BLINDING
LIGHTS MUSIC
VIDEO IDEAS
What song and why?
• We chose Blinding lights by the weeknd
because it's a very well know song, it has a very
catchy beat and the video can be very easily cut
to the beat of the song and the idea for the story
of the video came to me while listening to the
song.
What is our idea?
• The idea for our music video is a story of someone grieving the loss of a close friend
and is in denial about their loss as they go throughout the day expecting to see them as
the day goes on but gradually becomes more mentally unstable throughout the
duration of the video.
• The music video is a quickly cut montage with heavy use of lights to 'blind' the
audience.
• The lyrics will influence the things happening on screen and the actions of the main
character.
Where will it be set?
• The video will be set in the bedroom of the main
character, college, workspace, train station, a café
and the streets of an empty town/city during the
night.
• The main character goes throughout his or her
day going through their daily routine
expecting the person they lost to be with them or
waiting for them and as each day goes by, they
become notably more lonely, agitated and
sad because this person isn't there.
What style of music video is it and why?
• We chose the narrative style of music video.
• The lyrics of the video will influence certain parts of the story unfolding in the video.
• The whole music video will be a narrative story with character acting in a montage
style.
Mindmap of ideas
O UR J O B R OL E S
ANALYSING
-The first set of lyrics in verse I show off how
Our main character is grieving as he is upset,
Not used to his loved one not being around
LYRICS Anymore.
-The chorus represent how the MC (Main
Character) is in denial, slowly going insane as
The music video progresses! The lyrics "I'm
Blinded by the lights, no...I can't sleep until I
Feel your touch." Portray how sleep deprived
They are knowing their significant other is
Not around anymore...
-The bridge portrays off how they are in denial
And unaware of the fact that their partner has
Still gone. Rushing senses of depression and a-
nger continuousely flow through their mind as
They are at a feel of a vast unease...
We did a focus group with our target
audience where we asked them "what
they normally like to see in a music
video" and "what they think makes a
good music video". So, we will try to
include some off the stuff they said in
the video.
SONG STYLE
We researched some of the top most
trending songs and found out that
most of them were performance type
music videos. Our music video also
falls into the same type of style in
hopes to rise in popularity quickly as
well!
WHO IS OUR
TARGET
AUDIENCE?
Our target audience is teens and young
adults which varies from ages 13-25. For
both genders. As a lot of the younger
generation we feel could relate to the
songs lyrics and adore the music style,
features, performance, and effects.
WE CONDUCTED A FOCUS GROUP/SURVEY
WITH OUR TARGET AUDIENCE.
THESE RESULTS ARE GOING TO HELP US AS
WE DEVELOP AND PLAN FOR OUR MUSIC
VIDEO.
THIS IS VERY HELPFUL PRIMARY RESEARCH AS
IT COMES DIRECTLY FROM OUR TARGET
AUDI ENCE DEMOGRAPHI C, WHI CH I S
TEENAGERS
AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THIS IMAGE, THE
MAJORITY OF PEOPLE QUESTIONED FALL INTO
OUR TA. SO, THESE RESULTS ARE GOING TO
BE VERY HELPFUL FOR US.
Our focus group/survey shows that we should try to
make the music video one that males would like .
We can achieve this by having the character be a
male.
By having the male be the main character it is more
relatable for our target audience of males.
POV also puts us into the shoes of the character,
making it even more immersive for our TA
This response shows that our target audience watch
music videos on a regular basis. Most people picked
every couple of days, which means that they are
familiar with the format and what to expect.
This helps us as it shows that the TA are aware of the
form, meaning when they answer they are
experienced and knowledgeable on the subject.
Most of the TA said that they enjoyed pop
music, which is very helpful to us as it shows
that our song choice is perfectly aligned to our
ta and their interests.
Pop is a worldwide genre, as it can be listened
to and consumed by most people across the
world. It is easy and accessible.
WHAT WO UL D MAKE
YO U WAT C H A
M USIC VI DEO ?
Our TA answered that some of the biggest
attractions for music videos are; the band,
colours and cool effects.
Since we are not doing a performance, we
will instead emphasise on the colours and
cool effects to make sure our TA are happy,
this also fits in to The Weeknd's aesthetic.
WHAT D O YO U
T H I N K O F WH EN
L I S T E N I NG T O
BL I N DI NG L IGH T S ?
We asked our TA to listen to our song and
write down their thoughts, this is what
they said.
Most people gave it a really strong visual
style to it, flashy and old school vibes. This
isnt something we are directly aiming at,
but our visual style will be at the forefront.
I S T H E S O NG
SUI TABL E F OR
T E E NS ?
Most people were positive about this, so
we went ahead with it.
WHAT D O YOU
T H I N K O F OUR
I DE A?
Most people seemed to like our idea and
gave positive feedback. It was good to
hear this as it reinforces our idea and
seems to fit well with our TA beliefs and
values.
WHAT D O N ’ T YOU
L I KE AB O U T MUSIC
VI DE O S ?
These responses will help us avoid certain
codes and conventions failures. Some
people didn’t like. Most people criticised
long videos, something we will avoid.
Length seems to be important, so we will
keep ours to around 3 minutes or so, as this
seems to be the average length.
The Weeknd
Social Media and Music
promotion
How does he promote his
music?
Developing an integrated style that heavily relies on
social media, streaming platforms and live
performances, The Weeknd is the most listened to
artist on spotify as of November ‘22.
While maintaining a sense of mystery, The Weeknd still
keeps a good interaction with fans by communicating
throught websites such as twitter.
From the very start of his career, he had a very defined
sound which was noticed by popular rapper Drake.
Looking at few of his albums and discography he has a
habit of changing styles and aesthetics for each one
released. A good example would be the dark but
somehow flashy look he used for his album ‘After
Hours’
His influence
He has been topping the charts, creating iconic characters
and personas, constantly changing up his sound between
albums. His broken records, five grammy awards and chart
topping hits certainly show his success.
His hit track ‘Blinding Lights’ was crowned the greatest
Billboard Hot 100 song of all time in November 2021,
amazingly charting for 90 weeks on the Hot 100. Smashing
the previous one held in 1960.
Awards and records aside, The Weeknd’s unique ability to mix
an upbeat yet dark sound with cinematic visuals and
characters.
How is he portrayed on
social media?
Currently posting to promote a film, The Weeknd’s
Instagram seems to be very bright with mostly clips of
live performances. As scrolling down you’ll see his
change in aesthetics mentioned on previous slides.
Going lower onto different eras and aesthetics, there
are pictures of the artist, promotions and visuals that
may draw the right people in.
STAR BOY-MUSIC VIDEO
ANALYSIS
-Another one of the weeknd songs is titled "Star Boy." It shows us a
sense of religion as we are frequently shown a crucifix!
-It has a lot of bright flashing lights which are continuousely used to
cover up the dark environment as the music video takes place during
night time!
