Beyond The Words: Production and Videos

Ever since the introduction of MTV, there has been a growing importance of music videos and production in music.  Nowadays, some artists rely heavily on music videos to boost their sales and their reputation.  In genres other than hip hop, artists such as Miley Cyrus and OK Go have mastered the techniques of using music videos to boost their popularity. Hip hop is no exception to the fact that its artists also rely on music videos.  Artists use their videos to relay the message and the lyrical content in their music visually to the consumer.  The videos often demonstrate the emotions and the feelings that are in the lyrics.  One example of an artist doing this is Macklemore with his song "Otherside".

The production values in hip hop artists music is also very important.  Things such as the speed of the song, the speed of the rapping, the beat behind the song, and even the clarity of the artist's rapping contribute to the production values of the song.  All of these factors contribute to the overall way that the song is delivered and accepted my the song's audience. One song that demonstrates this very well is the song "Water" by the Roots.