Conclusion of Development of Music Videos- Comparison

To conclude, I will compare the styles and elements of 'Bohemian Rhapsody' from 1981 to 'Wide Awake' from 2012.



 

 

Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody music video is classed by many as the first official music video because it was the first successful one to be aired on MTV. It is therefore relatively basic because they didn't have the sufficient technology in that is needed nowadays to produce a successful music video. The video shows the 4 band members performing throughout the whole duration, because narrative based elements is more of a contemporary idea. Freddy Mercury is focused on a lot, being the main singer, and very simple effects are used, such as fading into different images. It is a very dark video with a depressing tone, with their 'floating' heads being lit with a spotlight and them performing on stage in some parts. In contrast to this, in Wide Awake the themes and images are very bright and colourful, with a pastiche to a fairytale reference with the prince charming and 'princess' style of it. The inter textual references in this to particular fairy tales and Katy Perry's other songs such as  'California Girls' and 'Teenage Dream' are more of a modern idea also, because it is a more evolved strategy that can capture the audiences attention more. When Bohemian Rhapsody was being produced, they were in an era of experimentation when it came to music videos because they were a relatively new concept. Therefore, they were completely focused on the video itself, instead of underlying references and methods to spark interest amongst the target audience. The effects are understandably much more advanced in Wide Awake, and though it is similar to Bohemian Rhapsody in the way that there is a slightly sinister feel to it at the beginning, it is a mix of performance and narrative. Unlike Queen's music video, Katy Perry is acting out a story with a solid theme, and uses a little girl and a man as extras to help the story line. Therefore, the main difference between these music videos of two different time periods is not only the technical aspects, but the idea of creating a mini story within it, instead of it being completely based on the performance of the song. This is how the music video has developed over time and is likely to continue to develop in the future.