Codes and Conventions of the R&B genre
There are many codes and conventions that go into music videos in order for the audience to recognise the genre of the music without actually listening to the music.
Male
Smart/Smart casual
The majority of R&B music videos nowadays have male artists dressed in smart/smart casual clothing. This could be to represent class or status in society. Artists such as Drake, Chris Brown, Usher, Ne-Yo and many more all follow the Smart/Smart casual look.
Tattoos
Tattoos are a big part of R&B culture again, with the majority having lots of tattoos all visible to the public. This could be used to show creativity and independence from other artists. Even if two artists sound similar, the tattoos and personalities they have could set them apart from each other so much that they wouldn't be seen as similar anymore.
Jewellery
Jewellery is the most conventional piece of clothing in both R&B and Hip-Hop genres. In every R&B video you see, some sort of jewellery, whether that be a watch, a necklace, or an earring, the artist will have some form of jewellery, again, showing wealth and status in society.
Male
Smart/Smart casual
The majority of R&B music videos nowadays have male artists dressed in smart/smart casual clothing. This could be to represent class or status in society. Artists such as Drake, Chris Brown, Usher, Ne-Yo and many more all follow the Smart/Smart casual look.
Tattoos
Tattoos are a big part of R&B culture again, with the majority having lots of tattoos all visible to the public. This could be used to show creativity and independence from other artists. Even if two artists sound similar, the tattoos and personalities they have could set them apart from each other so much that they wouldn't be seen as similar anymore.
Jewellery
Jewellery is the most conventional piece of clothing in both R&B and Hip-Hop genres. In every R&B video you see, some sort of jewellery, whether that be a watch, a necklace, or an earring, the artist will have some form of jewellery, again, showing wealth and status in society.
Women
Classy/Very Little clothing
Depending on the sub-genre of the song, and the song itself, the women in music videos are usually dressed in accordance to the song lyrics or narrative of the music video. Women in the videos generally wear classy but revealing clothes, making them attractive to the males, who are the target audience for the conventional R&B music video.
Jewellery
Again, women also follow the idea of having jewellery in the music videos, whether they are the main artist or just an actress. This catches the eye of the male, which is who the target audience is, therefore doing its job in making the target audience watch the video, even if it is just because of the women, and not the actual song itself.
Classy/Very Little clothing
Depending on the sub-genre of the song, and the song itself, the women in music videos are usually dressed in accordance to the song lyrics or narrative of the music video. Women in the videos generally wear classy but revealing clothes, making them attractive to the males, who are the target audience for the conventional R&B music video.
Jewellery
Again, women also follow the idea of having jewellery in the music videos, whether they are the main artist or just an actress. This catches the eye of the male, which is who the target audience is, therefore doing its job in making the target audience watch the video, even if it is just because of the women, and not the actual song itself.