How VideoVault Works

VideoVault aggregates critical and fan commentary from across the web, synthesizes it using AI, and scores music videos across 15 structured dimensions plus 3 meta-dimensions.

The Pipeline

1

Discovery

Music videos are discovered via award lists, critic best-of roundups, Reddit discourse, and Spotify catalog cross-referencing. Each video must be confirmed available on Spotify's video catalog.

2

Commentary Collection

We crawl YouTube comments, Reddit threads, critic reviews (Pitchfork, NME, Rolling Stone, Stereogum), and social mentions. All commentary is deduplicated and language-filtered.

3

AI Scoring

Commentary is fed to an LLM scoring pipeline that evaluates each dimension on a 1–10 scale with confidence levels, evidence summaries, and sentiment analysis. Scores come from what people say, not from watching the video.

4

Aggregation

The 15 core dimensions are weighted (music 1.5×, visual 1.0×, creative 1.0×) and combined into a 0–100 aggregate score. Meta dimensions are tracked separately.

Scoring Dimensions

Each video is scored across 18 dimensions in 4 categories. The first 15 form the aggregate score; the 3 meta dimensions provide context.

Music Weight: 1.5×

M1
Sonic Quality Production quality, mixing, mastering — does it sound great?
M2
Songcraft Melody, harmony, structure, hooks — is it a well-written song?
M3
Vocal / Instrumental Performance Technical skill and emotional delivery of the performance
M4
Lyrical Depth Lyrical quality, wordplay, storytelling through words
M5
Emotional Resonance Does the music move you? Goosebump factor

Visual Weight: 1.0×

V1
Cinematography Camera work, framing, lighting, visual composition
V2
Editing & Pacing Cut rhythm, transitions, visual flow, timing
V3
Art Direction & Set Design Physical spaces, props, environments, world-building
V4
Costume & Styling Fashion, makeup, hair — visual identity choices
V5
Visual Effects & Post CGI, color grading, compositing, practical effects

Creative Weight: 1.0×

C1
Narrative & Concept Story, idea, thematic coherence — does the video have something to say?
C2
Originality Novelty, innovation, surprise — has this been done before?
C3
Music-Visual Synergy How well do the visuals amplify, complement, or recontextualize the music?
C4
Choreography & Movement Dance, physical performance, blocking, use of bodies in space
C5
Rewatchability Does it reveal more on repeated viewings? Do you want to watch it again?

Meta Not in aggregate

X1
Cultural Resonance Has this video entered the broader cultural conversation? Memes, references, influence.
X2
Discourse Volume How much are people talking about this video? Derived from commentary count, view velocity, social mention volume.
X3
Divisiveness Are opinions polarized or is there consensus? Score 1 = total consensus, 10 = extremely polarized.

Data Sources

  • YouTube — Comments, view counts, engagement metrics
  • Reddit — r/popheads, r/hiphopheads, r/indieheads, r/musicvideos, and more
  • Music publications — Pitchfork, NME, Rolling Stone, Stereogum reviews
  • Social media — Twitter/X discourse volume
  • Award databases — MTV VMAs, Grammy (Best Music Video), UK MVAs, BET Awards
  • Spotify — Catalog metadata and linkage only (per TOS, not used for scoring)

VideoVault is not affiliated with Spotify. Scores are derived entirely from external commentary and do not represent Spotify's opinions. Spotify metadata is used solely for catalog linkage.