Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin had identified some of the features in music videos. Andrew Goodwin who was in Dancing in Distraction Factory which was released in 1992. There are key features in a music video. For example there is a relationship between the lyrics of the song and the visuals of the video (they could go with or go against the music video). There are demands of the records label would include the need for close ups of the singer and band this way artists sometime develop motifs for example Micheal Jackson's glove. This helps the artist as people will remember the artist easier as each time they see the mostif of that artist they will instantly remember the artist. Also music videos demostrate certain charactistics for example boy/girl bands dance routines.

Other features in music videos are the representation of women in music videos. The representation of women in music videos are very similar to how they are represented in films. Women are viewed as the objects of male erotic desire in films and music videos. This links with Laura Mulvey theories of  the male gaze.  Also music videos demostrate certain genre characteristics such as in boy/girl bands have dance routines.

Here are Andrew Goodwin's 5 theories:

1.Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (eg stage performance in metal video, dance routine for boy/girl band).

2.There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

3.The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style) EG Katy Perry / Michael Jackson (to be analysed in separate blogs).

4.There is frequently reference to the notion of looking (screens within screens, telescopes, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

5.There is often intertextual reference (to films, TV programmes, other music videos, etc).



Relation of visuals to song
There are 3 types of visuals to songs illustrate, Amplify, Disjuncture. Illustrate is a music videos which uses a set of images to show the meaning of the lyrics & genre this is the most common one used. The second type of visual of songs is Amplify which is when the meanings and effects are manipulated and constantly shown (images get repeated). The final one is Disjuncture and is when the meaning of the song is completly ignored so if the lyrics are happy and the video is sad this would be disjuncture.

An example of Amplify is Rather Be by Clean Bandit.

An example of Illustrate is Beat it by Michael Jackson.

An example of Disjuncture is Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.