Genre as a key concept

Music Genres: 

There are multiple types of different music genres ranging from pop - country all containing different conventions and codes, however they do have similarities between each other. There is over 53 different music genres, some are very uncommon music, such as folk. The genres that I have focused my research towards include: Pop, RnB, Rock and electric dance music, this gives me a wide range of different music videos as some of the genres contain music that can switch between many different genres. 

Genre is very important in music videos as they decide what the music video will be about whether it will follow a storyline and narrative or if it will be based upon a performance, different types of music videos are more common in different genres for example, narrative storylines are very popular in Pop Music as majority of the songs are based around love or heartbreak so the storyline is easier to come up with. 

Genre as a key concept:

Steve Neale states that "genres are in existence of reputation and difference" and "genres are not systems, they are processes". He believed that there was a system of expectation and by using their own knowledge and applying the conventions of the genre, the audience should be able to interpret the narrative of the music video. 

Andrew Goodwin is another genre theorist, who states:

- "A music video ignores common narrative as they are essentially advertisements. As consumers, we are up our own meaning of a song in our minds: a music video can anchor meaning and faces the artist a method of anchoring meaning"

He believes that music genres have their own music style and iconography - repeating a key "trademark" action making their song recognisable. This represents the style of music the artist is representingl 

Andre Goodwin establishes 5 key aspects of music videos:

• Thought beats - seeing the sound 
• Narrative and performance 
• Star image 
• Relation of visuals to a song 
• Technical's aspects of music videos 

Arianna Grande Genre Traits:

• Arianna Grande's main music genre is Pop R&B, meaning that her music overlaps by combining two different genres. 
• 
  Her songs usually follow a storyline which is why all her music videos show different narratives as her songs can create many meanings, so that many people in her audience feel connected to her. Her most popular music video is Side to Side, featuring Nicki Minaj - this video has over 1.7 billion views.
• Within her music video she matches many different stereotypes found in this genre. She is being sexualised by wearing revealing clothing, trying to attract the male audience in relation to the Male gaze. This is shown in all her music videos, as a common convention found in all music genres is that women are found in "sexy" clothing whereas men can be dressed how they wish, making the male audience more attracted to the women artist as they are showing more aspects which can appeal to their generation and behaviour. It is not just Arianna Grande who is being sexualised, it is all the women in the video which proves the stereotype behind women, making young girls who watch want to dress like and repeat this behaviour. 

Potential Genre: Pop 

The genre that I am potentially going to work with is the Pop genre because the song will have good rhythm, and a catchy melody. The chorus is repeated several times alongside two or more verses giving enough time for the music video to create a narrative and tell a story to the audience, so they understand the deeper meaning behind the song which is usually love and relationships. Majority of the music videos in the pop music genre use very similar camera shot such as close up shots to show the artist emotions and helps emphasis the lyrics. In One Republic "counting stars" music video, the majority of the shots are filmed with a hand help camera making the audience feel disoriented, which is quite common within the genre. It can create a more personal and laid back atmosphere for the audience that makes the video more enjoyable to watch and can create a more laid back feeling.  If the artist is a pop band wide angled shots are used to show the whole band performing but will equally have close ups focusing on them too. Some music videos are just movement and dance routines and therefore consists of lots of long shots. A good example of this is Justin Bieber ‘Love Yourself’.

The Mise-en scene in pop music videos, is usually shown through brightly colour costumes and vibrant makeup. Laura Mulvey "male gaze" theory is related to the Mise-en scene, her theory implies that women are seen as sexual objects and wear extravagant and relating clothes to help attract the male audience. For example Lady Gaga wears minimal clothing in all of her videos that give off a huge sex appeal. Due to the advancing of technology location has changed dramatically as now you can use a green screen to produce beautiful scenery. 

Lighting can vary depending on what mood the artist is trying to create. Adele uses low key lighting for example in her music video Hello, as it helps create strong shadows and emphasis the dramatic mood she is trying to get across. Props are also used to help dress the scene or used a symbol to represent something important, this is used in Sia's Chandelier music video as the props are very dull so that the audience can focus more towards the dancing aspect.

The editing aspect in pop music videos is very important as it transforms the music and helps create a finishing product. Usually music videos used to be edited to match the beat of the song that is used. This can be accomplished by inputting cuts, jump cuts, match cuts and many more. This aspect can make the lip-synching look real, by matching the music to the right tempo. if the music video is in the style of a narrative it might include a voice over which has to be edited over the top of the rest of the footage.One convention  discovered that I would like to incorporate into my music is they layer tints and filters over the top of footage to boost colours and make everything crisps and look more professional. It also makes the artists look airbrushed.