The well know media theorist Keith Negus talked about specific conventions in music videos.
Keith Negus said Some acts are organic, organic acts follow these conventions:
-A ‘naturalistic’ approach to artists
-The seeds of success are within the artists, who have to be ‘nurtured’ by the record company.
-The image of the artist is ‘enhanced’ by the record company.
-The artist is given time to evolve and progress through their career
-Emphasis is given to album sales and the construction of a successful back catalogue
-Often aimed at older or more sophisticated consumers
-Profits generated by this kind of act tend to be part of a long term strategy by the record company
Keith Negus also referred to synthetic acts that followed these conventions.
-A combinatorial approach to artists and material
-Executives attempt to construct successful acts out of the artists and the songs at their disposal
-The image of the artist is often constructed by the record company
-The artist will be given a short time to prove their success before other combinations will be tried out
-Emphasis is given to single sales and to promoting first albums
-Often aimed at younger, less sophisticated audiences
-Profits generated by this kind of artist tend to be part of an immediate, short term strategy by the record company
I researched and analysed the major conventions of music videos with Beyonces music videos because she is a very popular music artist so follows a generic approach to her videos, although I would consider Beyonce quite organic because she is raw talent it is arguable that she is a synthetic act because she came from a girl group called destiny’s child.
Destiny’s child would defiantly be considered a synthetic group and was one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time, But it is arguable that once destiny’s child split up and Beyonce went solo she was an organic act because she had such talent that her record companies saw her as a long term investment rather than a short term one such as a act like sugar babes, or Hannah Montana. For this reason Beyonce is still a very popular music artist 6 years after going solo in 2005. This according to Keith Negus would cattogarise beyonce as a organic act because one convention of the organic act was “profits generated by this kind of act tend to be part of a long term strategy by the record company”.
Keith Negus said Some acts are organic, organic acts follow these conventions:
-A ‘naturalistic’ approach to artists
-The seeds of success are within the artists, who have to be ‘nurtured’ by the record company.
-The image of the artist is ‘enhanced’ by the record company.
-The artist is given time to evolve and progress through their career
-Emphasis is given to album sales and the construction of a successful back catalogue
-Often aimed at older or more sophisticated consumers
-Profits generated by this kind of act tend to be part of a long term strategy by the record company
Keith Negus also referred to synthetic acts that followed these conventions.
-A combinatorial approach to artists and material
-Executives attempt to construct successful acts out of the artists and the songs at their disposal
-The image of the artist is often constructed by the record company
-The artist will be given a short time to prove their success before other combinations will be tried out
-Emphasis is given to single sales and to promoting first albums
-Often aimed at younger, less sophisticated audiences
-Profits generated by this kind of artist tend to be part of an immediate, short term strategy by the record company
I researched and analysed the major conventions of music videos with Beyonces music videos because she is a very popular music artist so follows a generic approach to her videos, although I would consider Beyonce quite organic because she is raw talent it is arguable that she is a synthetic act because she came from a girl group called destiny’s child.
Destiny’s child would defiantly be considered a synthetic group and was one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time, But it is arguable that once destiny’s child split up and Beyonce went solo she was an organic act because she had such talent that her record companies saw her as a long term investment rather than a short term one such as a act like sugar babes, or Hannah Montana. For this reason Beyonce is still a very popular music artist 6 years after going solo in 2005. This according to Keith Negus would cattogarise beyonce as a organic act because one convention of the organic act was “profits generated by this kind of act tend to be part of a long term strategy by the record company”.
However in Beyonces music videos such as “Single Ladies” is a very sexual performance with a complexly white background and only the performance element because the audience is so fixated with her star image that they do not need to see anymore the music video capitalises on the fact that the she is such a famous image.
In what ways does our media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Stills from music video.
This still from our video is used to make a unrealistic world a reality using special effects, in some ways it follows the existing forms and conventions of music videos because the special effects are used to make the narrative of the video more exciting and entertaining for an audience and for that reason alone, it is conventional for music videos. This still represents the narrative aspect of the promo. It is conventional of music videos to have a narrative as it is a way of building a star image for the artist as well as maintaining audience interest. Some artists do not use narrative as they already have an existing star image and large fan base or a more focused on their music so place the emphasis of their promos on the performance element. However, it is arguable that this still challenges conventions as it uses special effects to create the scene, this is not often used for bands within our specific choice of genre, and it is more conventional of the pop genre to use an unrealistic world. Using a woman in the promo and presenting her as a sexual magnet is a convention of the pop genre as women are often presented in a derogative way, wearing little clothing or as dancers and generally as sex symbols. Using this does not conform to the conventions of the indie/alternative genre, as bands of this genre usually place more emphasis on marketing their music through their talent rather than sexual magnetism; however the dark and powerful nature of the woman in the promo subverts gender stereotypes and therefore would attract a niche audience.
This image is a close up of the band’s lead singer, this a convention of music videos as the lead singer of a band is often present within the music video and is usually a focal point to the promo, through the use of close up we have conformed to this. By depicting him wearing sunglasses and a leather jacket we are presenting a ‘rock and roll’ attitude and star image, which is often depicted in other music videos of the genre. The microphone depicts the performance element of the promo, this a convention of the genre as predominantly bands in the genre place a focus on their music and performance suggesting that this is their passion.
This image furthers the use of special effects in our promo and conforms to the conventions of other promos that use special effects and green screen. This image suggests the male is in power by the way he is lit as well as his smart clothing; this conforms to stereotypes of masculine domination. He also appears mysterious due to the lighting; this contributes to the promos narrative which is a convention of promos as it markets the entertaining side of the promo to an audience and attracts them. However, within the genre special effects are not always used within a narrative as focus is often placed on an alternative band’s performance element therefore this also challenges conventions.
This image is created through special effects, often special effects are used in music videos and therefore we are using a music video convention. However, this image is not often seen within music videos, as the simple use of three colours that represent death and sex. It is more likely to see this image within a film narrative such as ‘
The use of set with lighting and smoke is a convention of music videos within the genre; this dark, eerie atmosphere is often created within rock promos. The use of guitars presents a performance element within the promo and uses music video conventions. Their long hair is over the band’s face which provides a rock and roll element and uses conventions of the rock genre. The star image created is moody and individual, an image relevant to the genre. The use of female band members challenges conventions as it is rare to find female musicians within a rock band however it links to bands such as the White Stripes who have a similar image and band set up and therefore to an extent uses some conventions.
This image depicts the full band set up. It conforms to the conventions of music videos as the whole band is present within the video. Conventions are also used in that the band are all playing their instruments and therefore provides a performance element to the promo which is often scene in music videos, particularly of the genre. The low lit room provides an eerie atmosphere which ties in with the narrative and uses conventions as mostly the narrative links to the performance element within promos. The band is clearly dressed in an individual way which uses the conventions given within their genre. It perhaps challenges conventions as they are not presented on a stage with a crowd which is often depicted in promos within this genre. 
Pannels from digi pak.
This is the front cover of the digi pak and depicts the band which uses conventions as artists are often depicted on the album cover which is a form of marketing the artist as buyers can clearly identify the artist’s album. The sin city scape continues the theme from the promo and image created for the band as being quite edgy and moody which conforms to conventions as often a particular image is used to market a band. The album title is depicted which is a convention of digi paks as it enables an audience to identify the album. The album title is the same as the song title which is often used as a way of marketing the single and linking it to the album. However, we have challenged conventions by not placing the band name on the cover; this was in order to present the band as individual. The way the band is dressed is an individual style and uses the conventions of the image of their genre.
This panel challenges the conventions of digipaks as the female from the promo is used, as she is not part of the band this is an alternative way of presenting the artwork and makes the band appear more individual and helps them to stand out as being different. The song titles are depicted which uses the conventions of promos, it allows an audience to know which track they are listening to on the album clearly, however sometimes song titles are depicted on the actual disk rather than on the panel. The low cut top represents her as a sex symbol and therefore attracts an audience, often sex is used to sell albums as it attracts a wider audience.
Promotional Poster.
This poster depicts the band name which is a convention used in promotional posters and it clearly promotes the band. We chose to use the same image of the band as the album cover which provides a common theme and uses conventions as it is a marketing pattern. However we have used a different background to create diversity and give some form of difference to the front panel of the digi pak. The same font is used which is identifiable to the band and uses the forms and conventions of marketing an artist to an audience. We chose to depict the tour dates as well promoting the album as a double marketing campaign and to provide more hype about the band. This uses the conventions of other marketing campaigns.
This poster depicts the band name which is a convention used in promotional posters and it clearly promotes the band. We chose to use the same image of the band as the album cover which provides a common theme and uses conventions as it is a marketing pattern. However we have used a different background to create diversity and give some form of difference to the front panel of the digi pak. The same font is used which is identifiable to the band and uses the forms and conventions of marketing an artist to an audience. We chose to depict the tour dates as well promoting the album as a double marketing campaign and to provide more hype about the band. This uses the conventions of other marketing campaigns.
