Richard Dyers star theory- Summer post 4

A pop performer and a pop star are very different things. There are many musicians who are known for the music they me and only for that. However there are some that are known for persona which is not restricted solely to their musicianship.  A performer can become a star through an outbreak of a story in a magazine or even by having a famous boyfriend can change you from a performer into a star. Stars are not real, they are artificial images, a product that their audience long to be but can never obtain. They are unobtainable however connectable. There are many examples which illustrate that pop stars are metonymic. Star image is something that can be constructed within an artist. However the construction is fictional.

Star image is also of age and is up to date which is why David Bowie doesn’t wear sci fi costume and why bon jovi don’t have long curly hair. There is no model fit for a construction of star image, each star has a unique construction that is put forward to attract an audience. This is the reason why the winners of shows such as x factor are not successful. They have been moulded into what the industry sees as the model star, however they have not given their audience any RTB. They therefore have no purpose in the industry as the purpose of stars is to make money out of audiences.

The industry has identified the range of audiences that it has to cater for which is why such a diverse and wide range of genres are prevalent in music today. However pop stars often have a very low expiry date, another way to produce a star is to give it a long lasting appeal. Groups such as the rolling stones, Bon Jovi and U2 were all made for this reason as they could cater for different audiences for decades and still retain fan bases over this time.

All pop stars have shared cultural values. They all promote a common ideology which is to keep their audiences interested through star quality. Stars have the opportunities’ to influence culture and may start a new fashion trend such as what happened after Duran Duran. Elvis is also a representative of how stars can conduct social change through music and their life of the stage.

Stars are constructed on what people are supposed to like, for my media product I would like to construct a star that has outstanding star quality and will instantly become unobtainable and provide audiences with a new culture. For my media product I will construct a star that stands out and is not the stereo typical pop star however a unique figure in the music industry.

History of Popular Music from 1950- Summer post 3

The technology that delivered pop music in the 1950s has vastly changed. In 1950 there were not nearly as many opportunities’ of distribution there are today with the help of new media technologies such as YouTube to show trailers to their audience. This also aids artists to reach a wider audience.

Originally pre 1950s there was an era of jazz which was played mainly by African Americans. As America was still segregated and there were massive racial tensions arising, especially in the south parts of America. The style of music which is Rhythm and blues (R&B) was played by black Americans and was frowned upon in wider society by white people who mainly listened to artists such as frank Sinatra.

However everything changed in the 1950s. In Memphis Tennessee sun records had declared that you could record 2 songs for the price of 5 dollars. A young man named Elvis Presley came into record a song for his mother’s birthday. He recorded a song and the person recording him took a liking to the music that he recorded at sun records. He was asked back to perform a song m months later and then joined a band. He became successful and was the first white man to be singing black music.

Elvis’ fame came at the same time as the next big technological invention which was television. Elvis became famous mainly because of Ed Sullivan and another TV host competing to have Elvis on their show. Elvis made a controversial performance of the song hound dog on television which was televised to the nation. He was slammed by critics for his provocative dancing.

Due to the nature of a lot of his songs, he appealed to an African American audience. He has been seen to be a contributing factor to the civil rights movement. He began to illustrate that social change was inevitable. Elvis was photographed frequently with black Americans and he gave them status and a position.

For my media product applying it to the new media technologies today so that it is played on television as there are now music video channels where the best videos are played daily. This is a great way of advertising my product and applying it to audiences. Moreover like Elvis I would like to make sure my media product applies to all cultures such as African Americans.

Studying Pop stars- Summer post 2

Most of the great pop stars or legends of music are either dead or will not live past 50 due their adventurous and immortal life of a pop star. Regardless of this there music will continue to sell and a death may even boost sale as audiences remember the music that they used to perform. The 27 club who lived fast and died young had very successful and long lasting careers. Their legacy means that there are successive generations of fans who all know these legends story’s and want to buy their music.

However there is some controversy as pop music is dependent on the value attached to its fans especially as most of a pop artists fan base will be youth. Pop music, therefore, needs to be essentially of its time. Pop music will eventually lose its meanings and values after time has moved on. However the songs are the things that change, not the artists. This can be seen through Madonna who has changed the style of her music based on the needs of and desires of her audience. David Bowie is another good example of this comparing him from the 70s to the modern day illustrate massive changes in his demeanour and approach to music.

Pop stars will often have a shared set of values which are rebellion, originality, anger and success against all odds which is one of the reasons why these characteristics come through a lot of the time. Dead artists make the perfect pop stars as they do not lose the musical plot and they are easy to sympathise with because they are no longer around. Pat Gilbert put forward that, “dead rock stars appeal to people because their death allows something nebulous to become a story with a beginning, middle and end”.

Famous dead pop stars include Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Michael Jackson and more recently Amy Winehouse. These pop stars offer semi mythological role models; not particularly who we want to be but who we think it might be cool to be.

For my media product I might use a song from a dead artist as this might ensure that an audience will be attracted to it because of its emotional meaning or simply because he or she was a legacy. Dead artists often have better sales figures than alive ones and are also house hold names throughout the world.

Pop Music Genre- Summer post 1

The direct meaning for a genre is the classification of text according to its style and content and also its form and manner of production. Pop music especially falls into a very specific genre. Pop music especially has a vast amount of sub genres. Pop music falls under the categories of; Arabic pop, canto pop, J-pop and K-pop. All of these subgenres have unique characteristics. The artist for example will dress accordingly due to the genre of music or sub-genre.

An artist’s look categorise them before they start singing or playing, Looks can be as generic as sound in music, as a result of this artists have to distinguish themselves into a certain genre. A good example of this is Miley Cyrus who recently changed her appearance and became a worldwide pop artist who is now number 3 in the charts. Her diverse looks have received a lot of publicity and attention and moreover the latest music videos have been very provocative. Her image has embedded her into the pop genre. Another example is Adele who shaped her image from the classic pop styles of the 1960s and 70s. She often appears in retro clothing associated with old school artists Aretha Franklin.

When producing my media product I would like to incorporate an individual and diverse image based on the genre of music that I choose. The genre of music that I choose will largely depend on the popularity of that genre so that I can attract a large fan base through a new and diverse artist. My product will also have to be encapsulating so that i will capture a worldwide audience and not a niche one. By doing this I will have to make my artist unique however within the guidelines of a certain genre or subgenre.

in this video which received record breaking amount of views in 24 hours, Miley Cyrus includes all of the characteristics that she needs to encapsulate an audience. The video received 10 million hits in 24 hours and went to number 3 in the iTunes charts illustrating that her audience are also purchasing her products which also symbolises she has overcome the problem of piracy.