Wednesday, 15 December 2010

Album cover and Magazine Advert







I created my Album cover on Adobe Photoshop being it has the right tools to help my create an album cover, like crop and edit font.
I made the background black because it represents her bad side, but i also gave it white highlights to represent some good as white is seen as a good pure colour.
I added an image of her standing casualy with an elegant dress on the cover so that my target audience can recognise her and relate to her style. Ive also included her name in big letter to make it instantly recogniseable.








Saturday, 11 December 2010

Summany Of My Research- Ms Georgiou

By researching existing music videos, Beyonces styles and other music conventions, i have been able to successfully plan my music video around the conventions that makes a good video.

For example the song that i have chosen is Beyonce-Dangerously in Love, i chose this song because its a very emotional and personal song, so its allot more meaningful than just picking a random, fast-paced song. I had to research Beyonces past music video to get an idea on her style and representations, she has a good girl/bad girl persona, which is very useful if you want a large target audience. For my music video i also decided to have 2 sides to the artist, elegant/casual, so my target audience, 14-26 year old females, can relate to her clothes, style and apperance and build a relationship with my artist. Also because i looked at Beyonces old videos i found ideas for filming locations, like the beach, bowling ally, house and arcade.

I also looked at other music videos from Drake, Kelly Rowland and Maddonna to gain a better insight in all types of music videos. They all had some really good conventions, but the beat was too fast so i couldnt use them or relate them to my song.

But because i already knew most of the songs from Beyonce i could loosely base my music video on Beyonce-Halo beacuse they pass accross the same message, and the speed of the song is the same, so Halo helped me with editing and camera shots.

Photoshoot Schedule- Ms Fisher




Shot 1

Date: 1/11/2010
Location: Artists House
Action/Pose: Midshot of top half of body, smiling, hands on hips
Shot Type: Midshot
Personnel: Artist, Photographer
Equipment: Pentax Optio S Camera, Tripod








Shot 2

Date: 1/11/2010
Location: Downstairs of artists house
Action/Pose: Hands in pockets, casual stance in an elegant dress.
Shot Type: Long Shot
Personnel: Artist, Photographer, Make up and costumer designer
Equipment: Pentax Optio S Camera, Tripod







Shot 3

Date: 1/11/2010
Location: By the stairs, artists house
Action/Pose: Smile with hands on hips
Shot Type: Midshot
Personnel: Artist, Photographer, make up artist
Equipment: Pentax Optio S Camera, Tripod






Shot 4

Date: 2/11/2010
Location: Artists house
Action/Pose: Same as shot 3, hands on hips, casual stance
Shot Type: Long Shot
Personnel: Artist, Photographer
Equipment: Pentax Optio S Camera, Tripod






Shot 5

Date: 1/11/2010
Location: Downstairs of Artists house
Action/Pose: Hands in pockets, smile.
Shot Type: Long Shot
Personnel: Hair dresser, Artist, Photographer
Equipment: Pentax Optio S Camera, Tripod

Friday, 10 December 2010

Image Board

We have created an image board to help portay our artist and her qualities. The image board is a casual theme and a elegant theme, to represent both sides of the artist.










The images on the imageboard are of elegant dresses, which portray the artist as classy, sophisticated and stylish. The items beside the board represent her casual side, where she has affordable, stylish and practical. For example the Paul Boutique bag ranges from £30-£40 pound and its very big, so it can carry allot of things, its also multicoloured so it can appeal to a wide range of the female audience. Theres a blackberry, which is considered a new, cool and practical item, also theres braclets, not expensive ones, just ones used as everyday accessorise to make the person look more intresting and stylish. For elegant items theres perfume with is in a expensive looking container, this tells the audience the artist likes to smell nice as well as look nice, theres pictures of elegant hair styles, like the picture of the red haired woman. A woman with red hair can be seen as fiesty and sexy, which represents the "bad" girl side of the aritst, while the style of it shows off her elegant side. On the board theres images of stylish dresses, which represents the artist when they dress up and go out.
We used the 2 styles, elegant and casual, because we want to have a large target audience and to be able to relate to Beyonce and her "good girl" "bad girl" styles.

Tuesday, 30 November 2010

Applying Dyers Theory- Ms Fisher

























Beyonces promotional material





Does the promotional material "construct and image rather than reveal a real person whereby you know about their likes/ dislikes, family, background, education, problems, etc?"

Beyonces promotional adverts are used to help convay her image to her target audience, so they can recognise her and bulid a relationship. On her "I am Sasha Fierce" album cover she is show with a light bachground and the "natural" look, because shes not hiding behind any make up that give the audience the impression that shes a good girl and thats the real Beyonce. But on the other hand the album name is "Iam Sasha Fierce" which is implying shes a frierce person, a bad girl. By using this technique of good girl, bad girl she has a larger target audience and can hide part of her true self and also reveal some of it. Beyonce follows Dyers Star Theory because she keeps changing her image to move with the fashion and gain a bigger target audience. Beyonce has also featured in 7 films, Carmen: A Hip Hopera (2001), Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002), The Fighting Temptations (2003), The Pink Panther (2006), Dreamgirls (2006), Cadillac Records (2008) and Obsessed (2009), to help boost her fame and to show people shes more than just a nice body that can sing, she wants to prove shes a multi-talented individual.

Does the star represent something/ have an identity can consume and aspire towards?

Beyonce is a very good role model towards young females, which is also her target audience. Young females look up to her and listen to her music and strive to be like her, rich, famous and a sex icon becuase thats what most young females want. But because she keeps her private life a secret, like her and Jay-Zs wedding and her childhood, most young girls will be fooled by her image and dont realise how much work it is to get to her fame level and richness.

What meanings are being represented through the promotional material and how are they conveyed?

The ablum cover image IAM SASHA FIERCE is a closs up of Beyonce. She is wearing no make up in this photo to tell her audience that she is not an image but a real person and this is the real her. This photo was taken during her "good" girl stage, so the lighting is very high key to make her look inoccent and good, this will also appeal to the young female group of her audience because she looks almost like a fairy, princess or angel. But on her other ablum covers, she goes for the "bad" girl look by using low key lighting and shadow. These techniques would appeal to the older female group of her target audience, old teenagers to young adults because shes the perfect role model for them. She is portrayed has a very talented individual but this could be just an image and her audience have got used to it so they think its the real her.

Do the images leave the audience asking a question in order to complete their understanding of the artist?

Yes, because she reveals so little about her personal life its like shes trying to hide something, so this intrigues the audience to want to find out more. Her image is based on what the audience want so theres no need to reveal the "real" Beyonce, the only people that know her properly is her friends and family.

Through consuming the artist in this way is the audience including themselves within or against a culture?

Beyonce is so famous she basically has her own culture now, because shes always re-inventing her image to stay new and unique. So you can say her audience are included into her culture, the diva culture.

Tuesday, 23 November 2010

Censorship - Ms Georgiou

Censorship means blocking explicit or socially unacceptable in the intrest of protecting the viewer/readers. Music videos can be censored due to swearing during the daytime, after 9:00pm swearing is permited,sex referances, drug referances, murder or death referances and any racist, ageist or any sexist material cane be censored.

Censorship in music videos has been widely debated, most artists want their songs to remain uncesored because they want to exppress themselves to the fullest extent. Sometimes they swear in the videos because there no other words to describe the situation, also it could be seen as them sharing their personalilty and lifestyle with the audience so they can build a closer relationship. For example Eminem raps about life, not about sex or drugs or killing people, and every so often he does swear but thats they way hes been brought up, its part of his culture. Also some artists argue that its up to the parents on what their children can watch, and most TVs come with parental control nowadays so theres no excuse why underage children should be watching it.

On the other hand some parents say there are other words they can use in songs rather than swear and make referances to sex. Also music plays a very large part in society nowadays, like in a teenagers upbringing, and with all these referances to sex, drugs and swearing they can be easily influenced, especialy if the artist is a very influential role model. Parents cant always be there to protect their children so its the companys resonsibility to prevent children from being influenced by bad language and inappropriate referances.

In my music video there will be no swearing, sexual, drug, murder referances because theres no need for it, Dangerously in Love is a love song, so any inappropriate referances will just ruin it. Also this song appeals to teenage girls so again theres no need to influence teenagers with pointless words and referances.

Planning

Location

•Southend pier
•Southend beach
•Annabella’s living room
•Arcade
•Ceaders park
•Bowling

Southend pier- This is part of the flashback where the artist and her ‘boyfriend’ are walking along Southend pier, where they are happy and laughing. The boyfriend steals a rose as a joke from a man selling roses; the boyfriend grabs the artist’s hand and pulls her along running happily. This displays their love for each other as they share these memories.
•Shot in black and white. – past
•The shot will include the rose man, artist and a male character
•Flashback

Southend Beach with Boyfriend- This is part of the flashback where the artist and her ‘boyfriend’ are walking along the beach holding hands smiling and laughing. The couple ask someone to take a video or photo/ or the couples each take a photo/video of one another messing around and giggling. They are both joking around jumping around. This conveys their happiness and feelings that they have for one another.
•Shot in black and white– past
•The shot will include the artist and male character
•Flashback

Southend Beach- This is the artist reminiscing alone on the beach walking down the same part of the beach she once walked down with her boyfriend. She looks around and down at the floor, with a sad expression singing the song.
•Shot In colour – present

Annabella’s Living Room- The artist is sitting down on the sofa with a blanket on herself. There are two glasses on table, one in which she fills with wine and hesitating to fill the other glass up. This conveys that she once had someone she loved and no longer as him anymore.
She looks around the scene and pulls out a mysterious box from underneath the table and places it on top of her lap. This memory box will contain all the memories she had her boyfriend and keeps the music video continuing with flashbacks of every memory with every prop.
•Shot in colour – present
•Artist is singing
•Artist only

Arcade- This will be another flashback shot, where the artist is seen enjoying her time with her boyfriend. She will be playing on the slot machines, dodgems etc. She will be seen laughing and messing around with her boyfriend. The boyfriend will win her something from the claw machine and the teddy would then be another memory to be taken out the box.
•Shot in black and white – past
•The artist and her boyfriend will be in this shot.

Ceaders park- A flashback showing the two enjoying themselves. They will be having a picnic, laughing and smiling. This conveys their love the have for each other as they have jokes. The couple will also be captured walking through an archway holding hands.
•Shot in black and white – past
•Artist and her boyfriend

Bowling- The couple share another memory as a flashback at a bowling alley. Her boyfriend helps her bowl by standing behind her and pushing the ball down the ramp. They get a strike, and jump for joy as they hug each other.
•Shot in black and white – past
•Artist and her boyfriend

Characters/actors

Annabella as ‘Bella’

Description
This is the artist who performs the song, she sings and performs.
Bella is in her mid 20’s currently unemployed as her husband was the bread winner of the family. However, unfortunately her husband passed away which is not been told to the audience until the end of the music video. The audience have no clue how he died, keeping them in suspense throughout. All Bella has left is an unborn child which she must now raise alone without the biological father.
Bella has long dark curly hair with dark brown eyes. Her overall style will be elegant and presentable. There will be a change from the present time in which she will be disheartened as she is alone without her husband. However, the scenes from the past will display her happiness with her husband in which they share their memories together.

Huseyin as ‘unknown’
Description
This character does not say anything.
Unknown is also in his mid 20s in which he was the bread winner of the film, which will be identified by the sophisticated house they live in. ‘Unknown’ will be seen in the flashbacks conveying the memories that the couple shared when he was alive. These memories will show their happiness together as they smile and laugh.
‘Unknown’ has got a mousey hair colour with dark brown eyes. His overall style is casual including jeans and a plain top.

Rose man
This character will be featured in one of the memories where the husband buys her a rose. He doesn’t say anything but smiles.



Concept, narrative, performance

Concept
In this music video, it sells the idea of in being love when they share their memories together. It conveys that you must appreciate what you have and you don’t realise what you actually have until it is gone. For example Bella’s husband is not with her anymore, displaying her as depressed and disheartened in contrast to when he was around as she is happy and cheerful.

Narrative
This music video is also narrative based as it follows the couple’s memories that they shared when they were together. It builds up suspense as to what happened to the husband, in which the audience will watch on till the end. The artist has a memory box which includes objects such as pictures from memories that the couple shared in the past. Each object which is identified flashes back into the time where it all happened.

Performance
The artist will perform whilst at the house when she is looking at the memories in her box. The artist will convey her emotions through the sound which will show that she is depressed. Another scene in which she performs in is at Southend beach. She will be wearing a long flowly dress to show that she is elegant.


Mise–En-Scene

Props
Baby scan photograph – This will be used at the end of the music video at the Grave yard. It will be a large photo and will be shown clearly to the audience so they will understand the narrative in more detail. This will convey the father of the baby has passed away and his wife is showing to the audience what she has gained since he has passed away. Also it shows to the audience something that they share together. *present time*
Rose – The rose will be used when they are walking up the pier together, they are walking hand in hand and “unknown” grabs the rose from the man and pull her quickly away as they run off and laugh down the pier. This clearly shows their love that they have for one another and that they share happiness and memories through them laughing. *flash back*
Box – This is the memory box which will include all of the objects in which she takes out and flashes back into the time when it all began. This is an important prop in the whole music video as it will explain the narrative in more detail to the audience. *present time*
Teddy – This prop will be used when the couple are having fun messing around at the arcade. This will clearly show their love they have for each other as the artist’s husband wins a teddy for her. The artist is extremely happy and she jumps around and hugs him. *flash back*
Photo frame – This will include a picture of the couple happily sharing a memory together with a snake in their hand. This will show who the artist’s other half is and that they are in love with each other. *present*
Wine bottle and two glasses – This is when the artist is home alone, where she has two glasses in front of her thinking that he is still there. Her daily routine of drinking wine with her other half still occurs, however he isn’t there anymore showing that she is alone. She pours herself some wine and then hesitates to pour the other glass. *present*
Pebble from Southend – this will be included in the flashback where they are walking along the beach, where her other half picks up a rock and places it in her hand. This clearly shows the chemistry between the two characters.
•All of the props above will be used in the process of the start of their relationship to convey that they fell in love with each other concluding to them getting married.

Wedding ring – This prop will be seen when the artist looks down and her finger, and it flashes back to when they are in Southend. This will be the last flash back showing they finally got married.

Costume and Make- up
Bella

Over sized shirt – this will be worn when the artist is home alone, thinking about the memories she shared with her other half. This will be the ‘rough’ look in which it shows she is depressed and disheartened. Her hair will be rough and messy along with her makeup.
Elegant dress – this will be worn when she is remising down the Southend beach whilst singing. The dress will flow with the wind showing her beauty. Her hair is perfect as her loose curls bounce in the wind and her makeup is natural but still visible.
Casual wear/elegant – these outfits will be worn whilst the flash backs are displayed which shows it is on a normal day. These outfits will be casual but shows that she is upper-class through the type of clothes that she wears.
Lucas
Casual clothes – He wears brand name clothing such as Armani, Ralph Lauren and Lyle and Scott. These include jeans, cardigans, jumpers and t-shirts. This conveys that he is the bread winner of the family, and provides for himself and Bella.

Lighting and colour
Bella’s house – high key lighting will be used, however it will be dimmed to create a miserable effect. This will convey the artist’s feelings to show that she is sad and depressed without her other half.
Flashback locations – Natural and high key lighting will be used in order to highlight the characters facial expressions. This will allow the audience to understand the narrative in more detail and be able to build a relationship with the characters. The use of this lighting will create a realistic and professional music video as it conveys a day to day life.

Facial Expressions
The opening scene at Bella’s house will display her emotions as depressed and miserable to convey that a part of her is missing. This part of the music video will show her life without her husband and how it is affecting her.
The flashbacks will all be happy and meaningful as they share their memories together while they laugh and have fun as the audience can see that they smiling. The audience can clearly identify what she is feeling without her other half.

Positioning of characters and objects
The characters will be positioned in the centre in order to engage the audience with the action that is being taken place. This conveys the narrative to the audience as the artist completes the narrative.

How will it appeal to the target audience?
The Music video will appeal to the target audience because it will convey the idea of Love and boyfriends and girlfriends relationships. The video will be aimed at 18 and above, girls and boys. They will be able to relate to the idea of growing up and falling in love with a person. Also, the audience will be able to engage with the consequences that could happen as well as being in a relationship. For example, a death could happen or an accident. In addition, there are realistic locations and the audience will be able to relate to the locations and engage with the characters.
Cinematography – We have decided to use a range of camera shots including;

1.Close ups – to show the artists facial expression so show what she is feeling in order to create a narrative and so that the audience can relate to the artist. This is important as the audience can also relate to the artist’s emotions.
2.Long shot – In order to convey the artist’s body language to show what she is doing in the scene. This is important because it creates a more interesting music video due to the variety of camera shots included.
3.Establishing shot – identifies the location to the audience in which they can understand the music video in more detail as it conveys the mood of the scene.
4.Mid shot – these will be common in our music video as it displays the artist’s body language as well as facial expressions. Mid shots are important as the artist can be seen clearly.
5.Panning shots – will be used while the artist walking while singing. The panning shot will also show the location to the audience in order to familiarise the audience with narrative.
6.Low angles – will be used to show her emotions when she looks down at the floor. The low angle will make the artist more dominant as she will look large.

Editing styles

1.Straight cuts – This will keep a continuous narrative to help keep the audience engaged. This will be a popular editing style.
2.Fades – To end a scene/shot. This is important as it keeps it simple which means the audience can identify the narrative more easily. This would make the music video run smoothly.
3.Black and white effects – This effect will be used to show when there are flashbacks, this will show the audience when the flashback is taking place and to show them that it is in the past and therefore a memory.
4.Shot reverse shot – This will show the relationship between the two characters which would help the audience understand the narrative and also help relate to the artist.
5.Montage – will be used in order to show all of the memories quickly flashing back in order to make the narrative more interesting.

Monday, 22 November 2010

Lyrics

Annabella’s House
Southend pier
Southend beach with boyfriend
•Southend beach
Arcade
Bowling
Ceaders Park

I love you.
Baby I love you
You are my life
My happiest moments weren't complete
If you weren't by my side
You're my relation
In connection to the sun
With you next to me
There's no darkness I can't overcome
You are my raindrop
I am the sea
With you and God, who's my sunlight
I bloom and grow so beautifully

Baby, I'm so proud
So proud to be your girl
You make the confusion
Go all away
From this cold and messed up world.

I am in love with you
You set me free
I can't do this thing
Called life without you here with me
Cause I'm Dangerously In Love with you
I'll never leave
Just keep lovin' me
The way I love you loving me.

I am in love with you
You set me free
I can't do this thing
Called life without you here with me
Cause I'm Dangerously In Love with you
I'll never leave
Just keep lovin' me
The way I love you loving me.

And I know you love me
Love me for who I am
Cause years before I became who I am
Baby you were my man
I know it ain't easy
Easy loving me
I appreciate the love and dedication
From you to me
Later on in my destiny
I see myself having your child
I see myself being your wife
And I see my whole future in your eyes
Thought of all my love for you
sometimes make me wanna cry
Realize all my blessings
I'm grateful
To have you by my side.

Every time I see your face
My heart smiles
Every time it feels so good
It hurts sometimes
Created in this world

To love and to hold
To feel
To breathe
To love you.

Dangerously in love
Can't do this thing
I love you , I love you, I love you
I'll never leave
Just keep on loving me
I'm in love with you
I can not do
I cannot do anything without you in my life
Holding me, kissing me, loving me
Dangerously
I love you
Dangerously in love.

Ms Georgiou- Music Videos

Analysis of Drake-Over

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lTB1pIg1y0


At the start of the video the camera pans up to Drakes face while hes sitting on the bed and suddenly the colour invert for a split second, because hes sitting in his bedroom and theres a close up of his face as the colour invert, the audeince know this will be a personaly song where he conveys his emotions. Then when the song kicks off theres midshots of him on his bed with all these videos playing on the wall which can be related to hows hes feeling, for example one of the videos is of a packed street with lots of people as he explains that theres too many random people in his life, some members of the audience can relate to thing and form a relationship.
Next theres a shot of him with a black background, to make him stand out more, he uses alot of hand movement in this shot to make him look more confident and more intresting, which can appeal to his target audience, 15-26 year olds. At 1:22 into the film theres a few long shots and mid shots of him, but theyre all blurred to help tell the audience that no one really knows him and people only talk to him because of his success and money, again some of the target audience can relate to this. Also theres a long shot of him with a giant blurred picture of him in the background which could represent his ego, and straight after that it switches back to bedroom shot with snakes on the wall, which could mean hes dangerous.
The camera shots help the audience to understand how he feels about his music career.

The editing isnt very imaginative compared to the lighting and the props. The main ones you see are the straight cuts, which go with beat,fast, and fade in fade out which signifies when one point of his life ends and another begins.

The mise en scene in Drake-Over is very intresting because it involves a bed and a lamp which creates a bedroom in the first shot, a bedroom is seen as a very personal place so this helps the audience form a relationship with him and feel like they know him better. The lighting is very low key to help portray how angry he is with the fact people use him. In some parts of the song theres a red tint, this could also be used to help show his emotions. Also in the first shot theres videos on the wall of differant places, for example theres a empty road which could mean he has no true friends, a crowd of people walking down the street indication theres too many people in his life.



Westlife-Flying Without Wings

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1LEISP6e9c


The first shot is a long shot of all the group so the audience knows whos singing the song and can familiarise with the artists, but before their faces are revealed they are all blacked out in shadow to help bulid suspension. Also there are quite a few close ups of them to help appeal to their target audience, 10-17 year old girls, so they will buy their songs and albums. Also the close ups are used to show their emotions, gentle caring people, and look like angels. Alot of high shots are used to make it feel like your looking down from heavan or even flying, which can relate to the title.

The are only straight cuts showns to make the video more fast paced and intesting, and backlights are used on dark backgrounds to make the group stand out and look more angelic.

The only props included in the music video are the white costumes to help the artists seem more innocent and angelic. The main colours are blue and white with represent good, and theres only high key lighting to make it look like heavan, these can be very effective and appealing to their target audience.


Kelly Rowland ft David Guetta-Commander

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwfKZ-1jyiw


The first shot sets the setting, a club, which the audience can realte to, then the camera switches to a long shot of Kelly Rowland wearing skin tight clothes, to give the impression that shes very confident and she knows shes hot, then a shot of her high heel boots to make herself taller and more dominant than everyone else. Theres also a long shot of her walking downt he stage from the back and the fron with her hands on her hips to make herself seem confident and sexy, which would appeal to the men in the audience.

Straight shots are used alot in this music video so it can keep up with the beat and look more intresting. The background is a product of CGI, they uesed this because its more effective and realistic. At certain points throughout the video you can see the background dancers move in slow motion,this help the audience get familiar with the surroundings.

The video is set in a club because it appeals and relates to the target audience, 15-28 year olds, also to help the audience familiarise themselves with the setting the light are very low key and either have a black or red tint, much like a club. but i David Guetta scene with his prop DJ decks the lighting is very high, it could be related to his mood.


The History of Music Videos

1894-Edward B Marks hired people to help advertise their song The Little Lost Child by projection still images on a screen.

1926-Arrival of talkies,Vitaphone shorts (created by Warner Bros)featured many short films. Short films lasted around 6 minutes.

1941-The Panoram Soundie invented, jukebox that plays music and videos.

1956-Rock Music films hit Hollywood.

1970-Promos were created to help advertise their artists.

1975-Bohemian Rhapsody music video was realsed by The Queen, it was entirely shot and edited by a videocamera.

1981-MTV video channel was launched airing "Radio Killed the Radio Star".

1992-MTV began crediting directors with the artists in the song credits.

1995-The most expensive music video is made, Janet Jackson-Scream, which cost $7 million to make.

2005-Youtube was created, artists began advertising on it gaining millions of views for a song.

2007-iTunes was created,where people buy the songs online and just download them.

Friday, 19 November 2010

Record Labels

Record Labels

Big Record labels are companies in the music business that own smaller record labels. Record labels manage artists and sell their recorded music.

Big Record Labels:

Warner Bros. Recordings and they manage Chris Brown, Craig David, P Diddy and Flo Rida.

Universal Music Group, they manage artists like Coco Lee, Nine Days and Mandy Moore.

Sony Music Entertainment is probably the biggest record label in the UK and they manage Jenifer Lopez, Jls, and Jordin Sparks.


Sony Music Entertainment
owns smaller record labels such as Date Records, who manages Pitbull, Oasis, R Kelly and Ricky Martin. Sony also own a company called Work Records who manage, Jamiroquai, Jennifer Lopez, Diana King and Midnight Oil. They have also promoted films under the name of Song Pictures Enertainment and have produced films such as Spiderman and The Karate Kid

Universal Music Group owns a Record Label called Loud Records, and they manage artists like David Banner, Method Man, Mobb Deep and Xzibit. Another Record label they own is called Def Jam Recordings who own quite a few famous artists, these include, Kanye West, N-Dubz, Ne-Yo, Rihanna and Jeremih. Universal have also branched off into differant forms of media, like film. Universal Pictures has been responsible for films such as You, Me and Dupree, Leatherheads, Hellboy 2 and the Golden Army and The Kingdom.

Warner Bros. Recordings own loads of small record labels but not many famous artists compared to completive Big Record Labels, one of the companies is called Beluga Heights Records, who manage Sean Kingston, Jason Derulo and Iyaz. Another smaller record label owned by Warner is called BME records who currently manage 4 artists, Lil John, Oobie, Shawty Putt, and Johy Seedz. Warner Bros dont just focus on music, they also specialize in TV shows and films. Some of the films and TV shows they have produced are Supernatural, One Tree Hill, The OC, Harry Potter and Jonah Hex.

Independent Record Labels- is a record label that doesn’t have the funding of a major record label, most bands and artists begin on independent labels.


Chemikal Underground
is a small independent record label founded in 1994 in Glasgow, by the rock band The Delgados. It was set up to release their first single, Monica Webster- Brand New Car.

Another independent record label, Imaginary Records, was created by a man called Alan Duffy. They release allot of tribute songs.

Postcard Recordings
is a Glasgow-based independent record label founded by Alan Horne in 1979 for a couple of artists, called Orange Juice and Josef K to help their releases.

Questionnaire

Questionnaire

1.Are you male or female?
Male [ ] female [ ]

2.How old are you?

15-20 [ ] 21-26 [ ] 27-35 [ ] 36-45 [ ] 45-55 [ ] 55+ [ ]

3.What is your favourite genre?
…………………………………………………..
And why?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

4.Who is your favourite artist?

…………………………………………………..

5.What is your favourite song from you favourite artist?

………………………………………………………………………

6.Do you prefer British or American artists?

British [ ] American [ ]

7.Do you download or buy CDs?
Buy [ ] Downloads [ ]

8.How much do you spend on music a month?
0-£5 [ ] £6-£11 [ ] £12-£18 [ ] £19-£25 [ ] £26-£35 [ ] £36-£45[ ] £46-£55 [ ] £55+ [ ]

9.Does the album cover attract you to the artist?
Yes [ ] No [ ]

Why?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

10.What music channels do you watch?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

11.What do you expect to see in a music video?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

12.Do you prefer Narrative, concept or performance based videos?
Narrative [ ] Concept [ ] Performance [ ]

Why?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..….

13.What record label do you think is the most successful?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

14.Can you relate to the lyrics of your favourite song?

Yes [ ] No [ ]

15.Do you prefer solo artists or groups?

Solo artists [ ] Groups [ ]

16.What do you think (your favourite artists) interests and beliefs are and why?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Analysis on Album Artwork

Katy Perry Album Artwork

This was the first album Katy Perry released titled One of the Boys. The artwork is used to promote her album by appealing to her target audience. In this case the artwork is used to attract men by dressing up in small tight clothes in a garden on a deck chair giving the image of “the girl next door”. The title is written in a blue bubblegum font and the name of the artist is written in red bubblegum font to make her look young, fun and really sweet.


Teenage Dream was Katy Perry’s second album, her album cover is a bit more extreme then her previous album. In One of the Boys she was going for the sexy look by wearing small tight clothes and showing off allot of flesh while in Teenage Dream she completely naked laying on a cloud. She’s trying to look like an angel on her cloud, but naked. This cover is also is used to appeal to the male target audience and again she’s used bubblegum writing for her name to make her look young and fun. The title teenage dream is written in a font that makes it look like candy, this reflects on the music video theme of California gurls.

How can artwork affect an artist’s image?

Depending on the artwork the target audience can see what the artist’s personality is like and the lifestyle they live. For example Katy Perry’s artwork is very bubbly, sexy and flirty which reflects on her lifestyle and personality. The artists use artwork to represent themselves and to build a relationship with the target audience.

How has the demand for artwork changed with the introduction of new media technology and what effect had this had on the need of the artist?


Because the customer demand has changed, the artists have had to think up new ideas to attract people to their albums. Instead of just taking a photo of the artist in concert or performing they’ve starting to pose and then the photos are edited on Photoshop. For example Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” album shows a picture of her on a cloud, but it’s obvious that it’s been edited to make it look like she’s an angel on a cloud.

Beyonces Subcultures, Lyric Analysis

Beyoncé and Subcultures and Beliefs

Subcultures- is a group of people with a culture which is differant to the larger culture they belong to.
BeyoncĂ© sets many trends thanks to the clothes she wears and promotes in her music videos and because she sets trends rather than follows them she is referred to as a diva. For example, BeyoncĂ© is a huge pop star who has set many trends for young and more mature people because they can relate to her and her lyrics also she created one of the most popular dance routines that was used in a pop video. Women in pop tend to be very glamorous and they do a lot of dance routines in there videos and their videos tend to be more performance based. There is a lot of dancing because it makes them easier to remember and they can set up a fan base quicker than it would take for a rock star that doesn’t have a routine, because young girls like to have people they can look at and copy, inspire them.

Beyonce Music Video Analysis



Beyonce - Crazy in Love

This video is more performance based because of the dancing thoughout the whole video. Because of the dancing and signing the audience remains intrested and dosnt loose focus. Also there are quite a few close ups of her so the audience can familarise themselves with her, but there are more mid shots so the audience can be impressed by her dancing. Many panning shots of her walking in high heels are used to help her show off her body and seem more confident. There is no relationship between the lyrics and whats going on in the video, the lyrics say "crazy in love" but theres no signs of love, its just Beyonce showing off her dancing skills and her curves. But on the other hand theres a strong bond between the beat and the visuals, as she moves to the beat of the song and the editing and dancing are perfectly choreographed. Becuas eof the fast beat and catchey dance moves the audience wants to get more involved and may get up and dance along. There are no sexual referances in the video because her target audience are young girls so it would be inappropriate. Its very obvious that this a RnB video because of the fast paced music and lyrics, along with them conventions you have the attitude. Beyonce is portrayed with allot of attitude in this video because shes working with Jay Z, whos a famous rap artist, so she has to fit in with his style and personality. She wants to show the audience thats shes young and fun though her type of clothing, for example during some points in the video shes wearing short shorts and a tight vest top to show off her body and show some attitude which appeals to the younger audience, but at other points shes wearing a cream colour dress which could be considered as classy and this appeals to the older females in the audience because they could relate to the dress and build a better relationship.





Beyonce - Single Ladies

This music video largely performanced based because of the non stop dancing thoughout the entire video, she seems very ellegant and attractive while she dances with her tight clothes on so this is used to appeal to the older men of the audience. The video is mainly composed of long shots to show off their dancing skills so its easier for the younger girls to copy their dance moves and imatate them, there are a few close ups to show off their make up and looks. Theres a small comparison between lyrics and visuals, there are no men in the video which relates the the title "single ladies" but appart from that theres no relation. Also theres no relation between the tempo and visuals, the beat is very fast paced but the camera shots last a long time and usally pan around the artists to show off their bodies. Its very high key lighting to make them look innocent and ellegant even though they themselves are dressed in very revealing clothes to make them look "bad" and fiesty, they use this technique to get a mixed target audience.

Chris Cunningham, Michael Gondry

Goodwin’s theory

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal video, dance routine for boy/girl groups)
2. There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. (either illustrative, amplifying or contracting)
3. There is a relationship between music and visuals. (either illustrative, amplifying or contracting)
4. The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work. (a visual style)
5. There is frequency reference to notion of looking (e.g. screens within screens, telescopes, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
6. There is often intersexual reference. (to films, TV, programs, other music videos etc)
7. Whether the video is primarily performance based narrative based or concept based and how elements of each are used in it.

.....


Director Chris Cunningham's work in music video, commercial, and video art are well known and loved. Cunningham first made a name for himself in the early 90's in the art departments of major motion pictures, designing robots and creatures for Clive Barker and David Fincher. His work on Judge Dredd propelled him, in 1995, to work with the late Stanley Kubrick on his then-unfinished project A.I. These are some of the videos Chris directed:

Aphex Twins- Come to Daddy




Madonna- Frozen





Aphex Twins- Come to Daddy

This song is a narrative based video because it tells a story about a dog doing a wee on a junk TV and unwillingly created a monster with children. It’s very gloomy and dark to represent the monster that is created or it could represent the artist’s emotions. This is a very interesting video because of how unrealistic the video is, the lighting and the different camera shots, close ups of the ‘children’ and the twin shots of the monster and the old woman. There are also some close ups of the monster while it’s still in the TV which makes the video not suitable for minors. There’s a link between the visuals and the lyrics because the artist repeats the words “come to daddy” and the monster is represented as the daddy with his ‘children’.

Madonna- Frozen

This song is a performance based song because it’s just singing and there’s no narrative or concept. This video is filmed in one location with the artist wearing pure black and the background is dark, this makes the song dull and its gets boring for the audience after a while. There is not sexual reference in the song because she’s completely covered up. Every so often the artist transforms into a animal and flies/runs away, which could mean a sense of freedom which could be link to the title, frozen, so she could be stuck there and her turning into a animal is her getting away, becoming unfrozen. That’s the only link between the lyrics and visuals. There’s a link to the music and visuals because it’s a very calm and peaceful video which suits the slow rhythm. In conclusion this video can get boring, so she should have used different locations and maybe a little more colour.




Michel Gondry was born and raised in Versailles, France. Now in his early forties, his repertoire is astounding. He has scripted inspiring imagery in the form of commercials, music videos, shorts, feature films, and other media. He is partially credited with reviving the music-video format in the 1990's. He has been named a genius by too many people to count. Here are two of the video he has directed:

The white stripes – The hardest button to button





Kylie Minogue – Come into my world

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQCirTog0cs&ob=av2e


Kylie Minogue- Come Into My World

This is a performance based video because there no storyline and the songs not sending an idea, the video is just composed of singing. This is a very repetitive music video that becomes boring after a while because it’s just Kylie walking down a street, but after she goes round once there’s another image of her added, it ends up with 4 images of her walking down the same street. She is walking down the street with shopping bags in casual clothes, with day to day things happening around her, so she blends in because she’s normal. There is a small relationship between lyrics and visuals as she repeats the words “come into my world” and in the video she walks around doing her daily routine like it’s her life, other than that there is no relationship. Also there is no sexual reference as she’s wearing casual clothes and walking down a street. There are no close ups only mid shots and long shots, also though out the video its one continuous panning shot to follow the artist. In conclusion this video can get boring after a while making the audience loose interest because of the repetitiveness.

The White Strips- The Hardest to Button

This video is performance based because the artist is playing instruments while singing, there is
no storyline and there’s no idea being sent. This music videos is like Kylie Minogue Come into my World because of the repetitiveness, but they move every time there’s a beat from the drum so they slowly moved round the town/city in time with the rhythm. As they move a red empty instrument is left behind which could be linked to the artist emotions. There’s a link between the music and the visuals because the instruments move to the beat, but on the other hand there’s no link between the lyrics and visuals.

I dont think i will be using any of the conventions Michael Gondry or Chris Cunninghams videos because they dont suit the lyrics or the genre of my chosen song.

Wednesday, 7 July 2010

Music Channels




Who is the target audience?
The target audience for MTV is old teenagers to young adults (16-29) because of the tv programs they show and the type of music they play. The tv programs are not for young children, like in South Park they swear quite a lot and theres some violence.
Also the type of music, hip hop and RnB, appeals most to old teenagers to young adults.

What type of music does the channel play and why?
MTV play RnB, Hip Hop, Grime and anything in the charts. All these genres appeal to their target audeince becuase its what they demand.

Identify 3-5 examples of artists that feature on a regular basis.
Rihanna usually appears on the music channel because of her type of songs and the genre of them, the songs are usually performance based because of the singing and danceing all the way though and the genre is RnB.
Lady Gaga also appears frequantly on MTV because of her unique style and,again, the genre of her songs.

Friday, 2 July 2010

Research











Analysing a Music Video






What is the purpose of a Music Video?





• A music video can be used as a marketing tool to promote the song or the artist.
• It’s a short narrative or representation of the artist, so it could be an insight of the artist’s lifestyle or a major event that happened in their life that the audience can relate to.
• Because some of the audience can relate to video, they tend to build a relationship with artist.
• In most RnB and Hip Hop music videos, image is everything so therefore they will wear clothes with famous brands that they can promote.
• Certain songs describe common issues and how to resolve them and the audience can learn from them.
• Music Videos can be used to attract the target audience, for example if the target audience is young girls then the video will include girls stuff and Barbies to attract their attention.
• If you see a music video then you will be more likely to remember the song and even identify the artist.
• It can also be used to show different generic conventions of a music video.
• Also the audience request music videos so they can buy into the artist’s lifestyle.
Style of the Music Video
OMG- Usher feat Will.i.am is an RnB type song because it has allot of base and rhythm in the song. Also the song expresses how Will.i.am and Usher are feeling about a girl and she amazes them. For instance here is a line Usher sings “Oh my god im so in love, i found u finally” which mean this song could be based on a past event. OMG has 2 different music video styles, performance, which is lots of singing and dancing, all the way thought the song Will.i.am and Usher take it in turns to sing with Usher singing 3 choruses and 2 verses and Will.i.am singing 1 verse. There are background dancers all the way though the video the women are wearing small outfits while the men are wearing similar clothes to Usher. Also it could be a narrative because the lyrics tell a story of how Usher and Will.i.am are falling in love with lines like “Oh my god im so in love, i found u finally”.

Target Audience
Ushers target audience is young boys and girls, because most of his videos are set in a disco type of place with strobe lights and he is always dancing with background dancers. Also he takes about love and how his falling for someone which some of the target audience can relate to, so they can build a relationship with him. In all of his music videos he wears smart designer clothes and cool shades so he can promote different brands and encourage the audience to dress and look like him.

Generic Conventions
Because this is an RnB song they have to make the video look like an RnB video. They managed to do this by adding loads of strobe lighting and making it look like a disco, and dancing with background dancers. Also in RnB videos image is everything so they are wearing good quality brands to promote them and make themselves look good. Also the fact that there are quite a few close ups with designer sunglasses on makes them look cool and rich so they can appeal to their target audience.





Who is the target audience?
The target audience for MTV is old teenagers to young adults (16-29) because of the tv programs they show and the type of music they play. The tv programs are not for young children, like in South Park they swear quite a lot and theres some violence.
Also the type of music, hip hop and RnB, appeals most to old teenagers to young adults.

What type of music does the channel play and why?
MTV play RnB, Hip Hop, Grime and anything in the charts. All these genres appeal to their target audeince becuase its what they demand and they can relate to.

Identify 3-5 examples of artists that feature on a regular basis.
Rihanna usually appears on the music channel because of her type of songs and the genre of them, the songs are usually performance based because of the singing and danceing all the way though and the genre is RnB.
Lady Gaga also appears frequantly on MTV because of her unique style and,again, the genre of her songs.
Eminemis shown on MTV because of high demand and the genre of his songs. he is frequantly in the charts because most of his songs are narrative, which means they tell a story, so his audience can relate to them and build up a relationship.
Tinie Tempah, because of his high demand songs and the RnB/Grime style he implaments.

How is the channel used as a form of branding?
Most of the song they show are either grime, RnB or Hip Hop and the videos of these genres let the audience see into the artists lifestyle, this gives the artist a oppurtunity to show off how much money they have. So they are portrayed as having wild parties with hot girls and nice cars. in the videos they always wear designer brands so it makes them seem really rich and cool. also after seeing the music video the audience might go out and buy the same clothes.

How does the logo appeal to the target audience?
The logo is very recognisable because of the giant M in bold which can be seen from far away, and the tv bit in graffiti writing to attract the younger generation. the logo is presented on all of their products and everyone is aware of what it represents.


Whos is the target audience and why?
The target audience for The Box is mostly young people who like new music.The box show all the differant genres of music apart from heavy rock and heavy metal so its mostly RnB and Hip Hop which is what most young people listen to.

What type of Music does the channel play and why?

The Box plays any genre of music apart from rock and heavy metal. The reason they dont play rock and heavy metal is because not many young people listen to it compared to the RnB and Hip Hop listeners. So the target audience outweighs the rest of the people.

Identify 3-5 examples of artists that feature on a regular basis.
Eminemis shown on The Box becuase of high demand and the genre of his songs. he is frequantly in the charts because most of his songs are narrative, which means they tell a story, so his audience can relate to them and build up a relationship.
Basshunter is usally shown on there because of his dance/disco type of songs which are usally played in clubs.
Skepta has a few music videos shown on The Box because of his mix of RnB and Grime, so therefore its high demand.

How is the channel used as a form of branding?

Along with the very popular radio station, theres the website which includes the charts in the UK and in the USA which is very popular. Also on the on the channel they show differant TV shows that involve other artists and promote new music which appeals to the younger audience.

How does the logo appeal to the audience?

The logo is very intresting becuase it involves math signs, which the younger audience who attend school can relate to, they see math signs involved with new music and its considered cool, this attracts the younger audience. The logo is black and white which can attract any type of person, they are simple colours they could represent anything, good and bad, black and white people, anything.








Whos is the target audience and why?


Scuzz's target audience consists of 16-35 year old men, the music is very lound and harcore so its not for the faint hearted, so old people and young children wont listen to it. The music is very voilent so it wouldnt appeal to most women as it could give them a headache because the stations slogan is "Rock hard, only with Scuzz".


Identify 3 artists that feature on a regular basis.


3 artists that fequantly appear on Scuzz are Metalica, Imperial Vipers and Slipknot.


How is the channel used as a form of branding?


The channel advertises differant music videos to gain popularity and awarness, they also have a website which the audience can access videos, take part in competitions and even add their own videos. All these factors contribute to the stations popularity, so eventually it will become a brand.


How does the logo appeal to the audience?


The logo appeals to the audience because the font is very gothic, which is the style most of the audience go for. So the audience can relate to it and instantly recognise it, becasue it relates to the music genre, rock and heavy metal.











Who is the target audience and why?


VH1s target audience range from 25-49 year olds, because theres quite a few tv shows on there as well as music. The tv shows, such as Dad Camp, appeal to the dads of the audience, which tend to be older.


Identify 3 examples of artists that feature on a regular basis.


Some artists that appear regulary are ABBA, AC/DC and The Killers.


How is the channel used as a form of branding?


Vh1 usally features american based programs such as, Dad camp and The OCD Project, which the target audience can relate to. Their website features gossip collumns, celebrity pictures, videos and TV shows so the audience can become more involved with the station and recognise the things associated with Vh1.


How does the logo appeal tot he target audience?


The logo appeals to the target audience because its multicoloured, yellow, orange, pink and blue, which can appeal to either sexes. The logo involves a wide range of colours which can relate to their wide range of target audience. The colours are very bright and come accross as very positive and fun which appeals to the target audience.





Who are the target audience and why?

Kiss 100 plays allot of new music, which tends to be RnB, Hip Hop, Urban and Dance. This genre of music appeals most to 14-24 year olds because its new and in fashion. Some fo the target audience can relate to the title, Kiss, because their young they go out clubbing and its easy to recognise.

Identify 3 examples of artists that feature on a regular basis.

Rhianna, Katy Perry and Beyonce are just some of the artists that feature regulary on Kiss 100.

How is the channel used as a form of branding?

Kiss 100 is one of the biggest music stations, but along with the radio station it has a website featuring new videos, competitions, playlists and infomation about clubs and upcoming events. Because of this information on the website and the music played on the radio station, Kiss 100 is very popular amongst young people becuase they want to stay up to date and cool.

How does the logo appeal to the audience?

The logo has a unique shape next to the words Kiss, the audience can relate to this if they are unique or want to be. The word Kiss is in bold writing so it can gain the audiences attention instantly and its easily recognisable. The logo features only 2 colours white and blue which can appeal to either genders, so its very effective.