Immediately after its appearance, the clips stormed the musical landscape and instantly became an integral part of the industry. Rarely does a song become a hit unless it is accompanied by an audiovisual presentation. People are more inspired by what they see, and music videos effectively stimulate the audience, make them relate to the song, and also help preserve and recognize both the song and the artist.
Since music videos are an effective platform for promoting songs and singers, many artists have been looking for the best outfits for production to help them create the most attractive and entertaining productions.
And for those who have not thought about money, distribution, and budget spending, producing a music video can easily mean a million dollar effort. Here are the 10 most expensive music videos ever.
List
- 10. What's It Gonna Be?!, $ 2.4 Million
- 9. Heartbreaker, $ 2.5 million
- 8. Too Legit to Quit, $ 2.5 million
- 7. Victory, $ 2.7 million
- 6. Estranged, $ 4 million
- 5. Black or White, $ 4 million
- 4. Bedtime Story, $ 5 million
- 3. Express Yourself, $ 5 million
- 2. Die Another Day, $ 6.1 million
- 1. Scream, $ 7 million
10. What's It Gonna Be?!, $ 2.4 Million
Produced in 1999 by Hype Williams, the music video for Basta Rimes's song “What’s It Gonna Be ?!”Demanded 2.4 million dollars for its implementation. Judging by the budget of the video, by today's standards, the total cost would be $ 3.9 million. Janet Jackson did not fall in price, but most of the money went to computer conversion.
In the video, Basta Rimes and Miss Jackson appeared several times. It was reported that a glass suit worn by Rimes cost only $ 40,000.
9. Heartbreaker, $ 2.5 million
Mariah Carey Music VideoHeartbreaker"Was filmed in 1999 when Brett Ratner led the crew.
Total costs amounted to 2.5 million US dollars, due to the many elements needed for production. The list included Jerry O’Connell's talent pay, movie theater and mansion rentals, and animation. This was done at the time that Mariah was still a big name in the music industry.
8. Too Legit to Quit, $ 2.5 million
MC Hammer completely dominated the rap scene in the early 1990s, and it’s not surprising that he was able to allocate $ 2.5 million for the music video “Too Legit To Quit“. Given that it was 1991, this amount was huge, and today, taking into account inflation, the clip will cost $ 4 million.
Highlights of the video included performances by James Brown and John Belushi, as well as some pyrotechnic elements.
7. Victory, $ 2.7 million
Puff Daddy, Notorious BIG and Basta Rimes teamed up in 1993 for the music video "Victory". It was organized by Marcus Nispel, and the total amount of money spent on production was $ 2.7 million.
The fact that it lasts eight minutes is only a small part of production costs. The main expenses included the appearance of Dennis Hopper and Danny DeVito, the construction and destruction of a helicopter, the assembly of stuntmen, as well as the huge fireworks, which required a lot of money.
6. Estranged, $ 4 million
Guns N ‘Roses was a popular band of the time, as were music videos for their songs. "Estranged"- This 9.5-minute video, shot in 1993 by Propaganda Films, is the third part of an unofficial series based on the story of friend Axel Rose Del James.
As the name suggests, the song is about sharing, and that was the main theme of the music video. The video was illuminated by several “expensive” scenes, such as Axel Rose jumping from the deck of an oil tanker and Slash floating from the bottom of the ocean.
The “live” scenes of the video were filmed at the Olympiastadion in Munich. And these were just some of the shots taken for the clip. Rumor has it that the video cost $ 4 million, although director Mark Romanek suggested it really reached $ 9 million.
5. Black or White, $ 4 million
“Black or white“, One of Michael Jackson’s most popular songs in his music career, was aimed directly at contemporary racism. With such a delicate theme, Michael and his team wanted to create an equally compelling video.
The result does not need comments. This video was one of the most popular music videos of all time and helped Michael Jackson become a worldwide symbol in the fight against racism.
But the cost of production was far from cheap. Computer transformations, the emergence of equally popular people and the transformation of Michael into a black panther made up a huge part of the production budget of $ 4 million. And that was back in 1991.
4. Bedtime Story, $ 5 million
«Bedtime story"Is the first of Madonna’s three music videos on this list, although the single she made for promotion is not one of the singer’s greatest successes.
Madonna and her label had no problem spending $ 5 million to create a music video back in 1995. The directing fee was significantly higher when the famous director Mark Romanek was behind the wheel. In addition, the video was mostly littered with many digital effects. Although filming lasted only six days, the post-production process continued for weeks.
Nevertheless, the finished product was advertised as one of the most experimental music video clips, and Madonna did not miss a single advertising opportunity by presenting the video in theaters in New York, Chicago and Santa Monica. The video was stored in art and music galleries around the world.
3. Express Yourself, $ 5 million
Inspired by the classic 1927 Metropolis movie, the music videoExpress Yourself"Was the explicit way the Madonna expressed her thoughts and ideas on a number of social issues related to power and gender.
Hollywood legend David Fincher (who also directed the Fight Club and The Panic Room) led the crew. Just paying for his talent demanded a huge amount of the total budget. Filmed in 1989, the clip is rightfully considered the most expensive video of the time.
2. Die Another Day, $ 6.1 million
Madonna's song "Die another day"Was the main theme of the James Bond movie, which meant many action scenes for the song’s music video. Traktor, a Swedish manufacturing facility, was ordered to work, and they did not disappoint.
Madonna performed her own stunts, including several scenes of a struggle with herself. To make the action more convincing, Madonna went through a fencing training to make herself a real sword fighter for a few minutes - this is in itself curious.
1. Scream, $ 7 million
Video forScream", The first single from Michael Jackson’s HIStory album - one of the few that everyone remembers when he sees it for the very first time. Everything happens on a carefully thought out spaceship, basically a black and white image shows how Michael and Janet have fun, and at the same time they are angry at the way the media portrayed them recently.
The video debuted on ABC's Primetime Live when Jackson interviewed Lisa Marie Presley. The video was seen by approximately 64 million people, and later that year he won a Grammy as the best short music video.