The music video shows post-cinema as more than visual effects but as new sound-image interactions. MTV “industrialized” the notion of visuals promoting music in the early 1980s. Technology innovations, cross-media authoring, and cross-media potential outcomes have transformed music videos since the 1980s. This produced a fruitful conflict in music videos between experimentation based on artistic heritage and new technology and the obligation to sell the music and artists via real live footage or dance. Music videos sometimes included artists in quasi-narratives.

In the 21st century, the MTV Model of music television crumbled, yet more music videos than ever are spreading online. If music videos are no longer clearly “promos,” they may be properly characterized as interactions between music, sound, and the visual according to distinct audio-visual structures.

In 2016, Beyoncé published what was considered a “visual album”, Lemonade, correlating to the music album of the same name, which also sparked a societal revolution. Lemonade, released exclusively on HBO, was a hybrid between a music video and a film. This trans-medial project features songs and non-linear short videos that reflect the musical notions and ideas that originated at the production level. Critics agreed was a different creative level as it contains a storyline, unlike other Beyoncé albums (Grady, 2022).

In post-cinematic media, environment music videos progressed from advertising tool to sophisticated technique of creative expression, connection between sound and visual offer many new options for transmitting one’s vision. Visual albums transform sound into dramatic, all-encompassing experiences that operate similarly to music videos. They enable the effect of the music to be higher, owing to the interweaving of the accompanying images. Visual albums integrate promotional components since they build more attention around an album release and make the launch more memorable. Treating the film’s release as an event implies higher awareness of the record and enables the artist to communicate their opinions on many issues visually as well as via audio.

Reference:

Grady, C. (2021) How Beyoncé turned herself into a pop god. Available on: https://www.vox.com/culture/23301452/beyonce-renaissance-rise-self-titled-lemonade-homecoming

33527854 Artur Wesolowski