Since the days of musical numbers, both on the stage and on the screen, music and film accompaniments are an almost inseparable combination. It’s not unheard of for musicians to be known for their music videos, or for them to explode in popularity after the release of one.
Videos by American Songwriter
It’s difficult to trace back to the first music video, for it is hard to define what a music video is, or is not. Many have cited “The Little Lost Child,” composed by Joseph Stern and Edward Mark, as being the first music video in 1894. This unearthed a market of visual accompaniments for music, but perhaps this was more of a “visualizer” by today’s standards.
Music videos are widely considered to descend from musical films like Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) or programs like The Ed Sullivan Show, but the music video craze truly began with the rise of MTV, and later YouTube. Regardless of platform, genre, or tone, each of these videos adds new breadth to the storytelling possibilities of the medium.
1. “Video Killed The Radio Star,” The Buggles (1979)
Their most recognizable song to date, The Buggles released the music video for “Video Killed The Radio Star” in 1979. The duo, Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes had a conceptual vision for The Buggles, intending to appear as a robot version of The Beatles manufactured by record companies. The budget for the video was bigger than average for the time, as the duo needed to cover costumes, props, and special effects to truly sell their “sci-fi” concept. The song proved to be popular in the UK and Europe, but less so in the United States.
In all its cheekiness, however, MTV opened its first-ever broadcast with the video in 1981. The song’s lack of popularity in the United States was a point of contention, almost not being chosen because very few viewers would recognize it, but the channel aired it anyway for the symbolic gesture.
2. “Thriller,” Michael Jackson (1984)
A full circle moment in music video history, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video calls back to early musical numbers in film, while integrating aspects of the early horror movie craze. While the song itself was just under six minutes, the full Thriller short film clocks in at around fourteen, adding dialogue and a narrative to the song’s premise. The lyrics evoke horror staples —a dark eerie night and ghouls around every corner—with Jackson ultimately encouraging the girl he likes to seek comfort in him while she’s scared.
The video, directed by John Landis, manifests Jackson’s lyrics with a surreal edge. It opens with Michael proposing to his girl, played by Ola Ray, before turning into a werewolf and terrorizing her. This is revealed to just be a movie Michael and his girlfriend are watching in the theater. As they walk home, though, they’re greeted by zombies, and Jackson dances among them. But it turns out to be a figment of the girl’s imagination in the end—or is it?
Jackson publicly stated he wanted to push music video making to the extreme, and he did just that, and with major success. MTV reported ten times their usual audience ratings upon its release to the network, and played the video around the clock.
3. “Take On Me,” A-ha (1985)
A-ha is a prime example of a band that might not have gotten international attention if not for their music video. The Norwegian pop band has since admitted they created “a song that you have to hear a few times” to get into and attribute much of its success to the video.
This is not without reason, though, as the video was highly conceptual and experimental for the time. Directed by Steve Barron, the video utilized rotoscoping, a technique used in animation, and famously in feature films like Disney’s Snow White, where the animator draws over, or alters, film footage frame by frame. For “Take On Me,” rotoscoping is used to juxtapose real life with a pencil-sketched world, signifying letting go of barriers and apprehensions in a relationship.
4. “Hurt,” Johnny Cash (2003)
The early 2000s saw the release of many now-iconic music videos, from Britney Spears to Outkast, but the video for Johnny Cash’s “Hurt” cover is among the most moving.
One of the biggest country stars of the ’50s, and one of the first to record at Sun Records alongside Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash wrote with an ear for strife, misfortune, and a sense of mortality not often found in popular music of the time. Thus, it should come as no surprise that he would choose to cover a song as gut-wrenching as “Hurt” by Nine Inch Nails, released forty years after Johnny Cash started building his legacy. The video interplays Cash in his present-most state singing the lyrics, with footage and photographs of himself and others throughout his career. The video serves as an obituary of his crafting, as Cash passed away just three months after its release.
5. “This Is America,” Childish Gambino (2018)
In the age of YouTube, very few music videos which premiered in the late 2010s have had the same cultural impact as “This Is America.” Littered with historical references, symbolism, and political insight, rapper Childish Gambino, aka Donald Glover, makes his stance known on race relations and gun violence in the United States, and how very little has changed in over three hundred years.
Glover is seen dancing with schoolchildren as they’re backdropped by police violence and general discord. A gospel choir is gunned down, and the assault rifle used is carried away in a red cloth while little concern is placed on the victims. In its one shot sequence, “This Is America” sparked conversations about how America co-opts Black culture while continuing to oppress Black people, and brought more awareness to events like the 2015 Charleston Church Shooting.
Photo by Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
