Codes & Conventions of POP/RNB

POP

* Men and women usually potrayed in a modern way, eg. glamorous & good-looking.
*Women often made to look powerful/dominant, e.g. Alexandra Burke video where Alexandra was very dominant over the men.
* Shots -> usually long shots, with very common use of close-ups to show emotion and facial expression.
Continuous shots, e.g. in Justin Timberlakes 'Rock Your Body', where the audience were made to feel that they were moving with Justin each time he turns and 'sails to the right'
*Common theme of using very bright colors or alternatively Black and White backgrounds, e.g. In Lady Gaga's 'Alejandro', this creates better lighting and thus helps to make the audience feel more connected to the artist/band.
*Locations include desolated areas, particularly car parks at night (e.g. in Alexandra Burke's 'Bad Boys'.
* Props -> often glamorous connoting a strong sense of style, classic example is Lady Gaga's glittery glasses.
*Most shots are performance based, highlighting dance moves.
*Flashing lights, bright lights to create excitement.
*Creative settings and backdrops.
*Costumes -> designed to make the musician look innocent and relatable for younger audiences.
*Constant scene changes to hold the audience's attention.
*Fun and lighthearted.
*Teenage scenario, e.g. having a crush.
*Usually the video has a narrative where the lyrics link directly to what is happening in the song.
* Huge POP examples include: Lady Gaga, Britney, Christina Aguilera.
*Modern attire, broader range of colors.

RNB

* Costume -> revealing clothes, urbanized street wear, e.g. in Justin Timberlakes 'Like I Love You', he wear his signature hat and leather jacket and also the main female in the video is wearing a belly top and jeans with hoop earrings associated with urban,city culture.
* Props -> fast cars, money, jewellery and stylish clothes that denote wealth
*Relationships-> love, fights and break-ups e.g. Usher's 'Confessions' video.
* Women's dance routines are usually sexually provoking.
*Usually have a narrative, with a strong emphasis on females and the emotions they are experiencing.
* often focused on the physical appearance of the artist/singer
*Locations usually include a nightclub, party or city environment
* Editing includes fades & quick cuts between scenes

Examples of POP/RNB Artists
- Janet Jackson
- Jennifer Lopez
- Amerie
- Keri Hilson
- Beyonce
- JoJo
- Fergie
- Ciara
- Rihanna
- Gwen Stefani
- Nelly Furtado

These codes and conventions are going to be so important in the shaping of my music video.

Most of them are what I would have expected, for example: aspects of modernity in videos, glamorous props, sexually provoking dance routines... but it all depends on what symbolic and technical codes I may actually want to use because some of them are more possible than others, like I probably wont be able to get flashing lights or creative backdrops being on such a tight student budget!

But I definitely want to incorporate aspects of the costume, the camera shots and the settings , for example, the desolated areas.