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Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Q Magazine: ''Mini-Movie'' Music Videos
In the Q Magazine article, Dave Grohl argues that '' When musicians start to use the phrase 'mini-movie' to describe a video, it's time to quit''. He goes on to say that the internet goes on to unpack the sexual and racial politics of the video, forgetting that its just a regular thing for a 'pop star' to do in their career. Grohl slates the idea of a ''mini-movie'' music video stating them to be ''long, self-regarding, hubristic and flamboyantly expensive'', with ''bonus points for celebrity appearances and homage to obvious movies''.
The article suggests that an event video is a window in the musicians mind, and is designed to project power and money into the eye of their audience however, often ends up revealing the artists fatal floors. Despite this, Grohl argues that the only thing that matters to the artist is the short term impact. With Billboard now having a top 100 video list on Youtube that takes into account Vevo's views, he suggests that the artist is aiming for the most amount of hits for a controversial video and not the art form they are creating. It is clearly suggested that these songs become big due to their internet popularity not due to the worthiness of the song. For example, ''Bad Blood'' by Taylor Swift only topped Billboards chart for a week due to it's amount of hits/views on Youtube. Similarly, Rihanna's ''Bitch Better Have My Money'' surfaced at number 17 on the chart without it's video, showing how the controversial nature of her ''mini-movie'' boosted the songs ratings overall.
Grohl, however, does state that some ''mini-movies'' can do themselves justice, such as Kendrick Lammar's ''Alright'' event video which clearly relates to the zeitgeist of America at the time of it's release. He goes on to say that many of these justifying ''mini-movies'' are few and far between, proving that the ''mini-movie'' should be left out of the music industry.
Personally, I believe the ''mini-movie'' music video can do itself justice if it is relevant to the type of the song or of the time of its release. ''Mini-movies'', in my opinion, can work if they are made using high quality, cinematic shots, rather than low quality/under prepared ideas. If the concept of the ''mini-movie'' music video is to challenge perceptions or address real life issues then I believe that the ''mini-movie'' does justice to the artist creating the meaning. However, weak storylines and bad acting can ruin the music videos intention and appear as a ''cringy'' which takes away the entire thought process of the original idea and creates a platform of mockery for all those viewing it.
Overall, I believe that the ''mini-movie'' music video can be just as effective as a short length music video if the concept is right, however I also think that it is easy for an artist to misrepresent themselves or ruin the meaning of their song by choosing the ''mini-movie'' route.
The article suggests that an event video is a window in the musicians mind, and is designed to project power and money into the eye of their audience however, often ends up revealing the artists fatal floors. Despite this, Grohl argues that the only thing that matters to the artist is the short term impact. With Billboard now having a top 100 video list on Youtube that takes into account Vevo's views, he suggests that the artist is aiming for the most amount of hits for a controversial video and not the art form they are creating. It is clearly suggested that these songs become big due to their internet popularity not due to the worthiness of the song. For example, ''Bad Blood'' by Taylor Swift only topped Billboards chart for a week due to it's amount of hits/views on Youtube. Similarly, Rihanna's ''Bitch Better Have My Money'' surfaced at number 17 on the chart without it's video, showing how the controversial nature of her ''mini-movie'' boosted the songs ratings overall.
Grohl, however, does state that some ''mini-movies'' can do themselves justice, such as Kendrick Lammar's ''Alright'' event video which clearly relates to the zeitgeist of America at the time of it's release. He goes on to say that many of these justifying ''mini-movies'' are few and far between, proving that the ''mini-movie'' should be left out of the music industry.
Personally, I believe the ''mini-movie'' music video can do itself justice if it is relevant to the type of the song or of the time of its release. ''Mini-movies'', in my opinion, can work if they are made using high quality, cinematic shots, rather than low quality/under prepared ideas. If the concept of the ''mini-movie'' music video is to challenge perceptions or address real life issues then I believe that the ''mini-movie'' does justice to the artist creating the meaning. However, weak storylines and bad acting can ruin the music videos intention and appear as a ''cringy'' which takes away the entire thought process of the original idea and creates a platform of mockery for all those viewing it.
Overall, I believe that the ''mini-movie'' music video can be just as effective as a short length music video if the concept is right, however I also think that it is easy for an artist to misrepresent themselves or ruin the meaning of their song by choosing the ''mini-movie'' route.
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