I was given the task to research and discuss the key benefits of $99 music videos. What is 99dollarmusicvideos.com?
99dollarmusicvideos.com is a website dedicated to producing music videos for unsigned artist. It provides the opportunity for musicians to enhance their image and gain worldwide recognition. The benefits of making a $99 music video is that it is quick and cheap to create and it allows the artist to use their imagination to portray their lyrics. The concept behind the $99 music video is to produce a video within 24 hours and to further edit the video in 24 hours. The artist has a total of 48 hours to finish creating the entire music video. This is key as the artist can solely focus all their attention on making the music video and not go beyond a set time scale.
Whats is their ethos?
Time of filming is 24 hours and editing is another 24 hours
Having a good film maker to create a good piece of work.
Letting the artists show their creative side that is being displayed in their music video.
Make a music video for $99 or less.
It must be collaboration between the band and the filmmaker.
What types,labels and genres of music appear on their YouTube channel?
The website is designed for artists that are not signed to a record label. The music video channel contains a variety of genres such as indie, rock and soul. The website helps new artists to promote their music videos and to make themselves more popular worldwide. It allows the audience an opportunity to gain an insight into the artist's personality and inspirations through their Youtube channel.
What is the relationship between 99dollarmusicvideos.com,their film-makers and music acts?
There is a good relationship between the film maker and the artist as they are both working towards the same goal which is to make a successful high-quality music video. There is a strong relationship between the website and music acts because the artist has a small budget for which the website is specifically designed to cater for. The website's objective is to gain more viewers and for them to achieve this they need more talented musicians to display their music video on their website. These musicians contain potential to make a collaboration of successful music videos and the right music video can lead them to being a global superstar.
How does 99dollarmusicvideos.com encourages audience participation?
$99dollarmusicvideos.com encourage audience to watch artists music videos and it tells you to just have visual and creative skills to make a good music video. On the YouTube channel it shows several different unique music videos that inspires new artists to make a music video by themselves. Furthermore it also shows the audience that you don't need a big budget to make a music video and all that is required is creativity skills and good camera shots to make a music video. Furthermore on the $99dollarmusicvideo website it shows many different unique videos that can motivate an up coming musician to produce a good music video that is eye-catching and appeals to the audience.
Is it possible to make a professional quality music video for $99?
I think it is possible to make a good quality music video for as little as $99, given that it has good camera angles as well as good props. I believe the main aim of a music video is to portray the lyrics visually and if it does this then it is a professional quality music video.
Andrew Goodwin is an Australian born university professor. Goodwin is a media theorist he has published a book in 1992 called 'Dancing In The Distraction Factory Music Television and Popular Culture'.Andrew Goodwin's box 'Dancing In The Distraction Factory Music Television And Popular Culture' was first published December 31st 1992.
Andrew Goodwin put his ideas in a book that was released in 1992 his book also includes media aesthetics and the book also has critical theory in popular music.
Illustrating
Illustrating is when a music video is directly corresponding to the lyrics. For one example may be the song R Kelly ft Usher 'Same Girl'. This music video displays an illustration of the song. For example when Usher sings ''So I met her in this party in Atlanta'' the next scene we see Usher in a club parting at 2:17-2:20 and we also see when R Kelly saying ''Call her up at her home she wont know i am on the phone'' at 3:45-3:47. The audience liked the video and the style of this music video which got a staggering 42,819,557 view on YouTube.
Amplifying
Amplifying is when a music video is designed to enhance the style and the mood of the song. For example 'Not Afraid' by Eminem is a good example of amplifying. The mood of this song is anger the tempo of the song stays at the same level through the music video. The visuals represent Eminem alone with nobody and trying to find someone it represents him being angry and starting to brake down a wall at 2:42 and it also shows him being followed by his own reflection at 2:10-2:12 .On YouTube Eminem's ''Not Afraid'' has 567,546,064 views this shows the music video has a wider range of audience a lot of people related to this song.
Star Persona
Star persona is about how the artist is represented that is where their own stage persona can show impact, of the artist to gain more audience for example ''Birthday Sex'' by Jeremih. The music video shows Jeremih and a lady getting intimate together at 1:38-1:49. The music video shows that in all the star personas videos he always gets intimate with the ladies. The artist Jeremih uses sexual intimacy for his video which he knows will get him more hits on YouTube. In this music video viewers will see this music video is only about a girl giving Jeremih a birthday treat also the music video has a staggering 46,684,766 on YouTube This music video has been at number 1 at the US Rhythmic Billboards.
Contradicting
Contradicting is when a music video is deliberately goes against the lyrics and the mood of the song for example ''Swimming Pools'' by Kendrick Lamar. The lyrics in this music video do not match the video because he talks about swimming pools but no pools are in the music video.This gives the video a miserable tone and the song doesn't connect with the music video, which is trying to confuse the viewers that are watching it to forget the content of the music video at the start of the song you will see it shows Kendrick Lamar falling down to the ground at a the slow pace at 0:12-0:22.
Iconography
Iconography use certain images or visual elements to trigger a more broad association with a topic in our case it is the use of certain elements to signify a particular music genre of the artist. For example ''Stronger'' by Kanye West who has his own style of clothing this makes him set new trends in fashion which will be copied by other artists and audience for example at 3:07 he wears shutter glasses on iconography is represented in the video. The music video has a couple of elements that goes against the artist genre of music at 0:26 this is not a typical R'n'B song which can normally show scantily clad women ,alcohol and fast cars. An advantage of the artist is he wears the same clothes throughout the video and does not try to be flashy.
Voyeurism
Voyeurism is shown in many music videos where males and females are usually exposed to get more views from the audience. For example ''Blurred Lines'' by Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell Williams and also TI. The voyeurism first starts at 0:24 and the female lady shows he legs of to the viewers at 3:24- 3:25 when the female lady is trying to get the Robin Thicke,attention and the audiences and it carry's on throughout the music video.This music video has two versions one is x-rated and this video has 354,245,274 views on YouTube and it has 1,290,919 likes and 164,451 dislikes.
Intertextuality
Intertextuality is a type of convention is when one media text refers to another. For example ''Foolish'' by Ashanti the music video has some scene from a movie called ''Goodfellas'' for example we see two people go into the restaurant and the waiter ask for a table at 0:53- 0:57 and when the couple are walking throw the kitchen at 0:50 .This is a clear reference to the original. This music video could be reinvented because the video might be portrayed the way that the musician feels. This music video has created an visual for the audience this music video promotes the artist. This music video has good comments from YouTube.
An example of a large number of cuts is ''Ice Box'' by Omarion. The music video is fast paced and contains 168 cuts. Initially the viewers hear Omarion heartbeat pacing as it is transforming into an ice box to illustrate his unhappiness with the relationship he is in. No music is played until 0.38 to create a dramatic effect where the audience can relate more personally to Omarion's emotions. Throughout the music video the background is set in black and white to further create a dramatic effect. It also focussed more on Omarion as the two contrasting set of colours outline his expressions. At 3.42 we see Omarion persuing his partner through the woods as if he is chasing to gain the perfect version of his partner which attracted him before she changed. This is all to enhance Omarion feelings in order for the audience to understand the pain and suffering he is experiencing.
Bad
A bad example of number of cuts is ''Get You Down'' by Warren G featuring Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg. This music video only contains 67 shots a normal music video contains 120 shots or more. This song wasn't deemed successful because this music video only had 730 thousand views on YouTube. The are many reasons why artists have low shot count in their music video, In this case Warren G had a low budget as it was not released in the music charts. Even though there were big artists performing in the video it was not succesful, even having big artists in any video you do cannot guarantee a sucessful video. The three artists keep repeating about racism and how it affects them , it seems like we have seen many videos that are very similiar to this one , so the viewers feel like they have heard it all before nothing is fresh and new.This represents the artist by showing how the artist feel about rascim for example Ice Cube was talking about rascim between black and brown people it shows him in a police cell at 1:17.
Special effects Good
Special effects videos include a variety of images and also animation. A good example is "Beware" by Big Sean featuring Lil Wayne and Jhene Aiko this music video has a different locations and the music video has a different mood and it also has different colors. This music video also contains different artist in video that shows Lil Wayne and Jhene Aiko in a different style in this video and their clothiers started to changes at different scenes. The music video first starts off with Big Sean on a mountains at 0.00 to 0.16. it represents the artist by showing the end of his relationship, he has cheated so his girlfriend has dumped him.The graphics and colour changes reflect his mood swings and how he is feeling like ''beware of a woman with a broken heart'' at 1:22. The artist uses different graphics for the chorus to the main singing to keep the viewers interesed in the music video. This represents the artist by him making a slow paced video where as before he always make fast paced videos.
Bad
A bad special effect is ''Rock Your Body'' by Justin Timberlake this music video. This music video only stuck to one effect this makes it look like the artist had no money to spend on the music video. The graphics look like the artist is in one room like a cube with flashbulbs flashing different colours it looks cheap and tacky, also the video shows the artist in the same place they are no where else, it is repeating the same thing over again nothing is there to excite the viewer there is nothing new in the graphics at all. The intended effect was to dance with the artist at 2:44 but it did not suceed due to the graphics being very poor and being the same throughout the video.
Cutting to the beat Good
A good example is ''Miss Independent'' by Ne-yo as this music video show a good pace. The intended effect is that the beat is after each scene to keep you entertained and it keeps you knowing what the artist feels and the viewers can connect with the artist and the emotions they are experiencing he respects women who are strong and praises women who are independent at 1:15. The music video has been successful because it has had 70 million hits most probably it has been viewed by women. The artist has always sung about strong independent women and he shows them immense respect with his lyrics at 3:34.
Bad
A bad example for cutting to the beat is ''get her back'' by Robin Thicke the video shows him trying to get back with his wife, it shows that he is sorry and shows his face covered in blood and bruised at 2:17 and would try anything to get back with his wife who has left him. there is a lot of repetition ''i have to get her back 1:25 in the video how the artist has to get his wife back it is very dull and i think the viewer will find this boring.The artist before this song had a worldwide hit and became famous overnight which he could not handle so due to excess partying girls and drugs his wife left him with their son.
Varied camera language Good
A good example of varied camera language is ''Happy'' by Pharrell Williams the music video has different camera angels for example mid shot and also long shot the music video also contains a feel good factor to it, the title happy and the line i feel happy make you want to dance and clap like in the video at 1:48.The technique the artist uses in the video is random people from the street and celebrities for example Kelly Osborne dancing at 2:52, the video is extremely popular and has had 502 million views the lyrics want you to go along for the ride, with the artist '' i feel happy with a room without a roof'' meaning you can achieve anything if that is what you want to do. Seeing people dancing and clapping makes the video more effective.
Bad
A bad example of varied camera language is '' Tennis Court'' by Lorde this music video only contains one camera angle shot. The angel is a mid shot. there are no cuts at all the video has a dark background and looks very boring the camera sticks to the artist face even though she does not sing only a few words. All the artist does is look at the camera and moves her head left to right at 1:24 - 1:28, the artist says only two words throughout the music video she looks very pale and wears dark clothing to match the black background. The artist has been successful with this video because she has had 52 million hits on YouTube , i think maybe she had so many hits because she is a new artist and different to the normal pop songs around at the minute
Green Screen
Good
A good green screen is '' I Made It'' by Kevin Ruldolf featuring Birdman , Lil Wayne also Jay Sean. This music video shows all of the artists how and when they started and how they became sucessful they sing about it all three of them so everyone listens to them now they are living the dream. The music video also has different locations in the greenscreen for example when jay Sean is singing outside Big Ben at 2.20, because the viewer can see that he is british where as the other artists show american buildings and street life.The video shows photos and archive footage from the artists lives throughout the video also money falling at 1:41 .The video has had twelve million views it has so many different graphics and a catchy tune and beat to it that keeps you interested the title is catchy and simple 'i made it'
Bad
An example of a bad greenscreen music video is ''Drop It Like Its Hot'' by Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell Williams. This music video has got one location this makes the music video boring and this music video only sticks with one plan white green screen and it never changes and the video only shows a Bentley car at 0.56 and also shows person playing the drums at 3.11 and dancing at 0.27
The audience wouldn't like this video because its too simple and i think they could have made it with more graphics to make it look better. The music video is in black and white it looks very simple and not made interesting and old all the video shows is expensive things the artists have got. ''I'm a gangsta, but y'all knew that'' this means that the artist is showing off because he has money and used to be a gangster. Lip-synching Good
An good example for lip is ''Dedication To My Ex'' by Lloyd featuring Andre 3000 this music video contains good lip syncing from 0.00 to 3.55. this music video portarys Lloyd feelings about a girl, there are many different camera techniques that are used in this music video as when Lloyd is pointing to his head at 0.19 the artist expresses the emotions that he feels when he sees this girl who happens to be his ex girlfriend. The artist waves his arms about a lot .and in some scenes sings slowly to try to keep the pace of the song.Their is a cat who sings with the pace of the video at 2:29-3:14.The music has been successful because of the beat and pace of the song that has been consistent throughout the video it has 11 million views on YouTube. This music video has been the only hit i know of for this artist before this video was released not many people knew of him.
Bad
A bad example of lip synching is ''cups'' by Anna Kendrick she seems to just use the same amount of mouth movement all the way through even when she hits a few high notes here and there at 3:23. The intended effect of each technique is to show here being thoughtful and be misses when she is gone by being a waitress in a diner serving customers. The video shows the artist only singing the same thing over and over again and the music and singing is repeated too many times it seems boring for the viewers. The song is from a movie the artist is in and seems very boring and mundane it represents the artist character in the movie.
I will be looking at various types of
style, convention and technique of music videos and how they impact on the
audience. There are many variety of style such as rock, rap, R n B, hip-hop and
classical. Each style is designed to target a particular set of audience.For example, Eminem’s music video “Berzerk”
is targeted at an audience aged between 13-25 and ethnicity of white, lower to
middle class.
Convention is the association between the
musician’s lyrics and the music video such as in the music video “Berzerk” is a
fast paced music video to complement the equally fast paced lyrics. The genre of the song is old school rap/
hip-hop which consist of archive footages to make the music video appear as if
it was set in the 1980s. Also the song is a sample of Billy Squier “The Stroke”
who is displayed in the music video at 2.24 and 3.47 in dedication to the input
he had to producing the song. The song is about going crazy and having a good
time such as in his lyrics “Life’s too short to not go for broke” portrays that
you should enjoy the benefits of the money you make while you are alive since
life is precious and short lived.
Eminem’s record label Shady records would
use this style and convention of music video since it is unique in the term
that it looks at the past rather than many other music videos that focus on the
present and the future.
genre subverting
Genre subverting music videos are
music videos that go against the artist’s genre. For example , “the next
episode” by Dr dre featuring Snoop Dogg, Kurupt and Nate Dogg. This music video
contains explicit adult content as it is set in a strip club. There is a lot of
nudity and this video downgrades women as sexual objects such as at 2.13 shows
men paying women to perform on stage and later throwing champagne at them. Also
there is a scene of the artists smoking maljuihna at 2.04 which is viewed
negatively since these artists are suppose to be role models and set an example
to the younger viewers. This music video was designed to target older audience
members who are more open-minded to western society.
Another example of genre
subverting videos is 50 cent featuring Justin Timberlake who use technology to
seduce women. It contains some adult scene such as at 2.32 where a woman is
dancing erotically whilst 50 cent is blindfolded. The artist use night vision
cameras to stalk the women in the video.
Performance in a music video
The purpose of an artist performing in a
music video is to get the audience involved and feel that they belong in the
music video as well. Also it gives the audience the impression the song is
being performed live in the music video. An example of this is Outkast “Hey ya”
where the main singer Andre 3000 is Performing in front of a large female
crowd. The crowd is displayed in the music video when the artist enters the
stage at 1.14. It should be noted that
the crowd is constantly cheering, dancing and getting involved in the music which
helps to promote the musician and the song itself. The camera takes many
mid-shoots and close ups of the artist ‘s face for the audience to feel an
intimate connection with the artist. There are also clips of a woman jumping
onto the stage at 2.59 and a woman fainting at 3.19, this is all to create a
positive light on the artist. There is a scene where the artist is dancing
hence making the audience feel the need to dance as well. The genre of the
music video is a feel good hip-hop music and generally makes the audience feel
upbeat and cheerful.
Parody
Parody is a copy of the original music
video for the purpose of adding humor and comedy into the music video. A person
takes the original song and changes the lyrics and music video to make it funny
for the viewers.An example of this is
Bart Baker “Blurred Lines” which is a parody of the original song by Robin
Thicke. The parody is very similar to the original in terms that both videos
have the same background and camera angles. Also they both contain hastags and
the artists are wearing the same outfits. The parody attempts to make Robin
Thicke look like a rapist whereas in the original video he looks more
professional. From 0.00 to 0.12 the parody video has the same camera format as
the music video except the reaction of the female dancers who appear to be
threatened by Robin Thicke rather than attracted to him. The Parody is
insulting Robin Thicke for example at 1.00 we see Robin Thicke sing “I’m a
douchebag”. The parody has been a successful hit as it has gained 29.5 million
views on Youtube.
Narrative
Narrative is a way of displaying an artist’s
lyrics through a music video. This is extremely useful at helping the audience
to understand the meaning behind the lyrics and further help the audience to be
interested and to engage in the music video.For example Justin Timberlake “Cry me a river” portrays him showing his
unhappiness at realizing that his partner was unfaithful to him. In the music
video we see the metaphor of the title “Cry me a river’ associated with the
rain at 0.00- 0.04 or the switching the shower on at 4.15. He uses this music video
to as a way to express what his hurt and anger to his former girlfriend.
Initially we see how much affection he holds for his partner through the lyric
“You were my sun, you were my earth” and when he smells her hair at 3.51. Later
we see his disappointment at realizing his girlfriend was unfaithful “You don’t
have to say what you did I already know.
This
is where the artist’s lyrics match exactly that is occurring in the music
video, for example, The Lonely Islands “like a boss”. Initially we see Andy
Samberg having a meeting with Seth Rogen discussing what his job role requires
of him. For instance, at 0.19-0.20 He uses thee lyric “talk to corporate”
whilst on the phone to a client. This is also a way of making the music video
more hilarious such as “Hit on Debra, like a boss, get rejected, like a boss”
at 0.32-0.35. This is more likely to gain the attention of audience who enjoy
humour in the music video. This makes the music video more unique in the sense
that the lyrics have to match the music video which helps to attract more
audience members. The benefit from the artist point of view is that this does
not require a lot of creativity since they are just displaying what is in their
lyrics. It also pleases the record labels since the music video is likely to be
cheap. For example, this music video requires the use of a green screen to
portray “Crash into the sun” at 1.20.
Referencing
Referencing is similar to synergy
as it displays clips of a movie into a music video. For example, Pitbull “Back In Time” which shows scenes from Men in Back 3.We see Pitbull dressed in a black suit, the
same suit as the agents in the movie. The music video also feature Will Smith
and Tommy Lee Jones who are the main characters the film. The music video also
shows Pitbull entering the underground facilities of the agency organization at
1.38. It even shows him entering into the same black ford car as the agents at
0.30. This music video is likely to attract all the audience that enjoyed
watching the Men In Black franchise as well as the people who wish to see it.
The record labels benefit since this music video will be promoted by Men In
Black franchise leading to more audience watching this video and increasing the
sale of the music downloads/CDs.
Patiche
Patiche
music videos are those that refer to another type of media. They use a
reference from one media and imitate it into the music video. For example,
Busta Rhymes “I love my chick” ft Will.i.am, kelis. This music video is
imitating scenes from the movie Mr and Mrs Smith such as at 0.00-0.05 Busta
Rhymes and Gabrielle Union are in couple therapy which is a copy from a scene in
Mr and Mrs Smith.Also the music video
labels “Busta Rhymes as Mr Smith” at 0.07 and “Gabrielle Unions as Mrs Smith”
at 0.19. This is likely to attract the audience that enjoyed watching the movie
Mr and Mrs Smith. Mr and Mrs Smith was a box office hit starring international
superstars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie therefore likely to gain attention from
a large scale audience. The record labels understand that more audience members
will be intrigued to see the similarities of this music video to that of the
movie therefore increase the image of the artist which can lead to higher
sales.
Impressionist
Impressionist music videos are
designed to set the theme and imagery of a music video. This is to direct the
audience feeling and for them to express it in a way that will promote this
music video. This can be produced by setting a particular background or camera
angle shot. For example, Gorillaz “Clint Eastwood” which set a dark theme when
a character is laughing wickedly at 0.14- 0.17.. The background throughout this
music video is dark which is portrayed by heavy rain and lightning at 2.56 and
the pace of the song is slow. Since the artist is using an animated music video
it is very easy to set the tone of this video. This entertains the audience as
they feel spooked and this music video targets younger audience who enjoy
watching animations. The record label understands the importance of producing a
music video, which contains structure and a theme to appeal to mass audience
members.
Animation
Animations are a creative way for
artists to produce music videos. For example, Kayne West “Heartless” portrays
Kanye into a cartoon format.The music
videos contain a range of blight colours as Kanye West is walking through
different backgrounds. At 2.00- 2.14 we see the visual effects of the smoke
from the cigarette rise. It shows the artist in a different light as a cartoon.
The benefit of animation videos is that the artist can create an image that
they are satisfied with. Also it is easier to show emotions through characters
by animation rather than hiring actors to perform, for instance, at 1.42 a
woman is crying and behaving emotionally. In the music video Kanye West is
wearing different outfits in each scene and there are pictures of The
Flintstones at 2.34. These animations are more appealing to younger viewers who
are more likely to understand the meaning of the music rather then just
observing the artist singing.
