Music Video Conventions

Ska/2Tone - by Alex Brown

This genre became popular in the UK during the 1970s and 1980s, a revival of the genre which was popular in Jamaica in the 1960s. Well known bands include Bad Manners, The Specials and Madness. A lot of ska songs from the late 1970s do not have a music video, like most bands from all genres.

The videos usually contain a performance from the whole band with a unique style of choreography, containing instruments such as the trombone, saxophone and trumpet. Most videos, especially from Madness, use a lot of irony and humour. Strong colours are often used which certainly make the videos stand out. Another typical convention of the ska genre is the fast paced nature of both the music and the videos.

Different locations are usually used in the videos, adding to the variety. For example in 'House of Fun' by Madness, the location constantly alternates between a playing field, a liquor store, a chemists, a barbers and a fairground.
Visual appeal is a large factor in videos in the ska genre, with many different artistic camera shots and fast cuts. In terms of lighting, the videos are usually bright to highlight the strong colours.

There is almost always a lyrical connection with the videos, for example 'Our House' by Madness which is filmed around a suburban house and 'Ghost Town' by The Specials which is filmed around deserted streets.

Rock - by Diranjeet Sohi
All rock videos have the band performing in the video, even if the audience only catch glimpses of them. Usually, the band are dressed in edgy clothing respective of their rebellious personalities. They can also be wearing spikes, metal chains, all black clothing, heavy tattoos and piercings. Of course, these all depend on the subgenres. Rock music expresses many issues/ events/ emotions or they can just be about having fun. Green Day, a popular punk rock band, usually cover controversial topics like the wars in the Middle East in videos like Wake Me Up When September Ends and 21st Century Breakdown. Evanescence, a gothic rock band, deals with themes of life, death, love, relationships and the spiritual. Therefore, their videos use a variety of images. Editing tends to be quick since the songs mostly upbeat.

80s Hip Hop - by Laurie Ewen

Although many of the hip hop videos that have been made in recent years have featured high amounts of concentration on women who assist the rappers and their wealth, in the 1980s, the conventions of hip hop music videos were very different. It was a time when there was a noticeable segregation in the social positions of black and white people in the USA and although the levels of racism were arguably less than it had been previously, the divide in the living conditions of the two ethnicities were often rapped about in the music and portrayed in the music videos in accordance to the lyrical content. Public Enemy, for example, had music videos for songs such as 'Fight The Power', which shows a large group of people of an African/Caribbean descent in a protest environment holding signs and pictures of Martin Luther King. Grandmaster Flash also used shots of poor urban life in videos for songs such as 'The Message', which portrayed the lesser living conditions of black people in America, as well as their struggles with the police.