What Is A Music Video?

A music video is a short film produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are predominantly made as a way of marketing the artist and to help promote sales of their works.  Although the origins of these videos date back much further, they became distinctive in the 1980’s, when MTV based their format around this media text.  Prior to the 80s, these works were described by various terms including "illustrated song", "filmed insert", "promotional film", "promotional clip" or "film clip".

Music videos use a wide range of filming styles, including animation, live action filming, documentaries, and abstract film. Some music videos blend different styles, such as animation and live action. However, these can all generally be classified into three different types: narrative, performance and a hybrid of both.

A narrative music video is one that tells a story, which, depending on the genre and artist, is or is not related to the song itself. An example of a narrative music video would be Green Day’s ‘Jesus of Suburbia.’ 

A performance music video is the one used to heavily promote the artist. It features them performing their song, usually in front of an audience, and focuses heavily on the singer and instruments, if they are using any. An example of a performance music video is 30 Seconds To Mars, 'Closer To The Edge.'

A hybrid of both is a music video that both tells a story, but also has shots featuring only the artist. An example of this would be Good Charlotte’s ‘Predictable.’