MY TOP 10 FAVORITE MUSIC VIDEOS
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1. SEVENTEEN - TRAUMA
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Release date - 07/10/2017 ✧ Director - Beomjin J.
Seventeen is one of the Kpop groups that have an impact on me the most, especially Hip Hop Unit. Even though mostly their songs are rap songs, the messages that they want to deliver are always empowered and significant in terms of expressing emotions. “Trauma” is one of them, which has the most deep and meaningful lyrics that I have ever seen. It’s a rap song and the music video follows the concept of performances since everyone is grooving with the music and lyrics. The things that I love about this music video is the way that they express their story and emotion not by normal storytelling technique, but through the surroundings and their own expression. For instance, Vernon (white hair guy) is sitting and grooving in a room full of sand and fans, which represents the safe and stabilization. The phase of healing involves adjusting to the trauma, finding coping methods, managing triggers, and achieving stability. The video metaphor of sand symbolizes this, as finding stability is challenging due to the unsteadiness of the sand and the time required for healing, as Vernon sitting on the pile of sand with a bunch of fans, which represents the way that he gets used to it, sometimes it’s tiring to find safety and comfort, therefore it leads to your decision of giving up.
2. TXT - 9 AND 3 QUARTERS ( RUNAWAY )
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Release date - 21/10/2019 ✧ Directors - Oui Kim & Youngseok Choi
With the inspiration from Harry Potter’s station, “Runaway” is one of the songs that always gives me chills not only with the music but also with the MV. With the mise - en scene of the school ground, and the lowkey burdensome mood in the video, even though the atmosphere is quite chaotic, the song is about the state of want to escape, exploring how to escape life's responsibilities and metaphorically. The MV has achieved cinematography with the main colors being blue, green and a little bit of red. Medium shots and wide shots were used quite a lot in this MV since it needs to capture the members emotions. This MV followed the concept of performance and narrative, therefore there are some scenes showing the members dancing. The way that they tell their story of exploring the other world, more specifically is the “Eternal Friendship”. One more thing that caught my attention is the post - credit scene of the video, which creates an open ending, making the audience curious about what will happen next.
3. ENHYPEN - FEVER
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Release date - 19/05/2021 ✧ Director - Beomjin J.
“FEVER” is the next MV that I will discuss. Enhypen stunned with a follow-up music video for "Fever" soon after their "Drunk Dazed" comeback. "Fever" was undoubtedly the most notable b-side to "pair" it with, assuming HYBE had to use all that stock footage of them dressed as royalty. By doing this, Enhypen have been able to introduce a fantastic b-side that could have otherwise gone unnoticed to fans and provide them with an additional serving of graphics. In this MV, we can see the main colors of this MV are blue, yellow, orange and red. The vibe of this MV is warm yet melancholy at the same time, not to mention there are some scenes that include the “Gradient Map” effect. Medium close up shots were used a lot in this video, since they captured members’ faces quite a lot and quite close. Slow motion also added in some still scenes, along with the fire crackers. This MV also followed the style of performance, however, the thing that caught my eyes is that there were some transitions between backgrounds in some scenes of the performance, along with the confetti, which is really stunning.
4. SEVENTEEN - LEFT & RIGHT
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Release date - 22/06/2020 ✧ Director - Seungwon Mo
Seventeen is the group that brings to me many different moods and vibes. Apart from “Trauma” from 6 years ago, the melancholy vibe that it had can make a person feel related, even depressed at the same time. Moving on to 3 years ago, Seventeen also released a MV which brings the vibe that is completely opposite with “Trauma’, the title track of their 7th Extended Play “Heng:garæ” - “Left and Right”. The MV has caught my attention since it seems like they take inspiration from Wes Anderson’s filming style. Most of the scenes were still scenes with people either sitting or standing, one thing that differed from the original filming style is that they added the details of singing or doing something and the rest watching them. The colors of this MV were blue, green and pink, and the lightning was brighter. The vibe of it was cheerful, hype, even there is some goofy vibe in it. The song and the MV want to bring a positive energy to everyone, mainly it’s about the messages about goals and achieving them, and a cheer for someone who is working hard and trying their best in life. There are individuals who put up constant effort and work hard. Do your best, but perhaps not always, it is suggesting. You must eventually give yourself a break in order to avoid burnout or emotional overload. It's also acceptable to take a break.
5. NEGAV - EM KHIẾN ANH MUỐN TRỞ THÀNH NGƯỜI HÀ NỘI
( you made me want to become a Hanoi-an )
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Release date - 23/08/2023 ✧ Director - Ai Nguyen
Vpop is the genre of music that has always been with me since I was a primary student. The first time that I encountered Vietnamese Rap was 3 years ago, when I first heard about Rap Viet - a Vietnamese rap show. As time went by, I discovered many rap teams and had some favorites in mind. Gerdnang is one of my favorites and Negav is one of the members. Beside Hieuthuhai, he is also well - known, not only for his rapping skill, but also his vocal and his “baby” yet handsome visual. This song is his newest song, released 2 months ago. The song is about his confession towards his girlfriend, whose origin is from Hanoi, if I’m not mistaken, of how his love was devoted to her. The MV is quite simple, with gray as the main color. The MV is a conceptual MV with a digital style of filming, it seems like it has been recorded with a digital camera. The thing that I like about this MV is the simplest and normal moments that have been captured, from having breakfast at a small pavement eatery, to hanging out at any place that we can think of such as the museum, coffee shop and more. The vibe of this MV is somehow cute and romantic, even making the person who watches it want to have someone to love with.
6. HOANG DUNG - DOAN KET MOI ( A NEW ENDING )
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Release date - 28/05/2017 ✧ Directors - Ong Dong & Ba Huong
Hoang Dung is one of my favorite Vietnamese soloists, not only because his music is so warm yet nostalgic, but also for all of his MV. Even though there isn't much of it, I have to admit that most of his MVs are art and unique as their own. Doan Ket Moi ( A New Ending ) is one of them, the song tells about the story of a broken up couple who met again coincidently at a train station, then their memories of being together in the past 10 years. The first thing that caught my eyes is that the structure of the MV didn’t go in order, there were some “awkward” situations and the timing between scenes didn’t follow the flow of a normal narrative MV. As for the usual style of the MV, I also depict a convention that somehow suit with it, which is the lyrics and the visual, as for the lyrics flashed back both the memories and the current emotions of the person after meet their past lover, the visual have bring back both the memories and how the person reminiscing it. One more thing that I want to mention is the color of the MV, it seems like the main color is gray, since the video in general was a bit dark and mostly the color is gray, even though there were other colors overlapped over it such as blue, green, yellow and more. Furthermore, the stillness and a quiet “machinery” acting also made this MV unique, it didn’t require much acting or much movement, but it’s enough to tell how memorable yet painful at the same time. One more thing, in my opinion, perhaps the purpose of it is to show the “typical” relationship timeline. At first, we were extremely in love and having our best time in our life, however, as time went by, our affection gradually decreased, which led to our break up. Not to mention about the use of medium close up shots and wide shots. The MV is simple in the way of editing, color grading also consists of a few colors but its vibe still gives the audience a melancholy yet chill and healing feel.
7. HIEUTHUHAI - DYNAMIC DUO ( feat. HURRYKNG )
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Release date - 15/03/2022 ✧ Director - Ung Duy Kien
As I have mentioned before, Gerdnang is one of my favorite rap team since 2020. Hieuthuhai and Hurrykng are also from Gerdnang and they also have a really wonderful career on rapping so far. This MV was released last year and the two of them collaborated together. The MV’s about a combat between two guys trying to win a woman’s heart and how they imagined their life with her, but in the end, no one wins her heart. This might be the goofiest and most interesting MV that I have ever seen. The MV includes many visual effects such as VHS effects, or some distortion. There is a camera work detail, more specifically is fisheye. Fisheye lenses were used a lot in some scenes, as to convey the door lens to see the inside. Digital camera effects also used, compared with Negav’s song, the effect was more upscale than his. Not to mention there were some camera shuttered shots included, also slow motion. One more thing that I also wanted to mention is that there are also some graphic elements, specifically ripped images, which are used mostly in collage pieces of artwork. Nevertheless, there are some details that are quite censored, such as the woman with her bikini trying to appeal to everybody, which can lead to nudity aspect, or the middle finger. Overall, the MV has a comedic yet charming vibe, but it will be better if they can reduce the amount of visual effects, therefore the MV will have a more balanced look.
8. BILLIE EILISH, KHALID - LOVELY
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Release date - 26/04/2018 ✧ Director - Matty Peacock & Taylor Cohen
“Lovely” is an alternative, indie song that addresses depression and getting out of everything horrible after feeling miserable. As for the simplest detail of a box in the middle, Billie and Khalid inside as they were trapped and felt small. It’s a narrative plus some performance details since it also contains them lip-synching the lyrics, the narrative is the glass box, as present the world and mental illness had taken over her life and gradually made her miserable. There are some graphical and visual effects elements such as the cloud, the water becomes and such. Not to mention about the mise - en scene of the MV, as for the image of them feeling confined and unable to escape is emphasized by the use of very low lighting, which evokes a sensation of claustrophobia. It could also be an indication of their dismal and gloomy disposition. A blue tint is added; blue is sometimes associated with melancholy and depression, which may further imply how they are feeling. The all-black clothing that Billie and Khalid are sporting may allude to unhappiness, melancholy, and depression. It may also represent a sense of loss and regret, which further highlights their emotions. The chains that encircle Billie and Khalid, in my opinion, stand for depression. Given that Billie has more chains on than Khalid, this could imply that she is more depressed than him. Moreover, the glass box, which serves as a barrier for Billie and Khalid when they are imprisoned and unable to escape, is the only prop used in the music video. We watch as they attempt to get away and as the weather repeatedly attacks them. Overall, the MV even though it’s simple, yet it still gives the audiences a relatable, sad and melancholy vibe.
9. D4VD - HERE WITH ME
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Release date - 24/11/2022 ✧ Director - Arman Mitchell
“Here With Me” is also an alternative, indie song that addresses the love of an elderly couple at the end stage of their life. The MV consists of d4vd himself and an actress to represent their love life. There is a contrast between them in their 20s and them when they’re old. Medium shots and medium close - up shots were used to describe their younger life, and them sitting on a bench near their beach, reminiscing their memories through their love journal. Even though the MV didn’t use much grainy effects to make it old or film - like, yet the MV still has the vibe of it, which has been achieved by the color grading, as they used orange and black as the main color. The color grading gave the overall atmosphere a warm yet melancholy kind of feeling. The transition is also messy since it is both glitching and transit to many other scenes at the same time. One more thing that I want to mention here is the mise - en scene, as they take the video at the beach, and all different places to represent that they have been to many places to enjoy their love life. At the end of the MV, we can see a scene of the old man, who is d4vd in his older life, holding the journal and a white flower, put next to him to represent his loss. Moreover, there is one more scene where the man comes to the beach, the camera goes up then it only appears his clothes that have been flushed by the sea waves. The MV ends when d4vd appears lying on the sand suddenly with his eyes blindfolded, and he hugs his love standing there waiting for him, as to represent that they have met each other on the other side. Therefore, the MV is a narrative video which represents the love life timeline, and gives a message that love can be eternal, no matter what happens.
10. LANA DEL REY - DOIN' TIME
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The last music video that I want to talk about is “Doin’ Time” by Lana Del Rey. It’s a trip hop and reggae song that indicates about cheating, which is a problem that could ever happen in a relationship. The first thing we can indicate the MV as unique since the style of this MV is unusual than others, it captured a super - sized Lana walking through Venice beach and just being so careless about everything such as casually plucking a palm tree and drinking water from the water tank. This is due to the fact that she is now a giant figure, which can intimidate any human being, therefore she can do whatever she likes. Wide shots are used to capture her big body and movements, medium shots to capture herself lip-synching the lyrics. There are also a bunch of scenes that show that the montage of super - sized Lana is just a movie that was aired in a car park, a narrative kind of extract was captured Lana and his boyfriend were watching it, and later on, he cheated on her. The mise - en scene of that extract was following the 80s style due to the fashion style, car style and most of all, the old glass bottle of Coke. The scene that caught my attention the most is when Lana blew the sand through the scene which blew everyone away. She came out from the scene, picked the car that had his boyfriend and his cheated new lover inside, shaking and throwing it down. As for the grainy yet still nailed the cinematography, it gives a movie vibe which is really interesting. In my perspective, this indicates a great revenge for her to his boyfriend. Overall, the MV is really unique and new, even though the effect and color it uses are quite old and a bit messy.
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