1. Why Videos? The Need for the Music Video
The use of a video to accompany an artist’s song has and is becoming a very important and
influential part of the music industry. For example, Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style’, would have probably just
flopped like every other song he released if he hadn’t of created the infectiously funny music video
for the song. After the video going viral for only a couple of months, it became the most viewed
video on YouTube with over a one billion views, Psy made guests appearances on the Jonathon Ross
Show, the Ellen Show, and Radio 1 etc. Essentially, the video is what made him the mega star that he
is today.
There is a video on YouTube of Chris Parr describing the use and importance of the use of music
videos. Chris Parr works for Spalding Entertainment and is the former vice President of Music
Programming and Talent Relations for Country Music Television. The information he gives within the
video is mostly about the promotion of country music through the use of videos. The topics he
covers however can reflect on all genres of music, not just country. He believes that the use of a
music video to accompany an artists track help it out greatly in terms of artist recognition and
amount of income. The main reason for these benefits boil down to the fact that the use of music
videos give a visual insight into the song and the artist’s creativity behind it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3XEWnEgSv4
There are many purposes of creating a music video for a song, they may include; promoting a
particular artist and extending their income, sales of a particular song due to the popularity of the
video or the artist’s popularity. A good example of an artist trying to promote themselves through a
music video is Cheryl Cole with ‘Fight for this Love’. This was her first song that she released after
leaving Girls Aloud to go solo. To promote her separation from the group the music video was very
much based around her and her new found independence. Even before the song was released there
was a lot of hype and buzz surrounding Cheryl regarding her potential as a solo artist. Despite the
song itself being a success, the video helped to attract many different types of audiences. Another
artist that did a similar thing to Cheryl Cole is Geri Halliwell. She also split away from a girl group to
kick start a solo career. "It's Raining Men" was the first single of Geri Halliwell's second solo album
and was also on the soundtrack to the film Bridget Jones's Diary. It was released in April, 2001. The
music video was directed by Jim Canty and Jake-Sebastian Wynne. The opening of the video for Geri
Halliwell's version of the song is inspired by the audition scene in the 1983 film Flashdance. The
remainder is inspired by the 1980 film Fame. Replicating these particular scenes makes the video
appeal to not just too existing Spice Girl fans, but to a male audience due to the sex appeal of the
video.

2. Cheryl Cole – Fight For This Love http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4umc87T5UMs
Geri Halliwell – It’s Raining Men http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqXUpe3jlkA
A large percentage of songs popularity comes down to the music video that accompanies it. The
most obvious example of recent times is Psy’s viral smash hit ‘Gangnam Style’. The music video
shows Psy performing a comical horse riding dance through various parts of the Gangnam District in
Korea. After its release on July 15, it overtook Carly Rae Jepsen’s ‘Call Me Maybe’ to reach the
number 1 spot on YouTube top 100 videos. Gangnam Style increased to an average of over nine
million views per day within just two months. On September 3, 2012, the number of daily views
generated by "Gangnam Style" went past the five-million mark. By the end of September, it had
topped the iTunes charts in 31 countries. The Dong-a Ilbo, a South Korean newspaper, quoted the
following statement released by YouTube, "From July 15, when the music video was uploaded on the
site, to September 28, the video was accessed by people in 222 countries, more than the 193
member countries of the U.N."
This is a prime example of how an almost unheard of artist can gain great publicity and popularity via
a music video. Even the most famous and top celebrities in the music industry can lose out on
ratings due to an unsuccessful video. For example, Radiohead were and are currently still one of the
biggest British bands in the world. They have won several awards for their work including best album
for ‘OK Computer’. However, even a band with the stardom like Radiohead can lose out on ratings
by not releasing a video for a song. One of their best tracks, ‘Exit Music for a Film’, didn’t receive the
recognition it deserved due to the fact that they never created a video for it. Even though lots of
fans of the band will have heard the song, a video have allowed even more listeners to hear it via
suggestions online on YouTube and Soundcloud.

3. Music channels have changed the way that artists and musicians gain acknowledgment and respect
by promoting the artists song with their music video. The channels allow viewers to visually get
engaged with their favourite songs and just add another angle to the music. Lots of music channels
provide chart countdowns to reveal who the currant number 1 song is. This adds an element of
competition to the music industry that the whole public can get involved with. Another advantage of
having television channels is that it doesn’t always have to be non-stop music videos; you can often
find interviews with artists, programmes dedicated to a particular artist and coverage of gigs or
festivals etc. Using these channels for music videos is almost the equivalent of a business using an
advert to promote themselves. It has a visual impact on the audience making the artist more
recognisable, whereas the radio only gives you the song.
A lot of songs that are created get lots more publicity and
recognition through the use of synergy. For instance, when
certain songs are used for TV shows/adverts or films etc. For
example, the new James Bond film ‘Skyfall’ used Adele for the
theme song. Almost every artist that has been involved with a
Bond film has had great success and Adele was no different. It
also helped that the particular film she was working with was
the 50th anniversary of the James Bond franchise. Using such a
high brow artist like Adele for this role automatically created
a lot of buzz and anticipation not only for the film but the
theme song.
Another example of the use of synergy in terms song recognition is the John Lewis Christmas
adverts. For the 2011 Christmas advert, the chosen song was by an unheard of artist called Slow
Moving Millie. After weeks of the advert being broadcasted on TV it gained instant popularity and
straight away entered the charts.