Unit 29 - AS1 - Task 1

Understand the purpose of music videos

Music videos can be very influential when listening to music, it puts images and scenery to a song and can put the song into context. It can also give a particular artist an image that you may imagine when listen to their music from when you see the music video. The promotion of a music video for this matter is very important.

Often artists are sold as a brand and the music video acts as a product of the brand (artist) in order for people to get into the artist and buy lots more of his/hers songs. For some artists the 'image' is of greater importance than the quality of the product. However this is not always the case, other times it is the song and the meaning of the song that is sold, and the artists 'image' is not really important in order to get into the artist.
A good example of an artist that rely heavily on their image in order to gain success are a band called 'Ok Go'. Their music videos arguably outshine their music and are mostly known for their creative music videos;


Before promo video's became popular if the artist was unavailable they would have their music broadcast and accompanied rather then dancers.
It was only after the success of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" that it became regular practise for record companies to produce promotional videos for artists' single releases. These videos could then be shown on television shows, such as 'Top of the Pops', without the need for the artist to appear in person.
Brian May said the video was made:
A)So the band could avoid miming such a complex song on 'Top of the Pops'
B)As they would be unable to appear on the programme every week as they were scheduled to appear on tour (It was number 1 for 9 weeks).
Making a music video can also gather more income for the artist. It not only promotes the song and the artist, all of their other work. It can also influence people to go and see them live which ultimately gets them more money. In a music video they can also advertise products, like Christina Aguilera advertising perfume in her video 'Not Myself Tonight';

A music video can be played on various types of media outlets such as; music channels, CD sales, websites or downloading it. Whenever it is played on any of these outlets, the artist will get some money out of it. Working with other companies is also a good way to get an artists music video out there. For example, Adele wrote a song for the movie 'Sky Fall' for the James Bond franchise. So both Adele and the James Bond movie would advertise each other. This is known as synergy.

Major Record Labels
The music industry is dominated by four multi national corporations;

• Universal
• Sony Music
• Warner Brothers
• EMI

These are referred to as 'The Majors'. The majority of these are backed by conglomerates with stakes in other industries such as; Film, TV and electronics.

Most of these 'Majors' own, or license, a series of smaller subsidiary companies in order to reach different kinds of audiences in different kinds of genre.

• Columbia
• Island
• Syco
• RCA
• Virgin

These companies are known as 'major-independents'.

Vevo is a music video website owned and operated by Universal Music Group, Google, Sony Music Entertainment and Abu Dhabi Media. Vevo offers music videos from three of the "big four" major record labels: Universal, Song Music Entertainment, Warner Music and EMI Records.

Independent
There are a huge number of small companies with little or no financial connection to the majors. These companies often concentrate on a small number of acts, within specialised niches in the industry, Hip Hop, Rap, Electronica and dance.

Artist Self-produced
These videos have the smallest budgets and are usually unknown artists. Making a video and uploading it to a website such as YouTube can lead to great success. For example Justin Bieber uploaded videos of him singing to youtube and got very popular through it.