Tuesday, 1 December 2009

Shooting Schedule for Print Products

Shooting Schedule

Who?
Alex Marks
Chelsea Smith
Victoria Greenway

What?
Take band photographs for print products:
  • Cd covers, front and back
  • Advert
Where?
In school in either Drama or Photography room for dark lighting effect.

When?
This will take place on: Tuesday 6th October at 3pm.
Friday 9th October at 9am.

Friday, 27 November 2009










Beyonce: 'Sweet Dreams'


Beyonce’s video opens with a wide range of camera shots and angles, showing the star from either side, above, extremely close-up and further away. These fast paced, closer shots show the star dreaming and are quite sensual and sexy, reinforcing the R ‘n’ B genre. Her costume also portrays a sexy image and is very revealing, yet at the same time white connoting innocence and peace; an image of a dove further representing this. The song is called sweet dreams and within the first 10 seconds this is very obvious and enables the audience to relate to the song. Editing is used in a clever way to make the star seem disaffected from reality as fast jump cuts are used. Beyonce is in a dream world and the following parts of the video showcase this very fact. As soon as the beat kicks in the portrayal of Beyonce changes and she is seen dancing in a wild and sexy manner in the desert. Her outfit is even more revealing and black connotes mystery, power and wealth. Beyonce is then shot in medium range dancing with the focus being on her and her status within the video. Two back-up dancers for the remainder of the video later join her but Beyonce is always the main focus and is shot at the forefront of the frame. Beyonce has a number of outfit changes, all of which are provocative and high fashion. This video focuses upon the dancing prowess of the star, as this is something Beyonce is known for and is seen throughout the R ‘n’ B genre. The use of editing shows Beyonce in the frame with numerous angled shots of her, again showing how disaffected from reality and how important she is. The background for the majority is plain white, which enables Beyonce to stand out and conforms to R ‘n’ B being all about image.

















Textual analysis: Music Videos - Chris Brown








Chris Brown 'With You'


The video to the song ‘With You,’ begins with a fade in from black to a colour image, close-up shot of singer Chris Brown. The opening is very fast-paced and changes in motion from shots of the star to passing traffic, lights and images of the surrounding street and buildings. His body is not seen in full view, with shots of his feet walking and dancing down roads and close-ups of his face when singing heartfelt lyrics. This is also projected through hand gestures to the chest and face, highlighting the importance of what is being said. Although this is an R ‘n’ B music video it features continuous close-ups of a guitar being played, which is unconventional of the genre. However, Chris Brown’s costume of trainers, hat and hoodie are suited to the genre as it’s very hip and street. R ‘n’ B is all about creating an image that portrays coolness, sex appeal and danger, which Chris brown does. Dancing is also a large part of any R ‘n’ B video and ‘With You’ focuses largely on Chris Brown’s dancing skills to which he is well known and respected for. Although Chris Brown is the major focus of the video, it also includes images of happy couples, whom are obviously in love, the theme of the song.



Monday, 23 November 2009

Artist and Song Choice

R 'n' B girl group from Los Angeles, California
Found on unsigned.com with tracks, 'Heartbeat' and 'Let u Go.'
'Let U Go' is the chosen track as it has a strong narrative and is an emotive song that our target demographic will relate to. They are a modern, stylish and independent group, very similar to Destiny's Child.

Lyrics

Verse 1: I'm so confused,
I don't know why I let me treat you do.
We've got issues,
I let you walk in and out of my life and that's not right.
So much hurt, so much pain,
I never thought I could feel this way but I do.
Being in a relationship with you is like a roller coaster.

Chorus: Let the rain fall down on me
I let you get away with everything
I let you slide, my tears I hide
To cover up my station made (x2)

Verse 2: No more sleepless nights
Waiting for you to unlock the door and come inside
I've got to get a hold of myself 'cus I have to much pride
For you to think that you can do the things you do
I know that you don't love me like you say you do
I have to tell myself to just let go of you
"I'm sorry"
"Apology not accepted."

Chorus: Let the rain fall down on me
I let you get away with everything
I let you slide, my tears I hide
To cover up my station made (x2)

Verse 3: Everything you did baby, I let you slide (whoaa)
Everything you did baby, I let you slide (whooaaaa)
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go
I, I got to let you go

The identity of our artist was amended to coincide with our ideas and we came up with the name 'Pulse,' to reflect the heartfelt and punchy songs of the band. We wanted our band to emulate female independence and girl power and will create this image through costume, framing and gesture in our print products and music video.
As the band consist of three members and there are three verses to the song, we believe that having a verse dedicated to an individual member will create equal status and a united feel. The song is all about letting go of love when you know it's not right for you and being strong enough to get through it. This song will be able to relate to the majority of our target audience and create an immediate bond between them and the artist.

Written Essay

Looking at your print products, discuss how you created an identity for your artist.

The promotional music video we have chosen to create is formed around the genre of R ‘n’ B, using the song ‘Let You Go,’ by an American girl group known as ‘Thicke.’ The band consists of three young female artists who, from further research, are similar to R ‘n’ B girl group Destiny’s Child. Both bands promote an independent and sexy image, which is common within girls from this particular music genre. R ‘n’ B is a diverse genre of music that champions young females and doesn’t conform to the idealistic image of women, as shown in some other media forms. As a group we decided to use the original bands ideas of independence and feminist ideology, yet continue it further using the theme of ‘girl power.’ We have created a new census for the group, which will be called ‘Pulse’ and feature three members of our group within the band now from London, England. We decided upon using the name ‘Pulse’ as it connotes survival, strength and passion. This band is sexy yet strong, something that will appeal to both male and female audiences and relates to our song choice. The song ‘Let You Go’ is all about girls being able to survive without a man in their life by letting go of love when it becomes painful. Our group is very much a strong unit and that is why we’ve decided to shoot them together throughout the video, whilst also allowing the audience to see their own stories of troubled love. Our video will have males featured and will also contain a small speech by one of them to coincide with the lyrics of the song. However, the dominant force within the video will be the female member’s of the group who will be shot at the forefront of the frames using a number of close-ups to highlight their importance and ensure the audience relates to and believes what they are saying. Costume is also important to reinforce the image we are trying to create for our band. Each member will be dressed in black on both the print products and within the video to connote power and mystery. The CD Cover and advert will feature the band shot together at a medium close-up in sexy and glamorous black dresses; not only to coincide with our particular image but to conform to the R ‘n’ B genre. When researching into the genre I found that CD Covers by female artists feature a simple image of the artist dressed in provocative costume looking seductively at the camera. R ‘n’ B is promoted heavily by image and its artists are inspirational to many a young person(s). The artist(s) name is what sells the product and that is why on our cover the name is, along with the image, a main feature. Our CD Cover will have a large, bold and colourful font of the band’s name across the width of the frame, underneath the image of the united group. The name will be in red as this colour relates to the word ‘Pulse’ in medical terms as well as connoting passion, a continuing theme of the band and the song, ‘Let You Go.’ The advert is very similar to the CD Cover and will feature the same image of the group making it recognisable to the audience. The advert will also have the name of the group in large, red font with additional features such as an available on ‘itunes’ text box and a promotional phrase such as, ‘new single out now.’ The video will showcase the group as sexy but it has to be kept young and realistic so costume changes are needed. R ‘n’ B is all about creating realism through settings, props and also costume, henceforth throughout casual and fashionable clothing will feature more. As the group is being portrayed as a unit the costume will have to be similar for each individual member whilst allowing them to have their own unique look. In conclusion image is a very important feature of our group and will be the easiest way to reinforce the ideas behind the song and the group as a whole. Our print products and video will conform to the R ‘n’ B genre and promote a young, sexy, glamorous and powerful image a la Destiny’s Child.



Print Products




To accompany our music video we had to produce two different print products to represent our artist. As a group we decided upon an idea for our CD cover from the research undertaken and came up with rough sketches of layouts, fonts and colours. As our artist is a girl band we wanted to create an image of female dominancy and power so the framing, camera shot, costume and gesture had to represent that. We wanted our CD cover to consist of a strong, medium close-up of the band alongside a bold, red , sweeping font of the band name, 'Pulse.' To get a better idea of how to produce a successful looking front cover we researched a total of 24 R 'n' B albums between us and focused upon a former sexy and independent girl group, 'Destiny's Child.'





Final CD Cover

Front



Black dresses to connote power, which are revealing to create a sexy image, typical of R 'n' B. Creates a united image of the band, as costume is similar, as well as stance and gesture.



Name of artist and album in a large, bold and colourful font to stand out. Red and black theme to connote power and passion and reflect the name 'pulse' in medical and emotional terms.





Back


Strong image of the band with closed fists and rigid body posture to show survival and a fighting nature. They are holding hands to show closeness and how the band is united together and against the opposite sex. Name of Music Industry and distributors, Def Jam Recordings in left corner. Everything in white font to bring the cover together and stand out against the black background.






The initial ideas and planning for our CD Cover has become reality and I am very pleased with how it has turned out. Having the band shot together with the same stance and gesture shows unity and this is further symbolised by them holding hands. Having a closed fist shows strength and a fighting spirit that we wanted to emulate. The name of the artists really stands out over the black background and conforms to the R'n'B genre. The costume is sexy but not too revealing and I think overall the Cd Cover has been a success.


Adverts

When researching adverts, we found that print adverts we're hard to come across and we're most commonly found in celebrity/music magazines or on billboards. However, it is much more common to see adverts for singles and albums on TV or online, available as downloads. These findings reinforce how technology has advanced and how the way we as audiences' view and purchase products.

Adverts within the R'n'B genre are very similar to the CD Cover and usually have that image alongside few added extras, such as the music industry representatives, singles featured on the album and an available to download on iTunes sign.

Musical Genre 'Rhythm and Blues'



Rhythm and Blues, or as it is now more commonly known, R 'n' B, was created by African-Americans in the late 1940s to early 1950s. It was a way of escapism for the African slaves, who found singing about their lifestyle and treatment as some sort of comfort. This is where the term 'blues' stems from, referring to the feelings of those behind the songs. R 'n' B was heavily considered as 'black music' in the early stages of its development and has been marketed towards young, black African-Americans.

Rhythm was then introduced to make the songs more upbeat and less of an emotional strain for the listener. In the 1960s, R 'n' B contributed to the development of 'Rock 'n' Roll' and was used to describe to other music styles such as electric blues, gospel and soul. By the 1970s the term 'R 'n' B' had developed further and became a blanket term for soul and funk music.

As well as 'R 'n' B' a sub-genre has been created called 'Contemporary R 'n' B.' This developed in the 1990s and refers to the modern soul and funk influenced pop music. 'R 'n' B' is a very wide and diverse genre of music that is popular amongst all people and is the highest selling music style out there.

Facts

Stylistic Origins:
Jazz
Blues
Jump Blues
Traditional Pop
Gospel

Cultural Origins: USA, 1940s

Instruments:
Drum Kit
Double Bass
Saxophone
Horns
Piano-organ
Electric Guitar
Vocals/background vocalists

Derivative Forms:
Reggae
Ska
Doo-wop
Rock 'n' Roll
Funk
Hip-Hop
Soul
Electro

Robert palmer on Rhythm and Blues: "A catchall term referring to any music that was made by and for black Americans."