Music Video Styles- Narrative

Narrative Based Music Videos

Narrative based music videos follow a story throughout the video. This narrative could feature the band or other people representing the band/artist telling a story. A narrative in a music video is often paired with a live performance by the band/artist, with the video switching between the two. An example of a narrative based music video is 'I Got U' by Duke Dumont featuring Jax Jones. Throughout this music video we follow a man who is using a helmet which makes it seem as though he is on holiday, when he is actually sat alone in his living room.


Artists often use narrative based music videos to help explain a meaning behind the lyrics. This is particularly evident in Nathan Sykes's music video for 'Over and Over Again' which is a performance and narrative based video. In this video, he is shown playing the piano and singing, as well as showing a love story between him and a girl. In doing this, we think that the song is written about the girl shown as the lyrics are linked to how he appears to feel about her.