Pop Music Videos

Pop Music Video's Timeline

Genie In A Bottle- Christina Aguilera:1999

Christina is a massive icon in pop due to her powerful face as well as her beauty. Her song Genie In a Bottle is now an old school anthem. The music video commences with Christina on a beach at sun down. Shot reverse shot is used of her rolling around in the sand and leaning against open french doors singing with a lot of emotion on her face. Her costume allows her to have either her legs or mid rift out but not both, this makes her flattering however also not to revealing or sexualised. When the corse commences dancing elements start to be included. Wearing a tassel top and comeback trousers she starts to hip dancing however in

between the dancing there are shots of her sat down against and on wooden decking. Camera doesn't tend to stay still, if focuses on one thing them starts to more either right or left to create the effect of us dancing or moving away, the camera sometimes moves the direction Christina is moving her body therefore she could be controlling the camera. In the second verse Christina is greeted with a group of females then a group of males which arrive in a old but clean car, this suggests the teenagers are about to have a party as it's night time and this would adhere to the teenage stereotype. The course has the same layout to the pervious one, the shots of Christina on the beech however have become more sexualised and she is pouting and rolling around more as if she is looking for attention, the way she looks down the camera makes her look more deviant and controlling. She then is crawling over the car bonnet singing to the male in the car, from the males angle he can see her cleavage a well as he bottom which makes her

look very sexualised and trying to get the attention of the male character. A worms eye view is used as the male jumps over the fence because he want to get to know the female singer. The narrative is very clear that theres some sort of love story in process. The editing technique of slow motion is used when they walk towards the sea bed to show him taking bigger strides in order for him to catch up with her. He then kisses her on the cheek which makes her smile and shows the connection between the two characters The course is repeated in the same way it had done before. The music video finishes with the social group sat round a fire on the beech talking and giggling. 

Toxic- Britney Spears: 2003
Britney is a massive Pop icon. Her song 'Toxic' is pop however does have elements of dance in it making it slightly a hybrid song however having a song which is just one genre isn't as common anymore. The main setting of the music video is set on a plane and Britney is the air hostess of this air line. There are cuts between air hostess Britney and Britney wearing a full body suit however it is see through with jewels or glitter in different places. Britney's image is very pretty with her blonde hair and small waist which is a male gaze which widens her audience. Making the artist look good is a convention in all music videos, to make sure they capture the audience. As she is walking the refreshments try down the isle the camera is behind her allowing the audience to see her underwear which again is another male gaze element.
Britney then spills a flute of champagne down one of the male passengers lap, she them cleans it up however where she is so close to his genitals he pulls worrying facial expressions. The dancing is very technical however when see calls one of the men over, her hands do different dance moves round her boobs to make her look more submissive and sexually available. She then follows him into the bathroom with a little run. She then kisses him passionately pulling his tie and hair. At first he is an ugly fat geek however when she sings the course she removes

his mask and a muscle blonde male is in his place, this suggests within the story line she has down this more than once. As she finishes kissing him she takes her hand down towards his genitals however steals his wallet and walks away before changing scene. The next scene Britney's costume is a leather outfit whilst she rides on the back of a topless black mans motor bike. The story line within the music video is about Britney controlling the men. The music video them becomes slightly consecutive as the motor cycle does lots of different moves. Between the second scene there are shots
which go back to Britney in the cat suit. As she walks down a walk way fire behind her makes her look powerful and confident. She then takes a special drug which is green suggesting that it is toxic like the title. The rhythm of the music changes as she performances some sexy dance moves round the laser lines. Close ups of her face pouting and biting her lip makes her look like she is posing for the camera but also making her look submissive and allows the audience see she is trying to attract other people. At the end she is wearing shorts and a crop top as she walks towards a posh looking male, at the beginning she stole money therefore suggesting now she has got a rich man she can settle. To end the music video the location returns back to the aeroplane location an she winks to the camera. The music video follows the conventions of a pop music video for a female as males are represented differently. Throughout she is represented as being sexy and always using men. There is a narrative throughout however it didn't connect lyrically to the lyrics.

One More Night- Maroon 5: 2012
Maroon 5 have changed their sound over the years as the sound and popularity of music has changed over the years, 'One More Night' being one of their most recent famous singles. The base story line of this music video is about a couple who have a baby who always argue and fall out. This story line is shown within the first 2 shots within the music video, the male is feeding his baby and the female is washing up and smiling at her little family. This adheres to the stereotypes of genders the female does all the hard work whilst the male doesn't do as much. The location of the music video then changes to  gym location, the male is working out with a friend or possible trainer with different mid and long shots of him doing sit ups, punches and skipping. A close up of his hands being tapped up blur's out to a lo angle of him holding his baby whilst the women is cooking, the lyrics sang at this point is 'we can't do this no more' which suggest that the relationship isn't working.

It's clear that the male is a boxer as he quickly eats the meat he is given for dinner, before a quick cut to him training again. As he trains he punches to the beat to keep the rhythm going however additional punching sound is added to show and emphases how hard he is working. Slow motion is used as he quickly eats his meal, then kisses his baby good bye, punches the baby as if he was training but softly then grabs he's belongings to leave. At the wrestling ring additional sound of people cheering is played over the top and everything is done in slow motion to build tension before the fight. Whilst the fight is happening the female is packing her belongings into a suit case as if she has had enough and is leaving him as he is so obsessed over his boxing. A low angle is used when the ring lady walks round with 'round 2' written on her board, this shows he has survived the first round therefore is doing well. Flash cuts between the fight and the women packing her things became quicker and quicker. Mid- shots of a man within the audience recurred throughout the fighting scene, his costume is a blue suit and and straw hair with sun glasses and has long blonde hair, the fact he has his own shot suggests that he has placed a bet on one of the fighters or he is looking for a new boxer for his own team however his facial expressions suggest he

is on the other mans side. As the family man punches his opponent he falls the ground which foreshadows the women putting a stuffed zebra into the box which she is packing, this symbolises boxing has taken over his life and he chooses winning over his children. When he returns home he notices that the apartment is empty and his trophies were all over the floor. A close up of his face shows his expression as well as all the bruises and cuts he has on his face, this represents all the effort he has put into his boxing. At the beginning of the music video 2 goldfish were shown swimming around in a fish blow representing the 2 people in the relationship however the last shot is the fish tank with one fish in it shown that the other fish is gone.

Can't Stop The Feeling- Justin Timberlake: 2016
This is one of the most recent pop songs also being know as, the summer song of the year. Music videos for pop songs normally have some sort of narrative within however there are some pop music videos which contain quite a bit of performance, ' Can't Stop The Feeling' is one of them. As a male Justin is portrayed as a good looking gentlemen and as before mentioned artists are made to look their best within there music videos. The opening scene starts in an American style cafe, a mid shot of Justin eating a pie. Then is jumps cuts to the waitress dancing, the dancing wasn't technical however it was a step dig to the beat. Within the verse there are several long shots of different people in different locations dancing, such as the dry cleaners, hairdressers and car wash. This simple dancing creates a energetic atmosphere creates a feel good song. Between all the bop like dancing there are mid shots of Justin in the cafe, he doesn't dance however does simple hand movements which have a connection to the song such as 'just imagine' the

fingers point away from the head. The dancing for the course becomes more jumpy to keep the energy of the song going. There is a second narrative running through the music video of Justin food shopping which is a boring task however the beat of the song makes it sound exciting. Justin breaks the forth wall as he sings directly to the camera and again uses small hands actions to act out the words. Different locations are used for the second verse but the same simple dancing is used. This

song is used within the new animation film 'Trolls' therefore there is one location where a sales males is dancing within a TV shop and on the screen of the TV are the animated characters from the movie dancing, this promotes the film as well as the song as the audience will recognise the song when its played within the movie. The different locations of the dancing continues. Justin in the course is walking through a row of columns and on the word ' dance' he would dance. The music video hasn't got its own narrative however the song lyrics link to the dancing as the song's story line is about being happy so dancing is to let the energy and excitement out which is being showed through the dancing within the music video. All the dancers from all the locations come together towards the end to do a final dance which is a bit more technical than what they have done before. The conclusion of this dance shows the happiness and excitement of all the characters and every sharing it and spreading it.  The lyrics sing 'keep dancing' so that's what all the characters do they all have their own personality and job however they are all very happy with their life as they are dancing about it looking happy.

All the music videos above follow the pop music video conventions because they all have a narrative which is lead by the layout of the song. The females are always seen as being sexual and attractive where as the men are seeing as being confident and again attractive.