Music Channels

Music Channels

The target audience for MTV is young adults and teenagers from the ages of 16-28 due to the various types of music that the channel plays. Mainly pop is played on MTV however because they have a official countdown to what is number one each week, they play what the audience wants and what is hot at the moment. Artists that feature on this channel on a regular basis are artists such as Beyonce, Justin Bieber and Jessie J to name a few. MTV is used as a form of branding because they show teen drama’s such as ‘Awkward’ and ‘Pretty Little Liars’ as well as reality shows like ‘Geordie Shore’, ‘Jersey Shore’ and ‘Teen Mom’. This logo appeals to the target audience because it is bold, black and white and easy to see. The letters ‘TV’ are in a different font placed in front of the large bold ‘M’ written in a more fun and less formal font.

 

 

This channel caters to an older audience from the ages between 16-35. This is evident when you watch the channel as they play music like from Taylor Swift for the younger section of their audience and the follow it with Elton John. Artists that appear on this channel on a regular basis are Frank Ocean, John Mayer, Nirvana and the odd Kylie Minogue. This channel is used as a form of branding like MTV as they play TV shows such as Basketball Wives and Cheaters. The logo is simple and to the point yet bright to attract the audience of which they desire to aim the channel at. VH1 are a sister company to MTV and the channels primary purpose was to help build on the success of MTV. VH1 stands for Video Hits One and was founded on January 1st 1985. This channel also has a special countdown allowing a larger variety of genre's and artists are shown on the channel bringing in an even larger audience.

 

Box Television is a subsidiary of Channel Four Television Corporation. They aim to achieve to appeal to a demographic of 16-24 year olds and want to make the channel youth-targeted and accesible. The typical types of music they will play is pop, urban and indie sounds and they also play the UKHot40. Artists that play on this channel on a regular basis are Rizzle Kicks, Rita Ora, Ed Sheeran, Plan B and Connor Maynard. The logo is black and white therefore eye catching. The word ‘Box’ is playful as the font is futuristic. The channel was launched in 1992 and plays current mainstream music. Box have subsiduaries in many channels such as Kiss and Film 4.

Scuzz is described as ‘The UK’s favourite rock and metal Music TV station’, being a niche market it is not specifically aimed at a younger audience. The target audience channel specifically caters to an audience that likes this genre of music. Artists played on this station on a regular basis are Enter Shikari, Young Guns, You Me at Six and Deaf Havana. The font of this logo is dark colours connoting that the music played is dark and possibly scary from the font type too. The ‘S’ has what looks like a blade sticking out the side of it as does the ‘C’ and ‘U’ therefore showing that the music video’s shown could the same dangerous feel, possibly like the music that they play. This channel has focused more on targeting people interested in a particular genre in this case Rock, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal instead of an age group.

 

Kiss is one of the most well-known radio and television stations in the UK. They play various types of music due to what has been downloaded the most in the week. However mainly played is Pop, R’n’B and Hip Hop. The target audience for this channel is from the ages of 15-24 as the music played is young and fun and current. Artists played on this music channel are Usher, Neyo, Drake, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Beyonce and One Direction. The logo is literally just the word ‘Kiss’ in a simple font, capital letters. The Blue thick ‘K’ next to the word is well known for being Kiss’ logo. Their sister channels are Heart and Magic.


MTV is a diverse company because of the many different types of channels they have which include MTV Classic, MTV Rock etc. targetting near enough every audience possible. VH1 is also just one of many that is a sister channel to MTV. Because MTV caters to such a vast audience, of various music genre's and ages they most likely have the largest audience out of most music channels. Their logo is simple and to the point, explaining the name of the channel in a fun way. Box uses their name as an advantage when it comes to their logo as it looks like a box, again making it playful and not so serious. Scuzz's logo is just like the music they play; edgy, gothic and overall different from usual mainstream that get's played on other music channels like MTV, Kiss and VH1.



Analysis of a Star

Music Video Analysis

 

Music video’s are a tool, which help the artist to sustain their popularity within the music industry. One artist that I think has changed over the years is Ne-yo due to his image as an artist, his target audience, Goodwin's theory, genre and generic conventions and what the messages and values are in the music video and what they were at the time. The first video I will analyze will be the very first that Ne-yo ever made 'Stay' (2005), compare this video to 'Mad' (2008) and finally compare that to his newest video, 'Lazy Love' (2012).

 

The beginning of the video for 'Stay' the audience is shown each individual room in the apartment of which Neyo is in to set the scene. The audience are shown the bedroom of which Neyo is sitting on the bed writing a song. Straight away we see the difference from video's in recent times from the way that the artist is dressed. Red baseball cap worn backwards, large chain around his neck, a baggy black t-shirt and baggy jeans which was in trend at the time of the video being set for a Hip Hop singer. Neyo after writing then sing's what he has written out loud, allowing the audience to believe that the video will be a performance. As this is Ne-yo's first music video it is important that the artist is seen in the video to help promote him as an artist. The first link we see between music and visuals is when the beginning of the song starts which sounds like the scratching of the record. Everytime the record goes back and forth the audience is shown the time and Neyo and then Neyo making the hand gesture's seen by a DJ who would scratch the record. Following Goodwin's theory that R'n'B music video's have certain generic conventions, an expensive Mercedes pulls around the corner of a block outside of Neyo's apartment. This shows wealth making the audience want to buy into the artist's lifestyle.
Women are seen looking out of their car windows to the man in the Mercede's portraying the notion of looking.
There are many links between lyrics and visuals throughout the video starting with Neyo holding his head when he sings 'and ooh my head is just aching', then the artist rubbing his hands together when he sings into the camera 'hands don't stop sweating'. This is helping build a relationship with the artist and the audience because it feels as though the artist is singing directly to you. After singing those lyrics, it is not evident that Neyo is singing about a girl and so the audience is shown women's jewellery, a dress and shoes. We can already identify this as being a video from a few years ago as some music video's in recent times give an element of mystery. Although the video cuts back to Neyo singing and pointing to the camera often, showing the performance side of the video, the audience also follow a narrative as we see Neyo hide behind a door of which a women walks out of in a towel. Playfully, Neyo pulls the women's towel away revealing pink lace underwear to which she looks playfully annoyed however he smiles and the audience is shown Neyo singing into the camera once again on the performance side 'I just can't help myself', allowing the audience to understand the lyrics between himself and the woman.



 




She then shakes her bum to the beat of the music of which he comes up behind her and dances with her.
Following this the audience see's Neyo dancing in the middle of a road dressed all in black and white, complete with baggy jeans and a white baseball cap. However he has mixed casual and smart clothing by wearing those things as well as a white shirt and black and white stripy tie. From dancing in the street to seeing him back in the apartment following the woman around and then back to a close-up of Neyo's face singing in the road again.


The most obvious link between music and visuals is when the girl in the narrative shakes her bum to the beat of the music and when Neyo and the same girl dances outside.
Stereotypically Hip Hop singers of the time either sung about wealth or women. The target audience for this music video would be from the ages between 17 and 25 because the woman is left in revealing clothing, with connotations of lust when Neyo comes behind her and dances. Before becoming an artist, Neyo was a song writer for other well-known singers such as Beyonce, therefore I feel that the message of this song is to make him known as not just a songwriter but also an artist. Neyo's message of the time was to show that he can be sexy and seen as a sex symbol through his dancing and the way he views the woman would possibly be how an audience of women would want to be viewed by him.

The next video of Neyo's made in 2008 was 'Mad'. All in black and white, the video starts off with Neyo arguing with a woman in a heated discussion. Neyo is wearing another hat however a softer more casual hat of which I come to learn after watching many of Neyo's video's is actually his 'thing'. A less flashy silver chain around his neck and an earring. By the audience not seeing a lot of what Neyo is wearing throughout the video, means that he wants the audience to to understand the narrative more than the expensive lifesyle he is living. This video does have an element of performance in it as the video cuts from the current story it is trying to tell back to close-ups of Neyo wearing a smarter hat and singing directly to the camera as if telling a story of what is happening in the narrative.

The argument leads to Neyo leaving and slamming the door with his hood up of his hooded jacket possibly showing that he is annoyed and doesnt want to be spoken to or that he won't look back. After screaming out 'kid' when he see's a young boy run in the road, the audience hears a loud crash and the screen goes black.

 

Following this the rest of what we see is blurry and further in the mist, Neyo. Still in black and white, it then cuts to the performance side of the video; a close-up of the side of Neyo's face beginning to sing the song showing the pain and other emotions he is feeling. The narrative carries on throughout the rest of the video from this point, sometimes going back to the performance running alongside the narrative of which Neyo is singing. In the chorus, Neyo sings 'I know sometimes its gonna rain' and following the lyrics being sung we see Neyo in a road while its raining singing and dancing; this shows a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. This is like his first video 'Stay' where he is seen singing and dancing in the street however his style has changed in clothing as he is wearing just a plain t-shirt and jacket and we do not see much of Neyo dancing in this video.

For the rest of the video the audience just sees the woman who is Neyo's love interest, crying and upset. He is quite close to her but she does not know he is there which follows Goodwin's theory of the notion of looking. When Neyo and his love interest are in a restaurant the audience is positioned with a shot of Neyo with a skeleton doll bride and groom behind him. Watching this video for the first time I didn't realise that by the woman not even looking in Neyo's direction, and seeing those skeleton dolls behind him meant that it wasn't the little boy that got run over in the beginning of the video, it was Neyo trying to save him. Which starts to explain the narrative more clearly to the audience. This video is very different from the first because it considers all three types of music video possible which include performance, narrative and concept. The concept of this video would be that you shouldn't go to bed mad at someone. Many elements throughout this video conform to Goodwin's theory. The message of this video would be that he isnt all about lust, but shows deeper feelings and emotions in this song about love.

 



The final video I will analyze is Neyo's 'Lazy Love' which is mainly narrative based with the smallest bit of performance. At the beginning of the video we see a close-up of Neyo wearing sunglasses and a hat, which is a image seen throughout the video at various times, which is most likely linked with an intertextual reference. This is very different to his other video's. Although it includes Neyo's love interest again, this time the video is much more explicit, showing not only the woman wearing just underwear but also Neyo half naked. The video has connotations throughout of sexual references, not only in a bedroom on a bed but also in an outdoor swimming pool.

The second verse of the song the audience sees Neyo during his performance side of the video, topless allowing the audience to be seduced by the artist. The theme of the song conforms to the stereotype of the genre of the video. By Neyo and his love interest not wearing a lot of clothing this also conforms to R'n'B stereotypes. Camera angles are mainly close-ups and mid shots of the artist when singing to the camera and also during the narrative. The only long shots seen throughout the video is of both Neyo and his love interest when he picks her up.

This video also conforms to Goodwin's theory of genre characteristics because although he isn't showing off much of his lifestyle (except when the audience is shown Neyo in glasses and a chain), he is seen in nearly every scene with the same girl which is a stereotype of R'n'B stars. Neyo conforms to the R'n'B stereotype as all of his video's I have looked at since he first started as an artist involve a woman. The video also conforms to the notion of looking as we can see Neyo and his love interest which is unknowing to them.

The link between music and visuals is evident on every other beat as that is when each image changes. However this does not happen throughout the video, as the scene does change inbetween beats showing fast paced editing. Some scenes do change by fading when they are in the swimming pool to make the video flow more. This is the most explicit video Neyo has made with a warning from Youtube. The video has fast pace editing just before the second chorus as things between Neyo and the woman gets more intense and heated.

 

In Neyo's video's his target audience does not change as all video's are about love or lust and are aimed towards women explaining his emotions and feelings towards the opposite sex.

Throughout Neyo's career so far, he has changed, grown and developed which is shown through his music video's since his first in 2005. Analyzing his first video Neyo has transformed from a typical R'n'B star with scantily clad women showing off his lifestyle and wealth, to a sex symbol wearing hardly anything himself. Richard Dyer's 'Star Theory' is explained through two paradoxes. The first states that the artist has to be ordinary, to be able to connect with the target audience allowing them to understand that they are just real people too and extraordinary with their talent. The second paradox states that the artist has to be present however simultaneously absent. Its good for the artist to be absent as when they come back, it's usually with a new album/single and get a lot of promotion. This is apparant in Neyo's videos as he is shown as an ordinary man not necessarily wealthy or attempting to make the audience want to adopt his lifestyle, but also extraordinary with his powerful and talented voice. It is important to be seen as both ordinary and extraordinary to help build a relationship with the audience. In between each song, Neyo took a lot of time out to write his albums and in that time, he was seen as absent in the media through the industry. But each time a new album and hit single come out, he was present at television talk shows promoting or performing on programmes such as SNL or X Factor.

The artist has changed over time as a person but more importantly his image has changed over time linking to Richard Dyers Star Theory. He's clothing, beats and lyrics have changed due to movements in the music industry, his clothing has changed due to new fashion movements through time and so has the way the video is put together, his first being solely performance and the other two a mix of concept, narrative as well as a bit of performance making the video much more interesting to watch from an audiences point of view.

Goodwins Theory

Can’t Get EnoughJ Cole ft. Trey Songz

 

This music video conforms to Goodwin’s Theory starting with R‘n’B genre characteristics. The video show’s the artists on a yacht, with girls dressed provocatively and expensive clothing making the audience want to buy into the artist’s lifestyle.

The opening shot of the video is of a beach followed by a palm tree and a road sign with foreign language leading the audience to the connotation that the place in which the video is set is possibly the Caribbean or another form of paradise. The first image of J Cole that we see is of the bottom half of his leg and his foot wearing Jordan's. This is an intertextual reference referred to as branding by Goodwin, that most music video's have. This also happens later on in the music video when J Cole raps about being signed to 'ROC' of which is his record label. The diamond is the logo of the label therefore when J Cole raps about it, he holds his hands up in the diamond shape linking visuals and lyrics. By using intertextual referencing, it allows the audience to want to be even more like the artist because they see they can, possibly making them want to go out and buy in this case a pair of Jordans. In the first line of the song 'Now I ain't got no kids yet', shows a small child from a high angle just to link the lyrics to visual.

The relationship between music and visuals is evident as the beat comes in, the image changes after averagely every three seconds. This happens more so in the introduction of the song. One beat in particular where this theory is proven and used well is when just on a beat J Cole shakes/claps hands with another man. The images change from close-ups of J Cole's face to close-ups of girl's faces and to some of the everyday seen surroundings in the country he is filming in e.g. a chicken, men on bicycles, palm tree's, the sea etc.
The first verse is close-ups of J Cole's face and other locals to set the scene however once the chorus comes in with Trey Songz on some rocks by the sea the music to visuals stops for a while until the second verse begins and we see Trey and J Cole on a yacht and girls on a speedboat, showing their wealth allowing the audience to have a feel of their lifestyle. This is also shown through large neck chains, sunglasses, bracelets, watches and earrings.
The notion of looking is used throughout the music video as women are often, stereotypically, seen in R'n'B video's as an object therefore throughout the video there are numerous times in which the audience see's women walking out od the sea in just a bikini, or dancing on the yacht or riding on the speedboat unknowing to them that the audience can actually see them.
This music video is performance based possibly to convey the sense of 'real' or 'live' music due to the surroundings as they are not in a flashy part of town before the first chorus.
Close-ups are used to show expression on the artists face and long shots to show off where the artist is and again so the audience can capture the wealth that the artist has which brings us back to the typical stereotypes of the genre. The audience plays a large role in the viewing of the video as they need an audience that aspires to be like the artist, that idolises their lifestyle, wealth, cars and women that they are constantly surrounded by.