Stephanie G. Mathis The MTV Music Video Awards will take place at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. Beyonce received 11 nominations, and there’s even an award category named Breakthrough Long Form Video. This shows that her influence is still reverberating throughout the industry. Adele received eight nominations. Three awards have been given to two videos that feature the late David Bowie: Lazarus and Blackstar.
The lack of attention paid to music videos has been noted during a recent Sydney event, where a group of Australian music video directors met to discuss and celebrate the best Australian video examples (including award-winning local clips Born Dirty by Butter Love Is My Disease by The Jezebels and you were right by RUFUS).
The 1980s and 1990s were the heyday of music videos. These short, catchy clips that accompanied pop songs became a huge part of popular culture. In the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, promotional clips were produced for songs and aired on shows such as Top of the Pops, Countdown, and other television programs. However, MTV broadcasts 24 hours a day, which began in 1981, made music videos mandatory viewing.
In the 1990s, the shift of MTV’s focus from music to Reality TV created the perception that music videos were on the decline. Music videos are no longer limited to 3-minute clips that were only shown on music channels. They now appear on a wide range of media platforms. The music video style, which includes attention-grabbing images (with or without a narrative), rapid editing, and (usually) visual representations of the accompanying music, now influences film and television.
Music videos are available in a variety of formats, including short or long, fragmented or film, and can be viewed on TV or online. They may also be incorporated into movies or TV shows (think about the musical segments found in Pitch Perfect or TV series like Glee or Empire) and released as standalone clips.
Pitch Perfect’s cups are, for example, sung when Anna Kendrick’s character auditions for Barden Bellas, an acapella group. YouTube has seen more than 280,000,000 views of the spinoff music video featuring Kendrick as her character.
The evolution of the music video
In the early days of MTV, directors were experimenting with what this medium could do. Russel Mulcahey (best known for his work on Duran Duran) and other directors created clips with spectacular, often bizarre, imagery.
This example of Mulcahey’s work from 1984 shows us clearly what we now call the “MTV aesthetic.” The editing is constant and fast. Images suggest post-apocalyptic worlds, such as in Mad Max. The narrative is only vaguely implied. The lyrics and music influence the visuals, but not completely.
MTV’s rise was not all positive. Critics argued that pairing images with music detracted from music. MTV’s mode of viewing was also criticized, as it was perceived to be more distracting than traditional television. MTV’s non-stop display of color, glitter, and disjointed images was seen as an expression of superficial consumer culture.
There was also concern about how certain groups were represented in the music videos. It was years before MTV began playing videos with black artists. Michael Jackson’s rise was a major influence in this change. Sexualised depictions of women in music video have also been criticized – and continue to be criticized. The dehumanisation of women can be achieved by reducing them into little more than attractive parts, as in the Robin Thicke video Blurred Lines.
In the 1990s, the rise of music video directors was marked by the development of cohesive collections of work. When done right, these pairings enhance the credibility of both directors and bands. These auteurs include Chris Cunningham and Spike Jonze. Michel Gondry, David Fincher, and Michel Gondry are also notable examples.
Cunningham’s 1997 video for Aphex Twin’s Come To Daddy shows how music and images can combine to make something more than their parts. Cunningham uses imagery from horror movies and a dark urban landscape to match Aphex’s harsh sounds. The subordinated sci-fi elements in the narrative also echo the electronic music.
Both the music and visuals have a futuristic feel while also being gritty. The way that the visuals and sound are connected without resembling each other, and the glitches of the video match the stammering beats, makes it clear that this is not a film but a music clip.
Cunningham has used many of the same features in other pieces, such as the blue filters and the grotesque or distorted representations of human bodies. This creates a connection between the different parts.
Music videos are now available online.
After MTV shifted its focus from reality TV to music videos, serious academic analysis of these videos almost vanished. Only a few researchers are working in this field today. It is a problem because music videos are not dead and have the same cultural and popular impact as they did in the 1980s and 1990s. Videos are now available on different platforms and have taken new and varied forms.
YouTube has become the most popular place to watch music videos. With tens and tens of billions of views, it is one of the top ways people consume music. Videos can be viewed on streaming services or downloaded onto personal devices. They range from 3-minute clips, Lemonade’s hour-long premiere on HBO to Pharrell’s continuous 24-hour music videos Happy.
