Category: MDP On MusicVids

Though I’m not strictly a Katy Perry fan, it’s hard not to admire how hard she works and what a marketing genius she is. I loved the ROAR video clip but this one is even better. With SUPER high production values, as you would expect, and colourful sets, Perry lets pop culture loose on Ancient Egyptian mythology with astonishing success.

So where to start praising … let’s see, the dominant mauve and blue colour themes are personally appealing, the attention to detail in the makeup and the costume show true appreciation of Ancient Egypt (thumbs up from the experts, apparently), and then there’s Cleopatra (Katy Patra) busy turning her fawning male suitors to dust once she has received their offerings.

Honestly, how could you not love this entire concept and its immaculate execution. Like Lilly Allen’s clip, Hard Out Here, Dark Horse created some serious controversy when it was released in February 2014. But while Allen was accused of being racist, Perry’s music video strayed into the treacherous waters of religion.

You can read more about that on Wikipedia. Juicy J’s featured vocals are a strong counterpoint to Perry’s sultry carolling, and I totally DIG his glasses. Golden asps, blue servants, elaborate period accessories, and puppies, this a visually sumptuous and fun feast from one of the most influential entertainers of the decade.

Directed by Matthew Cullen

A fairly out of the box video when it was released that always reminds me of the Chronicles of Riddick – something about the colour and nature of the sets, I think. What I love about this video clip, is its committment to an artistic vision that stepped well outside the normal dance and club scene footage.

Kudos to Linkin Park for alluding to other worlds and for getting wet for the sake of their art, and because … the flying whale.

On that subject wiki has this to say: A strange-looking whale can be seen flying around the large statue during most of the video, specifically at the end of the video. The whale in the video was Joe Hahn’s idea. He has been quoted as saying, “It’s not like I pulled it out of my ass; it made sense to me.” The reasoning behind its inclusion is still unknown. The whale could be identified as a “space whale” which takes the concept that life (or time) is too short for one to absorb all its mass surroundings. The whale also makes a brief appearance in the music video for “Shadow of the Day” ~wikipeida

Great song, great band, iconic clip!

Acapella was one of those songs I kept hearing on the radio and couldn’t get out of my head. When I finally tracked down the song video, I fell instantly in love with it. It really pops; the music, the dance, the film editing, the lighting, the wardrobe.

From what I’ve read, it’s a homage to the 90’s videos that the duo Karmin (Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan) grew up watching. Wiki cites  Busta Rhymes,Missy Elliott, TLC, Brandy and Destiny’s Child as their main influences and the clip is the end result of good choreography and a strong vision.

I can’t help but compare it to the DJ Havana Brown’s video for WARRIOR, which seems to have a muddy vision and some awkward costuming that does little to enhance the song. Have a look at both of them and tell me what you think. I’ll be interested to see what Karmin offer up next. 

• Songwriting – Amy Heidemann, Nick Noonan, Sam Hollander, Martin Johnson
• Production – Martin Johnson, additional by Kyle Moorman and Brandon Paddock
• Mixing – Serban Ghenea
• Engineering – Kyle Moorman, Brandon Paddock

Warrior by DJ Havana Brown