I don'tHours of August 1, 1981, someone surfing their channels could have come across the image of a rocket shooting into space. The familiar image of Neil Armstrong getting out of his lunar module and walking on the moon filled the television screen. And then they heard the voiceover with the soft hum of an FM disc jockey: “Ladies and gentlemen, rock & roll.” Cue power chords and a flag with the logo of a network - something called MTV - that changed colors and patterns rapidly. This was not a news channel; it was "music television". If they kept tuning in, they'd see clips and hear the VJs talk about bringing you the latest music videos. At this point, viewers may have some questions like: Is this like a radio station on TV? What is a "VJ"? And what the heck is a "music video"?
A year later, no one has asked that last question. Pretty much everyone knew what a music video was andthey wanted their MTV.The network revolutionized the music industry, inspired a plethora of copycat shows, spawned many careers andbroke more than a few. Entire genres and subgenres, from hip-hop to grunge and boy band pop to nu metal, have become part of the mainstream. The format proved so durable that artists continued to produce them when MTV decided to turn things around and devote its airtime to game shows, reality shows, and scripted series, shutting down the main channel to these promotions. The Internet soon stepped in to fill the void. Four decades after the channel's launch, and long after it stopped playing them, music videos continue to complement songs, create mythologies, and generate commentary and controversy. We don't want our MTV anymore. We want to continue making our music videos.
To celebrate MTV's 40th anniversary, we decided to rank the top 100 music videos of all time. You will notice some significant changes.since the last time we did it. (Yes, Michael Jackson can be heard here. No, "Thriller" doesn't.) Some predate the channel; some never played on MTV. But all of these choices are perfect examples of how the combination of sound and image created an entire artistic vocabulary, gave us a handful of miniature movie masterpieces, and transformed the way we listen (and see) music. From Adele's "Hello" to ZZ Top's "Gimme All Your Lovin', these are the videos that continue to thrill, delight, haunt and remind us how much a song can do in three or four minutes. A camera, a concept, a pose, some ambient lighting and an iconic hand gesture or two.
The Buggles, "Video killed the radio star"
No Trevor Hornhe knew MTV was coming when he was writing "Video Killed the Radio Star" for his synth duo The Buggles in the late '70s, but he knew the music industry was on the brink of a major change. "I have J.G. Ballard and he had this vision of the future where record companies would have computers in the basement and create artists," he said.The guardin 2018. “I had heard of Kraftwerkthe human machineand the video arrived. You could feel things changing." This change occurred on August 1, 1981, when MTV went live at 12:01 a.m. The first video broadcast on the network was "Video Killed the Radio Star," a strangely moving sci-fi dream ofmontanhesesDirector Russell Mulcahy, who dramatized this pop culture changing of the guard. The election resulted in the cable network blatantly declaring its own importance before most knew it existed. But MTV was right. Within a few years, non-glamorous groups like Toto and Kansas were leaving, and hip bands like Duran Duran and Culture Club were on the rise. Horn himself played a major role in this process, producing hits for Frankie Goes to Hollywood, ABC, and Spandau Ballet. The Buggles broke up in 1981 after releasing just two albums, but their place in pop music history is forever secured. They were prophets.-A.G.
The new pornographers, "movements"
because who doesn'tDo you love a star-studded origin story of fame, drugs, guns, knives, bad behavior, promotion, and betrayal? WFMUbest showhostTom Scharplingdirects this trailer for the definitive biopic on Canada's New Pornographers, starring fellow host and Superchunk drummer Jon Wurster as red-headed singer A.C. Newman, “the boy who had a dream… [and] became the man who tempted fate. He starts a band, they make a hit, the hit turns them into money-hungry, cocaine-snorting monsters, you know the drill. Everyone from Donald Glover to John Oliver, Horatio Sanz, Ted Leo, Wyatt Cenac and the mighty Julie Klausner seem to recount "the rise and rise" of a cult power pop band. It's a brilliantly goofy clip and a near-perfect take on rock movie clichés. PS We're really looking forward to the Paul Rudd-Bill Hader comedyfuture parentscoming soon at a theater near us.—D.F.
Harry Styles, "Wassermelonenzucker"
“This video isDedicated to playing," reads the title card at the start of the latest fruity orgy of a Harry Styles music video shot on the beach in Malibu just before the pandemic, with a group of friends and some erotically charged melons. When it debuted In a closed-in world, there was something touching about watching sexy party-goers lavishly caressing and rubbing fruit skins (and each other) in the sun. And whatever melons like, he's fine with it. The Videos Musicals have always celebrated the sexy beach trope.Feel New, Harry crowns himself the King of Fructosexual Future Consent.—R.S.
The Blow Monkeys, "Digging Up Your Scene"
A confessed "Glam"Jazz Obscurity” it was the art geeks at Blow Monkeys London who became stars with this utterly shameless masterclass in the glow of '80s new wave poseurs. Clearing and hacking the stage in a seedy cocktail lounge, Robert fulfills all your fantasies of depraved vanity. Working with his fake bow and sinatra moves, all sarcastic and high cheeked, he seduces the audience even though he's only here to take his money and run. He even spins an umbrella to protect himself from trash-throwing rioters. But beneath the smooth surface, he's a cerebral indictment of '80s homophobia.design a bbc, "With 'Digging Your Scene,' I tipped my hat to the club scene, and specifically to the gay scene within the club scene."—R.S.
A Tribe Called Quest feat. Leader of the New School, “Scenario”
There's musicVideos that fit their time, and then there's the video for that Tribe Called Quest song, both closer to their second album.The lower bound theoryand a strong contender for one of the greatest maiden cuts of all time. Directed by Jim Swaffield, the video features Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, and a host of friends (from De La Soul to Spike Lee) in a frame that mimics a retro PC blender screen that controls everything from wild hairstyles from Phife to Busta Rhymes. Long sleeve top. It's like a digital pleasure house with special effects that couldn't be more like Windows 95, which only adds to the silly retro charm. And whether they're scowling on camera or acting silly, all of the Dream Team rappers seem to be having a great time.—MC
Chicks, "Adeus Earl"
30 piedrasJane Krakowski stars as Wanda, a battered housewife who bonds with her best friend Mary Ann (idiot and more idiotby Lauren Holly) to kill her husband Earl (Dennis Franz). They poison her black-eyed pea, wrap her body in tarpaulin, and throw it into the lake; they celebrate with a party attended by a zombie count. Meanwhile, singer Natalie Maines sings the song in an arguably 2000s-esque red bandana top, as she and her bandmates help out these women. Written by Dennis Linde, the song was considered controversial upon its release. The themes of domestic violence and murder led to radio stations choosing a hotline number or refusing to play it entirely. The video may turn the concept a bit cartoonish, but it still manages to keep the ditty's sting. "The Chicks do not advocate premeditated murder," the band said.he wrotein the album booklet. But she loves revenge.-PAPER BIN.
Sinead O'Connor, "Nothing Compares to 2U"
Sinéad O'Connor behindIt's easy with the video for his 1985 hit, written by Prince, about a love story that left its narrator in shambles. There's little else to this clip than the Irish singer meditating and wandering around the statues, along with a close-up of her singing face against a black background, but you can't underestimate the power of that last bit. Tears stream down her cheeks as she seems to mourn the loss of her just inches from us; Capitalizing on the recent loss of her mother, it's as if O'Connor, notoriously confrontational and brash, refuses to let the audience look away from her grief, sadness and anger. And then she ends up looking directly at the camera before looking down, unable to continue. It's like watching heartbreak in real time.-MAYBE.
(Video) Top 100 Songs GlobalCardi B feat. Megan Thee Hengst, "WAP"
the happiestOde to Vaginal Lubrication Most Viewed on Video presented the concept of a conservative politician's hell: two strong, wealthy, self-confident and extremely influential black women openly embracing their sexuality. Director Colin Tilley's clip for this Cardi B/Megan Thee Stallion partnership juxtaposes this unabashed love of the "King Cobra" (or "Big Mack Truck," dealer's choice) with a whimsical pastel innocence and exotic felines embracing the wrath it deserves. everyone from congressmen to Fox News analysts and...carol baskin? Mark one for Cardi and Megan. Few videos have dominated the culture more in 2020, hitting all the water-cooler milestones: a Jenner or Kardashian cameo, countless thought-provokers about the meaning of the video, and pseudo-outrage from the self-proclaimed moral majority.-JN.
Adam Ant, "Stand Up and Surrender"
"I just waitShowbiz never becomes a dirty word," said Adam Ant.Rolling Stone1980. "I love it." He was the greatest intrepid neo-romantic of his time, a handsome thief who dressed as a pirate. She videos of him for Prince Charming, Antmusic, Goody Two Shoes, and Yes-It-Really-Happened."formiga rap"declared war on all things safe and boring in the '80s, but Stand and Deliver is his latest glamor manifesto, in which Adam robs stagecoaches to proclaim, "I'm going to spend my money looking cool and getting her attention!" The aristocratic lady here: future British film star Amanda Donohoe, Adam's real-life muse. Like Adam, she knew that she need not fear ridicule.—R.S.
Blur, "Coffee and TV"
Until 1999 guitaristGraham Coxon's drinking problems and creative maladies caused him to become increasingly estranged from the rest of the Blur. "Graham wasn't happy and he didn't always show up," Britpop bassist Alex James recalled in his memoir.a little blurry. "He was frustrating because when he did it, everything he did was brilliant." This band drama found unexpectedly whimsical expression in the video produced by producing duo Hammer & Tongs for Coffee & TV, a single written and sung primarily by Coxon (and a prime example of the brilliance James spoke of). Coxon plays the missing son of a sad suburban English family, first seen standing next to a carton of milk, a carton of milk that instantly comes to life and becomes the happy little lead in the video. Milky happily skips her way, hitchhiking to the big city, falling in love with a bag of strawberry milk, experiencing excruciating pain, and finally finding Coxon right where she belongs: in a room playing "Coffee & TV" with the others. guy. (Spoiler alert: Coxon proceeds to swallow Milky, who then revives and is reunited with her true love in Beverage Vessel Heaven.)—S.V.L.
Madonna, "Justify my love"
In a "WAP" publicationand the world of "Montero," it can be hard to remember how Madonna was once adept at stirring up controversy with a new music video. She managed to outdo herself with the erotic reverie of 1990's "Justify My Love," which was so risqué that MTV banned it, thus ensuring her immortality. Shot in black-and-white noir, the clip (directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino) shows the pop star experiencing a sexual awakening through a series of encounters, including a threesome that ended in a passionate same-sex kiss. . There are also brief glimpses of gay life and kink in the images of a trio of gay men embracing on a sofa and a shirtless woman, Domme, engaging in BDSM with her partner. These are far less taboo subjects 30 years later, and this clip, and the woman in the center, deserve at least a little credit for pushing her in that direction.—J.F.
Gangnam psy style"
What's up Billy?? How was 2012? Well, sit on your grandfather's knee and listen. Look, there was a singer and rapper from South Korea who released a crazy video with explosions, silly but infectious choreography, and horses. yes horses The entire world cheered for this clip which transcended "video" into a "global phenomenon", with seemingly every TV show and commercial imitating or parodying its Equus themed quest. We also said "sexy laaaady" a lot. For a minute, Billy the dying monoculture was brought back to life to celebrate the scruffy guy in a tacky suit, so much so that the video became the first video to reach 1 billion views on YouTube. Here let me show you the horse dance.-JN.
The Notorious B.I.G., "Mesmerize"
filmed weeks beforeAfter Biggie's death in March 1997, the "Hypnotize" video took the rapper from the streets of Brooklyn to much warmer climes: "Florida Keys, 5:47 pm," to be precise, as the title card announces. . (Actually, it was filmed in Santa Monica.) The video is a Michael Bay take on the high-life aesthetic that made Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Records famous: all peppered with cash, champagne, expensive suits like Puff and Biggie Speed. they both drive a boat (while being chased by a group of helicopters)mia luxury convertible sedan, from behind (while being chased by a group of motorcycles). The best part, though, is much simpler: Biggie smiles like a boy, displaying the boyish charm that was his not-so-secret weapon. The rapper never saw the final cut. "I gave him about a minute and a half for the first few laps and he got really excited," managing director Paul Hunter said.Foldin 2017. "He smiled like a child: that big, warm smile."-CH.
Soundgarden, “Blow up the outside world”
Yeah, the "blackThe video for "Hole Sun" is surreal and haunting and helped introduce Soundgarden to a whole new, non-grunge-mad audience. But this clip, directed by Devo's Jerry Casale, arguably outdoes the crumble factor of its predecessor, while also capturing the star's mood.bottom on topTracking to a T. Not coincidentally, Chris Cornell bears a strong resemblance to Alex the Droog here.Mechanical orange,while being forced to watch scenes of serenity interspersed with bits of sex and violence. And viewers who are familiar with the seventies.movie conspiracy theoryclassicparallax viewwill explore the similarity between this film's brainwashing sequence and what is happening here. The gang then starts blowing up the place, first figuratively, then literally, and what starts out as a double homage turns into a nuclear catharsis.—D.F.
Neil Young, "This note is for you"
AfternoonEighties, David Bowie, Madonna, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, and many other A-list artists not only licensed their songs for commercials, but also appeared in advertisements. Neil Young was so disgusted with this phenomenon that he faked it into the title track on his 1988 LP.This note is for you."I'm not going to sing to Pepsi," he growled. "I don't sing for Coca-Cola/I don't sing for anyone/It makes me look like a joker." He went a step further when he directed a video for the song, which featured Clapton's Michelob ad, Calvin Klein's Obsession ad, Bud Lights Spuds cruelly mocking MacKenzie's spots, and Jackson's infamous Pepsi commercial at the that her hair was on fire. . Initially, MTV refused to air it on the flimsy grounds that it would expose them to "copyright infringement." "Silly cowards," Young writes to them in an open letter. "You refuse to play 'This Note's for You' for fear of offending your sponsors. What does the 'M' stand for on MTV: music or money?" MTV eventually relented and not only aired the video, but also recognized it as Young Video of the Year at the 1989 VMAs.-A.G.
„Weird Al“ Yankovic, „Iss es“
Before eating"Airing on MTV, "Weird Al" Yankovic seemed poised to go down in history as a fringe artist who gave the world witty parodies like "My Bologna" and "I Love Rocky Road" before fading into obscurity. But the brilliant "Eat It" video showed that he was operating at a level of genius and obsession that no one had ever seen before. It's a shot-for-shot parody of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" video, in which gang members fight with forks instead of knives and a rather large one gets trapped in a sewer. He even tracked down some of the same dancers from the original and told them to imitate his old moves. Surprisingly, Jackson was okay with the parody, and a little MTV love helped the song reach No. 12 on the Hot 100. It was the start of a long line of real hits for Yankovic. "'Eat It' basically turned me from an outsider into a guy who was recognized at Burger King," Yankovic said later.Dise un Rolling Stone. -A.G.
Azalia Banken, "212"
"212" de Azealia Bankshit the song like a bomb in 2011, and its sparse black-and-white music video only bolstered Banks' case as a true star: as soon as he spat "I'm gonna bust you, cunt" on camera, I knew you couldn't forget that she would. It's hard to ignore the flashy swagger here, but it's really all the little details that make the clip such a memorable artifact: the Mickey Mouse sweater, the quick cuts in a Harlem bodega, Yung Rapunzel's confrontational rap from the ear of a (and fun) Jacques Greene. In the years since, Banks hasn't always kept that promise, but the dream of "what could have been" for her...and what else can be possible—continues every time you see this extreme close-up of her, tearing the haters apart one bar at a time.—C. S.
Blinde Melone, "No Rain"
oh bee girlwhere is your sting? The feisty bespectacled girl in a black and yellow outfit wandering around looking for someone who really understands her is perhaps the picture of the '90s of the '90s. But touching the cover of Blind Melon's debut album, which featured drummer Glenn's sister 10 years of Graham dressed as a bee, and in contrast to the much darker videos of the time, director Samuel Bayer fits into the hippie vibe of the band's music, delivering a poignant "one of us" ending. and happy, as the young misfit finds her people and plays with them in a paradisiacal green field similar to the Shire. Singer Shannon Hoon later lamented the fact that the image had become so associated with the group, but it matched the song's tone perfectly. And Heather DeLoach, who played the boisterous girl in the clip? She still refers to herself as "the bee girl".-B.H.
(Video) Top 100 Songs From 2010 To 2020Nicki Minaj, "Anaconda"
"Anaconda" was atremendous moment for Nicki Minaj, and the video, directed by Colin Tilley, would only reinforce the song's gritty lyrical content. (If nothing else, he proves that Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back" sample was no fluke.) The rapper channels everyone from Josephine Baker to Jane Fonda, from twerking at a resort to taking an aerobics class. . After a messy cooking class, he wowed fans with a performance by Drake while his Young Money ally happily danced on Minaj's lap. A tour de force in many ways, the video for "Anaconda" racked up 1 billion views, making Minaj the first female rapper to do so.— BS
Talking Heads, "Once in a Lifetime"
"Once inLifetime is one of the most unique and incredible songs in pop history, so it's only fitting that the video is its own weird journey into the subconscious. Co-director Toni Basil (who would go on to have a huge hit with Mickey the following year) shot it on video with almost no budget. She and David Byrne visited the UCLA film and video archives, where Basil saidwithout cuttingIn 2007, "they had a huge library of preachers, evangelists, entranced people, African tribes, Japanese religious sects." sweat: it was a man's fear channeled into a midlife crisis. The video helped establish Byrne as one of the most distinguished stars of the '80s, blessed with his own unique brand of charisma. His jerky movements have a strange logic, even a little funky, as if somewhere deep down he realizes that the mystery of life always flows far below our perception.-CH.
Rick Astley, "I will never give up on you"
incredibly little happensin the Never Gonna Give You Up video, the three and a half minute clip that spawned the catchiest music-related meme in internet history. Rick Astley dances and lip syncs in a few different takes; A bartender and some spectators capture the mood and perform their own bizarre acrobatic moves. But there's a reason no other clip has swept the internet to this level, or spawned a bait-and-switch link joke: The video that accompanied Astley's dance-pop hit is an unstoppable juggernaut of late-'90s carefree charm. 80. Astley's flawless red bow; his show of daring outfits, from a daring jean and baby blue ensemble to a now-iconic beige coat; and, of course, the legendary goofy shimmy of him, all adding up to a series of impossible-to-smile images. The director of the clip, Simon West, who later took the helm.air conditionermiTomb Raider, thesethat the video "haunts him like an evil poltergeist," but for the rest of us, every time we're lied to, it becomes a welcome zen moment. (As on cue, "Never Gonna Give You Up" hit 1 billion views on YouTube as of July 2021.)—H.S.
Björk, "Everything is full of love"
if a couplePlastic androids running amok on the factory floor is not your idea of a good time, so this might not be for you. You wouldn't be alone: Many people found director Chris Cunningham's slippery, sticky robotic fantasy just as chilling as the nightmares he conjured up for Aphex Twin around the same time (#47 on this list). This was to Björk's advantage, who was drawn to Cunningham's talent for disturbing imagery: "Most video directors have a trick they use all the time," she said. “Then there are the people who build a whole world around them. Chris is like that." In other words, All Is Full of Love is a surprisingly tender sci-fi fable in which human emotions manage to survive even the most alienated future. Either way, it's the perfect expression of Björk's mysterious beauty.homogeneous, and an important showcase for her as one of the great queer writers of the music video era in her work with many directors.— S.V.L.
Haim, "Valentine's Day"
how to beIdolJonathan Demme, Paul Thomas Anderson know that sometimes all it takes is the right musician in the right environment to create a visual spectacle. He had explored this simple concept in previous music videos tofiona applemiJuan Newsombefore taking it to new heights with this 13-minute short that takes the Haim sisters into the studio and says, "Do what you want." Camera movement and lighting are a little more complex than Demme's The Perfect Kiss, but not by much, and they don't need to be: Haim remains one of the most compelling live shows of its generation, and the walls of the studio can hardly contain their energy and dynamism.—C. S.
Twisted sister, "We won't have it"
no video hasEver epitomized the anti-authoritarian spirit of heavy metal better than this clip, which complemented Twisted Sister's ode to satiation with a barrage of pure visual antics. Father Aggro Mark Metcalf (Tierheim'ROTC maniac Doug Neidermeyer) bursts into his guitarist son's room and yells, "What do you want?AgainWith your life?!?" The boy magically transforms into the band's glam kabuki lead singer, Dee Snider, who subjects the abusive patriarch to a series of hilariously exaggerated physical assaults. He falls out of a window and is dragged off. downstairs and is knocked down by a slamming door. The tone of the song was angry, but as Snider explained during a 1985 interviewPMRC HearingAfter the song was featured on Tipper Gore's infamous Filthy 15, the last thing he wanted to show in the clip was actual violence. "The 'We're Not Gonna Take It' video was conceived simply as a cartoon with human actors performing variations on the Roadrunner/Wile E. Coyote theme," he said. "Each stunt was selected from my extensive personal collection of cartoons."—H.S.
Weezer, "Buddy Holly"
NonethelessWeezer has been doing this for the past three decades, the first image that comes to mind for many people when they think of them is Fonzie and theHappy DaysGroup dancing to "Buddy Holly" at Arnold's Drive-In. That's because the Spike Jonze-directed 1994 video for the song made an indelible impression after numerous plays on MTV in 1994 (not to mention the fact that it was included on a Windows 95 CD-ROM the following year). Great part of the population). And though we take Weezer back in timeHappy DaysUniversum sounds like a tremendous feat of engineering, the clip being shot in a single day on a Hollywood set mimicking Arnold's set, complete with a cameo appearance by Al Molinaro reprising his character as Arnold from the show. The hard part was looking for the giant.Happy Daysfiles to find small pieces to sprinkle on the video. "My editor and I went through hundreds of episodes," says Jonze.Fold2003, “Pretty much everyone who had anything on Arnolds. When we found the footage of Fonzie dancing, it was like a gold mine."-A.G.
Run-DMC, "King of Rock"
almost 25 yearsPrior to his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Run-DMC broke into the fictional "Rock N' Roll Museum" to steal a Beatles wig, take a video of Jerry Lee Lewis and crush Michael's jeweled glove. Jackson. "I remember people saying that was kind of prescient," DMC said in 2009. No one has used rock in hip-hop better to drive and reverse the sound. and the video withmailmanLarry "Bud" Melman's commonplace saying "You don't belong here" is iconoclastic enough in its idol-busting to make the line "There's three of us / But we're not the Beatles" (somewhat) forgivable.-JN.
Beck, "loser"
similar to themBricolage, that was Beck's first sound, the video that made him famous was a mix of different images that somehow fit together. The $300 shooting budget of the "Loser" video produced footage of DIY cheerleaders dancing in a graveyard, a Grim Reaper-like character wiping blood from a car window, several West Coast weirdos strumming guitars, and a coffin winding mysteriously through the woods. . and streets (note from director Steve Hanft to Luis Buñuelsdesert simon).In the midst of it all, Beck danced in a white suit and baseball cap, brandished a leaf blower across the stage, and fired up his own guitar. The whole thing is completely devoid of narrative but full of humor (the scene at the end of a scruffy Beck strolling along the beach in a half-wetsuit screams "90s California"). No matter what mood you're viewing him in, he conjures up a hypnotic wake-and-bake haze you can sink into like a rickety couch.—H.S.
Kendrick Lamar, "Humilde"
If you areWondering if the video for Kendrick Lamar's first number one hit would be as sparse as the song, well: the opening scene is the rapper dressed as the Pope, in all his regalia, standing in a shaft of light. From there, Lamar and director Dave Meyers stack images like memories from a fever dream: Kendrick at a table littered with cash; Kendrick throws an old hoop; Kendrick passes Gray Poupon from car to car; Kendrick as Christ in LeonardosThe Last Supper.Part of that may be a blow to conspicuous consumption of hip-hop videos (not to mention Gray Poupon commercials); In part, Lamar is probably immersing himself in a Christianity whose maxim of humility is hard to maintain when you're the greatest rapper alive. in a 2017Rolling Stone magazine cover, Lamar made it clear who he was talking to. "That's the ego," he says. "Ultimately, I look in the mirror."-CH.
Mötley Crüe, "Lar Twelve Lar"
Mötley Crüe summersThanks to bassist Nikki Sixx's severe heroin addiction and the recent aftermath of Vince Neil's car accident that killed Hanoi Rocks drummer Razzle, he was in an extremely dark place when he released the video for his 1985 power ballad Home. Sweet Home. he'll never know by looking at the final product. It begins with Neil on the beach, guitarist Mick Mars in a creepy castle, Sixx in a bar, and drummer Tommy Lee at a party. They all answer a phone call saying "I'm on my way" and are immediately transported to a magic arena show where fans must be physically restrained from throwing themselves onto the stage. This was the height of the hair metal movement, and the video was in constant rotation on MTV for several months. Looking back at that time, LeeSaid Stereogum“We're coming off the success of the 'Home Sweet Home' video that they turned into 'Mötley Crüe Rule' on MTV. We've been at the front of the requests for so long that they've said, 'That's not fair.'-A.G.
(Video) Taylor Swift - Anti-Hero (Official Music Video)Lil Nas X, "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)"
you alreadyDid she dance with the devil in the pale moonlight? Lil Nas X co-directed (with Tanu Muino) the video for the title track from his 2021 album, and it's a riot of color, historical references (from Genesis to Apocalypse, Greco-Roman architecture to medieval art), sound, rage, ecstasy and vision. But what got the most attention was our man Montero, the artist's real name, sliding down a pole into hell and giving Satan (also played by Lil Nas X) the hottest crotch loop than the Prince of Darkness probably had. have already tried. Although the satanists seem to be giving away the videoa mark of the beast from above, the far right, unsurprisingly, has run amok. (Let's not even get into that.the whole thing with Nike.) Yet there was a method to Lil Nas X's baroque madness. "I wanted to use these things that have been around for so long to tell my own story."he defined, "and the story of so many other people in the community, or people generally kicked out throughout history. It's always the same." You can't say Lil Nas X is wrong. And the haters: you can never call him a one-hit wonder again.—D.F.
hole, "purple"
courtney love hatnever shy away from autobiographical themes, and in this video from Hole's 1994 albumlive it, goes back in time, from her childhood ballet classes to her days as a stripper. While theyexplained at the time, the visual feel of the clip was based on "acid flashbacks, old footage". controlled byRolling Stone'Set in a Victorian-era theater, the sepia-toned video, by then-chief photographer Mark Seliger and art director Fred Woodward, alternates between young ballerinas and scantily clad women as Love sings about a lover who left her (probably Billy of crushing pumpkins). Corgan). "I wanted to tone down the striptease," she continued of the intent behind the video. "Instead of all the videos that put naked or semi-nude women on a pedestal, I wanted to show what a degrading experience it is."—EGP
The Substitutes, "Youth Bastards"
to say thatArguably the best (and arguably drunkest) Minnesota punk band of the 1980s, the Replacements hated MTV would be an understatement: they disparaged the network at every turn and devoted an entire song to their 1984 masterpiece.I let be("Seen Your Video") to drooling bands getting ready for the camera. "When we make a video"said singer Paul Westberg, "we want to make one that nobody wants to see, let alone twice." Still, for her major-label debut,rudder,They decided to make an exception to their no video policy, albeit on their own terms. Because of this, none of the replacements appear in this minimalism practice clip; instead, we get a close-up of a narrator in director Jeff Skinner's living room performing the song. The camera finally pans away just in time to capture an angry, unidentified listener dropping the speaker. He was a beautiful shit from a band known for their eloquent farewells to her. The irony:120 minuteshe began playing the clip regularly, making it a crowd favorite. They saw it all the time, even twice. The joke is on you gentlemen.—D.F.
Sonic Youth, "Bull in the Heather"
Vídeo de Sonic Youthit summed up everything that was great about the summer of 1994: it was the essence of mainstream rock that would have been unthinkable a few years earlier. (Or, unfortunately, a few years later.) Kim Gordon plays the pregnant punk matriarch and shows off her collection of creepy looks. Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna co-stars as the nanny Agent of Chaos, who dances with the band in her tank tops and pigtails, interrupting her every rock move. She also surprises Kim with a clearly rude kiss on her cheek. Directed by Tamra Davis, Bull in the Heather spans generations, genres, and genres, all ablaze with Revolution-Grrrl-Style-Now energy.—R.S.
Taylor Swift, "Space"
by the timeSynth-Pop-Pivot de Taylor Swift1989, the star found her life in the public eye, extensively documented and unfairly criticized. So fastput it back then, the media characterized her as a perpetually jilted lover who "goes to her evil lair and writes songs about it in revenge." For example, in White Space, directed by her frequent collaborator Joseph Kahn, she amused herself by commenting on her love life and her love-obsessed image of her, playing a picture-perfect girlfriend in a colorful relationship that ends in despair. complete.swimming fanin the villa that he shares with his partner. She stabs a bloody cake, cries tears of mascara, throws an iPhone into a fountain, and destroys decor, all with a nod to her fans and critics alike.— BS
Lady Gaga feat. Beyoncé, "Telephone"
lady gaga onceteamed up again with Swedish filmmaker Jonas Akerlund to create a unique piece of pop propaganda that captures his crimes in theirs.„Paparazzi“-Clipconcluded. A nearly 10-minute odyssey, the video finds Gaga going to prison for murder. The (slightly confused?) Beyoncé breaks up with her friend and the couple take a ride in Quentin Tarantino's pussy wagon.feeds billbefore taking revenge in a desert restaurant by killing model Tyrese Gibson for stealing his honey. "We shot the whole thing in two days, which is amazing."he saysdiversity for the tenth anniversary of the clip. "Beyoncé and Gaga literally practiced on the spot and figured out the choreography while we waited. It was crazy."—J.P.
The Verve - Bittersweet Symphony"
the premise isSimple: Richard Ashcroft is walking down a busy London street, aggressively bumping into people walking in the opposite direction, completely ignoring their excited reactions. The original cut featured the Verve frontman getting his comeuppance as a group of thugs beat him to a bloody pulp; However, the end result is that he simply rejoins his bandmates and escapes unharmed.Director Walter A. Stern was inspired by the Massive Attack video "Unfinished Symphony," in which Shara Nelson takes a similar walk down a Los Angeles street. (Even though she didn't attack anyone). The video made "Bittersweet Symphony" a huge hit, but it also set her up for years of legal battles, as the song features a symphonic rendition of the Rolling Stones' "The Last Time." " "and they didn't exactly have the rights. Still, the video remains a time capsule from a time when Britpop was booming, Ashcroft was beaming, and it was okay to attack pedestrians for no reason.-A.G.
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody'
The video about itQueen's Bohemian Rhapsody was filmed in just four hours and cost the band just £4,500, but it changed the music industry forever. They created it because they knew the song was a spectacular performance that needed to be heard by the whole world, but they would look ridiculous pretending to play it live at concerts likepops topas it is largely a studio creation. So they hired director Bruce Gowers and came up with a video that begins with a recreation of his 1974 cover pose.Queen IIand slowly builds to a climax where they play the finale on a glittering stage. Along the way, we see a "little silhouette" of Freddie Mercury and an innovative honeycomb effect that features multiple images of the band at once. The video helped make the song a huge international hit and inspired many other groups to follow suit and make their own videos. The idea of a cable channel dedicated exclusively to these videos soon arose.-A.G.
RAPID EYE MOVEMENT. - Losing my Religion"
What didCan you imagine being young and sad in February 1991? It looked like the hauntingly beautiful umbra backdrop for Michael Stipe's dance in R.E.M.'s Greatest Music Video. Its mandolin-driven silence made it an unlikely hit, and the video was an equally unlikely competitor to the commercial success it achieved: director Tarsem Singh praised the playful homoeroticism and art-school swagger (his visuals were inspired by paintings de Caravaggio, a painting by Gabriel García Márquez, a short story, and photos by renowned French artists such as Pierre et Gilles) on an MTV mainstream that just months earlier had featured the crude antics of the Warrant hairdressing quintet on "Cherry Pie."-B.H.
Radiohead, "Solo"
originally written asBizarre even by Radiohead standards, this Jamie Thraves clip is a short film inspired by Hitchcock and Bernardo Bertolucci films.Right Conformist.the band plays themcurvesFollow the clues in a London apartment as they watch from a window as chaos unfolds: a man has collapsed on the pavement and no one can figure out why. Through subtitles, he refuses to explain to viewers why he's on the ground until the end; He then quietly reveals the secret, bringing everyone to their knees. Neither the group nor the director have confirmed what the man actually said, leading fans to speculate for years. "I'll probably take the answer with me to the grave, unless some rich Radiohead billionaire wants to buy the secret," says Thraves.Dise un Rolling Stonelast year. "It's like I found the universe's answer… Please don't make me tell you. You don't want to know."-PAPER BIN.
The Go-Go's, "Our Lips Are Sealed"
a day inLife of the Go-Go's: The five coolest punk rock girls in town hop into a convertible and cruise under the Southern California sun until it's time to take a dip in the fountain. It was impossible to watch the Our Lips Are Sealed video and not wish you were one of the go-gos. It captures all the diverse personalities in the band, from Belinda Carlisle's cheerleader gone bad to Gina Schock's punk enforcer. Highlights: Jane Wiedlin sits alone in the car to sing the bridge "Hush Now Darling," then Gina plays the drums in Jane's head. It was the vision of a new wave feminist utopia that made all the other bands seem terribly boring.—R.S.
(Video) top 100 most recognizable songs of all-timeJanete Jackson hazaña. Q-Tip y Joni Mitchell, "Got 'Til It's Gone"
janet jackson yDirector Mark Romanek recreates an apartheid-era South African living room in this joyous paean to Afrocentrism. With a sharply dressed Q-Tip in tow, Romanek's stylistic choices, including elegant clothing and use of African dance, are reminiscent of Malian photographers Seydou Keita and Malick Sidibe, while Jackson's portrayal of a lounge singer from dance evokes a brilliant naturalness that contrasts sharply with itsRhythmusnation 1814Militarism. Even Joni Mitchell, whose song "Big Yellow Taxi" was a sampler of the track, said the video "had dignity and was full of life." And Joni Mitchell never lies.-JN.
Kylie Minogue, "Come Into My World"
connect the onlyDirector Michel Gondry's vision of Kylie Minogue in her prime had to produce something extraordinary. This 2002 video seems simple enough at first glance: a quick stroll through a Parisian neighborhood by the Australian pop star, tuned to her upbeat disco tune. A couple argues, children skate on the sidewalk, lovers embrace in this quaint little scene. Minogue then goes back to where she started, and each time she returns, new iterations of the singer emerge, all following similar but different paths. Meanwhile, the background chaos multiplies to comic proportions, from four identical groups of drivers locked in physical altercations to four identical men frantically tapping posters on the wall of a building. It's a marvel of meticulous planning and choreography that makes repeat visits to search for gaps in continuity half the fun. Long live the multiverse of Kylie!—J.F.
Van Halen, "Primavera"
Como Van Halenwent to film the video for "Jump", they had a common request: no clichés. "That thing where you stand by the blinds with the light coming in and shining on your face," David told Lee Roth.Rolling Stone."How many times have you seen this on MTV in the last two hours?" So they made this low-budget, minimalist masterpiece themselves, using a handheld 16mm camera. No special effects, no concept, no lasers, no dancers. Just personality - more than enough to make your TV pop. From Diamond Dave's slapstick heels to Edward's smirk and eye contact from the entire gang, "Jump" captures all the sex and swagger of the original Van Halen. The way Dave rolled his eyes at that first "can you see what I mean?" is a three second Rockstar Charisma seminar.—R.S.
Nine inch nails, "mais perto"
"Closer" probably neverwould have hit the mainstream were it not for director Mark Romanek's haunting video, filled with images of Trent Reznor in various bondage positions, a crucified monkey (next to a Jack Nicholson poster), and a naked woman grabbing balls by twisting her legs. fingers. along with other surreal horrors and delights. "Trent said: 'Fuck it... If MTV doesn't show it, fuck MTV'", Romanekonce rememberedThe clip that mixes the humor of David LynchErascherkopfwith the voyeurism ofblue velvet,it was so bizarre that the channel couldn't help but play it, albeit in a heavily censored "missing scene" version. But the truth is, most of the scary images were real (yes, it's a decapitated pig's head), but they kept things professional (the monkey was supervised, not injured). And Romanek shot the video with a 1919 hand-cranked camera and enhanced the film by hand with lighters and shellac spray, adding to the mood. "[The video] set a tone that made the song sound better to me," said Reznor, "and I think that's a great achievement."-KG.
Backstreet Boys, "I want it like this"
as lead actorSingle para Backstreet BoysMillennium, "I Want It That Way" would herald a powerful era for boy bands and pop music. Directed by Wayne Isham, the video takes place at LAX airport, where children dressed in black or white dance and slowly walk through the airport. As they prepare to board the plane, they are surrounded by screaming girls with lots of headshots and merchandise for the group to sign. It's one of the most popular looks in the boy band canon and embodies the kind of passionate fandom that BSB performs. The clip became so popular and ubiquitous in the late '90s that Blink-182 parodied it for what would become their iconic All the Small Things video.— BS
LL Cool J, "Back to Cali"
Ric Menello, oneThe dorm security guard and movie commentator who befriended Rick Rubin at NYU had already filmed the Beasties' Fight for Your Right video craze. He is now guided by his favorite movies.touch of evilmirebel without reason, Menello turned LL Cool J's ambivalence about crossing the country into rap's greatest art video. The images of LL cruising slowly in his robotic Corvette and automaton dancers imitate the song's leisurely beat and remain indelible more than three decades later. LL originally hated the video. Since then he has considered it the masterpiece that it is.-JN.
Madonna, "The materialistic girl"
not everyone canIconic Marilyn Monroe aside, Madonna nearly nailed it with this 1984 clip, an almost shot-for-shot remake of Monroe's 1953 number "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend."Gentlemen prefer blondes.However, where Monroe swooned from the shine, Madonna is searching for something deeper: financial security and, of course, love. Throughout the video, a wealthy director (played by Keith Carradine) woos her and pretends to be poor to win her heart; She ends up more impressed by her humble daisies than by a fleet of bejeweled gowns. Shot by Mary Lambert, who also directed the film adaptation of the 1989 Stephen King film.Tierfriedhof- “Material Girl” would become the template for feminist videos for decades to come. —MAYBE.
Janet Jackson, "Rhythm Nation"
and it's videoYou wanted to suit up and join the fight against… well, whatever, you weren't alone. Militarism never looked so cool as when Janet—Miss Jackson, if she's crazy—started performing her precision moves with an army of stone-faced dancers trailing behind her, all dressed in matching uniforms, gloves, and boots. . (Janet, in particular, now lives in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.) Shot in smoky black-and-white and set in what appears to be an abandoned power plant, the video bills the singer and her crew as soldiers of social justice as she sings about breaking the lines of color and uniting our lives. voices in protest The title track from their 1989 concept album,Rhythmusnation 1814, suggesting that we can end racism through dance and music? Yes. Is this wrong? Apparently. But there's no denying that it woke up a lot of people.— M. F.
Herbie Hancock, "Rockit"
is the scratchIt gets you first: that record needle screeching that sounded new enough in 1983 to stop you in your tracks. As soon as the GrandMixer DXT went to work on the steel wheels: Boom! We are transported to an apartment full of robots, all shaking and humming to the beat. Three pairs of legs synchronously step on a sofa. Two mannequin heads rock an impressive vintage Carl Sagan watch while something mechanical splashes into a soapy sink. A robo wife fucks her robo's husband at a robo breakfast table. And when the camera pans over a small TV, you can see a pair of hands:humanHands: carve a keyboard row. Had it not been for MTV OG's Kevin Godley and Lol Creme's video for Herbie Hancock's unclassifiable fusion of jazz, electro-funk and hip-hop, it might have been just another musical pipe dream from a long-time fusion pioneer. time. The music thus became the soundtrack to a kind of techno-utopian future.miA truly amazing WTF. You've never seen anything like it. YoustillI've never seen anything like it before.—D.F.
Run the Jewels, "Close your eyes (and count to fuck)"
The twenty-something African Americanthey all look battered and exhausted. Also the white policeman who yells, "Don't move!" while the other turns and runs. They fight in the street, drunk and exhausted. The day turns into night. They move the fight to an apartment, eventually sitting on opposite sides of a bed and gasping. It's not the first time they've done this. It won't be the last. Filmed in black and white and starring Lakeith Stanfield andBoardwalk-ImperiumShea Wigham, this video for Run the Jewels highlightsRTJ2The song (featuring a boisterous verse by Rage Against the Machine's Zack de la Rocha, who makes a cameo appearance alongside the rap duo) turns the thorny issue of police violence against the black community into a never-ending cycle of agony. Whoever wins, we all lose. “This video represents the futile and exhausting existence of a purgatory-like law enforcement system,” Killer Mike said in a statement after the video went viral. "In the end, there is no clean solution because there is no clean solution in the real world."—D.F.
FAQs
Top 100 Music Videos? ›
It stars Sia's muse, Maddie Ziegler. Choreography by Ryan Heffington; directed by Sia and Daniel Askill. This Sia song is an emotional tribute to the victims of the Orlando shooting that killed 49 individuals at the Pulse Nightclub. It stars Sia's muse, Maddie Ziegler.
What are the top 10 music videos of all time? ›- 'Thriller' by Michael Jackson. ...
- 'Like a Prayer' by Madonna. ...
- 'Karma Police' by Radiohead. ...
- 'Runaway' by Kanye West. ...
- 'Big Time Sensuality' by Björk. ...
- 'Humble' by Kendrick Lamar. ...
- 'Closer' by Nine Inch Nails. ...
- 'Hardest Button to Button' by White Stripes.
It stars Sia's muse, Maddie Ziegler. Choreography by Ryan Heffington; directed by Sia and Daniel Askill. This Sia song is an emotional tribute to the victims of the Orlando shooting that killed 49 individuals at the Pulse Nightclub. It stars Sia's muse, Maddie Ziegler.
What is the most powerful music video? ›“Thriller” (Michael Jackson, 1983)
Arguably the greatest music video ever made.
Price tag: $500,000. "Sledgehammer," Peter Gabriel: This 1986 video became the most played in MTV history, thanks to its Claymation, pixilation and stop-motion animation. "Walk This Way," Run-DMC & Aerosmith: his 1986 rap-meets-rock video opened MTV to hip-hop.
What's the most listened song? ›"Blinding Lights" by the Weeknd (pictured) is the most-streamed song of all time on Spotify, with over 3.4 billion streams as of March 2023.
What's the most popular song in the world? ›| Artist | Single | Sales (in millions) |
|---|---|---|
| Xiao Zhan | "Spotlight" (光点) | 54.12 |
| Ed Sheeran | "Shape of You" | 41.5 |
| Luis Fonsi featuring Daddy Yankee | "Despacito" | 36.1 |
| Rihanna featuring Drake | "Work" | 32.5 |
The music video for "Best Song Ever" was directed by Ben Winston and written by comedian James Corden. Filmed over two days at The Temple House in Miami Beach, Florida, the video was released on the band's Vevo channel on 22 July 2013.
What is the longest single take music video? ›Twenty One Pilots has officially set a new record for the longest music video of all time – clocking in at just over 4,264 hours. The pop band, known for their hit “Stressed Out,” released the song “Level of Concern” in April.
What's the most liked video on Tiktok? ›1. 'M to the B' lip sync by Bella Poarch (61.1 million likes)
What was the 1st music video? ›
Some suggest that the first music video was created in 1894 by Joseph Stern and Edward Mark, who set a recording of their song “The Little Lost Child” to a moving slide show and marketed it as an “illustrated song.” Though the average American did not yet own equipment to play a recording of the song, over 2 million ...
Who has the most #1 hits in history? ›The Beatles have tallied the most No. 1 hits in the 61-year history of the Hot 100, with 20. Their closest competitor is Mariah Carey, with 18.
Who has the best song in history? ›Aretha Franklin's 'Respect' named Greatest Song of All Time by Rolling Stone. (WTRF) – Rolling Stone has released its latest list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and the Queen of Soul is at the top. Aretha Franklin's “Respect” topped the list as the No. 1 song, according to the entertainment magazine and website ...
Who has the most #1 songs in music history? ›Though unclear for how long, the Beatles still reign supreme as the artist with the most No. 1 songs of all time.
Who has the most music streams of all time? ›As of April 2023, Canadian rapper Drake is the most-streamed artist of all time on Spotify, while American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift is the most-streamed female artist.
What is the most sold album of all time? ›Michael Jackson's Thriller, estimated to have sold 70 million copies worldwide, is the best-selling album ever. Jackson also currently has the highest number of albums on the list with five, Celine Dion has four, while the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Madonna and Whitney Houston each have three.
What is #1 song right now? ›The current number one pop song on iTunes right now is Flowers by Miley Cyrus. Related Charts: Top new pop songs, iTunes top pop albums, and iTunes top 100 songs.
What is the biggest selling one hit wonder? ›| # | ARTIST | YEAR |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Del Rio | 1996 |
| 2 | Soft Cell | 1986 |
| 3 | Dexy's Midnight Runners | 1983 |
| 4 | Right Said Fred | 1991 |
MrBeast's 'Squid Game' Remake Becomes Fastest Non-Music Video To Reach 100 Million Views — In 4 Days. MrBeast's Squid Game re-creation has quickly gone from massively-anticipated to unprecedented.
What were the first 10 music videos? ›- Buggles - "Video Killed The Radio Star" ...
- Pat Benatar - "You Better Run" ...
- Rod Stewart - "She Won't Dance With Me" ...
- The Who - "You Better You Bet" ...
- Ph.D - "Little Susie's On Top" ...
- Cliff Richad - "We Don't Talk Anymore" ...
- The Pretenders "Brass in Pocket" ...
- Todd Rundgren - "Time Heals"
What is the most played music video on MTV? ›
#1 "Thriller" - Michael Jackson.
What music video has broken the most records? ›Paramore have broken about a billion records in their new video "Ain't It Fun," and we don't just mean that figuratively. The band teamed up with Guinness World Records to see how many records they could break during one music video. The final tally: 10 world records!
What song has the most listens ever? ›What is the most listened to song on Spotify? The most-streamed song in Spotify history is credited to… The Weeknd's "Blinding Lights."
Is the most played song of all time? ›It was never a hit single and got almost no play on Top 40 radio. There's even a dispute over the exact title. Yet “It's a Small World,” also known as “It's a Small, Small World” and “It's a Small World (After All),” is very likely the most played song in music history — nearly 50 million times.