The modern idea of music launch or publishing always comes with an astounding music video. To please and attract the viewers, artists have always tried to give their best effort both in the music and in the music video. While some of the music videos just complied with the rules, some have touched a new level with majestic creations.
Nowadays it’s quite common to see artists spending millions on each music video. But even from the ’90s, a few videos have just crossed the limit of absurdity in terms of expenditure and performance. And they bought a place in people’s hearts for decades for these efforts. This article covers the top 10 most expensive music videos ever made.
10. “2 Legit 2 Quit” MC Hammer ($2.5 Million)
“2 Legit 2 Quit” is one of MC Hammer’s best performances. The awfully long 15-minute music video presents a situation and acts around it. With cameos from multiple superstars, the song is a great combination of artistry and commercialization. Shot in a huge place with hundreds of people, the production value of the song is absurdly high.
9. “Victory” Puff Daddy ($2.7 Million)
Directed by Marcus Nispel, “Victory” is about a fictitious political situation established in 3002 AD. The story suggests unrest under the rule of a World Dictator. There is a short appearance of Dennis Hopper and Tamara Beckwith. its video total production cost was 2.7 million dollars and is considered to be one of the most expensive music videos of all time.
8. “Cartoon Heroes” Aqua ($3.5 Million)
The famous Danish-Norwegian group Aqua released “Cartoon Heroes” in the year 1999. The music video was about saving the world from a One-Eyed monster. A sci-fi music video from the late ’90s is pretty impressive to watch. The group didn’t fear to spend a huge amount in the production as the budget touched $3.5 million dollars.
7. “Make Me Like You” Gwen Stefani ($4 Million)
Gwen Stefani’s “Make Me Like You” is one of the most expensive music videos of the previous decade. Continuous shooting of six days made the video possible under the direction of Sophie Muller. The song is produced by Warner Bros and according to the Billboard, the budget of the music video production crossed $4 million.
6. “Black or White” Michael Jackson ($4 Million)
Michael Jackson also crushed the market at that time with his awesome music videos and dances. In “Black or White”, the artist appointed John Landis, the man behind “Thriller” for yet another song. We see Macaulay Culkin, Tess Harper, Tyra Banks, and George Wendt along with Jackson in the video. The premiere of the video managed to attract 500 million viewers across the Globe and it was the most-watched video of that time.
5. “Estranged” Guns n Roses ($4 Million)
The 90’s rock band is undoubtedly one of the greatest in history. In their song “Estranges”, they have continued the tune of “Don’t Cry” and “November Rain” making it a great trilogy. The music video is directed by Andi Morahan and was shot in Munich, Germany. The lavish video took around $4 million to come in the shape.
4. “Bedtime Story” Madonna ($5 Million)
Madonna’s approach to music videos is always different and quite innovative than others. In the 1994 song, she did something like that. Directed by Mark Romanek, “Bedtime Story” music video is a famous one. The concept revolved around a futuristic plot and involved symbolism. In a six-day shot in Universal Studios, the production cost was around $8 million in today’s value. While originally made at the cost of an estimated $5 million.
3. “Express Yourself” Madonna ($5 Million)
Madonna, the Queen of Pop, has many records in her name including the third most expensive music videos of all time. The video was shot in the year 1989 as a part of her album Like a Prayer. Directed by David Fincher, the video was produced by Propaganda Films. In today’s value, the production budget was more than $10.3 million, originally made at the cost of approx $5 million.
2. “Die Another Day” Madonna ($6.1 Million)
The famous James Bond movie’s theme song was created by Madonna. Directed by the famous Traktor, the music video holds several all-time records. At that time, the production value was $6.1 million, which is the second most expensive music video. The video is a part of Madonna’s DVD, Celebration: The Video Collection.
1. ‘Scream’ Michael Jackson & Janet Jackson ($7 Million)
Michael Jackson, the king of Pop had often been criticized and accused of pointless allegations. In this song, he took revenge against these people and released a music video. Even after two decades, this music video is celebrated as one of the most popular videos. Collaborating with his sister, the dancing legend’s video was choreographed by Travis Payne, LaVelle Smith Jnr, and Tina Landon. Inspired by Japanese anime, the shooting budget exceeded an amount of $7 million.
Note: the inflation budget may differ from time to time, but the original value of product cost will remain the same.
Thanks to Forbes and Wikipedia for providing the exact budget mentioned here.