INTRODUCTION

This is my blog and will be used as my advanced portfolio for my A2 Media Studies coursework. It will be updated regularly to showcase my Research and Planning of my media tasks and then finally my Evaluation, which will give an in depth analysis on my end products and whether I thought they were a success or not. The main task this year is to plan, develop and create a music video for an unsigned artist  plus producing and completing two out of three ancillary tasks which include:

1. Creating and designing a digipak for your artist's single/album.
2. Creating and designing an advert for your digipak.
3. Creating and designing a website homepage dedicated to your artist.

Hopefully, through doing thorough research I can decide upon which 2 ancillary tasks I will produce, weighing up the pros and cons of each one.

TYPES OF MUSIC VIDEOS

There are 3 main types of music videos that are used by music artists in our contemporary music industry: Narrative Based, Performance Based and Concept Based. Each have distinct characteristics  with different purposes for how they will gain their audience's attention and recognition. The record label to whom the artist/band is signed wants them to appear as original as possible to other contemporary music artists, so they look for unique attributes within them which they can emphasise to give them a unique image and persona that will attract their targeted audience.  

NARRATIVE BASED

A narrative based music video tells a short story which often relates to the lyrics of the song. This can create a dramatic effect as it emphasises the meaning within the song, these effects may be emotive and so aim to gain a response from the viewer. The type of emotion that is aimed for the viewer to feel, depends on how the artist/band is represented and conveyed to their audience. An artist's view on certain issues may be the central theme of their music video.

Decemberists - 16 Military wives

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK3Ce9md96g

This video is a prime example of a narrative based music video, as it conveys the band's views on war in the U.S.A through a role play theme. It tells us how people believe everything that is said in the media. In this case, this music video uses subtitles in order to give the viewer a greater understanding on what the video is about and trying to convey.

Beyonce - Irreplaceable

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJkFU9YNdDc

Another example of this is a song produced by the artist Beyonce whose song 'Irreplaceable', shows a narrative involving her and her unfaithful partner. It surrounds the period in which Beyonce has found out about her cheating partner and is throwing him out of his house, leaving him with nothing. 

PERFORMANCE BASED

A performance based music video is mainly used by a band for entertainment purposes. It shows off their raw talent as artists as it allows their audience to see them in a live-like show. The bands are normally a group that perform rock or indie music and tend to attract teenagers aged 12 and onwards. They give inspiration to these teenagers to play musical instruments such as the guitar and drums. To create maximum precision of their music, the band will dub a prerecorded track over the live visual recording. 

White Stripes - Hardest button to button

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWe-7Cm1GHg

This performance based music video uses a stop motion effect, to match the beat of the music. The camera follows this iconic image of the band around several places as they perform. 

 Green Day - American Idiot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lg7YjwZzNz0

In contrast this video by Green Day shows the band  performing in the same location throughout the whole video. It is easy to distinguish it as a performance based video as you can easily see the band playing musical instruments that match the song being played.  

CONCEPT BASED

A concept based music video aims to convey an idea or concept or message that may be personal or impersonal to the artist and one which they wish to share with their audience. 



Sweedish House Mafia Ft. Pharrell - One (Your Name)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkQ5rEJaTmk

I interpreted this video as concept based, as the whole video surrounds this piece of musical hardware.. Although, this could also be interpreted as performanced based as well, as you see someone playing an instrument; the idea that I first got when watching the video was the concept of modern technology advancing by in order to create new innovative ways in creating new sounds and music. This new hardware is able to produce visual graphics on the LED screen, which has been constructed into the music instrument itself. This illustrates that the artist is developing a new trend and genre of music by creating such innovative sounds with such a small piece of equipment. 

Katy Perry - Fireworks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGJuMBdaqIw&feature=branded

This is a very effective video as the concept is illustrated through both the lyrics and the visuals. The visuals help emphasise the lyrics and what their meaning behind it is. We see people with sparks and fireworks shooting out of them, which highlights the concept of being a firework, not in a literal way, but in a figurative way. For example, fireworks are bright which gives the concept when relating to the lyrics of the song, that you should allow yourself to stand out from others and show your true colours.

TARGET AUDIENCE

Noisettes

http://www.noisettes.co.uk/

Noisettes Album
Wild Young Hearts

The Noisettes are an original pop band that aim to give an alternative to the regular pop scene we see. They create a diverse genre in their music that aims to attract a wide audience from ages 12+. They have a quirky appeal to them due to the style of the singer's vocals. Shingai Shoniwa's (singer/vocalist of the band) vocals give an edge to their band and sets them apart from current artists on the market. The band first came onto the scene due to the convenience of Mazda hosting their song as the supporting song for their TV advertisment. This once in a lifetime opportuninty set the band off into the right direction to fame.

They have been stylised and branded in a way that they represent students at university. So you could say their initial audience was them, however, Shingai Shoniwa's image is modified in order to attract a wider market audience. Her image is quirky and different, which makes people have more  of an incentive to watch and listen to the band's music.

Miley Cyrus

http://www.mileycyrus.com/

Miley Cyrus Album

The Time of Our Lives

Miley Cyrus is a solo female artist who came into the limelight firstly from her hit TV programme 'Hannah Montana'. Her viewers from the programme followed her to her new career path as a professional music artist, whilst her TV programme targeted mostly the female gender, the way she has been portrayed in the music industry appeals to both genders. This is because she is stylised as more of a 'rock chick' than a kids entertainer.  So Miley's target audience attracts children of 7+, as those who watched her TV programme are likely to follow her as a signed artist. She also attracts teens of both gender as she is portrayed as a mature singer, mature songs and lyrics, and who's styled image is representational of girls her own age. 

Eminem

http://www.eminem.com/

Eminem Album
Recovery

Although Eminem uses frequent swearing within his style of music. He attracts a wide audience. Younger kids our inspired through his flow in rap and his branded style image. He has set a fashion trend within young boys as they are attracted his urban style. Whereas, the older generation from 16 + are more attracted to the lyrics and the meanings behind his lyrics. I think Eminem's main target audience lies within old teenagers, 16+, as this was the stage in which he began rapping, and so wants to inspire other individuals to follow any passion of theirs.

THE ONLINE REVOLUTION

Due to the digital age it is now becoming easier to promote and distribute your music without being signed to a record label. With the making of Web 2.0 music artists are able to promote their music online, on social networking sites such as Myspace free of charge. Music programmes such as Itunes and Spotify allow you to preview your favourite artist's songs whilst also having the ability to purchase them, whether you're buying just one song or the whole album. This online revoltion has consequently transformed the whole way in which music can be sold to their audiences, one of the top reasons being the easy access in listening to the music and purchasing it.

Many music artists  have benefited from the online revolution. The most successful story being the 'Arctic Monkeys'. The Arctic Monkeys were an unsigned band who uploaded and shared their music on the internet on the social networking site Myspace. They were later recognised for their talent and got signed to the independent record label Domino Records. This shows that the constant development of the digital age, brings great benefits to those artists that do not have the funds to record in a professional studio. PC/Mac software as well as the internet allows them to upload, edit and share their music for free or for a fraction of the price if they were to do it professionally. However, the this digital movement has created major concerns  for the 4 conglomerate labels (Sony Music Entertainment, Universal music Group, Warner Music Group and EMI Group)  as they are losing thousands of pounds from file sharing and illegal downloads. Data from 2009 showed that 98% of all  music downloads were illegal. This is consequently having a  major impact on the revenue that these companies and their artists are losing out on.

It is an impossible task to stop all file sharing and download sites, as there are so many and can be reproduced quickly if they were to get shut down. This is why alternatives have been developed to cut down illegal downloads. This is where the creation of Apple's iTunes, Spotify and Vevo on Youtube allow music lovers to access music at their fingertips for a small fee or have the option to listen to the files free of charge, but without having the file that will allow you to make copies of and distribute. These programmes lets the music audience to be in complete control over what they but and how much they buy. It is a more appealing way of selling and distributing music as the person does not have to leave their home to buy the product.

HAVING A 'NICHE' AND STAR IMAGE MOTIFS

Nowadays, many artist's try to create a distinct an original image or trait for themselves, that is different and unique to other contemporary artists - often called a niche. They do this in order to create a statement and impact the current music market, which will inevitbly create a lot of publicity and attention for themselves. Their pecific niche may attract many unintended viewers, given the artist a broader audience of interest. Their 'niche' may be such things to do with the way they dress, sing and act. An example of a music artist that has created a niche for themself is Lady GaGa. Lady GaGa came onto the music scene in 2008 with her no.1 hit 'Just Dance'. As she progressed through her music career she began to exploit a very unique appearance and fashion sense that took the world by amazement as well as detestation.

Not only does Lady GaGa make an impact when at work - making her up-coming music videos, but she is persistant in creating an impact on people in public; turning heads and dropping jaws as she struts her stuff down the red carpet of the VMA awards. Above our some examples of how Lady GaGa likes to present herself to her audience and the media. GaGa is an atist that has gone further than any other music artist when it comes to fashion. She has obliterated the stereotype of how all celebrities dress in the most expensive apparel and jewellery, and has given herself her own iconic branding. However, some niches may be unintentional as well as tentional. For example, we could say that Amy Winehouse created a 'niche' for herself by becoming a renowned drug abuser.   

INTERTEXTUALITY IN MUSIC VIDEOS AND OTHER MEDIA

Intertextuality is a feature of Goodwin's theory. It is when one media text references other media texts, to involve the audience closer as they have seen it before from the original text.

               

                           P!nk - Stupid Girls                      Jessica Simpson in Dukes of Hazzard film

Here, P!nk's video, Stupid Girls is referencing the film Dukes of Hazzard. This is effective as the reference is related to the lyrics, and so emphasises them meaning of her lyrics by matching it with visuals. 

                                           

                                White Stripes                                     The Simpsons Season 18 Episode 2

                    Hardest button to Button                                       

The Simpsons have used intertextuality by referencing to the iconic stop motion video of the White Stripes video, Hardest Button to Button. This allows the audience to connect to the episode a lot more as they have seen the video before, and creates a fun and interesting way of involving its audience on a deeper level.

BRANDING

                             

Justin Bieber's style is consistent in every video and appearance that he makes. For example, his hair is always style in the same way, with the iconic come-over. His clothing involves a shirt, jeans and hi-top trainers. This creates an image motif, as he is dressed in a way to represent teenagers of his age. The main house colour that represents Justin is purple. This has been emphasised effectively through his clothing,  CD album, website and fan merchandise. It allows his target audience to identify that a product belongs to him without even seeing an image of him. Purple is a colour that lies between pink and blue, so Justin is intended to attract both genders aged 7+.  

PRELIMINARY TASK

Premlim Britney Video - 0.34 - 1.05

Brief: Our task is to remake the Britney Spear's no.1 hit, 'hit me baby one more time'. The purpose of this task is so that we can practise our range of shots and learn how a professional music video is constructed, edited and finalised. Our class has been split into three groups where we have been given 30 seconds worth of film each that we have to recreate as accurately as possible.

Location: We have been given the footage from 0.36 - 1.05. Within this footage the only set we see is inside a school by lockers running adjacent from one another on either side of a corridor. So to maximise our accuracy we will be using our lockers located near the main school hall.

Characters: The footage that we have been given consists of Britney Spears and both male and female school dancers. Our cast for our video clip is as follows: Mollee Vasey (school girl dancer), Jasmine Bual (Britney Spears), Sophie Lemm (School girl dancer), Georgia Lansbury (School girl dancer), Amy Edmonds (School girl dancer), Neil Kumar (School boy dancer) and Samuel Lai (School boy dancer)

Props: School uniforms

Shooting schedule

Wednesday 7th July 2010 Periods 1 & 2

Shots/frames to shoot: 2, 4, 5, 10 & 25

We have decided to shoot these particular shots of all the boy parts of our given time frame, as our 2 male characters will be away for a week due to complications. This will allow other students in our group to focus on their roles within the video and try to focus on getting as much done as possible.

Evaluation:

Unfortunately we were unable to finish our part of the video as many members of our group were either away or had lack of motivation to get the video done. When we needed to film there was generally a lack of direction and planning within the whole group, which is why the task was left uncompleted. From this experience I now know that I would prefer to work by myself for the main media task, as I can progress and develop my work more fluently without having to rely upon others. 

CD COVER DESIGNS

CD Cover Designs

View more presentations from samo1992.

WEBSITES

For part of my research I need to analyse homepages of music artists from different genres of music. This is so I can gain knowledge and an understanding of the features that are used to create such a site and how they may differ between artists with different genres. 

Artist: B.o.B

Web Address: http://www.bobatl.com/

Website Criticism

Strengths

• I think the addition of the video on the homepage is a very good idea as it draws the audience's attention almost instantly. It enables the artist B.o.B to promote his new song easily and directly and therefore is making his audiene more aware of the type of artist he is and the type of genre his music is.

• The layout of the website is very well structured as it is cleany set out and isn't to hard on the eye. This is another advantage as the viewer can easily access what they need to without being ambushed with an overcrowded website full of unesseary clutter.

Artist: Michael Bublé

Web Address: http://www.michaelbuble.com/

Website Criticism

Strengths  

• The site had used a clever technique in which the designer has used an image of Buble to act as the central part to the site. This attract viewers instantly as it is the first thing they see. Other links and information has been displayed around this key feature in order for the viewer to explore everything thats is on display.

• Very simplistic styled website, which I think works well as you are not hit with too much information at once. The information that is shared on the homepage has been deliberately chosen to influence viewers to explore further into the site. 

Weaknesses

• The tab which holds the other links to explore other section of the site is overshadowed by the image of Buble. It needs to be a little bolder to create more awareness of its existence. 

Artist: Pixie Lott
Web Address: http://www.pixielott.com/site/global/frontpage

Website Criticism

Strengths 

• Clear information involving 'Latest Pix'; a clever name as it reflects the artist's brand name. Her Twitter feeds are nicely structured and easy to follow,

Weaknesses

• The promotion of other artists on the Webpage detracts away from Pixie being the unique artist and the one who her record label are supposed to be selling and promoting as it is her dedicated site.

• Virgin Advert link spoils and cheapens the look of the site.