Music Video Genres

What is Genre?

Genre is a critical tool that helps us study texts and audience responses to texts by dividing them into categories based on common elements.

Three Types of Genre

Clear Genre - Blank Space (Taylor Swift) 

This music video is a clear example of a song and video within the Pop genre. The video is in a performance and narrative style which is typical for this genre.

At 0:24 we see a close up of the artist which is conventional for Pop music videos. This shot makes it clear that she is the main focus for the audience. She also sings directly to the camera which is generic for performance and pop videos to make the audience feel more involved in the video. 

In a majority of shots she is the more dominant character in narrative scenes which shows she has more importance and the music video is all about her and her music. This is also conventional for a Pop music video as it is common the artists appear in their own videos. 

(1:25)

(1:11)

The colour design of the music video is usually quite bright, especially in narrative scenes where the couple are supposed to be happy. There is also high-key lighting used. This is generic in Pop videos since the songs are usually upbeat and happy. The video does not touch on any inappropriate themes that other genres may explore since Pop music is generically aimed at young people, and for this artist in particular it would be aimed at girls.

Sub-Genre - Hurricane (Halsey)



This is an example of an Indie Pop music video which is a sub-genre of Alternative Rock. This video is in a narrative style which is common in this type of genre.

(2:42)

(1:48)

The colour design of this music video is very dark, with very low key lighting used. This is common in the indie pop genre as the artist and target audience may be interested in a grunge style. Costumes are usually quite fashionable and would represent what young people would be wearing. 

(0:30)

For example, the main female character has a quite 90's throwback costume which has recently become popular again, with the choker and big sunglasses. 

(1:25)
It is also very conventional that the people cast are young/teens. This is a popular genre amongst that age group which makes the narrative more relatable. Coming of age is a typical theme to showcase in music videos with this genre, such as experimenting with alcohol and cigarettes and first love.

Hybrid Genre - The Vendetta (Myth City)



This example shows the genres of rap over metal which sticks to the conventional performance elements of metal and hip-hop music. For example, there are shots of them as a whole band and shots of the lead vocalist alone, rapping directly to the camera.

At 0:53 we see a shot which is common within the metal genre, which pays a lot of focus to the instruments rather than the people playing them. For example, the guitar is a much more dominant subject in the clip rather than the guitarist, this shot used during guitar solos or impressive riffs. 

However at 2:08, we see a shot much more conventional of the hip-hop genre where the vocalist is the main subject in the shot, where he has the body language and style of a rapper and is rapping directly to the camera.

Generic Conventions and Genre Themes

The 1975 - Robbers

Typical Mise-en-Scene style:

(1:00)

(1:02)

This music video has a dim colour design, with an effective use of low-key lighting to create silhouette shots of the singer. Props such as alcohol and drugs are common in this type of genre which are heavily referenced in this music video (0:59 - we see Matty smoking). The set design is very simple, with locations in run-down areas. The camera is hardly ever static with quite a few pans, and a variety of shots but the male (Matty Healy) is the dominant character in this music video with more shots of him on his own. These techniques re-occur, since the editing is not in chronological so we leave and come back to the same scene many times.

Typical Narrative:

(2:51)
This music video has the narrative of a relationship that is solely around the use of drugs and drinking where they are literally "Robbers." This narrative is typical in this type of genre with reference to love and drugs (seen at 1:22). It also has elements of performance, where Matty sings the lyrics to the female in the music video but narrative is the main style since it takes inspiration from the lyrics and song itself.

Typical Representations:

(2:23)

Archetypes could be applied to the characters in this music video. Such as the failing man, which could be applied to Matty Healy since he has had to resort to robbing and drugs having a huge hold over him.

Typical Sound Design:

(2:06)

This is a typical example of sound design, with there being no other sound other than the song. But emphasis on what the characters would be saying to each other which makes the audience understand what is going on. 

Typical Editing Style:

The edits are simple cuts, with parallel editing, e.g clips are not in chronological order, but all lead to same end. For example we see the process of the robbery, snippets of their relationship and drug use which helps us build an understanding of the character's relationship and the song.

Themes of Crime/Non-Conformity:

(2:13)

This theme is a strong part of this music video with the use of drugs and also the robberies that the couple undertake. This is a clear theme, since it seems like it is something the couple have done many times, which suggests they do not conform to the norms of society and are represented as outsiders on the rest of society since they are the only ones in the shot and appear to hang out in run down areas. 

Themes of Drugs:

(1:56)
This is a popular theme within this genre, which again creates the representation of the couple being on the outskirts of society. It seems to have a hold over them and be a big part of their relationship which causes issues and brings them closer together at the same time. This is common in other videos across a few genres, but with this one in particular showcases the after effects or has a more graphic and realistic view, for example we see them in bed, the female watching Matty smoking and they both look exhausted.

Themes of Romance:

(2:37)
This is a popular theme within this genre, but is shown in a different way to Pop music videos. It shows the daily life and more realistic view of a couple e.g. fighting, dates whereas Pop music videos tend to offer "fairytale" endings to the song and video, where the boy gets the girl or the boy dumps his "popular" girlfriend for the "nerdy" girl next door.