OVERVIEWS OF POP PROMOS: WHAT MAKES A GOOD POP PROMO?

A music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music/song.
A pop promo consists of many different things. The key features of a pop promo are:

• The relationship between the visuals and the music- does the music match what you see on screen? For example if if there are quick edits n fast cuts is there a fast pace of music harmonising what you are seeing. In a music video the visuals will illustrate, amplify or contradict the music.

• The relationship between the visuals and the lyrics- do the lyrics match what you see on screen? For example if the lyrics are saying something bout car crash, do you see a car crash on the video at the same time. Key lines may play a part in the visuals linked with the song however it is very rarely that a music video will simply illustrate the lyrics wholesale. In a music video the visuals again will illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics.

• Musical genres- what type of genre is it? Are there any genre characteristics of the music style? Some music genres tend to have their own style of music videos such as in heavy rock music the video usually consist of performance maybe on a live stage, rather than any use of narrative.

• Star image, vehicle, and power- star image: How a star is perceived by the audience, star vehicle: a product constructed around a star its primary purpose is to promote that star, star power: 1. economic power through earnings generated by the sales of product 2. Artistic power 3. Ideological powering terms of their influence upon the audience which may take the form of style or attitude.

• Intertextuality- inertextuality is using something the audience might be familiar with, to generate both nostalgic associations and new meanings. Greater pleasure may be derived to those from the audience who recognise the reference and feel flattered by this.

• How audiences are targeted- the audience is targeted depending on the band or artist and which type of music genre they fit into, for example if it was a boy band who fit into pop music the target audience would probably be about young teenagers bout 13- 16 and maybe mums is well. If the target audience is correct then the pop promo should be successful.

• The promotion of the band/artist- if the band or artist get promoted then they can create better pop promos e.g. they will have more money and more resources and have the experts making their pop promo, so it will look better and would be of higher quality.

• Iconography of the band/ artist- iconography refers to visual motifs that allow audiences to identify certain things.

• Narrative and performance- having an interesting narrative makes a pop promo good because even if people don’t like the song or the band/artist they may still watch the promo to see what happens in it. Some promos don’t involve any performance at all and some pop promos are performance all the way through, rock bands usually tend to have just performance in their promos.

• Voyeurism- voyeurism is the satisfaction you get from watching something such as a film, or music video. Voyeurism is applied in music videos by having either the male or female sex showing off their body and other parts, which creates a gaze from the viewer to what is being displayed on screen.

• Exhibitionism- exhibitionism is what could be termed as the opposite of voyeurism, this is where the more powerful independent female artists by being sexually provocative and inviting a sexualised gaze to the viewers eye. This may be a reason why men watch female artists music videos, especially if the don’t like the song.

• Editing- editing plays a big part in making a decent pop promo, many music videos involve editing but some use more than others. There are also use of the effects and CGI, kanye West ft T-Pain – Good life is an example of a video that uses many different effects I really like this video because it is rather unique, you do not see music videos a lot and its really cool and interesting to watch and is humorous at times is well.

• Cinematography- camera movement may accompany movement of performers (walking, dancing etc) however it may also be used to create a more dynamic feel to stage performance, for instance, by constantly circling the band as they perform on stage. There more variety and complexity of shots the more attractive it is to watch.

• Mis-En-Scene- Mis-En-Scene also plays a huge part in making a music video successful because it covers where the video is set, the costumes the band/artist are wearing, the lighting and many other factors. The setting of the video fits in with narrative is well if there is a narrative to the video then there will usually be various different locations throughout the video on the other hand if the video is performance based then it will most probably be only one location which is likely to be a stage. Costumes fit in with voyeurism and exhibitionism because depending on what the band/artist wear determines whether there will be a ‘gaze’ from the audience.