Research for Music Video: Andrew Goodwin's theory

Andrew Goodwin explains in his theory, that music videos approach narrative from a different angle to novels and films. He puts this down to the fact that pop videos are built around songs, which often do not pose traditional narrative structures, the pop video uses the singer as both narrator and character, and lastly, the singer often breaks the fourth wall. Goodwin also provides information on why repetition is used by saying that pop songs and videos do not have a form of closure and ending, therefore it often builds to a climax or to constant repetition before fading away. Videos also sometimes go beyond the original meaning in terms of visualisation to provide visual pleasure and encourage repeated viewing to promote the music or perhaps promote a film. Therefore Goodwin has categorised music videos into three different groups.






Illustration is where the video tells the story of the lyric. Dance is often used to express the feelings/mood in the song.

FOR EXAMPLE:

"Neyo – Miss Independent" :-

This is an example of Illustration because the video tells the story of the lyric and Dance is also used to express the lyric of the Independent woman.

Another example of illustration, this time for a British artist (which is the area we are studying for our music video) is:

 "Ed Sheeran – A-Team"

A-team is a song about a girl who is homeless and selling her body for Class-A drugs, and that is exactly what is depicted in the video.

Amplification occurs when the videos introduce new meanings that do not contradict with the lyrics but add new layers of meaning.

FOR EXAMPLE:

"Gotye ft Kimbra – Somebody that I used to know" :-

This song is about a bad break-up from a relationship. However, the video does not reflect this, but shows two people fading into the background and becoming a part of the scenery. This does not contradict the lyrics, but adds layers of meanings, because the song is about “somebody that you used to know”, and once you break up, you both fade into the background of each other’s lives. Gotye uses the lyrics “you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough” in the chorus, and in the video he is becoming part of the wallpaper, because she acts as though she does not notice him.
Another example of amplification, this time by a British artist is:

"Emeli Sande - Clown"

The song lyrics are about someone feeling so  pathetic in life, it's as though they are only alive so that their sad life can be entertainment to others. However, the video depicts the word "clown" as almost a puppet, and the video is symbolic of someone being forced to preform under someone else's terms.

Disjuncture is where there is little connection between the lyric and video or where the video contradicts the lyric.

FOR EXAMPLE:

"Rudimental ft Ella Eyre – Waiting all night"

This song sounds like a typical love song about a woman waiting all night for someone to tell her that they need and want her. However the video is of a man that has an accident when performing tricks on his bike, which results in the loss of his leg. This then leads on to him learning how to carry on with his life and doing things as normal even with his loss. Therefore there is little connection between the song lyric and the video.

Goodwin mentions some recognisable features of music videos. For example, the way in which women are presented as objects of male desire in particularly heavy metal and hip hop videos. However, some women deliberately place themselves in this position, such as Madonna and Beyonce, but then go against the convention of women being passive, by staring directly down the camera.

Sometimes effects are used instead of instruments and props, and videos try to cater for as wide an audience as possible, whilst focusing on the target audience. When promoting a film, videos also incorporate images from the movie, such as "Celine Dion - My Heart Will Go On" and the film "Titanic."