Music Corporations
The music industry is mainly dominated by four multi national corporations Universal, Sony Music, Warner Brothers and EMI. These corporations are referred to as 'The Majors'. The majority of these have stakes in other industries besides music such as film, tv and electronics. Most of these major corporations own subsidiary companies which are smaller in order to reach different target audiences who are interested in different genres such as Columbia and Syco these companies are known as major independents.n there are independents, these are a number of small companies with little or no financial connection to the majors. These companies often concentrate on a smaller number of acts within a specialised industry. An example of a highly successful independent company is Domino Records. It is often that record labels begin as small independents but then are bought by a major and turn into major independents making their way up the music company chain.
The Artists
Artists themselves can be divided into two categories; organic and synthetic. Organic is used to describe bands where the music comes first, this means they make the kind of music that they want to make then the signed record labels try and sell this music to the correct market segment. It often appeals to a niche audience but can occasionally appeal to a mass audience as well. Synthetic refers to artists created by ways such as 'The XFactor' as money is the ultimate goal. A gap in the market is identified and then exploited by the development of the music and artist to suit the gap. This can be related to acts such as; The Spice Girls and JLS as they are more manufactured.
Synergy
The music video exists as only one part of the multimedia campaign as it is only one way that a song is promoted. The music industry uses a number of different media for different purposes such as radio, tv, print and film. There is often a clear sense of synergy across a number of media platforms.
29 Sept 2014
25 Sept 2014
Audience
The audience for the genre of music that I have chosen would be a slightly unconventional teenager who doesn't fit into the mainstream music making them more of an individual. For this reason I am going to look into this audience to find out their likes and dislikes so I am able to cater the music video to their expectations. Whilst doing this I hope to have a clear idea of who these people are to be able to make a target audience profile of both a boy and girl who would look at the type of music video that I am creating. I will start my investigations by getting a focus group of people who listen to this music to find out more about them.
Focus group
As part of my focus group I had four volunteers take part who listen to the indie rock genre. I found out why they listen to this genre to understand what they get out of being so individual compared to others.
Jess - She likes this genre of music because of the individuality it creates. It stops her from being an average boring part of society who conforms to the conventional rules.
Charlotte - She likes this genre of music because it suits her style more than other genres and feels like it is more relatable to her personal experiences.
George - He likes this genre of music because his close friends also listen to it making it an easy topic of conversation and something that everyone in his social group enjoys.
Harvey - He likes this genre of music as he uses it for escapism to forget about the daily tasks that he endures.
Research into the audience (Qualitative and Quantitative data)
A survey into the age and gender of the indie rock target audience has been collected and the following data received: 'Do you listen to the indie-rock genre?'
From the responses to this survey, I can clearly see that the most 'Yes' answers to the question 'Do you listen to the indie rock genre?' are in the 16-25 age group. Only one person in the 21-25 age group answered 'No'. This shows that this age group is also a large part of the indie rock genre's audience although it may not be as great as younger generations according to these findings. From the results collected there is not a great difference between the number of female indie rock listeners and the number of male indie rock listeners. However the findings show that there was one 'No' answer from a female. This shows that there is a possibility that slightly more males than females listen to the indie rock genre, this can be supported by findings from 'NME' magazine using information about their target audience published by IPC Media. The gender of their audience was found to be more towards men with a 34% difference. Although this contradicts my findings I believe that if i carried on this process and asked more people then I would of come out with a different result as the larger the population asked the more realistic it is to real life. It is said that they have an 'intensely engaged audience of 16-24 year olds' This supports my audience research which concluded that 16-25 year olds are a more popular age range for the indie rock listeners. There is no significant difference in the amount of males and females in my target audience as it is approximately 55% male and 45% female. Most of the people in my target audience are studying to working in admin/personal care. It is likely that my audience do not earn at all (students) or earn a wage of approximately 21,000-25,000 per year. The demographic profile of my target audience wouldn't be categories such as aspirers or conformers as they do things outside of the norms of society seeking for individuality.
Audience profile
Name: Kristen
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Likes: Music, Clothes, Friends
Dislikes: 'Girly' things, Rip off bands, Fakes
Hobbies: Playing the guitar
Clothing: Skinny Jeans, Logo/Band T's, Flannel Shirts, Converse, Vans, Doc Martins
Audience demographic: Disconnected, these people are detached from mainstream society and live in the 'ever-present-now'
Salary: Student
Output on media: Roughly £50 per month, concerts, cd's, downloads
Shops at: Topshop, Urban Outfitters, H&M, HMV
Relationships: Family, Friends
Intake of media: 75% of the day, only time not listening to music is in lesson time
Name: Robert
Age: 20
Gender: Male
Likes: Music, Friends, Tumblr
Dislikes: Chart music, Anything mainstream
Hobbies: Going to gigs
Clothing: Skinny Jeans, Logo/Band T's, Flannel Shirts, Converse, Vans, Doc Martins
Audience demographic: Disconnected, these people are detached from mainstream society and live in the 'ever-present-now'
Salary: 21,000-25,000 per year
Output on media: Roughly £60 per month, concerts, cd's, downloads
Shops at: Topman, Urban Outfitters, HMV
Relationships: Family, Friends, Partner
Intake of media: 60% of the day, only time not listening to music is during work
Marketing
After looking at this target audience I have decided the best way to advertise my upcoming music video is through the types of media that they use such as, iTunes and social networking. There is no use in spending money on advertising in places that they don't relate to as the target audience would not be in view of something that they would be interested in.
Focus group
As part of my focus group I had four volunteers take part who listen to the indie rock genre. I found out why they listen to this genre to understand what they get out of being so individual compared to others.
Jess - She likes this genre of music because of the individuality it creates. It stops her from being an average boring part of society who conforms to the conventional rules.
Charlotte - She likes this genre of music because it suits her style more than other genres and feels like it is more relatable to her personal experiences.
George - He likes this genre of music because his close friends also listen to it making it an easy topic of conversation and something that everyone in his social group enjoys.
Harvey - He likes this genre of music as he uses it for escapism to forget about the daily tasks that he endures.
Research into the audience (Qualitative and Quantitative data)
A survey into the age and gender of the indie rock target audience has been collected and the following data received: 'Do you listen to the indie-rock genre?'
Audience profile
Name: Kristen
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Likes: Music, Clothes, Friends
Dislikes: 'Girly' things, Rip off bands, Fakes
Hobbies: Playing the guitar
Clothing: Skinny Jeans, Logo/Band T's, Flannel Shirts, Converse, Vans, Doc Martins
Audience demographic: Disconnected, these people are detached from mainstream society and live in the 'ever-present-now'
Salary: Student
Output on media: Roughly £50 per month, concerts, cd's, downloads
Shops at: Topshop, Urban Outfitters, H&M, HMV
Relationships: Family, Friends
Intake of media: 75% of the day, only time not listening to music is in lesson time
Name: Robert
Age: 20
Gender: Male
Likes: Music, Friends, Tumblr
Dislikes: Chart music, Anything mainstream
Hobbies: Going to gigs
Clothing: Skinny Jeans, Logo/Band T's, Flannel Shirts, Converse, Vans, Doc Martins
Audience demographic: Disconnected, these people are detached from mainstream society and live in the 'ever-present-now'
Salary: 21,000-25,000 per year
Output on media: Roughly £60 per month, concerts, cd's, downloads
Shops at: Topman, Urban Outfitters, HMV
Relationships: Family, Friends, Partner
Intake of media: 60% of the day, only time not listening to music is during work
Marketing
After looking at this target audience I have decided the best way to advertise my upcoming music video is through the types of media that they use such as, iTunes and social networking. There is no use in spending money on advertising in places that they don't relate to as the target audience would not be in view of something that they would be interested in.
18 Sept 2014
Genre
My Chosen genre is indie rock. I am going to focus on one band in particular (The 1975) as well as looking at others such as Radiohead and The Arctic Monkeys. I have chosen this genre as it is very popular with the teenage audiences at the current times as the interest in festival bands is increasing. I will be looking into the codes and conventions of this genre of music to understand what the audience will be expecting from our final product.
Indie Rock is the sub-genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980's which is where its retro feel comes from. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres. Originally used to describe record labels, the term became associated with the music they produced and was initially used interchangeably with alternative rock. Indie rock then became a separate movement when bands such as Nirvana broke into mainstream music taking the 'alternative' label with them. Many musicians were disappointed with this label as it became too conventional and mainstream which seemed inappropriate to name these small independent bands who have no relations and no desire to become part of the mainstream movement. This is when the bands slowly began to separate from the label of alternative rock and create these sub-genres to keep in touch with the roots of its movement.
Settings
Indie music videos are typically known to be very natural and done on a low budget. The main settings used includes small home made studios, cities, parks and in remote unknown locations. These are places that can be accessed easily and create mystery as they are urban and rural. We will keep our settings simple as this is typical of an indie rock music video to keep the focus on the artist and their performance.
Mise en scene
This is a critical factor to the indie rock genre as it helps tell the narrative. The people that are featured in the videos are typically retro through the use of costumes and makeup. There are also sometimes additional actors playing the main part in the narrative of the video to enforce the meanings behind the music. Props also play a large role as they ensure that the music video looks realistic. For an indie rock genre this could include instruments such as guitars and drum kits.
Performance
A convention of the indie rock genre music videos is often to include live performances as it shows them doing what they enjoy. It is typical in this genre to focus on the talents of the artist to help promote them. However over recent years its become popular to include a narrative performance in between clips to give the video more meaning as it helps the audience relate personally to the lyrics of the song. Facial expressions tend to be minimal, keeping them plain and quite serious at times. You rarely see the performers smiling in their videos as this is not a normal convention for this genre we don't expect it.
Narrative
As i previously mentioned showing a narrative to the lyrics has recently become increasingly popular in the indie rock genre. This helps the audience to relate to the lyrics making the video more personal. Narrative has become popular because it captures peoples attention better compared to just shots of a band making it easier to relate to and empathise with. This gives you room to be able to expand shot verity and the range of effects used.
Camera
The most typical camera shot used in this genre of music are close up shots of instruments and their emotions then also crane shots to get a full view of performances. Long and wide shots are also common as they are used as establishing shots to set the scene of the narrative in the music video. Typically the lead singer is positioned in the centre and towards the front of the frame, this is because this is who the audience will recognise the most. Most people in the indie rock genre concentrate on the whole band working closely together to promote their group not just the individuals.
Editing
The editing is one of the if not the most important parts of the music video as it creates the correct vibes and emotions for the music. Most indie genres have special effects to make the video run smoothly. To do this shots are sully cut either fact or slow to reflect the pace of the music. Effects are usually added over the the top of the video to create an old worn look to it. The black and white effect in particular is very popular as it appears very old fashioned giving it a classical and grudge feel to it.
Indie Rock is the sub-genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980's which is where its retro feel comes from. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres. Originally used to describe record labels, the term became associated with the music they produced and was initially used interchangeably with alternative rock. Indie rock then became a separate movement when bands such as Nirvana broke into mainstream music taking the 'alternative' label with them. Many musicians were disappointed with this label as it became too conventional and mainstream which seemed inappropriate to name these small independent bands who have no relations and no desire to become part of the mainstream movement. This is when the bands slowly began to separate from the label of alternative rock and create these sub-genres to keep in touch with the roots of its movement.
Settings
Indie music videos are typically known to be very natural and done on a low budget. The main settings used includes small home made studios, cities, parks and in remote unknown locations. These are places that can be accessed easily and create mystery as they are urban and rural. We will keep our settings simple as this is typical of an indie rock music video to keep the focus on the artist and their performance.
Mise en scene
This is a critical factor to the indie rock genre as it helps tell the narrative. The people that are featured in the videos are typically retro through the use of costumes and makeup. There are also sometimes additional actors playing the main part in the narrative of the video to enforce the meanings behind the music. Props also play a large role as they ensure that the music video looks realistic. For an indie rock genre this could include instruments such as guitars and drum kits.
A convention of the indie rock genre music videos is often to include live performances as it shows them doing what they enjoy. It is typical in this genre to focus on the talents of the artist to help promote them. However over recent years its become popular to include a narrative performance in between clips to give the video more meaning as it helps the audience relate personally to the lyrics of the song. Facial expressions tend to be minimal, keeping them plain and quite serious at times. You rarely see the performers smiling in their videos as this is not a normal convention for this genre we don't expect it.
Narrative
As i previously mentioned showing a narrative to the lyrics has recently become increasingly popular in the indie rock genre. This helps the audience to relate to the lyrics making the video more personal. Narrative has become popular because it captures peoples attention better compared to just shots of a band making it easier to relate to and empathise with. This gives you room to be able to expand shot verity and the range of effects used.
Camera
The most typical camera shot used in this genre of music are close up shots of instruments and their emotions then also crane shots to get a full view of performances. Long and wide shots are also common as they are used as establishing shots to set the scene of the narrative in the music video. Typically the lead singer is positioned in the centre and towards the front of the frame, this is because this is who the audience will recognise the most. Most people in the indie rock genre concentrate on the whole band working closely together to promote their group not just the individuals.
Editing
The editing is one of the if not the most important parts of the music video as it creates the correct vibes and emotions for the music. Most indie genres have special effects to make the video run smoothly. To do this shots are sully cut either fact or slow to reflect the pace of the music. Effects are usually added over the the top of the video to create an old worn look to it. The black and white effect in particular is very popular as it appears very old fashioned giving it a classical and grudge feel to it.
15 Sept 2014
Managing time
Overall we get a totalled time of 6 hours in class (excluding study time out of college) to complete the research side to our coursework.
During this time I will be looking at the following:
-Genre (including codes and conventions)
-Audience profile
-Questionnaire
-Focus group sessions
-Other music videos
-Other digipaks
-Other magazines
Within all of these sub topics within the research project I will be looking into each of them by using analysis and recording my progress.
Plan:
Week 1: 1.30 : Genre and Audience Profile completed
What genre
Who would it be aimed at
How would it be marketed
Marketing
Example of our target audience
Week 2: 1.30 : Questionnaire and Focus group sessions completed
Create and retrieve quantitate and qualitative data
Assemble focus group and discuss current ideas
Week 3: 1.30: Researching other media (videos, digipaks, magazines)
What video, digipak, magazine is for
Who the video, digipak, magazine is aimed at
How the video, digipak, magazine is created
Examples
Week 4: 1.30: Finalising and finishing all of the outstanding tasks, Evaluation of the research completed.
I have decided to keep on top of this plan by completing any unfinished work at home after each week. This will ensure that all work is completed on time and the last week can be focused on refining the work and enhancing my ideas.
During this time I will be looking at the following:
-Genre (including codes and conventions)
-Audience profile
-Questionnaire
-Focus group sessions
-Other music videos
-Other digipaks
-Other magazines
Within all of these sub topics within the research project I will be looking into each of them by using analysis and recording my progress.
Plan:
Week 1: 1.30 : Genre and Audience Profile completed
What genre
Who would it be aimed at
How would it be marketed
Marketing
Example of our target audience
Week 2: 1.30 : Questionnaire and Focus group sessions completed
Create and retrieve quantitate and qualitative data
Assemble focus group and discuss current ideas
Week 3: 1.30: Researching other media (videos, digipaks, magazines)
What video, digipak, magazine is for
Who the video, digipak, magazine is aimed at
How the video, digipak, magazine is created
Examples
Week 4: 1.30: Finalising and finishing all of the outstanding tasks, Evaluation of the research completed.
I have decided to keep on top of this plan by completing any unfinished work at home after each week. This will ensure that all work is completed on time and the last week can be focused on refining the work and enhancing my ideas.
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