Music Video: Target audience

Music Video: Target audience

Understanding Audience in Music Videos

  • The target audience of a music video typically mirrors the fan base of the artist or band featured.
  • Factors such as age, gender, interests, cultural background, and social class are considered when determining a music video’s target audience.
  • Understanding the target audience’s preferences and lifestyle can help shape the themes, style, aesthetic, and content of the music video.

Artist or Band’s Image and Lifestyle

  • The artist’s or band’s image can be crucial in appealing to a specific target audience.
  • It can be manifested in the music video through clothes, make-up, hairstyle or even behaviour and attitude.
  • From glam, punk, or hip hop to country, pop, or rock - genres shape a band or artist’s image and draw respective fan bases.

Genre and Music Video Style

  • The genre of the song often influences the style of the video. For example, pop videos may be colourful with choreographed dance sequences, while rock videos might be darker and filled with live performance scenes.
  • The style of the video is then used to reinforce the target audience’s identity and sense of belonging to that specific musical culture.

Themes and Narratives in Music Videos

  • The narrative or theme, which might revolve around love, rebellion, success or other topics, often reflects the interests or experiences of the target audience.
  • Music videos can use thematic and narrative structures from other media forms, such as film genres, to enhance appeal among target fans.
  • Music videos can also connect with their audience through cultural references that resonate with them.
  • These references may include fashion trends, slang, internet memes, and even issues pertaining to the social and political climate.

Interactive and Shareable Content

  • With the proliferation of social media, modern music videos often contain elements designed to be interactive or shareable, encouraging viewers to engage with or promote the video within their communities.
  • This approach can expand exposure to target audiences, especially among younger demographics that are highly active on digital platforms.

Music Videos as Marketing Tools

  • Ultimately, music videos act as marketing tools, aiming to promote the artist’s work, increase their visibility, and help solidify their brand, which should resonate with their target audience.
  • Understanding the target audience’s preferences allows for the creation of content that will be more likely to be consumed, enjoyed, and shared, thereby serving the promotional intent effectively.

Applying Media Theories to Music Videos

  • Stuart Hall’s Encoding/Decoding model can be used to analyse how the messages in music videos are encoded by the producers and decoded by the audience.
  • Uses and Gratifications theory by Blumler and Katz suggests audiences engage with media for information, personal identity, integration and social interaction, and entertainment. These factors can be crucial in understanding how music videos target and connect with their audiences.