TonyVanDam said:

and then here is the rest for me
4. Britney spears
5. Christina aguilera
6. Missy
7. I guess prince... but i really havent seen that many of his videos maybe like 7 or 9 videos

TotalAlisa said:

My first list is still final!!!

1. Michael Jackson (A music video GOD!!!!!)
2. Madonna (Oh hell, she should have been the true owner of MTV!)
3. Janet Jackson (great choices of video directors)

Some of Madonna's past videos had provoked controversy simply by being edgy. Like A Prayer is a great example of pushing limits.

Richard Lester actually....

TonyVanDam said:

I agree that Michael should be Number 1. He basically owned MTV in the 80's and 90's. I also think that he is the most influential video artist, EVER. Ask any pop, r&b or hip-hop artist and they will tell you the same.

Bjork
MJ
JJ
Madonna
Peter Gabriel
Duran Duran
Eurythmics
Sade
Radiohead
Sinead O'Connor (for the sheer beauty of Nothing Compares 2 U)

TonyVanDam said:

I would say, the Hollywood Musicals invented the music videos.

Then the beatles brought it into Pop music.

And Michael Jackson brought the music video to the point where it still is today.

i don't know about top 10 but MJ is the best.

smooth criminal
billie jean
thriller
beat it
scream
remember the time

damn, even his lame videos have really cool moments.

Beastie Boys
ZZ-Top

dammme said:

What video?

TonyVanDam said:

Two long "videos": "A Hard Day`s Night" and "Help". I think Sergio de Leone help him a little bit with his spaguetti western.

TonyVanDam said:

im sorry but most of madonnas videos are boroing.. and they arent as cool as janet's Control, rhythem nation, Velvet rope and even AFY videos
plus janet is a WAY better dancer... Madonna COULD NEVER create a video like escapade or when i think of you.. or even IF...

janets videos are more entertaning even if they arent controversy... who cares about something having controversy... as long as it has great dancing and entertains...

madonna knows she can't dance or really sing.. so thats why she uses controversy to get attention.. and thats all she really can do... but that doesnt mean that her videos are great

Eh, I'd take Madonna's video catalog over Michael's or Janet's any day of the week. I think that Madonna's work is more filmic, and has more literary and artistic references than MJ's or JJ's Disney-fied videos. Janet could never pull off something like 'Bad Girl' or 'Oh Father'.

Anyway, the rest of my list would include:

Smashing Pumpkins
REM
Duran Duran
Depeche Mode (for their work with Anton Corbijn, especially)

Axchi696 said:

"He thinks it's the greatest day he's ever known just because he stole an ice-cream truck." -- off of Beavis & Butthead

TotalAlisa said:

Oh give me a break A Janet fan criticizing the vocal skills of another artist?! These days,all Janet does is whisper and moan on her albums.She doesn't even try to sing anymore.

Furthermore,her videos aren't that outstanding.Most of her videos feature her and her dancers in the street,doing a bunch of over-rehearsed dance routines.This is the type of stuff that her brother Mike already wore out in the early 80s.

Madonna's videos are amazing."Like A Prayer","Papa Don't Preach","Material Girl","Justify My Love","Vogue","Oh Father","Bad Girl","Human Nature","American Life" and many more are all provocative and thrilling.These videos are bolder and more courageous than anything that Janet has done.It's not just alot of dancing around,either.Hell,her 80s videos basically defined MTV.

SoulAlive said:

both if you need a couple of these .


Good lord.

both of them are video gods...for those who aren't blinded by their own biases.

pet shop boys need to be mentioned.... they've done some amazing videos.

1.Bjork
2.Janet Jackson
3.Missy elliot
4.Marilyn Manson
5.Madonna
6.Busta Rhymes
7.Michael Jackson
8.Kelis

err errr

9.fatboy slim
10.george michael

mancabdriver said:

i was trying to think of slim's name to include him...good choices....

SoulAlive said:

Im a madonna fan as well... but not as big as a jj fan...
i don't think jj has the best voice either... but i think madonnas voice isnt as good as janets.... im NOT a beyonce fan but will admit beyonce sings better then janet... so dont think that because i favor an artist i will think they are better at everything... because its not true...

and HONESTLY i only remember like 7 or 8 madonna videos.... her videos really aren't that great... they are just like a "Movie"... but thats it...

mancabdriver said:

i agree that Janet is before Madonna... but you have to admit Michael videos are the best... Just watch his Black or White video, and his Thriller or The way you make me feel...

michael jackson
madonna
janet jackson
peter gabriel
jody watley
paula abdul
tlc
aaliyah
destiny's child
missy elliot

TotalAlisa said:

I'm not a great fan of this videos, there are only a handful that i like and that's: "stranger in moscow", "scream", "beat it" , "smooth criminal" and a few more. I always thought that "black or white" was all over the place and i hated "bad" although i loved "fat". Maybe i should replace "Kelis" or "George" with that Weird Al dude??
[Edited 2/20/07 8:16am]

dammme said:

BTW, I've just discover that we're both wrong. Gene Kelly & MGM invented the music video:

http://www.youtube.com/wa...eo45JzY&NR

George Michael's work is always unpredictible.

1.Michael Jackson
2.David Bowie

Nobody else comes close to them in music videos.

Isolar said:

Agreed. Bowie was years ahead of most artists in the sound/vision department. His vids from the Outside/Earthling Era (many directed by Floria Sigismondi)were AWESOME!

Why do people give the Beatles so much credit? They didn't invent music videos. What a load of crap. What about Elvis Presley? The scene from Jailhouse Rock where he performs to title song of the film, is a predessor(sp, I don't care) of music videos. All the great rock and roll films like Rock Around the Clock, Don't Knock the Rock and (my favourite) The Girl Can't Help It were sort of like a bunch of music videos all piled together into the one film. I bought a video of old 50s hits, and they use those scenes from the movies as music videos. So those late 50s rock and roll films should get the credit for inventing music videos IMO.
[Edited 2/25/07 4:47am]

DarlingDiana said:

I see what you are saying. Maybe the question should have stated "Who are the top 10 artists of the MTV era".

Keep in mind meshing visuals to music has been done (as you correctly stated) for well over 50 years. Unfortunately, MTV is seen as the be all and end all of music vids.

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

I can reputing claims that the Beatles invented music videos.

Films like Jailhouse Rock and The Girl Can't Help It can't really be called music videos, but they were the originators and predessors of music videos.

Music videos in the truest form came about in the 70s. Before that they were just scenes from films or recorded live performances that were used as album/single promotions.

As for who invented music videos as we know them today, I'd say Queen and Michael Jackson. Queen were one of the first bands to actually film a music video, rather than just film a live concert to promote their single. Michael Jackson was the first artist to make music videos into a short film, rather than just a series of trippy camera shots and cool video effects.