UKULELES MAKE HAPPY VIDEOS

It was one of the most-watched YouTube videos of 2012.  Google's video called, "One Day" introduced one of the most talked about new products of the decade, "Google Glass."  The idea of wearing what was essentially a smartphone crammed into a pair of glasses was intriguing at least on some level to most of us who watched the video.

However, the real star of the "One Day" video wasn't Google's high-tech headpiece.  It was the background song 'Lover's Carvings' by artist Bibio.  The song served as background music for the video's main character who navigates the city using his "Glass" while prepping for a rooftop Ukulele performance for his apparent significant other.

At the end of the video he climbs up to the rooftop and uses "Glass" to call his friend Jessica.  When Jessica answers, he starts playing the video's theme song on his ukulele as the sun sets over the city.   It appears that Google may have removed the original video from YouTube for some reason, but this version of the video is still online here.

I have to admit, I really liked this video.  While I don't think I would ever wear Google glass, at least in its current iteration, I felt like the video had a great vibe to it and I would say 85% to 90% of that vibe was created by the music alone.  I don't believe a ukulele is used in the studio recording of "Lovers Carvings," but the mood of the song still had that overall happy feel that the uke brings at the end of the video.

THE COMEBACK OF THE UKE

I don't know if the Google Glass video was where it all began or not, but the ukulele is currently experiencing a resurgence.  Recently "The Atlantic" printed an article called "The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of the Ukulele."  In the article, the author talks about how the ukulele is making a comeback in celebrity circles and Ukulele events and festivals are starting to crop up all over the country.

According to the National Association of Music Merchants the little instrument has seen a 53% increase in sales in 2013.  I, in fact, bought into the craze a few years ago when my daughter asked for one.  I obliged her request and quickly learned the Uke classic, "You Belong To Me" that Steve Martin played one of my all-time favorite movies, "The Jerk."  

HAPPY MUSIC MEANS HAPPY VIEWERS (AND MAYBE CUSTOMERS)

In the midst of the Ukulele resurgence, marketers are finding power in the music produced by this little happy instrument.  Throughout YouTube you will find myriads of little marketing videos with happy ukulele based tunes backing them up.  in fact, when putting together the instructional video for our new RevoGIF option (see the GIF above), we went straight for a happy Uke song called 'Upbeat and Happy!'  

Is the sound of the ukulele not inherently light, airy and joyful?  After all, it hails from Hawaii, which I believe to be one of the happiest and most beautiful places on the planet.  The ukulele sounds like Hawaii and therefore, the ukulele sounds like happiness!

So, it only makes sense that as the ukulele has seen its resurgence, smart marketers have merged the fun four-string sounds into their promotional productions.  One of the most popular types of marketing videos being used currently are "explainer videos".  In fact, we have several "explainer" style After Effects Templates at RevoStock.  Almost every time I see an "explainer" style video online, it is accompanied by a song that either uses a Ukulele or fits into this "happy" genre.  Marketers know that they want the viewer of their explainer video to feel good and positive while they are learning about their product or company.

Music has been proven to create a powerful emotional link in the mind of the listener.  We all have experienced this in one way or another and it's one of the reasons music is so important to us.  Everyone knows of songs that when played, instantly take them back to a special time.  I know whenever I hear the song  "Endless Love," I think of my 5th grade girlfriend Adrienne who kissed me behind the playground oak tree right after saying, "pucker sucker!"  (Yes, she really did say "pucker sucker" and yes, she did tell me that "Endless Love" was "our song."

However, as demonstrated with Bibio's "One Day" song, a ukulele isn't required to create happy "uke-like" music and there are plenty of songs that have the same happy uke vibe but are actually ukulele-free.

The bottom line is, you want your viewers to feel a certain way about your product right?  If you want them to feel happy when they think about you, your organization, or your product, these 10 tracks are the way to go!

10 UKE-INSPIRED STOCK PRODUCTION TRACKS TO HAPPIFY YOUR VIDEOS

While we at RevoStock have a LOT of great happy-vibed music that either uses the ukulele as a primary instrument or just feels like it should, I picked out 10 RevoStock Stock Music tracks that I think epitomize the genre and will work great for any production that you are trying to give that happy feel to. 

Thanks for walking down ukulele lane with me and let me know in the comments what you think about the ukulele , or the tracks I selected!!  Also, if you are a music producer I would love to hear from you!  Tell me what components beyond the ukulele make a great "Happy" song.

You can view the MediaBox with all 10 tracks here, or if you are on a mobile device, click the links below to listen to the items on their respective product pages.  Additionally, if you are on your desktop, just mouse over the thumbs below to trigger the pop-up player.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this post and if you think it is useful or moderately interesting, please pass it on!

SEARCH ALL OF OUR 'HAPPY UKULELE' TRACKS HERE (SEARCH RESULTS)

OR VIEW THE MEDIABOX WITH ALL OF THE FOLLOWING ITEMS IN IT:

NOTE: I threw in a couple of bonus tracks just because I couldn't pick just 10, and I also included the video clip I used above in RevoGIF form.