Performance Music Videos Research

A performance music video is a particular style of music video, showing the band/artist performing the song and lip synching the lyrics. Performance videos contain lots of close-up shots of the performers (and if applicable, their instruments), and lead performers sometimes have a direct mode of address towards the camera in order to engage the audience. 

Some examples of Performance music videos are...


Tonight Alive- The Ocean

Against The Current- Paralysed

Red Hot Chilli Peppers- The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie 

Often in live performance videos, shots of the audience or of the performer interacting with the audience are included in order to give the video a more realistic feel to it and to make the audience feel more involved.

Tonight Alive- The Ocean

Red Hot Chilli Peppers- The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie

Performance music videos use close up shots to show the iconography of the video, which allows the viewer to work out what genre the song/video belongs to. The instruments (electric guitar and drums) and clothing styles (dark, mostly black clothes) in 'Paralysed' by Against The Current are typically associated with rock music, whilst the bright lights in the setting hint that there are elements of pop within the song, as the sets for pop videos are usually fairly bright.

Close up shots have also been used in this video as the lead singer gives a direct mode of address. As she sings, she looks into the camera, which instantly makes the audience feel more connected with the video and, therefore, the artist.

In live performance videos, behind the scenes shots are often included to give the audience an insight into the life of the artist, and to give them a more personal, relatable feel. The following shots are taken from Tonight Alive's 'The Ocean' music video, and show the members of the band messing around backstage before/after gigs- these have been included for the aforementioned reasons. 

Shots of artists lip synching in unusual or interesting locations are another key element of performance music videos. Some examples of these are 'The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie' by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, where the band are playing on a roof, and 'The Best Thing' by We Are The In Crowd, where the band are playing in a desert. Interesting locations are used for entertainment value and to make the video more memorable.