Nohail Mohammed | Media Studies | Mr Teasdale

Age Regulations
Music videos are regulated and rated by the BBFC (British Board Film Classification). The
BBFC get to regulate and rage rate the music on the content within. Things like violence,
drug use and behaviour can change what age rating the music video is given. The different
age ratings consist of U, PG, 12, 15 and 18.

The U age rating stands for Universal. This age rating is the lowest one
that can be given is because whatever contents are entwined within the
music video are suitable for everyone to watch. The contents within the
music video cant contain:
- No bad language
- No drug misuses
- No dangerous behaviour presented as safe
- No threatening behaviour
- No sexual behaviour

An example of a U rated music video is by Naughty Boy ft. Sam Smith

La La La. The reason this music video has the Universal age rating is
because it follows the bullet points above. It contains no violence, no
sexual behaviour, no bad language, no threating behaviour, no
dangerous behaviour and no drug use. For these reasons, it means the
music video and song are suitable for everyone to view.

The age rating stands for Parental Guidance and shouldnt be viewed or
listened by children under the age of 8 years old. Within the PG music
video and lyrics some use of bad language is allowed but shouldnt be
used in a mean to disrespect someone as it can be overlooked depending
on how it is addressed. However, the words used as an example can be;
bitch, piss and crap. Furthermore, to the contents the music video
shouldnt contain any violence, sexual content, drug use, bad behaviour
or threatening behaviour. Some children may watch the video and
replicate the actions. Ideally the artist should include these within the
music video but some scenes may still be inappropriate for the younger
viewers and the artist may not be aware of that as they may not be his or
hers target audience.
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An example of a PG song would be Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
Uptown Funk. The reason this song would be given the age rating of
PG is because it contains two things. Firstly, it uses the word bitch
which is bad language which can be replicated by children under the
bracket of U. The second point is the whole image from the lyrics, the
image being about getting drunk which is the idea of bad behaviour.
However this is just the lyrics, the actual music video doesnt focus or
Nohail Mohammed | Media Studies | Mr Teasdale

involve drunken people

The age rating 12 is used for music videos that can only be viewed and
listened too by children, teens and adults over the age of 12. The
contents of the video wont be suitable for the children 12 and under.
Within a 12 rated most of the content is allowed but at a mild term. The
contents can include:
- Mild violence like blood
- Mild swearing thats not aimed at anyone. For example, fuck
and shit.
- Mild nudity
- Explicit language as long as its not emphasised.

An example of a 12 rated music video and song is PARTYNEXTDOOR

Come and See Me. This video is rated a 12 because the contents
within contain mild swearing with the use of shit. Furthermore, alcohol
is embedded within the music video but isnt properly emphasised. No
sexual content is emphasised or used, nor is there any threatening
violence involved. All these points make the video suitable for a 12 but
still to adultish for a PG.

The age rating 15 is given to music videos that can only be viewed and
are only suitable for teenagers and adults over the age of 15. The reason
for this is because the content allowed consist of:
- Strong violence
- Drug use
- No profanity limits
- Sexual behaviour
- Sexual references and language

An example of this age rated music video would be J. Cole G.O.M.D.

The reason this music video and song lyrics would get an age rating of
15 would be because of the language used; being nigger and fuck.
Additionally, the use of guns within the music video ticks off the violence
however, its still not emphasised. The language used is unacceptable for
younger kids to use. When music video like this get shown on tv, radio
and YouTube there will be a clean edit. This means whenever profanity is
about to be used the edit will either replace the word or just simply
make the video go mute then back to normal after the language is used.
Furthermore, if you wanted to view the music video on YouTube youd
have to have an account, this is in place to minimise the chances of
someone under the age regulation to view the music video and be
influenced by it.
Nohail Mohammed | Media Studies | Mr Teasdale

The age rating 18 is the highest of them all. This means only adults
above the age of 18 can view the contents of the music video. The
contents allowed within the music videos are the same as the 15 age
rating however some of the points are more gruesome or in-depth. The
contents allowed are:
- Bloody violence
- Strong language
- Strong sexual imagery
- Disturbing content
- Drug use
- Has violence towards others

One of the few examples of an 18 age rated music video is Dizzee

Rascals Couple of Stacks. This video is very gruesome with the fact
within the first 30 seconds of the video a girl has her heart ripped out by
Dizzee Rascal. This shows another point which is allowed, the point being
violence towards others. Many scenes within the music video are also
extremely disturbing with the neck of Dizzee Rascal spinning around
following a horror type scene. These scenes would be very disturbing for
children to watch. Furthermore, the language used wouldnt be
acceptable for a child to use as it can influence them in a negative way.
Similarly, to the 15 age rating the music video and lyrics would have to
edited to different words or to blank them out. If the video wants to be
on TV or YouTube it will be edited so its okay to view by all. Again, just
like the 15 regulation with a YouTube account it minimises the risk of
children watching the videos and listening to the lyrics.

The age rating, I am aiming for is a PG, this is so it targets a wider range of audience and
wouldnt need to be edited to suit a certain target. The vibe of music I want to have is a
summer vibe, making it an up-beat tune liked many of the younger generations. I believe
this will be more beneficial as it is more fun to make. Incorporating different skills and
allowing the use of many camera angles to create the best performance video possible.