Music video structure - Initial look at music videos

At the beginning of the research stage of the coursework, I looked at three music videos and made notes on the structure, such as graphics, if a story was created, the types of people in the video (artists included) and any figurative meaning in the lyrics that was conveyed in the visual. The videos I watched were Roar (Katy Perry, 2013), I'm Fine (Chip featuring Stormzy and Shalo, 2014) and When The Sun Goes Down (Arctic Monkeys, 2006) - all of different genres and made in different ways.

What I noticed about the first music video, Roar, was that it was constructed like a mini movie (which is common for pop songs), due to the fact that there were graphics at the beginning (Roar - A motion theory adventure filmed in Junglescope) and end (The End - Roar). The story of the video, about Perry surviving in the jungle alone, is conveyed in lyrics such as 'You held me down, but I got up/Get ready cause I've had enough' and 'And you're gonna hear me roar' that promote and are about self-empowerment. Perry's performing of the song while communicating the story of her finding ways of surviving in the jungle makes this message even more powerful.

The music video for 'I'm Fine' is very different from the one for 'Roar' as it features Chip, Stormzy, Shalo and their friends dancing in an underground street setting, while performing the track, rather than a story that is reflected in the lyrics. I've found that this is a typical convention of grime/hip-hop music videos used by artists of the genre, such as Stormzy in the 'Shut Up' music video. 

Like 'Roar', the music video for 'When The Sun Goes Down' also tells a story that connects to the lyrics - the latter tells a story about a prostitute and a man who is implied to be a pimp, albeit with scenes that resemble flashbacks, and the title of this Arctic Monkeys indie rock/punk song connects to the day and night scenes of the video as well as the city's daytime appearance juxtaposing the prostitution trade at night. Unlike the two previous videos, the band does not feature in this one, which is not common as most artists/bands/groups are in their own video to promote themselves and their image as well as their songs - instead, the Arctic Monkeys are solely promoting their music; they could be seen as wanting their listeners to appreciate them for their sound, rather than their image.