First video killed the radio star, and then it went and robbed the bank as well. Here are the top five insanely expensive music videos.
These are the best big-budget music videos. Although all of today’s entries are incredibly costly, this countdown is not purely a statistical list of those that cost the most, but rather a list of the most interesting and pricey of them all.
5. Aqua – Cartoon Heroes (2000)
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Euro-disco pop simply doesn’t get any better than this. Or more expensive. Cartoon Heroes was released only a month into the current millennium, as Aqua’s first record for over 14 months, and after the bubblegum brilliance of Barbie Girl. The over $3 million video certainly captured attention, they took us to outer space, under water and everything in between. Though, it never hit the headed heights of its predecessor, it did perfectly sum up what Aqua was all about, clean catchy comic-inspired fun.
4. Backstreet Boys – Larger than Life (1999)
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From the very beginning as a giant spaceship passes over the camera akin to Star Wars while playing the Backstreet Boys back catalogue, it’s clear that the next four minutes are gonna be boy –band epic. And for $2.1 million it certainly should be. This clip was a shiny sneak peek at what the next 1000 years could offer. As the five band members each find themselves in out of this world situations, we’re left to sing along and to contemplate the weird robot world to which we’re headed.
3. Michael Jackson – Black or White (1991)
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Made a habit of making big budget music videos. The videos for both Thriller and Bad were the most expensive ever seen at the time of its release. Costing $4 million and directed by John Landis who also directed the movies Blues Brothers and An American Werewolf in London, it sees the moon-walking pop icon dance his way across the planet aided by classic-era Macaulay Culkin. Clocking in at at 11-minutes, the video has the rare distinction of debuting simultaneously to a global audience of 500 million people across 27 different countries.
2. Madonna – Die Another Day (2002)
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Another icon, and another star consistently rewriting the record books for music video expense. The video to the 2002 James Bond theme song to the film of the same name is an entirely original Madonna clip, though the influence of Bond is clear. And another example of seeing double, as the singer battles with herself in the video. With a $6.1 million price tag, there is only ever been one music video more expensive than this.
1. Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson – Scream (1995)
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Sharing first place with his sister, Janet, Michael Jackson released the Guinness World Record’s most expensive music video of all time. The ultra-modern monochrome video accompaniment to Scream reportedly required $7 million dollars to make. The Jackson siblings really looked the part though, and it’s not hard to see where all the money went. Scream is an abundance of special effects and arty cinematography. Money can’t buy happiness but it can get you a place in music video history.
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