Pop codes and conventions and analysis

The genre of pop music came about in the 1950's where, at the time, rock and roll was the most popular genre. The pop genre itself is very upbeat, fun and with a tendency to appeal to teenagers or a younger audience. A lot of pop music videos in today's world contain performative routines, vibrant colours and have special effects edited on to them. In pop music videos artists portray their wealth throughout. They tend to use expensive things such as cars to show their wealth and specific clothes to show sexuality.

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Camera:

Shots in pop-music videos are constantly changing, this is because they tend to have a narrative and many shots will be needed to follow the story-line. Close ups are frequently used in order to show the artists emotions for example Rihanna in Stay. There aree several shots where we can see her smudged make-up running down her face.

Most of the video focuses on her facial expression and how she is begging someone she loves to stay. On her facial expression we can see how heartbroken she is by the camera focusing only on her eyes and eye bags. They look tired and this conveys the idea that she is going through a lot of pain and that she is exhausted.

There are some long-shots showing the whole setting which consist of her in a bathtub covered up to her neck and the wáter covering her neck represents that she is drowning in all these emotions and that she is deeply hurt.

Voyeurism:

Voyeurism is commonly used in pop music videos, this consists of woman shown in a sexual nature during the video. Today, this is done by both, male and female artists in different ways. Voyeurism can be used to tell a story such as Last Friday Night by Katty Perry where there are a few scenes which show some shirtless teenage boys but this was not used in order to attract people but to follow the narrative of the video which basically is uncontrolled teenagers throwing a massive party.

The other form of voyeurism is when it is used to attract people, male gaze plays a big role in this type of voyeurism because many pop music videos sexualise woman in order to attract a male audience. Such is the example of the music video We Can't Stp by Miley Cyrus. This video shows girls dancing and wearing very little clothes in order to appeal to a male audience.

Editing:

The editing in pop music videos depends on the pace the song has, for example Taylor Swift shake it off is an example of editing a video at fast pace. It is essential for the editing to be synchronised with the pace of the song and its beat. It will usually match the beat and have a link to the lyrics.

Setting:

Setting is essential in pop music videos, it must be catchy in order to appeal to its audience. Nevertheless, the setting of the music video depends on what the artist wants or what the song is about. For example Miley Cyrus's music video We Can't Stop is set up at a house where she throws a totally chaotic party, this will appeal to an audience that aspire to go partying like crazy.