Collaborations in music videos

When artists reach the top of their game, often they collaborate with other successful artists, not only for something new and interesting, but the publicity from two stars together is a sure fire way to kick start a lagging career.

Famous examples of this are;

Shakira & Beyonce - Beautiful Liar (2007)



This video highlights the visual similarities between the two artists by quickly cross-cutting between the two artists. They are both wearing similar black outfits, have the same hair style, and are both known for their dancing skills. The song combines their styles of music - r&b and hispanic, creating an interesting and multi-layered song that attracts fans of both genres and both artists.


Britney feat. Madonna - Me Against The Music (2006)


This video highlights the sexual appeal of both women, to audiences and to each other, when in the last 10 seconds of the video Britney tries to kiss Madonna (which in the live show they actually did). The video also features complicated dance routines, something which Britney is well-known for. This video is different to the Shakira and Beyonce one because that was more of a joint effort, whereas this song is Britney featuring Madonna. It also cross-cuts between performance, Britney, and Madonna, and is quite interesting to watch since the two women are music giants.

James Morrison feat. Nelly Furtado - Broken Strings (2009)

This video portrays Nelly and James as lovers, which in the context of a music video doesn't spark rumours about the artists, but merely illustrates the lyrics and themes of the song. Similarly with the Britney and Madonna video, James Morrison is the primary artist, and therefore he sings more than Nelly and is featured more in the video.


I think collaborations are a great way for artists to explore other genres and themes that they otherwise wouldn't touch.