Year 12 Cover 5/07/2013Learning Outcome: To understand the conventions of both music CD covers and advertisements in the music industry.•Identify conventions in existing products.•Explain the conventions you identify referencing star persona and target audience.

Literacy: Using media terminology.

Extra Challenge: Include insightful observations that dissect the artist’s marketing strategy. TASK: You need to know the conventions of advertisements and cd covers in the music industry. Look at the examples below. They are annotated with conventions.You then need to find 2 conventional CD covers and 2 conventional advertisements. Make sure you have 1 example from a solo artist and 1 example from a band. Remember, you are looking for conventional covers and advertisements.

Print these out and stick them in your notes. Annotate the examples. Your annotations need to identify the convention and explain how it used. You should discuss the main elements of the cover and why they have been chosen. Think about the persona of the artist and the target audience. See the examples below to help. Alternatively, you can do this on PowerPoint however you must print it out and have it in your folder.

On Tuesday, I will ask to see your notes in your folder. It is important that you have a folder set up, ready for all of our A2 work. I must see this on Tuesday.

Artist on front and back cover.

Technical information including record company, barcode, etc.

Spines for CD cover

List of songs on albums with times.

Title of Album

Name of artist

Basic Conventions

P!NK - Can’t Take Me HomeThis cover is very typical of both pop and rock solo artists. We are given a clear image of the artist so that we know what she looks like and can relate to her.

Camerawork: Close-up of artist.Although she had sun glasses on, she appears to be staring right at the viewer.It is important o have the artist on the front cover so that people recognise her.

Mise en Scene - Costume – In this case the artist is nude. This is controversial for a front cover – could be a way of gaining hype for the album.Background – the background is blue, this helps the pink of her hair and the title stand out. They want us to link the idea of the colour pink with the artist P!NK.

Design – There is a grid pattern throughout the front and back covers. This combined with the font type suggests the digital age. The digital age is seen as modern. They are trying to suggest that P!NK is modern.

Mise en Scene: Performance – P!NK has open body language and looks strong in both images. On the front her face is very stoic. On the back her pose suggests she is casual but her face is still strong. The images support P!NK’s persona of being a strong female.

Design – The colour pink is used again on the back cover and the spines. The font that lists all of the songs is a digital looking font, further supporting the idea of being modern.

Camerawork: Mid-Shot of artist shows her looking directly at the viewer again. It also allows us to see her costume – in this case a black revealing top. It is typical for female pop or R&B artists to show be sexualised.

Basic ConventionsName of artist Title of Album

Spines for CD coverTechnical information including record company, barcode, etc.

List of songs on album.

Creative main image on front cover that suggests a band persona or meaning of album..

Imagine Dragons – night visionsThis cover is typical of bands. It is common to use an image on the cover that is symbolic of the album rather than an image of the band. This adds authenticity to their image – it makes them look more like ‘artists’.

Camerawork: Extreme long shot of a boy alone on a pedestal of some kind. It suggests ideas of being alone or of standing out. The use of a young boy could also suggest innocence or a rite of passage. Imagine Dragon’s target audience are young people, so they may be trying to appeal to issues often dealt with or thought about by young people.

Mise en Scene – The fog and darkness helps to further emphasise the idea of being alone. Imagine Dragons are a rock band, the use of dark colours are very typical in rock music as rock music tends to deal with ‘darker’ ideas.

Design – The name of the band is written in a way that helps to brand the band. Whenever their name is on a product it is written in that style. This helps the band create their own brand and persona. The title of the album is plain and unassuming next to the band name. This suggests they are pushing the name of the band more than the album itself.

Design – The back cover has continued the dark mise en scene and use of the colour black. This is a very plain back cover. The titles of the songs stand out against the blackness. The band could be trying to suggest they are ‘all about the music’.

Rihanna – rated r advertisement

Conventions:Artist NameTitle of AlbumImage of ArtistSongs from AlbumRecord CompanyExplicit Lyrics WarningRule of Thirds Used

Analysis:In this advertisement, Rihanna is conveying an idea of rebellion and edginess. Mise en Scene – Costume – Rihanna is in black leather. This suggest rock or hardness. This also helps to back up the idea of the album name ‘ Rated R’ as it makes us assume that Rihanna herself might be rated R. Design – The image is in black and white. This constructs well with the song titles in red. The use of black and white in this image reinforces the idea of edginess.Camerawork - This is a close up of Rihanna. She is staring straight at the camera, as if she is looking at the viewer. This helps to connect her to her fans.Performance – Rihanna looks strong and although she has her hand in her face, which is usually a sign of anxiety, she is glaring at the viewer.Design – The fonts used are a mish-mash of straight-lined and hard looking fonts. The name of the artist and ‘The New Album’ hold connotations of punk because that way of displaying titles is a reference to the Sex Pistols. Rihanna is trying to harden her image this way. It is interesting that ‘Rated R’ is so small on the advertisement – it is clear they are marketing solely on the image of Rihanna alone.

Mumford and Sons – Sigh no more advertisement

Conventions:Title of BandTitle of AlbumImage of BandQuote from Reviewer/MagazineSongs from AlbumRecord CompanyRule of Thirds Used

Analysis:The images of each band member on the poster suggests that each band member is an artist on their own – it is more typical to have the band together in one photo to suggest band cohesion. The band are superimposed over the lead singer in this photo – this helps to suggest the band work as a unit.Mise en Scene – Props: Each member is holding an instrument. This helps to make the band look more authentic, like they are ‘all about the music.’Camerawork – Mid shots of all band members are used. This suggests the band as equals. It also allows us to see their props and costumes, which evoke the idea of folk music.Design – The images are all faded and look like more old-fashioned photos (they look like they are from instagram!) this helps to enforce Mumford and Sons’ old timey folk image. The setting (a filed) also conveys this idea. The use of the instagram nature of the photos would also appeal to their young, modern audience. Design – The fonts used are also more traditional and old-fashioned fonts. This enforces the idea of folk music, as folk music holds connotations of a simpler time or of the past.