Target audience results - Miss Miller

This research was carried out to find out what certain concepts appeal to our target audience, so I can ensure that they will enjoy the music video that I will create. The research was carried out to gain more ideas of what to include in the music video, to decide if the artist we are doing will appeal to our target market and what elements of an Indie music video attract and entertain our target audience. The reason why we had forty people participate in this questionnaire was in order to allow the data to be more representative and valid. Collecting information from a wider audience is more likely to produce quantitative and representative results. These results will help me to plan what content is going to be shown in the music video. Also, when it comes down to creating a storyboard I would have gained more ideas, making the storyboard task easier.  

The first question was asked to find out our audience's gender. This chart clearly displays that their are more males (62%) than females (38%) But the ratio between them is not too different. This will allow me to know what gender we will target our music video at, which will be males due to the data. But I will make sure that the music video is suitable for both sexes and is universal for both genders to enjoy. This question has been useful as it has helped us decide on the gender of our audience. Which will allow us to make the music video more conventional to males. Which will allow them to be more entertained by the music video. 

This question was asked to find out if our audience even enjoy the genre of the music video which we will be producing. The pie chart shows me that most of our audience like indie music, which is great as it means that the genre we are doing has a demand in the market. So this has been a confirmation to continue to make our music video/song choice Indie. These results shown tell us that we are likely to benefit from making our music video in this genre.  

It also proves that our questionnaire was not biased and that everyone we asked had different tastes and likes in music. But from these results I will take on the fact that the difference of 55% and 45% aren't great. So this issue can be solved by adapting the indie genre by adding conventions from other genres such as, pop - fast editing, bright colours etc. to make sure the music video is targeted at a variety of individuals. 

As Ed Sheeran is the artist we will be producing a music video for, it was important to find out if our audience are fans of him and his music. The data displays that 60% of the audience are fans and 40% are not. This allowed me to find out if Ed Sheeran is admired by many and if it would be worth while for us to do his song. However, we found out that he has a large fan base. Due to his popularity it would prove successful to make a music video for Ed's song 'Runaway'. This has also given me a sign of not to subvert what Ed Sheeran usually gives to his audience. As his fans blatantly like what he is doing. So we should ensure that our music video is something which can be easily connected with Ed sheeran's previous music videos and current artistry. 

This question was done to find out our audiences age range. And If the questionnaire was aimed at the right target audience which was planned to be 16-25 and we see that out of the 40people 80% of the individuals that we questioned were aged 16-25. This has allowed us to make sure that our results are valid and catered to our target audience. This question was done to inform me if the majority of the individuals questioned were the target audience age of a typical indie music video. With this question it will also allow us to  be confident in including alcohol references, violent imagery and forms of abuse to portray our chosen song in a deeper manner. So we now know that our target audience are suitable for this content.

In the indie genre a typical convention is a narrative based music video. With these results it has proved to me that an indie music video is more liked by people, with the results being (89%). These results mean that I will put more time and effort in producing a quality narrative in order to satisfy the audience. And increase the amount of viewers for the music video, which will increase the popularity of the music video and artist; Benefiting the institution.

But, this does not mean that we will not satisfy the needs of the 11% which enjoy performance based music videos. We will include aspects of performance for example, lip singing. In order to make our music video enjoyable for all.

This pie chart allows me to see what typical conventions that appeals to the audience. With the highest being narrative at 40% and the lowest being other at 5%. These results show me that the audience enjoy narrative based music videos, which is also shown in the pie chart above. This is great as it will allow us to follow the convention of an indie music video while satisfying the audience. The portrayal of love at 35% shows us that a theme of love should be shown to the audience as it appeals to them. This was also great news as the song runaway gives a hint of romance and a love interest. As it talks about running away with someone. So a female used as another character to portray a relationship will entertain our audience.   

From the 10% of both simplicity and performance displays to us that these two elements would not be beneficial to focus on our include. I will then try to make sure that the music video is not to simple or budget as it could look to the audience as cheap, unprofessional and maybe not give a sense of realism. But I will still use a low-budget location which looks great to the audience and fits in with genre conventions. The performance being at 10% confirms that we shouldn't focus on the performance side as that is not what the audience want to see. 

In this pie chart we can identify that most people feel that cinematography (38%). This means that we should make sure that we include quality cinematography such as, close ups, long shots, mid shots, panning and more. This may be liked as it adds dimension to the music video. This has informed me that cinematography should be an aspect that we plan properly and spend time on a it's what our audience like. Mise-en-scene 32% will also be focused on greatly by using conventions in the indie genre such as, low-key lighting, isolated setting for mystery and suspense and props such as instruments (guitar). This will increase the entertainment factor for our audience as well a following vital genre conventions. Editing will also be focussed on through fast editing, a time lapse and more. Satisfying all of our audience.

This allowed us to find out what music genre our audience prefer and allowed us to see their different tastes in music. I am glad to say that Indie was the highest at 58% as it confirmed that our audience enjoy the indie genre. Therefore, our music video would be enjoyable and successful to our target audience. This has allowed me to also find out that the second popular genre for this music video is R&B. So I will try to include elements of R&B into my music video. Ed Sheeran has a R&B feel/beat incorporated into the song runaway so it will be easy to portray R&B conventions into the music video. Other genres that the audience enjoy such as rock,rap and pop will be ignored. As you can't target a wide audience with every song. So it is better to focus on one or two genres to make sure that the video lives up to those genre conventions/expectations. Than to focus on all 5 genres listed in the pie chart, for the music video to then look unclear. 

The setting that was most expected to see in a music video was a simple setting. This shows that simple setting will be beneficial and liked by our audience. And will also allow the budget for this music video to stay low which is great. It is then followed by an isolated setting at 20%, forest and fields 15% and estate buildings at 12%. These all follow the conventions of an indie music video. So I will make sure that I will contain all thee conventions to make sure that the audience are not put off by not seeing it. And enjoy the music video much more. 

Lastly, many people felt that the lighting makes a music video interesting. So we will then aim to make a music video more appealing by containing a range of lighting techniques such as low-key lighting, chiaroscuro effect and day lighting. In order to add to the mood of the music video and effect the audiences emotions. Which will make the audience more entertained and want to continue watching it.  

To conclude, from this research I have found out that the audience enjoy the indie conventions and are fans of Ed Sheeran and the indie genre. Therefore, the audience will appreciate the music video that my group and I will create. As the characteristics and elements in the music video, will be targeted directly at them. Making the music video overall more enjoyable and fun for the audience to watch. 

  I will incorporate my results into my music video by satisfying the audience with what elements they enjoy seeing, the setting most people like to see etc. Giving the majority what they like, as well as satisfying the minority tastes. If I were to carry out this research again I would most likely make the results more specific. And find out the responses for the answer 'other' to help develop our ideas for our music video.

  Vox pops

    

    

    

(The change in voice's doing the questioning, was due to me sometimes having to record the video) 

    

   

    

Diversity of music videos - Miss Miller

A music video is diverse when the video itself does not conform with genre characteristics and conventions. It is when the music video is very different from the majority of music videos in that genre due to extreme creativity and originality. Unique and diverse music videos can often appear to be odd or weird to an audience. But this doesn't mean the video will be unsuccessful.

Chris Cunningham and Michael Gondry are two music video directors that produce very unique material for an artist. They create music videos that do not conform to the stereotypical genre characteristics.

   Chris Cunningham is a British video artist, he has directed many unique music videos. Some being Madonna - Frozen  which became an international hit and won the award for Best Special Effects at the 1998 MTV Music Video Awards. He has also directed videos for Aphex Twin's "Come to Daddy" and "Windowlicker" are perhaps his best known.  His video for Aphex Twin's "Windowlicker" was nominated for the "Best Video" award at the Brit Awards 2000.

The Madonna - Frozen video is very different to the other music videos Madonna has. The mood of this video is very Gothic and depressing. Where as, Madonna's other videos are usually more upbeat and fun. 

Firstly, the mise-scene in this video, the costume and make up, lighting, setting and colour codes all work together to produce something mysterious and eerie. Madonna is shown wearing all black, black hair, black nail polish, dark lipstick with a dark isolated background. The lighting is low-key and uses the chiaroscuro effect. This allowed shadows to form and for the overall video to look scary and witch like. As witches are associated with the colour black and the contrast between this black, her pale skin and bright eyes make her look ill and demonic. The isolated background may have been used to emphasise her loneliness and puts greater focus on her being hurt and in pain, which is stated in the lyrics 'If I lose you... my heart will be broken'

  

           Mid shot of Madonna, dark costume and low key lighting.

                        Isolated location with a lonely Madonna 

 There is also a lot of close-ups of Madonna's hands to focus on the unknown signs and tattoos on her body. This may relate to the video being based on the idea of Morrigan an old centric Goddess. As Madonna use to practice Kabbalah, so Morrigan has been said to be the inspiration for the video. Morrigan was sometimes describes as a good and evil goddess, so I believe that the video may play off that. Showing that Madonna is also good (from previous music videos) but has a dark side to her artist image or personality.

                        Her hands in the video 

Furthermore, we can identify a lot of editing manipulation to make the video more interesting and appealing to the audience this is shown at 0:52-58 where the fabric turns into a crow. We also see something similar when the fabric turns into a dog like animal later on in the video. This editing creates mystery and amazement to the audience. And allow the audience to gain that eerie feel from the music video.
 When Madonna is flying/floating in the air it shows her to belong to a higher power making her seem supernatural or even superior. Which can relate to her status or even power in the music industry.

I believe that Cunningham created a music video tailored to Madonna and her religious interests. However, I feel that Gondry produced a very eerie and mysterious video to the audience. And allowed the audience to see the dark side of Madonna. But I feel that some people will think Madonna is satanic by watching this video and may feel put off by this to continue to be a Madonna fan. As it is very different from her previous music videos. Furthermore, this video produced something creative and mystical for the audience. Allowing her to stand out from the typical pop videos.

This may be odd to be put on music channels as it is very different and extremely unique for a video. But as stated I feel that it will allow the artist to stand out from the very competitive music industry.

Cunningham's other works such as Aphex Twin - come to daddy shows similar characteristics to Frozen - Madonna. Such as, low-key lighting, thriller like feel as suspense is created. And an isolated locations. This leads me to believe that Cunningham likes creating a narrative with his videos with also a unique twist with suspense and mystery.

                    Isolated opening scene - eery atmosphere

                      Artist face edited onto little children (creepy)

Michael Gondry is a French film director screenwriter, and producer. He is noted for his inventive visual style and manipulation of mise en scène. He has directed many music videos from Kylie Minogue - Come into my world (2002) to The hardest button to button by the white stripes (2003).

Kylie Mingoue - come into my world music video  is very unconventional. Through the mis-en-scene, costume, Kylie is  shown wearing very casual clothing, looking like an average person not a celebrity  This goes against a typical pop video as the artists are usually very fashionable and stylish, however Kylie looks very casual and not very into her appearance.
   Furthermore, the mise-en-scene, setting is a very typical normal everyday setting where it would be unlikely to spot a celebrity or see this type of setting in a generic pop music video. It's unglamorous and dull; this may have been done to allow the audience who are the 'average people' to relate to the video or her 'world'.

    
    Kylie wearing casual clothing in a casual town setting, extras paying no attention to her

Lastly, as there is repetition of 'come into my world' and a repetitive panning of the camera/shots. Showing her doing the same thing but doubling. It puts more of the focus on Kylie Minogue which allows her to promote herself and create motifs. With the panning of the camera in almost like a circle motion. Emphasises the come into my world showing that that little area she's in is her world. Which obviously depicts a different side of Kyle, making her be viewed by the audience differently.

 
                      Clones of Kylie and circle shaped panning (her world)

I feel that this music video was good as it showed Kylie in a different light. Made her seem like a relatable person for the audience and put all the focus on Kylie. This most likely helped build her fan base and helped her to promote herself by keeping the attention on her. It also shows more of a subtle side of Kylie instead of all the gimmicky dance routines and typical conventions in a pop video. For music channels I feel that this video would have stood out on music channels as its unique and different making it stay in the audience's mind.


Gondry directing 'the hardest button to button by the white stripes' also displays unique aspects in the music video. This video quality looked very amateurish and gave it a very casual video look. With the same theme flowing throughout the whole video which was the cloning of the music equipment and artists. The mise-en-scene, setting was very plain, dull and empty and allowed the attention to be on the artist and their music. This is good as it will increase their fans making the audience interested in their music more. Also, the music video visuals match the beat of the music. Making the video more euphoric and entertaining.





                       Cloning and movement of drums and drummer  

To summarise, Gondry's work is very simple but eccentric. It stay's in the viewers mind and increases the brand image of the artist as it allows the artist to be viewed as more alternative than mainstream. Making the artist to be viewed as more talented and skilled, as they are doing something different. Also, we can see that Gondry pays more attention to the mise-en-scene than any other micro-elements and manipulates that to make the video more unique and diverse.

Cunningham and Gondry are similar and different. They are similar as both Gondry and Cunningham aim to create a unique video they both do this by focusing more on the mise-en-scene than other forms of micro-elements. They both manipulate visuals to create an impact for the artists music video. They both use forms of cloning and doubling of characters to produce something unique.

  However they are different as I feel Cunningham is more extreme in the directing of videos. I feel that Cunningham pushes boundaries and makes videos more extreme. Whereas, Gondry uses simplistic ways which are not too risky in loosing fans or boring your audience. I feel that Cunningham takes a bigger risk in being unconventional.

 An artist may choose to create a diverse music video to c„reate memorable videos that are individual and stay in the audiences mind. Which make the audience want to buy the music the artist sells. It also gives the artist an intellectual appeal as it shows a smart creative side. Delivering this to the audience will give them a different perspective of you and to show that you are not a one-dimensional artist. Mainly I think its so the artist can express their deep weird inner creativity more visually than audio music alone. Furthermore, an artist can create a niche audience, a relatively small audience with unique characteristics. Lastly, it can heighten the meaning of the song. Showing the abstract side of the video to allow the audio song to make more sense to the audience. 
 However, diverse music videos can be negative as there would be a relatively small audience as its not genre conventional. Meaning that you could lose out on sales just for being 'creative'. Also the audience may not understand what you were trying to put across even if the artist themselves thought it expressed their artistry. So there could be no relationship or bond between the artist and audience. Another negative is that the audience could find the video weird or even bizarre. This could lead to criticisms of the music video via other forms of media/the internet. Causing the artist to lose fans as they didn't like your music video. I feel that one of the worst things that can happen is that the artist receives negative publicity as it will mean the artist may need to think about what they are giving to their audience. As publicity can really affect an artist career and lead them to lose their whole fan base.
  But on the other hand, negative publicity could mean that your fan base get closer to you and support you more. Meaning that you still have those good sales and positive image.

As the music industry is ever changing artists need to do drastic things in order to keep their fans and the media entertained. This is what can be achieved through a diverse music video.

I feel that Gondry's style of production will suit my chosen genre better as Gondry doesn't take as much of a risk of creating diverse music videos as much as Cunningham. As our genre is pop I would want to make the production both conventional and unconventional and I feel Gondry does that well. Such as, the cloning of the artist is done very well and fits in with the lyrics. Gondry also uses bright lighting and I feel that will fit in my music video as I would want the mood of the video to be a good one and not scary or suspenseful like Cunningham's.
  However, I feel like Gondry's production is too repetitive as Kylie Minogue - come into my world is shown walking round in circles doing the same thing for the whole time. And the hardest button to button - the white stripes is also very repetitive; The singer and drummer just moving to dull locations. I feel that the song we are doing 'Ed Sheeran - Runaway' will not fit in well with this as the song is narrative based and will need a range of camera shots and scenes to explain the lyrics fully. To keep the audience interested and entertained. But overall, I feel that Gondry's style of production will be best suited towards my music video than Cunningham's.

Applying for music copyright - Miss Georgiou

The copyright law of the UK is Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 which is the legal protection of literary work, dramatic work, musical work, artistic work, films, sounds recordings, broadcasts, and typographical arrangement of published additions. This right is given to the originator for a fixed number of years, to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or musical material.

 For musical & artistic works the 1988 Act and amendment establishes that copyright in most works lasts until 70 years after the death of the creator if known, otherwise 70 years after the work was created or published (fifty years for computer-generated works). However, for sound recordings copyright lasts for 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the last remaining author of the work dies, or the work is made available to the public, by authorised release, performance, broadcast, etc.

We had to apply for copyright to not go against the copyright laws and to get permission from their record label before using their the artists original musical works. As we found out by researching copyright information, that we need this permission in order for us to create a music video without any legal issues. 

One of our group members for the creation of the music video emailed Ed Sheeran's record label (Atlantic records) went on their website and found their contact information. The email shown below is the email that was sent to Atlantic records to ask for their permission.

My group and I are still awaiting a response from Atlantic Records, however, we are still going to continue with planning and filming our music video. But we understand that the record label is probably busy and receive a high amount of emails. We have only emailed them one time.

Analysis of a star - Miss Miller

Many artists reinvent themselves through their music and image. This is shown clearly by watching a time warp of the artists music videos. An artist may choose to reinvent themselves to gain more attention from the public eye, change their style of music etc. This re-invention is not always a good thing as an artist could receive negative publicity and even lose fans.

The artist which I will be analysing is Rihanna. I will be evaluating the evolution of her music videos. Rihanna's overall genre is a R&B, Pop, Reggae, Hip-hop and dance. She has a range of music genres incorporated into her music portfolio.

The first music video is 'pon de replay'. Pon de replay was released in 2005. It was Rihanna's first ever music video and one of three songs on Rihannas demo called music of the sun. Which was sent to many record labels with the aim of getting her signed. This music video (song) is in the genre of dance pop/R&B. Pon de replay music video stays loyal to the genre as the song shows Rihanna dancing which is conventional in the dance pop genre, its also set in a club (low lighting) which is common to see in this genre.
    There are also aspects of R&B conventions in the video through mise-en scene, costume. As women in R&B videos generally wear classy but revealing clothes (her stomach was showing), making them attractive to the males, who are the target audience for the conventional R&B music video. Also in R&B music videos trainers are worn when a dance routine is incorporated into the video. Rihanna conforms by wearing trainers for her dance routine. Taking a urban/street look.

By using Goodwins theory we can identify that there is a relationship between lyrics and visuals in this music video. This is shown when Rihanna says 'Come Mr. DJ won't you turn the music up'. The visuals then show the DJ turning up the volume to the music on his sound equipment. The link between the two gives the audience a more visual understanding of the song and shows that Rihanna has authority. As she was the only one asking for the song to be turned up. You can also see Rihanna's authority by her standing on a pillar. To show that she is a 'star' and is above the backing dancers.

On the left (DJ turning up music)

On the right (Rihanna on a pedestal)

There are also a lot of close up shots of Rihanna to develop motifs for the artist. These close ups are done by the demands of the record label. These close ups show Rihanna's face clearly, as she was a upcoming artist at this stage in her career, it allows the audience to remember her image and appearance; It Identifies who Rihanna is.

Close up shot

There is also voyeuristic treatment of her body, as Rihanna dances in most of the video. Her lower body (waist and hips) are shown a lot in the music video. As mentioned above this is usually done to show the female as being attractive as their target audience is aimed at males. Even though there is this treatment of the body on camera. Rihanna's clothing is not too revealing and portrays her as the girl next door character, sweet and innocent. Which may of been due to her age (being seventeen at the time)

Voyeuristic treatment of the female body

Editing

At the beginning of the music video we see a reaction shot between the DJ and Rihanna, as there is a flirtatious invitation through her body language which is very inviting for the DJ to turn the music up. When the DJ reacts to her through this reaction shot we see that he nods convincingly and smiles, I feel that this shows that Rihanna had authority either through status or sexualised dancing/bodylanguage.

Another editing technique used is the fade out where Rihanna is with her friends to where she is dancing confidently by herself. This shows that she is the most confident of her group as she goes from being with friends to dancing on her own, then her friends followed her by dancing. It also portrays Rihanna as the life of the party, the one who gets the party started. Which portrays her to the audience as a fun and likeable person to be around, it helps to construct Rihanna's personality whether that's her true personality or not.

Reaction shot

Backing dancers follow Rihanna

Fade out

In this music video I feel that Rihanna was portrayed to be a regular girl, average teen. By her costume, mise-en-scene being quite casual making her blend in with the extras. This applies to Dyers theory as Dyer believes that the institution models the artist around the target audience they choose. Dyers theory says that icons and celebrities are manufactured by institutions for a financial return. He believes that stars are constructed to represent 'real people' experiencing relatable things. Which is what Rihanna does in this video, appearing to be a normal girl.

However, Rihanna was just starting off her career here. Rihanna was a regular girl from Barbados at this point in her career, so it can be argued that this may of been her personality/style at the time. The song is even called Pon de replay which means play it again in Bajan creole, one of Barbados official languages. Where Rihanna was discovered and originates from.

In the music video I believe that Rihanna promotes a lifestyle (cultural values and attitudes) And this is the nightlife/club environment. Showing that she values being out with friends, partying and dancing. Channelling those values to the audience. 

    

The target audience for this music video 'pon de replay' are young people between the ages of 15-25. As the majority of extras in the music video are women and there is some aspects of flirting and feminitiy in the lyrics. It feels like the gender audience is young female teenage girls who love to have fun and party. 

What's my name? - Rihanna

From this music video Rihanna debuts a more mature confident look, she appears to have bold striking red hair which matched her slightly edgy but sweet music style during this time frame. 'What's my name?' was featured on Rihanna's album Loud in 2010 this was her fifth studio album. The song is in the genre of electro-R&B, lyrically it subtly incorporates themes of sexual intercourse and romance. 

Goodwin's Theory and Genre Conventions

Firstly, by using Goodwin's theory we can identify that there is voyeuristic treatment of Rihanna's body, but only subtly. Rihanna is shown wearing shorts that put more focus on parts of her body like her legs. This may of been done to display that the artist is someone who is confident in their own appearance and body image, which then allows fans and the audience to also believe that the artist has an ideal image - setting body standards for the audience, helping Rihanna become a role-model for appearances. Also, people appear to be paying a great amount of attention to Rihanna on camera from a sexual and admiration point of view, for example, we see Drake admiring Rihanna's body through a midshot.

This is again voyeuristic treatment of the female body and somewhat objectifying Rihanna as we see that Drake is looking at her body rather than maybe having a conversation with her. It really emphasises the attraction between men and women, almost like a magnet as you see how quickly Rihanna and Drake become quite intimate in the supermarket. I believe that this is done due to the demands of the record label, as they may of had to follow genre characterstics. As R&B is known for women dressing a bit more provactively than other genres or dancing in more of a provocative manner. R&B also tends to show a love interest However, this appeals to the target audience, with the vast majority of men listening to R&B/Rap they would want to see the physicality of a much loved artist.  Furthermore, by Drake also starring in the music video it is conventional to the genre as R&B music videos for females tend to feature a male co-star which also helps appeal to a more female target audience and gain more fans from the rap genre. 

There are also strangers looking at Rihanna as she walks past them on the street. This shows that like before Rihanna looks like she is above the other extras by her image, bold coloured hair and clothing. In one longshot it shows Rihanna facing away from the onlookers while they are blurred out but she is put on more focus. This is evident that it conveys the fact that Rihanna is made to seem as more important than the people in the shot. As R&B female artists tend to be put in a powerful light in music videos also it links in with Rihanna's status which is shown through her clothing. A lot of jewellery (big earrings and necklaces) are worn but as she is wearing this Rihanna is breaking gender stereotypes as usually it is R&B males are associated with these items. Rihanna wears these items which convey her wealth, having a lot of money to possess these items and also shows her status. 

Furthermore, there is also a connection and link between the visuals and lyrics. At (1:10) Rihanna sings 'not everybody knows how to work my body' She then wraps her arms around her body and it looks as though she is comforting herself. This connotes the meaning that Rihanna is trying to say that she knows how to work her own body and empower herself but not everyone does. It relates to the narrative of the song as she has Drake who is playing her love interest so it is almost as if she is advising him that its not easy to please her as the next shot is a close up of Rihanna and Drake leaning in for a kiss, giving each other full eye contact. To continue with this analysis, it also shows the audience that Rihanna has high standards,allowing the audience to possibly value her more and understand what she needs in a relationship. Fans love to find out new and interesting personal information about their favourite artist and I feel that this allows the audience to remain entertained.

Lastly, for goodwins theory I believe that many close ups were used as demands of the record label. The many close ups of Rihanna allow her face to be remembered by the audience it also helps her to become more of a brand, as her face becomes something which is memorable and identifiable to the target market. Through close ups we can also see Rihanna's facial expressions, this helps the audience to understand the way she is feeling and form an emotional connection with her. This can potentially make fans more dedicated to purchasing the artists material as they will feel as though they have an emotional connection with Rihanna, which in turn benefits the record label through sales and profits.

More conventions...

Bright colours also tend to be used in fast paced r&b videos, this

increases adrenaline and excitement for the audience. It also allows

the video to look more attractive and appealing, the bold colours

against the pale/dull background creates a high, eye catching contrast which makes the video more fun and entertaining for the audience. Bright colours with the airy natural lighting creates a perfect setting, which attracts the audience to view the music video even more as it is idealistic and utopian, allowing the audience to feel euphoric.

Artist’s image/Dyer’s image

Dyer proposes that a star is an image and not a real person that is constructed through a range of materials for example, advertising, magazines, films, music videos etc. Rihanna's music video could be argued to portray her as an object/image and not a human as she is idolised by onlookers and is not shown to blend in with the people i the background but actually stands out from them - allowing her to not be seen like a normal person. Again, by the way Rihanna has confidence and so much boldness through her body language and edgy style it allows her to be idolised like a product rather than a human. By her being seen as a product means that Rihanna has been constructed and targeted to an audience in order to make a profit. Richard Dyer states that stars are made to fundamentally make money, her image being modelled around the target audience. Her target audience is young, fun and fashionable which can mean that this is why Rihanna is also young, fun and a fashion setter. It relates to dyers theory as it shows that she is being modelled around the trends of her audience in order to make money. 

The target audience here has definitely changed as when Rihanna first came out with her album music of the sun it was more in the pop genre. Which I feel is aimed at a younger target audience. In this song whats my name, it has connotations of more adult topics such as sex and romance. I do feel like her audience have adapted but that she is keeping the same audience she had since she first came out but both her and her audience have matured.

In this music video Rihanna is conveying a different message as mentioned above, she is singing about more serious and mature topics like sex and relationships. It isn't to do with the era but to do with Rihanna's age. At the time she was 16, relationships do occur at this age but I feel like teenagers in the music industry at sixteen tend to sing about more light hearted, easy going topics as they typically have a more easier relaxed lifestyle so relationships aren't the focus of their concerns. I definitely feel like Rihanna's age has changed the messages and values which she was conveying at this time.

Editing

In this music video editing can be identfied, one editing technique shown is an eyeline match. This is identified where Rihanna and Drake are looking at each other in the supermarket, this eyeline match shows that they have intense eye contact, allowing the audience to see Drake and Rihanna's onscreen connection and chemistry. Eyeline matches tend to be used to allow the audience to view what the artist is looking at which allow them to feel more connected to what is happening in the music video, in this case a moment between Drake and Rihanna.

There is also use of straight cuts in this music video, this is identified during the first few seconds of the video. The straight cuts allow there to be a simple, clean transition between the shots, showing clarity of the setting to the audience.

Eyeline Match

Straight cuts

Pour it up - Rihanna

Pour it up was on Rihanna's album unapologetic released in 2013, pour it up is a club song with a minimal hip hop beat. In the song Rihanna brags about her wealth, which serves as both a strip club anthem and a declaration of independence. This song is very different to pon de replay and S&M.

Goodwin's theory

Goodwin's theory is displayed in this video in the area voyeuristic treatment of the female body and sexual objectification, relationship with lyrics and visuals and the relationship between the music and visuals. 

Rihanna sings, 'strip clubs and dollar bills...strippers going up and down that pole...throw it up throw it' Rihanna refers to money and strippers/strip clubs throughout the music video. This is amplified by the visuals showing Rihanna and pole dancers dancing on poles and Rihanna throwing her money around. Money is even shown on her high heels and tucked into her shorts. The purpose of this is to heighten the concept of the song which is money and strippers. 

However, it was also done to show that Rihanna is of a high status due to all the money she is. By attaching money to her body shows that Rihanna feels that she is made of money. By her throwing the money in the air seems like she's throwing it in a type of  celebration way, the way you would through confetti at a wedding. The money throwing could be a way of Rihanna celebrating her achievements or just flaunting it about. Rihanna flaunts the money and puts it everywhere she can in the video. This shows that she's living a luxury lifestyle and is rich. This luxury lifestyle can also be seen by her wearing designer brands, for example, chanel earrings. 

Secondly, there is  relationship between the visuals and the music. This is shown through the pace of the music and the pace of the dancers twerking. They twerk to the beat and when the base drops. When the song goes in slow-motion the video and dancing is also slowed down. To keep up and connect with the pace of the music. This makes the video more exhilarating to watch as everything is in rhythm. This is done because there is a dance routine and an out of pace dance routine would look odd and uncomfortable to watch.

Lastly, their is voyeurism and sexual objectification shown in this music video. For example, all the women including Rihanna are wearing minimal clothing, very close to naked. And many of the strippers only receive long shots of their bodies or close ups of their backside. This proves that they are treated as objects just their for pleasure and sexual enjoyment. Also voyeurism is shown, as many of the strippers pay no attention to the camera. They look as if they are being watched in a sexual manner. The purpose of this is to fit genre conventions. As club music tends to use revealing clothes on girls to see their assets when their dancing. And to please the male target audience. It also enhances Rihanna's sex appeal, which keeps some of the audience entertained.

This music video fits in with the genre characteristics typical in club/electronic dance music videos.  In club music videos it is common for the music video to be set in a club or dance based environment.  This is shown with pour it up as it is around 70% performance based with the whole video containing dancing or lip singing. It is also set in a club like environment or a recreation of a strip club.  Another convention is that the music video is typically performance based with no narrative, we've already identified this. This puts more focus on the performance and concept. 

Editing

Finally, the last convention is that club music videos tend to use very fast paced cuts and editing. To keep the video exciting and entertaining, as there is no narrative it is essential to make sure there are a range of shots to encourage the audience to keep on watching. A range of shots allows the music video to not appear repetitive or boring.Furthermore, there is use of slow motion of when the dancer's and Rihanna are dancers. This allows the audience to view more from the performance as it is moving at a slower pace. As what the audience will be viewing in slow motion is raunchy, it will allow the audience to know full well that Rihanna is edgy, confident in her skin and sexualised. The slow-mo also matches the pace of the music and switches the pace up, creating adrenaline from the audience.

Fast editing/quick timing of shots

Slow-motion

Dyers star theory is applied to this music video as it shows the audience and institution. The audience and institutions in the dyer theory are believed to make stars, moulding them to ther target audience in order to make money. Rihanna does this by changing her character to the current trend. I.e. ghetto chiq, swag and not class. 

Rihanna's characther and peronality has changed and made into a product. Although when Rihanna first came out as a pop performer signed to def jam she was a real human. But now she is in istitution she has been transformed to provide an image of the current time and culture. For example, Rihanna came out curvy with hips and is now skinny due to the change in trends. The star, Rihanna also inluences the audience on what they're meant to be like as she becomes their role model.

Rihanna Curvy vs Skinny

Change in Rihanna's hairstyles over the last 8 years or so

The star is built solely for the audience not the person This can be identified through all the different looks and hair updates, stle changes and USP's Rihanna has had to stand out from the crowd. You can see how she has changed to be different.

Hegemony and cultural beliefs in the star theory is that we as the audience can relate to the star we admire or share experiences with. This develops into idolizations. Rihanna has a massive fan base and she is on many social networking sites so the audience can see all her actions. This keeps Rihanna's movements in the public eye. So with this pour it up music video with the revealing clothes and raunchy dancing. It can make Rihanna appear to be a bad role model for her fans and younger audience. Rihanna has also appeared to be a bad role model in the past for staying with her abusive ex boyfriend, taking nudes,doing drugs and taking alcohol. This can be bad for the people idolizing her as they can start copying her actions.

Is Rihanna a bad role model?

Rihanna has 37.4m followers on twitter, is she a bad role model?

Rihanna is portrayed as someone who is showing off with their money and someone who is content with their achievements. She is portrayed to be comfortable in her own skin. By using all women in the video and singing about money shows declaration of independence. That Rihanna gets all her money by herself then has fun with her friends 'I'm going dumb with all my friends'. She's portrayed to be a lover of life with the focus on dollar 'bills' money and clubs. This is different to the reality of Rihanna as Rihanna even has the believe foundation, giving her money to help children in need. This relates to dyers theory saying that the pop star's brand is focused around certain things, going on to say that they are not real just constructed people. But the real Rihanna could be the one doing all the charity work and helping people. It show's two sides of Rihanna which makes it hard to establish which Rihanna has been produced by the record label and what is really her personality. 

At this stage I feel that her target audience are still 18 to mid 20s due to the explicit content, smoking, dancing and lyrics. It has stayed the same from last time as the gap between s&m and pour it up is not too big, and the trends from 2010-2012/13 are very similar.  There hasn't been a huge era or trend change since the early 2000s when Rihanna first came out. 

The main message and values portrayed in this music video is money, clubs, dancing, alcohol and a luxury lifestyle. It values all those things which society tend to see as negative, even smoking/drugs. These have changed since S&M and pon de replay due to the changes in society and the changes with young people. Young people value all those things in the pour it up and that's why young people enjoy the music videos that  talk about sex, money and drugs.  Whilst Rihanna is singing that song the values of all those things reinforce into the target audience. This causes the audience to idolise those things.

To summarise, from pon de relay to s&m to pour it up we can identify a drastic change in Rihanna's music identity. Rihanna started off as the sweet innocent girl from Barbados with the Baijan feel to her music. Allowing her to be a 'real' person and not yet constructed. Pon de replay had a cute feel to song and was very universal. S&M changed that appearance of Rihanna turning her into something edgy, fun and exciting this all happened when 'good girl gone bad' album came out and her identity was reinvented. This edginess was due to Rihanna wanting to how her creativity and personal style. Whereas, the raunchiness and promiscuousness shows how she's matured and developed into a women. Allowing her to be a 'sex symbol' which again improves her status. Lastly, pour it up was more urban with a hip-hop feel to it, it was around the concept of money and Rihanna being proud of her money. Which shows how she's now wealthy, this is proved will all the shots of high expensive designer brands such as Chanel. These three music videos show us how Rihanna has evolved and what changes have caused her to evolve. I believe that these changes are age - maturity, to gain more publicity/popularity and to just change her style and to keep up with the ever changing trends in the music/fashion industry; To suit her demanding target audience.

This research will help me choose a music artist for the music video that I will be creating. The research has also allowed me to find out what genres are easier to follow, how to match the target audience and artist and how an artist can develop through their music video. So when I choose an artist, I will be able to know that a star is a product and I can the suit them and market them better to their target audience, through conventions of a music video, micro-elements and more. It is important to identify and maintain a target audience so that you can make sure that the artists music and identity match the demand. And so as the record label or music institution you can satisfy the demand appropriately. By producing what the audience want so you can remain profitable for as long as possible.