosphere and make it look almost as if indie music just 'goes with the flow'. Finally they also tend to show less live performance which is very dissimilar to rock as indie music tends to be more just them stood still and is all about the voice and instruments so would be boring to film in a music video and for the audience to watch. 

R'n'B: 50 Cent - In Da Club

A 'typical' R&B video often consists in some part miming to the camera, either performance based or telling a story in the video. As you can see in the video above, he 

The video's conventions are often focused on the physical looks of the artist or the extras, or the relationship between the artist and others.
In most of the R&B videos i looked at there was a big focus on 'showing off' your material possessions such as, expensive jewellery or cars etc.

Mostly the artists in R&B videos are African Americans as they founded this genre, they are often similarly dressed.
In a substantial amount of contemporary R&B videos there is some sort of dancing, ranging from break dancing to hip-hop, to make known the artists ability as a dancer. Which leads onto alot of these videos being set in a nightclub or some sort of party atmosphere.

All of the above are to broadcast themselves to a specific audience, as music has become diverse R&B's audience has grew to more races than just african americans. The video is aimed at an audience of about 13-25, a much younger audience as they emphasise the importance of material possession which is said to be more important to youngsters in recent years.