of my ability. Along the left hand side are CD covers that illustrate the points I am making in this post about codes and conventionsWith the generic conventions of a CD cover, you have to consider how the front and back differ; the front of the CD is the first thing people are attracted to when the product is on the shelf. Conventionally a CD cover will contain; the name of the artist, the name of the album, a colour consistency that reflects the genre, a consistent font that also reflects the genre, an eye catching image of either the artist/band or an icon and sometimes a sticker that either warns the consumer of content that may be found offensive or promotes/gives special mention to the most popular track.
The album cover generally defines the 'real fan', as they are able to deconstruct the images,
colour, lettering, initials and realise who the artist is. This excludes people who are not fans and in turn makes them feel as though they belong to an exclusive group, this refers to the uses and gratification theory; people using the media to make sense of the world and to get a sense of ‘belonging’. For instance fonts fit an artist’s image, a gothic font suggests that the album within the rock genre.The artist is obviously the biggest selling point of the album, which is why the majority of CD covers conventionally opt to use the band or artist as the dominant, eye-catching image as this is one of the reasons fans will buy the album. The focal image will either be an iconic design, artwork or a photograph of the artist.
The mise-en-scene will represent the values and ideologies of the artist through the use of 
colours, props, lighting, make-up and clothing. Also how the star or subject is posed for instance, if the artist is making eye contact, if their body language is open/closed/suggestive/attractive and what their facial expressions are portraying. All these choices are sending out a message to the audience through connotations that are gained from these particular aspects and it could determine how the consumer reacts to the CD. Abstract images show that the artists like to defy conventions and explore an air of mystery, this may be because they are renown for their ‘different’ or ‘out-there’ approach to life and they can use their celebrity to promote this. Fans can recognise this defiance of conventions as the artists image.
The artist(s) or icons represented on the cover are usually what you would expect to see of that
artist and music genre, for example Beyonce or Rihanna have always had an image constructed by glamour and sex appeal while punk bands such as Green Day tend to focus on more social issues to sell their CD’s. Some artists may even have particular props, make-up or wardrobe that are instantly recognisable, for example Lady Gaga’s outrageous outfits or Marilyn Manson’s metal teeth. On the other hand some music artists’ are constantly challenging their audiences expectations like Madonna, this keeps her style fresh as her CD cover reflects the new image or the re-branding of which she is going for.
It is very important to a music artist the way in which they are presented as it could determine how successful their CD is. How the band or artist and the genre of music are represented can be
a deciding factor on how the audience will react to what is being sold to them. For example hip-hop celebs have been critised in the past for portraying and glamourising guns, cars, violence and ‘gangsta’ related images, critics say it sets a negative image for young people to follow and sets up a stereotypical black culture. This type of music has also been slated for portraying women as sexual stereotypes. When designing my own CD cover I must decide whether to reinforce these stereotypes or challenge them. As this is a new, fresh album and we are the future generation I think it would be a good idea to perhaps challenge these stereotypes in subtle ways, women can still be sexy without being sexual and this is how I want my artist to be portrayed.
When designing my cover I need to think about why my target audience of young females aged 18-25 will want to buy my artists new album, is it because they want escapism and pleasure or to gain a sense of their own identity or feeling of belonging. Or have they been influenced by somebody else to buy it, or simply because it’s their favourite artist or genre of music.
colours, props, lighting, make-up and clothing. Also how the star or subject is posed for instance, if the artist is making eye contact, if their body language is open/closed/suggestive/attractive and what their facial expressions are portraying. All these choices are sending out a message to the audience through connotations that are gained from these particular aspects and it could determine how the consumer reacts to the CD. Abstract images show that the artists like to defy conventions and explore an air of mystery, this may be because they are renown for their ‘different’ or ‘out-there’ approach to life and they can use their celebrity to promote this. Fans can recognise this defiance of conventions as the artists image.The artist(s) or icons represented on the cover are usually what you would expect to see of that
artist and music genre, for example Beyonce or Rihanna have always had an image constructed by glamour and sex appeal while punk bands such as Green Day tend to focus on more social issues to sell their CD’s. Some artists may even have particular props, make-up or wardrobe that are instantly recognisable, for example Lady Gaga’s outrageous outfits or Marilyn Manson’s metal teeth. On the other hand some music artists’ are constantly challenging their audiences expectations like Madonna, this keeps her style fresh as her CD cover reflects the new image or the re-branding of which she is going for.It is very important to a music artist the way in which they are presented as it could determine how successful their CD is. How the band or artist and the genre of music are represented can be
a deciding factor on how the audience will react to what is being sold to them. For example hip-hop celebs have been critised in the past for portraying and glamourising guns, cars, violence and ‘gangsta’ related images, critics say it sets a negative image for young people to follow and sets up a stereotypical black culture. This type of music has also been slated for portraying women as sexual stereotypes. When designing my own CD cover I must decide whether to reinforce these stereotypes or challenge them. As this is a new, fresh album and we are the future generation I think it would be a good idea to perhaps challenge these stereotypes in subtle ways, women can still be sexy without being sexual and this is how I want my artist to be portrayed.
When designing my cover I need to think about why my target audience of young females aged 18-25 will want to buy my artists new album, is it because they want escapism and pleasure or to gain a sense of their own identity or feeling of belonging. Or have they been influenced by somebody else to buy it, or simply because it’s their favourite artist or genre of music. 
No comments:
Post a Comment