House music artists

Deadmau5

Joel Zimmerman, more commonly known as deadmau5, didn't originally set out to become an electro/house music artist, but fell upon this career and ended up becoming the ground breaking musician his is today.  

At the 54th annual Grammy Awards in 2012 as part of its first ever telecast performance highlighting electronic music, he gave a monumental performance as part of the prestigious ceremony's, he is also the first electronic artist in history to grace the cover of Rolling Stone.  His sold out show at Toronto's Rogers Centre made him the first Canadian artist as well as the first electronic artist to headline this venue. He dropped three critically acclaimed albums: 4×4=12, For Lack Of A Better Name and Random Album Title and seen international chart success with singles "Sofi Needs A Ladder," "Ghosts 'n' Stuff" and "I Remember." In addition, he's collected multiple JUNO Awards and received three Grammy Award nominations.

His fan base had grown ever since he first stared out, building over 6.5 million fans on his Facebook page and over 1.3 million followers on Twitter. Plus, Deadmau5 remains an impressive concert draw, headlining the biggest festivals.

I researched in to Deadmau5 to familiarise myself with his style of music and music videos, one I was particularly intrigued by was their Telecommunications video which was shot is a very unusual way including animated drawings.  

David Guetta 

Pierre David Guetta more commonly as David Guetta, is a French house music producer; originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster (2004) and Pop Life (2007). Guetta achieved mainstream success in 2009 when his popularity hit new heights with his newest album One Love which included the hit singles "When Love Takes Over”, "Getting' Over You", "Sexy Chick", all three of which reached #1 in the United Kingdom. All of these songs featured artists from different genres such as R&B creating a convergence between the two genres. This started a new craze with house music tracks as more and more artist began to do this, this played a huge part in the popularity growth as having these other artists featuring in the songs meant it was able to be played on the radio, so more people were hearing house tracks again and beginning to enjoy them.David Guetta has sold over six million albums and 15 million singles worldwide and in 2011 Guetta was voted as the #1 DJ in the 'DJ Mag Top 100 DJs' fan poll, as well as in 2013 when Billboard crowned "When Love Takes Over”  as the number one dance-pop collaboration of all time.

I looked in to some of Guetta’s tracks to get a feel of his music was particularly inspired by his Shot me down video, an old song which he was recreated updating it to a house track, I liked this video because of the cartooned effect he created. 

Avicii

Tim Bergling, better known by his stage name Avicii (stylized as ɅVICII), is a Swedish DJ, remixer, and record producer; Avicii ranked 3rd on DJ Magazine's annual Top 100 DJs in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He has been nominated twice for a Grammy Award for his work on "Sunshine" with David Guetta in 2012 and for his song "Levels" in 2013. His other hit singles are "Wake Me Up" and "Hey Brother".In 2010, Avicii released the song "Seek Bromance", which reached the top 20 in several countries including Belgium, France, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, and Sweden. He also remixed Nadia Ali's classic single "Rapture" for her album Queen of Clubs Trilogy: Onyx Edition. Then in 2011, Avicii released "Levels" which launched him into the mainstream music scene’; This song was produced and written by Tim and contains a vocal sample from the 1962 gospel-inspired "Something's Got a Hold on Me" by Etta James. He then collaborated on a track called "Sunshine" with David Guetta was nominated for a Grammy award under the category for Best Dance Recording.  Avicii is now a successful mainstream band with his songs playing on the radio, in clubs and on music channels everyday, he had featured with other artists as well as artists featuring on his songs which allows different genres to mix together.

I specifically like Avicii’s – Addicted to you video which featured a small lego figurine throughout, which I thought was clever as house music tracks don’t usually include people but this toy acts as the protagonist in the video. 

House music culture

The house music culture is very different any other genre of music, the codes and conventions are a lot wider compared to some other genres such as indie or pop. 

Fashion

There isn't a strict dress code for house music artists, usually they are seen in casual clothing to link to the urban and underground theme to their music. However the people that appear in the music videos, particularly performance ones with shots of live crowds, are expected to dress in club style, skimpy clothing including neon coloured garments or accessories. which has been an expectation tat developed from the 80's, this was to show the people listening to the music are upbeat and vibrant, much like the sounds of house music tracks.    

However now people in the videos are dressed more casually, this shows the development of the genre over the years, and also presents the growth in the type of people tat listen to the music. Rather than a specific style of person, it has now widened to people who can fit in different genre categories, displaying the versatilely and popularity of house music.  

Lifestyle

the lifestyle of house music artists usually revolve around partying and clubbing, drinking lots of alcohol and experimenting with drugs. This is the typical expectations for house artists which developed from the 80's when the genre was at its highest point of popularity, this has calmed down a little but is still a large element which comes with this type of music.  

Target Audience

After researching into the target audience for the house music genre I have found that it is mostly listened to by people ranging from late teens to mid twenties, with no large difference between men or women listeners. This type of genre is mostly popular with people heavily involved in the club/party scene. 

House music is highly popular all round the world but especially in holiday resorts; house music is ultimately made for clubs so is ideal for party countries such as Ibiza. 

The house music genre

House music is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago in the early 1980s; in 1985 it fanned out to other major cities across North and South America, as well as Europe and later Australia. 

Early house music was generally dance-based music characterized by its repetitive beats and rhythms mainly provided by drum machines and synthesized basslines. While house displayed several characteristics similar to disco music, it was more electronic and minimalistic and the repetitive rhythm of house was more important than the song itself. House music today, while keeping several of these core elements, notably the prominent kick drum on every beat, varies a lot in style and influence, ranging from the soulful and atmospheric deep house to the more minimalistic microhouse. House music has also fused with several other genres creating fusion subgenres, such as euro house, tech house, electro house and jump house.

House music has currently become a lot more popular compared to previous years, and appears in the charts on a regular basis, this growth of increasing popularity has lead to more current artists and bands incorporating the genre into their work; artists such as Avicii, Sweedish house Mafia and Martin Garix, whom have all had top 10 hits with their house music tracks. House has proved to be a commercially successful genre and a lot more mainstream style of music and remains popular in both clubs and underground scenes as well as the pop scene. 

Goodwin's Theory

Andrew Goodwin states that there are 6 vital aspects within music videos; 

1. Demonstrations of genre characteristics
The majority of artists use this technique to show the category which they fall into; examples of this are aspirational qualities in Hip Hop/R&B videos, strong narratives in Pop videos, dance routines in band videos and live performances for heavy metal groups. These typical themes presented throughout music videos are linked with the genre of the music the band/artist fit into.

2. Relationships between lyrics and visuals. 
Lyrics are represented with images (illustrative, amplifying  or contradictory) throughout music videos, there is usually a tight correlation of the lyrics within the song and the visuals displayed to the audience; these can either support the lyrics with a demonstration of the situation or narrative, amplify the inner message with a visual interpretation, or completely contradict the lyrics all together. 


3. Relationships between music and visuals.
There is typically a link between the music within the song and the video attached to it, specifically relating to tempo and transitions; for example, in more up-beat pop videos the editing will be fast and clean cut with a general tempo matching the speed of the song. However a more sombre video will feature slower, fading cuts to enhance the mellow beat expressed throughout the song. Particular high and low points throughout these songs can be emphasised by specific changes in the style of the video, like a flash of harsher lighting or a slowed down motion in a scene. For example in the opening of Rihanna's video Unfaithful; a slow, calm tempo is used with long fading and dissolving shots, but as the pace of the music picks up, faster, clean cut editing is used. By quickening the speed of the video this emphasises the speed of the music, an effective technique used to build a growing sense of tension.  

4. Frequent references to the notion of looking
This includes screens within screens and telescopes as well as particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body; it is mainly a reference to more dated music videos which in their mise-en-scene features several depictions of people looking through mirrors or telescopes. As well as this, a lot of music videos contain lots of voyeurism, meaning depictions of the female body in a sexual manner. This is a constant feature throughout music videos whether it be the singer herself, for example Nicki Minaj, who presents herself in a sexual way in many of her music videos, or female dancers in the background of a male singer or band like the ones featured in Robin Thickes video Blurred Lines; the majority of these videos are linked with rap, hip hop or r&b videos but are recently making an appearance in many other music genres.
  

5. The demands of the record label
This will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist so they audience can familiarise themselves with the star of the video, the artist may also develop motifs which recur across their career to keep a consistency throughout their performances. It is used to primarily sell the material of the artist and also to introduce a style to which fans can relate to and imitate. An example of this is modern pop sensation Katy Perry, whose use of daring attire and gordey accessories (much like the ones worn in the California Gurls video) help promote her alternative fashion sense and bring out her bubbly personality; this has secured her a wide fanbase and broadened her popularity, in addition to having a massive impact on her fans as well as the music industry as a whole.
 

6. Intertextual references
This includes references to to films, tv programmes and other music videos; certain images are used and then recognised by the viewer, making an attempting to replicate something for either a comical effect, or the attempt to create a relationship between the artist and the original images. This technique is used in Jennifer Hudson's video Think like a man, which continuously links to the hit film Think like a man in which the song was featured. A range of chapter names included in the book within the film are projected on a screen behind the dancers in the video. Viewers who have watched the film 'Think like a man' would recognise this immediately as the book is extremely significant to the narrative in the film and is mentioned continuously. This creates a strong link between the song, music video and the film.

Codes and conventions of music genres

Codes and conventions are a set of rules which act as a guideline when creating a music video, they are used so audiences can differentiate between each type of music genre, as well as a way of constructing meaning. This meaning can be separated into two different categories, symbolic and technical. 

Symbolic
Symbols are what are created behind what you are actually viewing. For example:

• Facial expressions - body gestures 
• Mise-en-scene - props, costume and generally what it is seen within the shot

Mise-en-scene can easily differentiate between different genres; usually r&b hip-hop videos contain very elaborate props and costume such as the ones in 50 Cents - Candy shop, 50 cent is seen wearing an oversized jacket, hat, trainers and is propped up against a red Ferrari  this is very typical of the r&b genre as the artists tend to show off their wealth with pricey possessions and flaunt them in their videos.    

As well as props location is also key for representing certain genres, in the pop genre videos are usually shot in party houses or beaches to link with their upbeat lyrics used in pop songs. for example One direction - What makes you beautiful is very much typical of the pop genres videos, set on a beach with the band members dressed in preppy, smart but casual clothing with a happy, friendly and positive atmosphere. 

Costume is another aspect to mise-en-scene that displays a genre of music, for example Kings of leon - Use somebody shows the bands members dressed in casual clothing such a jeans, t-shirts and vest to link to their relaxed, laid back persona as a band. 

   

Technical 

Technology is used to show how equipment and technologies are used to contrast meaning, for example: 

• Camerawork - different camera angles and shots 
• Editing - speeding up or slowing down pace, using filters or changing the contrast and/or brightness
• Sound - diegetic and non-diegetic

Camerawork is highly important when considering the codes and conventions of music videos; certain shots can define certain genres and help to create atmosphere within a scene. Music videos usually contain a lot of the same shots depending on the style as most create the right effect needed within a typical music video, these include:

• Close ups/extreme close ups - CU's and ECU's are used a lot in music videos to focus on the artist and their facial expressions. These shots are usually very effective in
  MV's because they concentrate immensely on emotion and reactions, allowing the audience to grasp a clear understand of the artist in relation to the situation around them as well as them in general. For example the string of extreme close ups in Usher - burn.  

• Low angles - low angles are used a lot to show a sense of dominance, allowing the artist to look powerful and show authority. these types of shots are usually used on performance videos, as well as showing this presentation of supremacy it also lets the audience empathise with the people in the crowd that are watching the performance as it allows the viewer to see the artist from their eyes, making us feel as if we are part of the crowd creating a sense of belonging. For example low angles shot of Kanye West and Jay-Z in Otis.

• Long shots/extreme long shots - these types of shots are used in both narrative and performance videos, LS's and ELS's allow us to see the whole human body in relation to the environment around it; this allows us to see the setting in which the video is set in, long shots and extreme long shots are mostly used at the start of a video or at the end. However in Drakes - Headlines video long shots of him surrounded by friends are used throughout the video.

• Tracking shots - tracking shots allow the audience to feel as if they are moving with the shot, whether thats with the artist walking in a narrative based video or the camera moving to from one side to another focusing on each band member in a performance video. A tracking shot is used in Nicki Minaj - the boyz, a narrative based video, where the camera follows her as she walks down the street. 

• Panning shot - panning shots give the impression of moving and allows us to see what else i sin the shot, panning shots usually start with the main attraction of the shot then pan away from them to eventually fade out, but can be used in the opposite way to build a sense of suspense as to what the camera is panning toward; this shot is mostly used in narrative based music videos. A panning shot is used to move from one girl to next in this particular shot in Seans kingsons - Beat it video. 

• Crane shots - crane shots are mostly used in performance videos to allows us to see the whole of what the artist is seeing; for example the crowd they are playing to or the environment they're in, this allows the audience to feel a connection with the performer as we're seeing what they are. However crane shots can sometimes be used in narrative music videos, for example in Chris brown and Justin Biebers - Next to you where Chris brown is seen to be jumping over a extremely wide crack in the ground.

Editing

Music videos use a number of editing techniques to create atmosphere, enhance scenes and portray certain moods to the audience, including:

1. Lighting – low key lighting can be used to create an uneasy atmosphere t create suspense and mystery, this type of lighting can include grey or blue filters to make everything in the shot look duller.  Lighting can also be used in the opposite way by using brighter lighting to present a harsher atmosphere. This harsh lighting effect is used in videos such as Drake's – find your love video, when he is captured by the villain in the video he is shown in a dark environment but with harsh lighting focused on him, to show interrogation.   

However high key lighting can also be used to make scenes look more cheery and joyful, much like in most pop videos where the light is always bright to release a sense of happiness when watching the video; much like in One directions –Best song ever where luminous, radiant lighting is used throughout. This type of lighting is mostly used in pop videos to portray their happiness and high energy fuelled songs/videos. 

2. Special effects – special effects are mostly used in pop or r&b videos to either portray their quirky personality or to make a video look effective and highly memorable; these effects can range from car explosions to floating objects; in David Guetta - I can only imagine special effects are used to present a futuristic theme of the video, such as  hi-tech pop up touch-screen projections.  

3. Filters -  filters can be used in all genres of music videos but are mostly popular with r&b videos; filters can be used in a whole video or individual sections typically used to portray flashbacks or a change in time. There are a range of different filters including: 

• Black & white to display a lack of or increase of emotion like in Beyonce - If i were a boy.

• Magenta to portray romance/anger/danger like in Bad meets Evil Ft. Bruno Mars - Lighters.

• Sepia to give an aged effect like in Christina Aguilera - Hurt. 

• Cyan to create futuristic/mysterious atmosphere like in Katy Perry Ft. Kanye West - E.T.    

4. Split screens are also a highly used editing technique used in lots of music videos; split screens are used to show two different perspectives in the same scene, this allows the audience to see both parties of the music video at the same time in two different scenarios making the viewer seem omniscient as they are seeing more than the actual artist themselves. an example of a split screen is in Keri Hilsons - Knock you down. 

Sound is used in music videos ultimately to play the track itself, but as well as this diegetic sound non-diegetic sound is used to emphasise certain lyrics or moment in the video. For example in Rihanna - Russian Roulette where the sound of a gun being loaded in added into the track to add to the visual appearance of the hand gun in the video. 

Music videos can be categorized into 2 main styles, these include: 

1. Performance
2. Narrative

1. Performance videos mainly focus on the artist/band, whether rehearsing or playing in front of an audience; they rarely use narrative within the video as the main focus is ultimately on them and their performance. These types of videos usually use a wide range of camera angles to look at all perspectives of the artist/band, typically switching from showing one band member to the next. This style of music video has been used a vast amount of times and is particularly popular with rock bands, and example of a performance video is Linken Park - Faint. 

2. Narrative videos are essentially a video with a story behind it, a visual representation of the lyrics being sung by the artist/band. A video in this style uses a very wide variety of camera shots and angles to connote a range of perspectives that link to the situation being portrayed. Narrative music videos are popular with a lot of genres but specifically pop, hip hop and r&b artists; a video that uses this narrative style is Trey Songz - Can't help but wait. This type of music video uses a range of camera shots and angles but tends to use a lot of close ups to focus on the protagonists in the narrative being performed as well as the performer themselves. 

Music videos can also fall in between both categories, where there is not only elements of narrative but performance as well. For example Taylor Swift - Fifteen has both a link to the video to the lyrics and performance sections within it. 

The History Of Music Videos

A music video is a short 3-4 minute long video clip that accompanies a song, usually produced for promotional purposes, they provide a visual representation of the artist and their music for the audience. Music videos are equally important to the artist as they are to the music industry; artists are allowed to express their lyrics in any form in which they feel necessary. Music videos can be incredibly powerful with the right music video, an unknown artist can attract a more mainstream audience, resulting in a growth of popularity and ultimately making them earn more money. 


The initial idea of music videos were developed over a period of time originally starting in the 1980's; first of all the 'illustrated song' was introduced by sheet music publishers Edward B. Marks and Joe stern who projected a series of still images on screen simultaneously to a live performance and their song "The little lost child." These were then accompanied by the arrival of 'talkies', 'soundies' and 'shorts' between 1926-1959. 
Musical films were another important factor to the development of music videos and still influenced a few well-known music videos which have imitated the typical style of classic Hollywood musicals from 1930s-1950s. One of the best-known examples is Madonna's 1985 video for "Material Girl" which was closely modelled on Jack Cole's staging of "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" from the hit film ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’. Several of Michael Jackson's videos show an evident influence of the dance sequences in classic Hollywood musicals, including "Thriller" as well as "Bad" which was heavily influenced by the dance "fights" in the film West Side Story; all highly successful and iconic music videos. 

By the 1980’s, the U.S video channel MTV launched, airing "video killed the radio star" and beginning an era of 24-hour-a-day music on television; in this period, directors and the acts began to explore and expand the form and style of the genre, using more sophisticated effects in their videos, mixing film and video, and adding a storyline or plot to the music video. Occasionally videos were made in a non-representational form in which the musical artist were not shown. Because music videos are mainly intended to promote the artist, such videos are comparatively rare. MTV gradually became more and more popular from here on as more musical videos were being produced and then broadcasted on this channel. 

Then in 1985, MTV then launched the channel VH1, featuring softer music, and meant to cater to an older demographic than MTV. MTV Europe was launched in 1987 followed by MTV Asia in 1991. Another important development in music videos was the launch of The Chart Show on the UK's Channel 4 in 1986; this was a program which consisted entirely of music videos without any presenters. 

There are now a huge range of different music channel showing hundreds of mus videos a day, music videos popularity have had a continuous growth over the past few decades and it is expected they will continue to do so.