It’s easy to forget that music videos exist. They are one of those cultural artifacts that for a few decades, say 1980-2010ish, had the potential for huge cultural impact. Entire careers – cough OK GO cough – were built off music videos. Not just for bands either. Starting with music videos was often a viable path for those looking to become film/TV directors or producers as well. Whole cable empires – MTV – were built around showing music videos. After all, music videos are why everyone over thirty knows who Carson Daly is. So, they’re good and bad is what I’m saying.
It's always a little bit cringy when I write about art, but I’m going to do it anyway. Music videos are an art form all on its own. They are different from TV or movies in that they are not purely narrative-driven pieces, though they often can seem like that. There are different standards and genre conventions. In a lot of ways, music videos are about curating a vibe though to be historically accurate it became an art form before “curating a vibe” was a thing. I could probably even make the case that music videos were the progenitors of the whole “vibe” category. Sorry, like I said, my writing about art gets a little cringy, even if it’s true. They’re often too short to tell a fully fleshed narrative like TV or movies, so they do it through aesthetics, marrying the visual with the auditory. They are also distinctly commercial. Music videos were developed during a time when they helped sell music. Music videos, especially for big pop stars, or those bands hoping to become big stars, are about selling not just the song, but the artist. There are exceptions, of course, there always are, but the commercial aspect is something that can’t be ignored. This isn’t really a new point, basically all popular art is commercial but, it’s still important to note. It doesn’t take away from the craft, but often the point is to sell something, rather than create art for art’s sake. Just look at some late-2010s videos – the last time music videos could be said to matter – and look at all the product placement. Nicki Minaj’s video for “Anaconda” is the first example of crass product placement that comes to mind. Scroll to the 1:04-1:06 mark. Also, this video is decidedly NSFW, so just keep that in mind.
Who wouldn’t want to buy some Beats after that!
Naturally, all of this is a bit of an excuse to show some of my favorite music videos. Nothing like a faux-academic façade to cover up a nice little list! These videos skew a little newer because I need to constantly prove that I’m hip, but there are some older ones too. So, without further ado, here are some great music videos to watch!
Sabotage – Beastie Boys
This was remastered into high-def in 2009, but it still retains a lot of its charm. The Beastie Boys videos are known for two things: goofy costumes and conspicuous use of Dutch angles and fish-eye lenses. Directed by auteur Spike Jonze, “Sabotage” sees the Boys running through New York dressed up as 1970s cops and generally being goofy. It feels like a skateboard video in the best way. Just a rollicking good time. I also suggest their videos for “Intergalactic” and if you’re feeling in the mood for some cameos, “Make Some Noise.”
Bitch Better Have My Money – Rihanna
This is a classic of the narrative genre of music videos. Rihanna enlists the ever-talented Mads Mikkelson to play the “Bitch” in this decidedly NSFW music video. Rihanna’s charisma is on full display in this, dare I say it, cinematic masterpiece. Even though it clocks in at a full 7 minutes it never feels over long as so many music videos can. She and her co-director MegaForce hit the sweet spot of capturing the aesthetic without losing the focus on the music.
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Thriller – Michael Jackson
If you’re writing about music videos you have to put this one on your list. It’s 14 minutes long so it’s more of an experience than some of the other ones on the list, but it’s a banger of a short film nonetheless. John Landis of Blues Brothers, Animal House, and Coming To America directed it, giving it some real artistic heft. It’s annoying that it was remastered into 4k because it makes the special effects look really bad, but if you can ignore that, or find the original, it’s still a masterpiece.
National Anthem – Lana Del Ray
I have to admit I first watched this video only like last Thursday. I had heard about it when it came out, but never got the chance to watch it until it got shown to me. Thanks Munch and Isabel! I’m sure there were a million college papers written about the politics of this video when it came out, so I’ll skip all that and let you figure out what you think the message is. All I’ll say is that Lana Del Ray and A$AP Rocky are two of the most effortlessly charismatic people to exist. They know exactly how to work a camera. It’s amazing to watch.
Sunday Candy – Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment
What can I say, I’m a sucker for single takes. This came out in 2015 when Chance seemingly never missed. While this can veer a little too far into theater kid acting at times, the whole thing is a technical achievement, moving through multiple stage set-ups, set pieces, and choreographed numbers. I wonder how many takes it took them to nail it. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s a killer song.
Bad Girls – MIA
I mean this video is just cool. The epitome of awesome. Like, come on, how can you watch this and not think it’s the sickest thing ever committed to celluloid? Like damn. Do you not have a pulse? The cars, the horses, the desert. Everything is just sick. In the coolest way possible. This is nothing more or less than badass. I will not hear any MIA slander.
Song Away - Hockey
Google is no longer good at search. I know that from trying to find this video. I knew two of the actors in it and the context, but Google could not find it for me. Garbage product. Thanks a lot Sundar Pichai. But that’s not the point. This video is not like the greatest artistic statement ever, but it is very fun. Nerdy people dancing will never not be fun!
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