PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF MUSIC VIDEOS:

Developments within technology and the creation of the internet has allowed music artists to reach to a much wider audience. There was a time when recording equipment that is essential for making music videos was expensive, whereas now it's widely available for a fraction of the cost. For example, you can purchase extremely high quality and sophisticated music production software for your own computer or tablet etc. An example of this being used is on the 'Gorillaz' album, 'The Fall'. Damon Albarn produced this entire album simply using software he had installed on his iPad. This shows that many artists are now able to produce and distribute their own albums without needing the help of a record label. Many unsigned artists can still distribute their music via iTunes, Spotify and YouTube.



It's said that there are four main record labels that control around 70% of the world music market and 85% of the US market, which shows the concept of oligopoly (essentially meaning the industry is dominated by a small number of companies) within the music industry. These 'Big Four' are Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and EMI Group. Other than these major record labels you get the independant companies. These independent record labels are less concerned with mass sales in order to gain success as their production costs are already low, so they don't need as many sales to generate a profit.

The creation of the Internet opened up a huge variety platforms for artists to produce, distribute and market their music. Artists can now produce and distribute their music without the need for a record label. Digital distribution platforms such as iTunes allow artists to sign up and release their music. Music can also be released onto streaming platforms such as Spotify or Deezer. Music Artists can use social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook to quickly reach a large audience by posting their video online. One of the largest costs in the distribution of music is the cost of producing physical copies on CD or vinyl, with the introduction of iTunes this is no longer necessary. Listeners can download digital copies of a music album without ever needing to buy a physical copy.  Many artists also release their music videos on YouTube, many of whom have even been signed to major labels after being spotted on YouTube such as Justin Bieber.

GENRE THEORY:

Chandler's Genre Theory:

• Narrative – similar plots and structures, predictable situations, sequences, episodes, obstacles, conflicts and resolutions.
• Characters – similar types of characters (sometimes stereotypes), roles, personal qualities, motivations, goals and behaviour.
• Themes – topics, subject matter (social, cultural, psychological, professional, political, sexual, moral), ideologies and values.
• Setting – geographical and historical.
• Iconography – echoes the narrative, characters, themes and setting, a familiar stock of images or motifs, the connotations of which have become fixed. Includes décor, costume and objects, certain ‘typecast’ performers, familiar patterns of dialogue, characteristic music and sounds.
• Filming Techniques – stylistic or formal conventions of camerawork, lighting, sound – recording, use of colour and editing etc.

DAVID BOWIE:

David Bowie - Iconography from El_Lester

USES AND GRATIFICATIONS:

In 1974 two theorists, Blumler and Katz developed the 'Uses and Gratifications' Theory. The basic theme of 'Uses and Gratifications' is the idea that people use the media in order to fulfill specific gratifications. This theory is an opposition to the 'Hypodermic Needle Theory', which claims that the audience has no control over how the media influences them. However, 'Uses and Gratifications' argues that people are not just helpless victims, but they use the media to fulfill their own needs. These needs serve as motivations for using media in the first place.

The theory suggests that audiences USE media texts for various reasons...

DIVERSION  - To escape from everyday life.
PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS - Use the media text for emotional and other interaction, e.g. substituting soap operas for family life.
PERSONAL IDENTITY - Create their own identity from characters/celebrities in media text, and learning behaviour and values.
SURVEILLANCE - To gain information and knowledge.
ENTERTAINMENT - As a means of relaxation, enjoyment and emotional release. Purely for the 'fun' of the experience.

HYPODERMIC NEEDLE THEORY:

The Hypodermic Needle Theory implies that mass media has a direct, immediate and powerful effect upon its audiences. The message for the media is directly received and fully accepted by the user. Within this theory, the audience is considered to be passive entities that are left at the mercy of the mass media. It essentially suggests that the mass media 'injects' its messages directly into the passive audience who are immediately affected by these messages, which were designed with the aim to trigger a desired response. It also suggests that the mass media is a dangerous means of communicating because the audience is powerless to resist the impact of the message. However, this theory has little place in contemporary analysis of audience reception, although it is possible for audience to be influenced by what they see, these instances are rare and don't carry a great deal of momentum. Also, the theory is argued to be too simplistic as changes to attitudes and beliefs are not always observable or easily measured. Different audience interpret media differently.

GOODWIN'S CONVENTIONS:

Goodwin's 'Conventions Theory' is about various genre conventions and stereotypical characteristics. He looks at 7 different principles... 

- Links between the music and the visuals (i.e. contradictory, illustrative etc.)
- Genre characteristics
- Intertextual references 
- The notion of looking (i.e. female objectification)
- Voyeurism (i.e. the enjoyment of looking at the artist)
- Performance, narrative or concept based music videos
- The demands of the record label (i.e. how the artist is represented)

When looking at the 'Indie-Rock' genre of music, which is also the genre of our chosen music video 'Bros' by Wolf Alice, we noticed that there was some general conventions for an Indie-Rock music video. Typically, in terms of mise-en-scene there tends to be props to help tell the story, make-up to match the theme, lighting to enhance the mood of the song and colours to represent the theme of the song. The song 'Bros' is a light-hearted song about friendship, so we're going to aim to keep the colours in our music video warm and happy (i.e. pale blue, yellow, orange, light brown etc.) In terms of editing there tends to be a lot of speed changes and extensive use of filters/cinematic effects. In our music video we will aim to use various changes in speed, as well as using a 'vintage' style filter in order to create the look we're aiming for. Close-ups of the artist/actor within Indie-Rock music videos is also a common feature, so we will aim to use them within our own music video, particularly for the lip synching. Establishing shots are also used often in Indie-Rock music videos to set the scene. When looking at the Wolf Alice music video for 'Bros', the lyrics don't match up with the visuals but the theme of the song, which is friendship, does match up. There also appears to be an absence of the 'notion of looking' as well as voyeurism, as the artists do not feature in the music video. 

STRAUSS' BINARY OPPOSTITIONS:

A binary opposition is a pair of related terms or concepts that are opposite in meaning. Binary opposition is the system by which, in language and thought, two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another.

A protagonist and antagonist or a hero and a villain are both examples of binary opposites.

Binary oppositions are very frequently used in films, especially in the horror genre, many of these films include binary oppositions in their plots. The understanding of the word “villain” depends on the difference between that word and the opposing word “hero”.

Good and evil is the most common binary opposition shown to the public through the media field on different platforms. Sane and insane, rational and irrational and human and supernatural are also common binary oppositions known to the public.

MOOD BOARD:

This is a mood board to represent our chosen genre, indie-rock. This helps to show the forms and conventions of indie-rock and what will influence our own music video.

AMY WINEHOUSE CASE STUDY:

Amy Winehouse was an English singer-songwriter known for her wide variety of genres such as rhythm and blues, soul, and jazz. She has two studio albums, 14 singles and 15 music videos. Since her death on 23 July 2011, Amy had sold over 1.75 million singles and over 3.98 million albums in the UK. She had collaborated with many artists such as Mark Ronson on the song 'Valerie' as the main vocalist. In 2015, the documentary film, 'Amy' was released that told the life and death of Amy Winehouse.

We went to Sheffield to watch the Amy Winehouse documentary 'Amy' (2015) that was showing at the cinema. I feel that the documentary helped me to understand more about Amy Winehouse and what led her down the wrong path, as well as making me feel very sympathetic towards her situation. The documentary made effective use of various editing techniques in order to engage the audience, making them feel compassionate towards Amy and her situation. For example, the 'flashing lights' effect when Amy is being inundated by the press and photographers was very effective, as it shows the audience what it feels like to be surrounded by strangers who are constantly photographing and reporting on you.

The use of archived footage allowed the audience to gain a unique understanding and insight into the life of Amy Winehouse. It gave details about how Amy became famous in the first place, which gave us an understanding about how fame affected Amy and how she went from being a bright, bubbly and happy young woman to being broken, weak and depressed. We see how she was pushed to her limits over and over again, eventually leading to her becoming addicted to drugs.

HEBDIDGE 'SUBCULTURE: THE MEANING OF STYLE':

Subculture has its own values and beliefs but is often able to exist within mainstream culture. On the other hand, counterculture fundamentally goes against mainstream culture and, if large enough, ends up reshaping the mainstream.

Dick Hebdidge wrote a book named 'Subculture: The Meaning of Style' in 1979, which focused on the British youth culture and the different groups that emerged after World War Two. He discussed that style and its association with music was a symbolic form of resistance. He also analysed how each specific sub-culture (such as punks, rockers, skinheads etc.) has evolved, as well as looking at the shared aspects that are common to that evolution such as socio-economic background, ethnicity, class, and regional factors. Hebdidge also looked at links between subcultures around reggae music, punk music and, despite ethnic differences, saw links in terms of a rejection of the dominant ideology of the day - which at the time was a form of British nationalism.

The Trajectory of Subcultures

Hebdidge argues that all subculture experience the same trajectory. In this model, subcultures initially form through a common resistance. The dominant society often sees these groups as radical, leading to fear, skepticism and anxiety in their response. in some ways, this gives the subculture's resistance more power but only momentarily, because eventually entrepreneurs find a way to commodify the style and music of subculture. Before long, elements of the subculture are available to the mainstream, i.e. Edwardian jackets of the 'Teddy Boys'. In this way, what was once subversive, rebellious and radical is now contained. For this reason, it is often the case that the moment when dominant society begins to recognize a subculture is the moment that the resistant power of the subculture begins to die.

KEY COMPANY CASE STUDY:

MALE GAZE THEORY:

The Male Gaze Theory - Blurred Lines from El_Lester

THE STAR THEORY:

Star Theory - Rihanna from El_Lester

THE BEST CD COVERS OF ALL TIME:

The Best CD Covers Of All Time from El_Lester

THE BEST MUSIC VIDEOS OF ALL TIME:

CONTROVERSY IN MUSIC VIDEOS:

RESPONSE TO Q MAGAZINE ARTICLE:

The article unravels every detail of Rihanna's "Bitch Better Have My Money" music video. It gives off a generally negative impression of the music video, by using sarcastic language, for example "self-regarding, hubristic and flamboyantly expensive" and "if you missed it, it's not that complicated" are used. The article highlights that "the internet unpacked the sexual and racial politics of the video in double-quick time", this suggests that there is a multitude of controversies surrounding the videos. 

The article is predominantly focused on controversy within music videos, as well as music videos which were purposely made in order to create controversy. It also discusses the idea that controversial music videos can be a good thing in terms of the artist getting more sales. The article says, "without a video, Bitch Better Have My Money peaked at a disappointing number 17 in April." This suggests that the music video aided Rihanna by raising her song up the charts.

DIRECTOR CASE STUDY:

Spike Jonze Case Study from El_Lester

MUSIC VIDEO REGULATION:

Music Video Regulation from El_Lester

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS - LANA DEL REY "YOUNG AND BEAUTIFUL":

Lana Del Rey – Young and Beautiful from El_Lester

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS - RECOMMENDED MUSIC VIDEOS:

Blink 182 - All The Small Things Textual Analysis:
Genre - Rock/Pop Punk
Genre Conventions - Blink 182's music video for 'All The Small Things' contains many genre conventions for the 'Rock' genre. For example, members of the band are tattooed and have piercings, the band play their own instruments, there are elements of the voyeuristic treatment of the female body and there is no real narrative the video, it's completely random and fun/crazy.

Lana Del Rey - Video Games Textual Analysis:
Genre - Baroque Pop/Pop Rock
Genre Conventions - Lana Del Rey's music video for 'Video Games' contains many genre conventions for the 'Baroque Pop' genre. For example, it incorporates layered melodies, it's extremely melancholic and has quite dramatic music, which contrasts it from its more cheerful counterpart, 'Sunshine Pop'. It also uses more classical instruments (such as violins and harps), rather than modern instruments (such as electric guitars).

Vampire Weekend - A-Punk Textual Analysis:
Genre - Indie Rock
Genre Conventions - Vampire Weekend's music video for 'A-Punk' contains many genre conventions for the 'Indie Rock' genre. For example, the facial expressions of the band members are kept minimal, keeping them plain and in some cases serious. Furthermore, the band members use their instruments as props, which is typical of the 'Indie Rock' genre. Also, the lead singer is positioned towards the front as this is the most recognisable band member.