Universal Music Group is remastering its videos in HD for YouTube
If you find yourself reliving your childhood watching classic music videos from the late 20th century, then we have some good news. Universal Music Group and YouTube have joined forces to remaster hundreds of music videos in HD.
Over 100 videos have been remastered, including tracks from Billy Idol, Beastie Boys, Boyz II Men, George Strait, Janet Jackson, Kiss, Lady Antebellum, Lady Gaga, Lionel Richie, Maroon 5, Meat Loaf, No Doubt/Gwen Stefani, Smokey Robinson, The Killers and more. Here’s Tom Petty singing Free Falling, to give you an idea of how the remastered videos look:
The new remastered tracks won’t have their own URLs – they’ll simply replace the existing video, retaining the view and like counts. As well as the higher fidelity, you’ll be able to tell they’ve been improved by the word “Remastered” in the description.
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Don’t despair if your favourite track hasn’t been remastered yet, as the companies have promised to add more titles every week for the next year, “with all 1,000 titles expected to be available before the end of 2020.” Of course, this is just a partnership with Universal Music Group, so that regrettably means that the best music video of all time won’t be getting the same treatment, and will be stuck in 480p until YouTube decides to do the same thing with EMI.
All the same, it’s great that YouTube is taking the time to remaster these little snippets of 80s and 90s life. “It’s really an honour to partner with Universal Music Group and change the way fans around the globe will experience viewing some of the most classic and iconic videos,” said Stephen Bryan, YouTube’s Global Head of Label Relations.
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“It’s our goal to ensure that today’s music videos — true works of art — meet the high quality standards that artists’ works deserve and today’s music fans expect.”
What music video do you want to see remastered? Let us know on Twitter: @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.