Andrew Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory'

Andrew Goodwin believes that the traditional narrative isn't used in music videos.

This isn't because pop videos are trying to be 'avant garde', they just approach the aspect of a narrative in a different way and from a different angle then novels and films.

The reasons that music videos have a different approach to the 'traditional' narrative are:

1. Music videos are obviously based around the song, and often songs don't base themselves around a traditional narrative structure (i.e normality-problem-solution). Because music video's are only 3-5 minutes long, it's very difficult to get a full story completed from start to finish, so the storyline is either very simple or totally random so that it doesn't need to have a specific ending.
2. Music videos sometimes use the singer as the narrator and the character in the video which isn't something that happens in films etc.
3. During music videos, the singer normally looks directly into the camera, directing their lyrics and music at the audience. The camera often moves and is very rarely static.
   

Music videos, mainly pop videos, rely quite a lot on repetition. For example, there might be certain images that will show when the chorus comes in and then each time the chorus comes in the same image will show. This makes the video easy to remember and helps keep the artist fresh in the viewers minds. Other song's will take the same chords, or will use the same techniques in order to make the song fit with the genre which then makes the song familiar for the listener. 

Finally the music would be played on the radio and shown on TV, there could also be adverts for the music so that people get to listen to a snippet of the song, which helps them decide if they want to go and search up the whole song or not.
Music video's often end with a climax, or will fade out leaving the listener wanting more. This helps promote the artist's other music as well as their single.

Here are some music videos that give evidence of Andrew Goodwin's Theory:

Lana Del Ray - Blue Jeans:



She's singing about a boy that she misses, and their is a man in the music video that represents the person she singing about. There isn't a massive storyline, but a loose storyline which is just enough to make the listener want to watch until the end and listen to the whole song. 

Coldplay Ft. Rihanna - Princess Of China:

This music video doesn't really have a storyline, but in order to relate the lyrics and song to the music video, the setting relates to china which links the setting with the title of the song along with Rihanna who could represent the 'Princess'.