Music Album Cover Mrs Fisher

Music Album Cover
Design Brief.

What headings are given in the brief and how do they contribute to the designer understanding the product and the brief?

Throughout this design brief there are many headings included. for example headings such as Date, Project manager etc all these headings help create the structure of the brief so therefore once the designer has read through the brief and has an idea of what they have to create, if they forget something or didn't quite find what they were looking for, they can just check the brief again and find the heading which will include the information they need and that way they have skimmed through and found the main points they need. Fro example there is a heading 'who is our consumer?' the designer is able to look for this heading and gather the information they need for the consumer the project manager is aiming at.


What media language is used and what does it mean to the designer?

In the brief there are many different media terms used overall i think that these media terms help give the designer the idea that the manager is trying to create and gather the correct information they need to make the product. For example under the heading 'who is our consumer?' there is a media term used which is Males 20-35 ABC1 which stands for the category the consumers are put in so C1 are nurses and managers, so therefore this use of media language helps the designer with all the media elements which they need to know for when they start to produce the product.


What are the differences between the product overview and the creative brief : How does each one assist the designer?

The differences between the product overview and the creative brief are as follows, starting with the product overview this is like an introduction including all the main points and information which needs to be known about the product and what it is and what it will look like and what it will include etc. Where as with the creative brief this consists a more detailed introduction of the product and it includes information such as the description of the album sleeve, objective, dealines etc. So therefore the difference is that the product overview is more detailed and just gives you a whole overview and load of information about the product whereas the creative brief just gives the reader only the information they need to know such as what it should look like and when the dealines are for creating the product. Therefore with the product overview the designer is able to understand and have a rough idea of what the product is and what it will consist of where as the creative brief is more of a list so it tells the designer what the product should/needs to look like and who the consumers are and when the dealiens are for producing the product.


The 'image' we want to convey.


The image we want to convey of our artist is a young,innocent and sweet young girl we is into her job as a singer. We also want her to show her passion for music and fashion. To help convey what sort of image we are trying to convey of our artist we have created a image board (photo below).

Dyers Theory Mrs Fisher

Analysis of artist, using Dyer's theory.

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

With my our singer Shani she is not a very well known artist so therefore we have had to work on our original artist of the chosen song which is Gyptian. Gyptian is constructed to his target audience as a very talented and dedicated artist, through the promotional material Gyptian is shown as a very real person because he is not that talked about and he isn't in many magazines or newspapers and he just keeps himself to himself. But since the release of his latest single 'hold you' Gyptian has started to become very popular with the younger generation of target audience. Lastly the promotional material has not constructed any of Gyptian's personal likes or dislike , family backgrounds , education or problems.


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

Gyptian earned his nickname from his habit of tying a shirt around his head and twisting his chin hair like an Egyptian pharaoh.So therefore this helped Gyptian create his identity with his target audience, so therefore his audience/fans know him and recognise him through this.

What meanings are being represented through the promotional material and how are they conveyed? (costume,location,body language,hair & makeup,props).

Through the promotional material which is used with Gyptian there is many different ideas conveyed to the audience through the image which he has created. Firstly on the album cover of 'my name is Gyptian' Gyptians hair is twisted so therefore this is showing his identity, also on the album cover is just a closeup of his face which takes up most of the cover and his facial expressions through this album cover show him having a slight grin on his face and he is looking down , the producer has tried to create the effect of him looking down at his name which is in bold black text near the left side of the cover. Also through Gyptian's facial expression on this cover it looks as if he is concentrating which may suggest that he is dedicated to his music. The second album cover which i looked at from gyptian was 'Gyptian i can feel your pain' this cover helped convey Gyptian through to his audience to hat sort of artist he is and the sort of genre he sings because of the colours used which were red, green and yellow this helps give his audience the idea that he is a reggae artist. Also on this album cover Gyptian is standing up and has his hands making a symbol which stands for love so therefore Gyptian is trying to tell his audience that he loves what he does and his music means alot to him. Also on this album cover Gyptian is standing infront of a red gate and his body language seems very comfortable and he is just posing and smiling for th camera. Finally Gyptians facial expression shows that he is happy with his job and proud to be releasing this album. Overall i think that Gyptians prormotional materials help convey Gyptian to the person he really is and his true personality.

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

The images used by Gyptain do not leave the audience asking questions because the images gyptian has created give away enough information to his target audience so therefore the audience know who he is and understand his genre very well also.

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

I think that Gyptian's fans and his followers are within his culture which he is trying to create because considering he is a reggae artsist he has never been in the newspapers for doing drugs or sleeping with other famous celebrities so he is not only a good image but also a good rolemodel to his audience.

Diversity Ms Georgiou

Diversity of music videos

Diversity of a music video is the quality of being diverse , different or having the unlikeliness. They may only be four to five minutes long, but music videos are one of the easiest ways for singers to make a statement and express their individuality.

Introduction:

Michel Gondry

From Gondry I analysed two of his music videos which were:
• The white stripes – the hardest button to press -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLESpHrtvxs

• Kylie Minogue – Come into my world -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQCirTog0cs

The presentation of the music video from the white stripes firstly the genre was an indie rock, the video was very interesting and different for the audience to watch because the drum kits kept on adding on and on to the video, but this did go with the beat of the song which made it flow a bit more with the video. Also this video is very unique and is not what the audience expect to see in any other music video from this genre. This video also had a colour scheme going on which was red, white and black which can help make the video memorable to the audience. The second music video which I analysed was Kylie Minogue’s which was a very boring and continuous video , which just had her walking around the same street about 6 or 7 times and then there becoming more and more of her , after watching this music video I wasn’t very interested and I didn’t want to watch it again. One advantage of it was that it was different to the rest of her other videos so it allowed her to try and set a new target audience and give her actual target audience something different. Both of these videos didn’t build a relationship between the artist and the audience because of the way the video didn’t relate to the narrative of each of the songs.
There were many advantages and disadvantages to both of these music videos, starting with the white stripes video an advantage of this music video was that it was different for their target audience compared to any other music video which they have seen, so therefore by them producing a very different and unique music video it allows them to allow their music video to be memorable to their target audience. On the other hand a disadvantage of this music video is that because of the repetition of the drum sets doesn’t look or seem very interesting and starts to get boring after the first minute of the music video.
From the second music video from Kylie Minogue also has its advantages and disadvantages, an advantage of this music video was that Kylie tried to use a very well-known and everyday society location which can relate back to Dyers theory because of the hegemony which shows that she tried to make her location memorable and the same as were lower class streets and shops, therefore this helped make the music video seem more realistic to the audience also because of the repetition also used of Kylie going around the same street around 7 or 8 times and then every time there is another Kylie this also helped get her music video become recognised with the audience by them remembering it as the repeated Kylie’s.
Finally on the other hand there was a disadvantage of this music video which was that not only was there so many clones of Kylie in this video but there was also clones of every other person or object she touched so therefore this ended up the music video seem like it was going on for too long and then the music video just started to get boring and I am sure this won’t help Kylie with making her music video sell to an audience.
The music video “Kylie Minogue- Come into my world’’ is concept based, this is because it has no story to the music video and as she is going round more people are joining her. A panning shot was used throughout, close ups have been used along with a zoom and it is a one shot video as there is no cuts.


Chris Cunningham

From Chris Cunningham I also analysed two music videos which are:
• Madonna – Frozen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XS088Opj9o0

• Aphex Twin – Come to daddy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Az_7U0-cK0

The presentation of the music video from Madonna Frozen was structured with the performance of the video, this is because of the way the genre is shown through this video. The video shows Madonna playing an ethereal Gothic witchy, melancholy persona, with long black hair, black gowns and mehndi on her hand showing the Hindu word Om on her palm. She shape shifts into a flock of crows and a black dog. By the use of these media techniques in her music video Madonna has created the genre of her video to her target audience which is pop.
But it is a very different and unique way to film a pop video because of all the dark lightings and the close ups and the location in the middle of a deserted island. There were many advantages from this video, because of the structure and performance of the video it helped Madonna make her video memorable to her target audience. On the other hand there were also disadvantages of this music video which were that because of the change in her video she may create a limited target audience and also from Goodwin’s theory she hasn’t built up a relationship with her target audience.
The second video which I analyzed was Aphex Twin come to daddy, I found this video quite disturbing and very very strange. This music video structured the performance and narrative of the song because in the video it starts with an old woman walking a dog in a grimy, industrial setting. The dog urinates on an abandoned television lying on the sidewalk, causing it to sputter unexpectedly into life. This unleashes an evil spirit, accompanied by a gang of small children, all of whom bear Aphex Twin's grinning face and who appear to inhabit the abandoned buildings.
The children go around wreaking havoc, trashing an alley and chasing a man into his car. The demon emerges from the television, screams in the woman's face, and then gathers the children around him. This helps show the genre of the music video of being Aggrotech, drum and bass. The reason I think Aphex twin choose to film their music video in this way is because they thought of the many positives it could apply to their target audiences, some of the positives from this video which I have gathered are that it is very different, unique, and memorable and something new for their target audience.

Reinvented Artists Ms Georgiou

Pick an artist that you think has reinvented their image for a purpose and analyse their music videos to show why they made a certain transititon to provoke and sustain their popularity in the music industry.

The artist i have chosen to analyse is rihanna because of the way she has changed over the years from starting her career in 2004 as a young , beautiful , innocent young woman and how she has ended up now in 2010 as being a very Gothic based , aggressive and strange artist.

This music video by Rihanna in 2004 called 'Don't stop the music' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd8jh9QYfEs , this is how rihanna started off as an artist , this was when she was first introduced to the industry, she came across to her audience as a very nice and sweet young girl who was going to do very well with her career in he future.
From this video Rihanna looks very pretty and is wearing a very sexy and short dress , the location the video is in a night club were she is in the middle of the dance floor dancing with her friends and then near the middle/end of the video she starts to sexy dance with a male dancer. Also in the video she starts clapping and giggling and getting all of the audience dancing and getting into to her song by this use of technique rihannas music video is obeying God wins theory because she is trying to create that relationship with her audience because she is making them want to get up and dance and get into her video with her. The location and the mis-en-scene which is used in this music video helps suggest to the audience the genre of the video which is reggae because of her location in a club and party which helps create this theme.

Secondly this second music video of rihanna is in 201o her song called 'Rudeboy' , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e82VE8UtW8A , this one of Rihanna most recent music videos.

Now already by the name of the song the audience can realise the difference they are going to see in her music and the video. In this video rihanna is a lot more sexy and does a lot more sexier dancing for example she is dresses in a zebra print outfit and she is dancing behind a lion grinding around it which shows that she is a changed artist from her old video in 2004. Also in this music video at the beginning she is playing the drums and her costume is very different to what a reggae artist should be wearing , she is now wearing a rock/goth outfit. In this music video she does not at all create any sort of relationship between herself and the audience watching because she is a lot more into her dancing and thinking about this so called 'rudeboy' she is talking about so therefore not every artist tries to create a relationship with the audience so in this point of view Godwin's theory doesn't match up with rihanna.

Task 2 :

Summarise on the main points that you have identified and explain why you think the artist made certain choices and decisions to reinvent their image and their career.

The reason i think rihanna wanted to change her image her artwork was maybe because of her past with her ex boyfriend Chris Brown and all of the publicity she got through it by people talking about her being very weak , scared and quiet. So therefore by her changing into this new person with a new personality she is showing her true self by proving that she isn't weak she is strong by all the serious dancing , changing her image new fresh hair style meaning she is a new and changing person and also by the change in her music videos shows that she isn't the same quiet girl anymore she is more loud and much more outgoing to her target audience.
Also by rihanna changing her image shows that she was bored of her ordinary image and now she is trying to be different and more unique this way she will become more memorable to her target audience and it always allows her target audience to watch something new from her every time she brings out a new music video.

Explain how your research will help you to decide on a artist and music video and also explain why you think an image is important to appeal to a target audience.

My research will help me decide on the artist and music video i would like to create because it allows and opens up my knowledge of how important an artisits image is.I need to make sure that the artist i have chosen hasent changed throughout the years because i have discovered that because of the change in Rihanna's image it allowed her to lose some very mutual fans which isnt a good advantage for a artist.
I think an image is very important to appeal to a target audience because without an artist having an image then the artist will not become well know at all with their target audience and this is what an artist needs to do well in their music industry.From my research i have also learnt that a star is an image not a real person, that is constructed out of a range of materials for example advertising, magazines etc as well as films. Also from my research into Richard Dyer's theory i also learnt that a star must be simultaneously ordinary and extraordinary for the consumer for example lady gaga is very differnet and unique to other artisits. Also from Dyer's theory i learnt that the star must be simultaneously present and absent for the consumer so for example mcihael jackson would be around for a long time relasing videos and albums and then he would just disapear for a few months which made his fans lose intrest and then he would finally return again and it would be hard for him to start gaining back his old target audiences.

Album Covers Mrs Fisher

My Music Video :

• The genre of my music video is reggae.
• Bob Marley and Gyptian are artists from my chosen genre.

Bob Marley Album Covers :



These album covers help show the sort of person Bob Marley is by showing him laughing in one and then smoking in another. Also by the way his hair is in all 3 of the covers helps relate back tot the genre of his music to being reggae. I can relate these album covers back to Godwin's concepts of a music video because he said that there should be a relationship between the artist and the audience so therefore i think that with these album covers it doesn't really create a relationship because of the way it is showing Bob Marley of being a very independent man who is dedicated to his singing and music and he is just there to sing for his target audience.

Gyptian Album Covers :






These album covers by Gyptian do not really show the genre of the music he sings they mostly just show his personality and the sort of person he is and they way he looks and dresses. In all of the album covers he has the same facial expression which is slightly smiling at the audience which shows that he is trying to create that relationship with the audience this can relate back to the concept of Godwin and music videos by trying to make his album covers as welcoming as possible , also in all 3 of these album covers his name 'Gyptian' is what stands out the most which is showing that he wants to be noticed for not only his looks but his name also because he is different from any other artist because of his unusual name.



Task 1:

How can artwork support an artists image?

The artwork which is produced by an artist can help support their image across to the audience by the costume they are wearing so if it is bright and different then it will catch their target audience's attention. Also by the use of of change in their photos or music videos for example the RNB artist Rhianna started off her career as a very hardworking young , beautiful and innocent young woman and now to this date 2010 she has changed her image extremely she dresses different , sings differently she acts more aggressive and is very emo based. So therefore Rhianna has shown to her target audience that anyone can change from something to anything so therefore she is trying to show her actual personality behind all of the cameras.

The artwork used by an artists also helps them sell themselves as a product , so when a CD or album is out for purchase in the local shops then if it is on a shelf by the artwork the artists and its producers have used allows the product to be visible and eye catching. Finally by the artwork the audience are using it allows them to create the relationship with them and the audience by making their target audience want to follow their image and want to be like them.


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


The demand for artwork has changed due to the introduction of new media technology because of the change in time and the way information about a specific artist is talked about and shown to the whole world. Firstly there are new programmes which are available for the audience to download such as lime wire , which allows the public to download music as a mp3 file with no charge at all so this way the audience do not have to spend money or even leave their homes to go and buy a new single or album out they are just able to do it on their computers and laptops , in addition there is also itunes which is a specific programme for downloading music files to videos and to films. Also there are many websites such as YouTube which allow you to search for a specific song you want to find and they provide you with the music video if it has one and the public even have the chance to read along to the lyrics, also from YouTube the public are also able to enter other websites and download specific videos which they have found on YouTube and cannot download on lime wire and they are able to download these into a mp3 file. Technology has also changed because now the public are able to change a hard copy to a digital file format.


By the change in technology it has also given artists a better way of advertising their music videos by the use of advertisement on facebook, twitter etc. This new introduction to new media has given a bigger effect on an artists artwork because of the way in which the artists are being advertised so therefore if there artwork isn't good enough then when there single is being advertised on a specific website , target audiences will not be very interested if it hasn't caught their eye, also because of the new media and technology not a lot of artists spend a lot of time and money one their artwork because of the new systems such as music channels , music downloads and the radio.


Task 2 :

What connotations can you establish through the media techniques that are used?


The media techniques help establish the way in which a artists is portrayed and shown to the audience because it is all about the 'mis-en-scene' , costumes , makeup , photos, colours chosen, the background chosen etc. All of these techniques help show the personality of the artist and the sort of music genre they are performing and what a audience should expect to see in one of their music videos.



How does this affect your reading and understanding of the music or artist?


This affects the way you portray and understand a specific artist because for example the boy band jls are a very well known boy band in the UK and now in America , so by the way they all dress with each of them having a different colour to symbolise them as a person for example Aston has the colour red which shows his personality a lot showing him to be very demanding and bossy and always has to have things his own way, so therefore by jls having these different colours helps their target audience memorise who is who and why each of them have chosen that specific colour. Also jls always have there music videos in very famous and popular locations for example in a nightclubs with loads of people around just having a good time so therefore this helps show to their audience what sort of personalities they have , they like having fun with there friends and they are just trying to to enjoy their lives by clubbing and partying by these locations also helps show the genre of the sort of music jls sing which is Pop. On the other hand with the rock group Kings Of Leon are very different compared to Jls because of the way they dress and the locations of there music videos for example they locate most of their videos on a stage which is like a big concert and they are performing for their audience, also they use props such as drums and guitars which helps show to an audience the genre of their music.



What conventions can you identify from the artwork you have been shown?

• Album cover for Katherine Jenkins - Second Nature.
  

This album cover was very plain and simple , she had chosen a very beautiful elegant red dress which was camouflaged into a red background which looked like curtains in a theatre now by Katherine using this location and background helped show the sort of music and the genre she sings which is opera/classical.

Also in her album cover i also spotted her facial expression which was a sexy , happy smile , this helped show me her sport of personality and the way she was posing and smiling helped give me the idea that she enjoys her job and that she isn't too serious about her work she likes to enjoy it and have a good time. She is also holding the curtain open which gives the audience a sort of welcoming image showing that she is inviting anyone to listen to her music. The text which has been used on the cover is very bold and large but also very simple so when a customer picks up this album they will straight away notice the artist and the name of the album , this is a very good way of helping identify the artist to the public.