A record label who would be most willing to sign your artist and why.

If my artist was to be signed by a major record label I believe Sony media will be best suitable for him. The reason for this is they focus on top quality music and I feel my artist can provide this. They are a very established brand who have signed many major artist such as Chris Brown and ASAP Rocky. I feel my artist Moonz Outkast will fit in well with the professional environment Sony provide. I also feel Sony would help my artist establish a name for him self within the music industry.

Research on music advert

Research on an advert on Prezi

Conventions -

• Appealing to target audience 
• Artist name should be the largest text on the advert
• Useful information
• Release date
• Image of the artist
• Any additional information

Set targets for my digipak (Conventions)

1. Eye catching
2. Unique
3. Appealing to my target audience
4. Represents my genre (UK Rap)
5. A good colour theme throughout

I have considered my five targets and I feel my final album cover fits them best out of the five prototypes. I must consider these five targets / conventions for my back cover that is currently in development.

Digipak Inspiration (front cover)

This front cover of the album 'Paper Trail' by T.I has really inspired me. The close up shot used of the artist is very similar to my photo taken for my front cover, with the musician looking straight at the camera. I feel this is very effective as it grabs the audiences attention instantly. The font is very basic and is placed on the bottom left corner. I feel although it uses simple text it is very effective as it looks very neat and sophisticated. I have also noticed that the name of the artist is above the album name, representing his importance. This cover has given me a lot of ideas for my own, especially the effect used within the front cover over the artists face.

Digipak research

A digipak is a form of packaging that allows the consumer to open it almost as if it's a book. The disc is contained in a plastic trey keeping costs minimal compared to using a jeweled case. The plastic trey case is easy to modify allowing artists to create their own designs on the digipak.

Size of photos - 15x15 CM
Panel - 4 to 8

On the digipak shown above i have noticed consistency with the photos used. They are all of the same male (most likely the artist) wearing a mask with shots taken from different angles. The main attraction is the artist name 'Myth' it is made to stand out by the colours used (yellow and red). The background of the digipak is surrounded by darkness. This may have been done to grab the audience's attention to the foreground. I feel this digipak is very effective as it focuses on the artist creating a bond between Myth and the audience. 

This digipak has given me some ideas with my project as I feel a dark background and a colourful foreground works out very well together. I am gonna use pictures of the artist (Moonz Outkast) for at least three panels to show his importance within the digipak. I am going to do a six panel digipak.

Digipak Examples

Moonz Outkast - Rise Of A Star

Moonz Outkast - Eclipse

Lil Wayne - Rebirth

Inspiration on special effects

       

I have chosen this music video by John Wayne as there is specific special effects used that caught my eye and could be used in my music video.

The first special effect that i liked the look of was when John Wayne jumps in slow motion. This part of the music video grabbed my attention as the video has some fast cuts but the slow down brings down the pace. Despite the tempo change i feel it fits well as the slow down is on beat making it fit in and it differentiates from the other shots. The second image above shows a shot of a fast forwarded frame. This grabbed my attention as it fits in with the lyrics he says, it also nicely sets up a change in the shot. This looked very powerful within the visuals and made certain parts seem more powerful then they would have been if they were presented at normal pace.

A second effect that i liked was the colour change of the frame. This created a 'flash' effect bringing excitement within the music video. I feel this could be used in my music video at certain parts especially when  the flow of the lyrics speed up. I may try do the opposite by making the colour of the video look more dull when i slow down frames. This maybe effective if I do it correctly as it will differentiate these shots from others. This may work better for my music video as the instrumental used is very slow paced and the song is emotional, grabbing my audience's emotion helping them relate to the song more.

On an all i feel the special effects in this music video had a major impact of the success of the song as they helped bring excitement to the visuals. I must make sure that the effects used will fit in with the visuals, if not it may backfire and not look as good as it is supposed to.

Target Audience

My music targets a wide audience from all over the world from all different ages. I went on You-Tube today and clicked on a old music video I did four months a go 'Shine'. I looked into the details and found the demographic statistics of my main audience.

Age - Male 18 - 24
         Males and females 45 - 54

Locations - United Kingdom
                  ZZ
                  Denmark

This is an established audience so my new music video 'Starry Eyed' will automatically be targeting this audience. I am going to try get a wider range of audience because I want this music video to go global. I can do this by including elements that will attract different audiences i.e. deep lyrics for the older audience and eye candy for the younger audience.

Behind The Scenes (Music Video)

I took this video to help me understand how music videos are constructed under professional circumstances. This has helped me gain a deeper understanding on what goes on during a video shoot. It helped me see advanced camera work especially on crane the shot during Drakes scene. Now I know what to expect on terms of atmosphere when me and my partner are constructing our music video.
I noticed the mise-en-scene is done to a very high level, from costume to location. A lot of close ups seem to have been used in the final music video of the song. I am going to keep this in mind for my music video shoot.

Example of Narrative

This video is a perfect example of a narrative done to perfection. I feel this video can help me and my partner Aruran create ideas for our music video as we are looking to have a sub narrative within the video.

Recording Artist - Smartz
Recording Company - LinkUpTV
Recorded By - Rashid & Bravo
Song Title - Inter Relations
Record - Independent

Video Genre

Concept Video - Centres on a specific idea or concept, it never portrays performances, only stories or images.

Gag Video - Relies on visual tricks and effects.

Narrative Video - Tells a story with a beginning, middle and an end.

Performance Video - Focuses on the artist or band performing a song, this could be in a live session or in an actual performance.

Club / Party Video - Set mainly or entirely in a night club or at a party.

Animated Video - Features animated images in which the band or artist may or may not appear.

Film Clip Video - Created when a song is featured on a film soundtrack and contains clips from the film.

Dance Video - Features dancing, usually choreographed.



This is a good example of a dance video as there is a good dance routine through out the music video. The dance moves also match the lyrics of the song, making the audience understand the lyrics better.

Song Title - Let Me Love You
Music Artist - Ne-Yo
Genre - RnB

Music Video Inspiration (UK) Richard Dyer Quote Examples

Richard Dyer (1973) - A star is an image constructed from a range of materials. 

Nas (feat Kerri Hilson) - Hero

K Koke - Note To God

Nawlage (feat French Montana) - Husband And Wife

Biography / Research on an artist of my choice

I have chosen Drake as my musician as i really look up to his progression at such a young age. I done some research on his life before and during his music career and managed to gather up some information.

Drake Grahem was born in October 24th 1986 into a mixed race family and was raised Jewish. He first discovered fame when he was offered a role in a Canadian drama playing Jimmy Brooks. This teen soap was very popular at the time and he lasted seven seasons. This helped Drake build a reputation before he entered the music industry.

Drake signed a major record label with 'Young Money' in 2009 joining big names such as Lil Wayne and Bird Man. Drake managed to progress through the industry very fast with his hit songs 'Every Girl, Best I Ever Had and Money to Blow'. It wasn't too long for Drake to become known world wide as his buzz kept growing throughout countries.

A lot of news has been coming up involving Drake such as his discrete relationship with Rihanna and feelings towards Nicki Minaj which he does not deny. He produces all types of music as he can sing as well as rap. Drake is known to be under 'RnB/Rap' genre but he is very flexible with his music and is able to make music under different genres such as Pop.

Goodwin and Vernallis Theory

Goodwin's theory on music videos

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics
2. There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals
3. There is a relationship between the music and the visuals
4. Demands for a record label would be to have many close ups of the artist.
5. There is often inter textual references to T.V shows or other music videos. A good example of an artist who does this a lot is Eminem regarding Micheal Jackson
6. There is normally voyeuristic treatment to the female body.

Vernallis theory on music videos

there is 4 key concepts on a music video these include:

• Narrative
• Editing
• Camera movement and framing
• Diegesis

Goodwin and Vernallis believe without these conventions / rules a music video would be very difficult to construct to a good standard. I agree with this as i feel these concepts are the body of a good music video and without them there will be no relation between the video and the audio.

Bad Girls M.I.A Analysis

For this task i have decided to analyze the music video by M.I.A called Bad Girls. I am going to talk about the conventions i notice on this video. This video is very unique as its based in an arabian country and the visuals presented are not things you would see in everyday life living in the UK. I feel M.I.A's performance as an artist in this video was top quality, she didn't go against typical conventions where the female aims to look sexy. I feel she comes across as the 'cool girl' as she seems very lenient and relaxed while performing.

In this low angle medium shot it shows M.I.A performing her song while looking directly at the camera. I feel this was done to grab the viewers attention as it makes us feel as if she's directly speaking to us. This is a good way to make the audience feel involved with what is going on. M.I.A is dressed in summer clothing, such as a hat made of straw and baggy trousers. This can give the audience an internal message of how 'hot' this video is. There is clear relationship between the visuals presented and the audio also. 'Chain hits my chest when I'm banging on the dash' as this is said M.I.A holds her chain and lets it swing. This visual just backs up her lyrics and helps the audience understand what she means with her lyrics. I also feel Goodwin's theory is represented in this shot by the way she moves. I believe there is voyeuristic treatment towards M.I.A as she can be looked at as eye candy even though she is not trying to be.

Within this screen grab a horse is galloping at full speed with a rider on top. A horse in a desert is not something somebody from the UK will see everyday. A long tracking shot is used to follow the horses movement building speed within the visuals. A male is shown riding this horse, this can represent power and dominance within the frame as two cars follow behind. He is dressed in white arabian clothing, this again just shows the audience cultural factors within the arabian society. This shot brings up the wild factors of the track and makes M.I.A differentiate from other female artists as she brings this crazy but 'cool' image into her music.

This last shot is another example of bringing in the crazy yet 'cool' image into her music. M.I.A is sitting on the side of a car while it drives on two wheels. She does this with ease as if she has done this a lot more then once. Shots like this one bring the audience a step closer to the music video's wild factor leaving many questions unanswered e.g. how on earth did they do this? I feel M.I.A was very successful with the music video as it stands out from many. This is the first music video i have seen that goes as deep as it does into the wild factor. I have not seen any other video do anything similar and to be honest i do not want to see any others try to replicate the idea, I do not think it should be done again by another artist in case they destroy the idea. The framing of the shot is done to perfection, a long shot is used with M.I.A clearly shown in the center and the two wheeled driving car is also shown clearly. In conclusion M.I.A has definitely created a unique image of wild; crazy and fun. I feel she will keep growing a large following if she keeps her ideas in her music video unique and crazy.

Analysis of Lil Wayne (feat Bruno Mars) - Mirror

The second video i have chosen is 'Mirror' by Lil Wayne and featuring Bruno Mars. Through out this video there is clear relationship between the lyrics and the visuals selected. The lyrics are very deep e.g. 'With everything happening today you don't know if your coming or going' As this line is said a close up shot and a long shot is used both showing Lil Wayne directly talking to the camera. This grabbed my attention as it made me feel as if Lil Wayne is directly talking to me. I felt this is a smart way of presenting a song as attention of viewers are instantly grabbed, making them take a deeper listen to the lyrics within the song. This could of also been done to make us feel as if we are the mirror Lil Wayne, i say this because in some shots he looks deep into the camera as if we are non-existent. A good use of props are used in this shot, this includes spray cans and a ladder. At first we are unaware of why these props are in the shot but we do discover that Lil Wayne is constructing a huge painting further into the video. Lil Wayne's costume goes very well with the theme of the video as it is a very dark tune, with his tattoos representing his pain. Lil Wayne is very well known for being topless in his videos it is almost as if it's a trademark for him and it always seems to work well for him. He has managed to build a unique character within his career that is known to be crazy, rich and weird; his fans seem to love this as it makes Lil Wayne differentiate from the rest.

Straight cuts are used within this music video between the two musicians. The verses are mainly shots of Lil Wayne and the chorus cuts to shots of Bruno Mars. This is a good way to show the audience who is rapping and who is singing as people who are first time listeners would need it to be clear on who is the rapper and who is the singer as they may be unfamiliar with the artist. Bruno Mars  was provided with a good costume, this consists of a top hat along with a black top and black jeans. Once again i feel this fits in with the theme well as the song represents pain and struggle, black can contrast this well through its darkness. Bruno Mars was also provided with a trademark object, this is his black top hat. Ever since his single 'Grenade' Bruno Mars was known to be the man with the top hat, giving his fans the satisfaction they deserve.


Through out the music video there are shots of a painting being constructed, we do not get a full shot of what exactly it is being painted until the end where the demonic figure of Lil Wayne is reveled. The colours red and black flood the painting representing the harsh reality Lil Wayne is going through. I feel the side story of the painting being constructed was used to help build suspense within the music video. If the video was only of Lil Wayne and Bruno Mars rapping and singing to the camera viewers may get bored so i feel this was done to keep us on our toes. The song is called Mirror so i think the demon figure symbolizes Lil Wayne's inner self, or maybe it represents the pain Lil Wayne is going through in this period of time? We will never know exactly what it symbolizes but we  will know its fulfilled with pain and struggle.

I have chosen this song by an Iranian artist called Arash and features a female singer 'Helena'. The reason i chose this video is because of the amazing camera shots, the astonishing editing skills and most importantly the superb use of special effects.

There is a variety of different shots used for example: low angle long shots, high angle long shots, low angle close up shots and many more. These shots have been edited together very well to form a sequence, allowing a story to be created. This story includes a female 'Helena' who is struggling to forget about her ex husband as he passed away. I feel the story used is good as if fits well with the audio track and many viewers are sure to be able to relate to it. The lip syncing in this video is done to perfection. This makes the video feel a lot more realistic as Arash sings to Helena. If the video was off sync i feel it will kill the entire romance of the video; by the video being realistic it definitely drags the viewer making them feel involved with the video.

The effects used in this video are astonishing. Different special effects are used in different scenes, helping the viewers capture what Arash and Helena are going through. Their love is expressed through changes of the weather, from sun to rain. Effects were used to create a graphical and artificial environment though it looks realistic at the same time, almost as if this fairy tale they are living in is real. A good example of this is:

Arash's soul is shown to be blown away in a volcanic environment representing pain and rage. Although it is done through effects and is not real i still feel this artificial world looks believable. The camera shot used is a long shot from behind. This allows us to experience this place that Arash is in as we are pulled in through the mise-en-scene.

The relationship between the visuals and the lyrics go together perfectly. 'I'm so lonely broken angel, I'm so lonely listen to my heart.' As this is sung it shows Helena all alone in the shower crying. This shot is presented to make viewers have an understanding of how hard it must be for Helena, from being deeply in love to being hurt. If a shot was shown of her happy with a new husband in this specific shot it would kill the entire feel and the heart ache of the viewer would not exist.

The editing is very well done, a lot of swipes are used to create continuity, especially through scenes between Arash and Helena. For example a tracking shot/ swipe is used when Helena is looking out of the window. I like the thought in this shot as it just comes to show how strong their bond is, suiting the narrative very well. This is a very good way in connecting the audience with the narrative as every shot used drags us closer into the mise-en-scene.

Research

Artist:  French Montana

Album: Coke Boys 3

Genre: Rap

Release date: 13th April 2012

Hosted by: Evil Empire

Number of songs: 15