Asking Permission from a record company

Asking Permission from a record company;

We are aware of needing to request permission to use the song from the artists record label. Below shows the content of an email that asks permission to use the Coldplay song 'Clocks'.

To whom it may concern, (Parlophone)

We are currently studying music videos in A Level Media Studies and as part of our coursework we have to produce a music video for an artist. We would like to request that we use Coldplay's 'Clocks' for the music video we will create and edit as we feel it lends itself well to a A level project.
We would ask for permission to be granted for this.
We can be contacted through our teacher at the school - gwillcox@chelmer.essex.sch.uk

Many thanks, we look forward to hearing from you

Josh Breeze and Nathan Copping
(A Level Media Students at Chelmer valley High School)

Key Connventions of Muisc Videos

Pop-

·         Characters seen in pop music videos are essential to the overall appeal of the video. They are stereotypically seen as happy and portrayed to be enjoying life; they wear fashionable, stylish and mainstream outfits.

·         Camerawork isn't specific to any genre however, in pop music videos loads of different shots are used such as long-shots and close-ups of the artists. At least two different shots need to be used to create the correct feeling and appeal to a larger audience.

·         Iconography is a use of visual images and symbols to associate things to the different genres. Pop music videos tend to just focus on one thing or character throughout the whole video.

·         Lighting in pop music videos are always the same whether they are male of female; they use unnatural, high-key lighting to gain positive vibes and feelings towards an artist. The high-key lighting is usually balanced out by small amounts of low-key lighting.

·         Narratives- There are three main styles of narratives for this genre of music; elaborate, farfetched or a love story. These narratives are usually very different and change according to the lyrics. Stories are told through the characters actions.

 Alternative Rock-

·         Lighting- Natural and Low-Key lighting are the two types of lighting that is mostly associated with music videos in this genre which allows for scenes to take place in locations such as clubs/ alleyways/ dark rooms etc. especially at night time although High-Key lighting is sometimes used when the convention is being challenged.

·         Camerawork- Various camera shots are used during Alternative Rock videos especially on the band members, shots include: Close-ups of band members and their instruments, Long shots of the entire band, hand held shots, POV shots, establishing shots of the scene etc.

·         Narratives- As most Alternative Rock videos have some portion of their videos based on a story, a narrative is normally based on messages such as bad pasts/pain/suffering/generally negative issues which all have a silver lining so the narrative depicts both the bad and good side of a situation,

Plan for magazine advert Part 2

Magazine Poster Draft 2; 

After my initial research into the Pop Rock genre, I designed a second magazine poster that uses typically seen generic conventions within the genre as well as other elements that would appeal the genre target audience to the the poster. 

How will this draft help me?

By producing the second draft, it has helped me with knowing more about the overall pop Rock genre, as well as seeing the elements and generic convention that are typically found. This will allow me to incorporate some of this generic connections into some of my other work such as my digipak as well as my actual music video. 

Plan for magazine advert Part 1

Magazine Poster Draft;

After researching around the Pop Rock genre, I designed an initial magazine poster that uses typically seen generic conventions within the genre as well as other elements that I feel would appeal to the typical target audience of the genre. 

How will this draft help me?

By producing the first draft, it has helped me further my knowledge about the overall pop Rock genre, as well as seeing the elements and generic convention that are typically found. This will allow me to incorporate some of this generic connections into some of my other work such as my digipak as well as my actual music video. 

Analysis of magazine advert from chose artist

Analysis of magazine advert from chose artist;

The overall look of the advert is very different to what is typically seen from Coldplay. this gives a different perspective on the band and gives their target audience something that they haven't seen before, this could potentially make people more drawn to buy and listen to the album. 

The adverts shows the band's record label, advertising them to people who like this music.

The title of the album matches the colour scheme and overall look of the picture backdrop of the advert, helping to make the advert more appealing to the audience.

The band isn't seen at all on the magazine advert, which shows that the band are established enough that the name is enough for their target audience to buy and listen to the album.

How will this analysis help me?

Analysing this magazine advert will help me when making my own, as it has shown me what needs to be included within my magazine advert and also helps me to picture my digipak as bands typically use the same concept/ images on them to create synergy and a connection between the two. 

Magazine advert analysis 2

Magazine advert analysis 2;

Plan B- The Deflation of Strickland Banks;

The Artist has used the same colour scheme throughout the magazine advert and also the digipak for the "Defamation of Strickland Banks" album. This creates a synergy between the magazine advert and the Digipak. This advert doesn't show any of the songs that are on the album. This shows that people ae not going to be attracted by the songs n the album but actually by the artist himself.

The adverts does show the artists record label, which would advertise and attract the band to people who like the record company’s music. The title of the album matches the colour scheme of the picture above it, helping to make the advert more appealing to the audience. Also the artists stage name "Plan B" is in a substantial size and is a completely different colour (red) to the background of the magazine advert. This is done to attract people who like the artist music and to make the name stand out. The simplicity of the overall magazine advert makes it appealing to the audience as the advert gets straight to the point and the audience know who and what is being advertised instantly. 

How will this help me when making my own Magazine Advert? 

Analysing this magazine advert will help me when making my own, as it has shown me the value of including the same image for the advert and the digipak to create a sense of synergy.



Magazine advert analysis 1

Magazine advert analysis 1;

Kasabian- Debut Album;

The band has used the same main image as in their album cover to evoke a sense of synergy between the two products. This means that someone, after seeing the advert, will easily recognise the album. This advert shows some of the songs that are on the album. This helps to attract customers who heard and liked the songs when they came out as singles. The adverts don’t show the band's record label, which would advertise and attract the band to people who like the record company’s music. But as there is no record label on the advert, this is not possible. The title of the album matches the colour scheme of the picture above it, helping to make the advert more appealing to the audience. The band is well advertised as you can clearly see the name at the top of the page in white text on a black background.The simplicity of the overall magazine advert makes it appealing to the audience as the advert gets straight to the point and the audience know who and what is being advertised instantly. 

How will this help me when making my own Magazine Advert? 

Analysing this magazine advert will help me when making my own, as it has shown me the value of including the same image for the advert and the digipak to create a sense of synergy.

Plan for Digipak 2

Plan for Digipak 2;

This is our second design for our Digipak for our band. We have used Coldplay as our replica band (as seen on our first plan) as we will be using "Clocks" for our own music video. However, the images will be changed when we film our band and then use them in this digipak. We will also change the name and album title as we have currently used Coldplay and this will stop any copyrights being breached. 

How will this help me?
When it comes to making our final Digipak, this first plan will help us greatly as we can combine ideas currently being used and also our own ideas. This will help make our final ideas and also design much better then not planning before. 

Plan for Digipak 1

Plan for Digipak 1;

This is our first design for our Digipak for our band. We have used Coldplay as our replica band as we will be using "Clocks" for our own music video. However, the images will be changed when we film our band and then use them in this digipak. We will also change the name and album title as we have currently used Coldplay and this will stop any copyrights being breached. 

How will this help me?
When it comes to making our final Digipak, this first plan will help us greatly as we can combine ideas currently being used and also our own ideas. This will help make our final ideas and also design much better then not planning before. 

Analysis of Digipak from Chosen Artist

Analysis of Digipak from Chosen Artist;

This digipak is from a different album to the magazine advert that i previously analysed, so no synergy was used within this digipak. 

On the front of the album, there is no sign of the the record label or any of the songs that are included on the album. This is unusual as both these generic conventions are typically shown on the cover, but this may have been done to make the album seem simplistic and uncluttered.

On the back of the digipak there is the full song list that is included on the album, which gives the indication to the consumer buying the album which songs are included and which are not. 

Down the spine of the digipak, it includes the record label and other bits of information that are needed on a digipak. Also it includes the bar code and also the logo of the record label.

The name of the alum is sown on the right side on the front of the digipak, so that the artwork in the middle is covered up. Also doesn't stand out, which makes the artwork stand out and is what makes people attracted to the album. 

The artwork on the front is very prominent as Coldplay currently uses this logo throughout their advertisements, so this is quite known, which means that the band doesn't need to add there name and faces to the cover to make consumers know which band the album belongs to.

What have i learnt from this analysis?

From this analysis i have learnt what elements are needed within a digipak to keep the the overall concept appealing and attract the the appropriate target audience. As well as this, it also gives me a rough guide on what needs to be included on my own digipak, so it keeps in sync with my genre. 

Digipak Analysis 2

Digipak Analysis 2;

An example of a Digipak in current use is Demon Days by the Gorillaz. Many other artists are using Digipaks and they are more or less taking over as the norm. What is different about the Gorillaz Digipack is that it folds in different ways that the usual sideways fold. it folds from all sides in a quite unique way to show each cartoon character which is meant to represent each band member. By doing this differently it stands and changes the conventional side ways opening digipaks. 

This is an unconventional approach to a digipak as each of the band member is interpreted by a 'cartoon' version of themselves, rather than letting everyone become aware of who they really are or showing the identity of the band members on the digipak. As all of the character head-shots are over a white background it really makes them stand out especially with the fact that they are all represented by cartoon characters. As the bottom side of the digipak isn't shown within the picture or be found from research into the digipak, from generic conventions, this could be where the songs are shown that are on the album as this is where they are generally shown. 

How will this help me with my digipak?

By doing this analysis it will help me when it comes making my own digipak as like my previous analysis it gives me ideas for the overall digipak. Also it will help as it gives me and indication on what needs to be included within a digipak in this genre, which I can then apply to my Pop Rock genre as these genres are very similar.  

Digipak Analyis 1

Digipak Analysis 1;

This Digipak is by Kings of Leon. The overall theme to their album is an owl like bird, which is shown on the front and also the back of the digipak. This is quite an artist design and also unique compared to similar bands digipaks, as it incorporates the bands faces with the owl itself. This fits in with their genre which is rock as the colours are very dark and mysterious. On the inside there are individual portrait shots of each of the band members, which gives a clear view on all of the members as the initial photo has been edited to incorporate the owl. There are no special effects or posing by the artists, as these photographs are used to clearly show the band members not to disfigure them. There disk design used is also is coloured to fit in with the overall album design, which continues the overall theme within the digipak.

On the front cover of the album the initial title is very discrete and is very hard to see unless focused on and also the fact that it has been put in the top right hand corner. This adds to the overall feel of digipak, where the band themselves want their audience to focus more on the design of the album and also to initially recognise their band members from the pictures, as they are a well-known band. Their songs on the back cover are again very small and out of the way, this is emphasising their overall look that they want to create wanting to be unique to other artists within the genre. 

How will this task help me with my Digipak?

By doing this analysis it will help me when it comes making my own digipak as it gives me ideas on what i can include within my digipak. Also it will help as it gives me and indication on what needs to be included within a digipak in this genre, which i can then apply to my Pop Rock genre as these genres are very similar. 

Initial Music Video Ideas

Initial Music Video Ideas;

After doing research into the Pop Rock genre and Coldplay themselves, we came up with a number of ideas that could potentially be used to create a music video within this chosen genre. The majority of the ideas that we came up with used generic convention that are generally seen within this genres music videos, so a lot of this initial ideas could be used within are actual music video and still convey the generic conventions. 

• Performance shots- After researching into a variety of Pop Rock and also Coldplay's music videos, i found that the majority of them had some kind of performance scenes/shots within them of either the main artist or the overall band. This is seen a number of times within other Coldplay music videos such as "Paradise" and "Hymn For The Weekend", were performance shots are effectively used.

• Other Music Videos- Other ideas that we came up were based off of other previous music videos that we found to be interesting and could potentially work with the artists and genre we have chosen. One previous music that really stood out was Craig David’s “7 Days” which portrays a man reliving the same moment over and over again until he achieves his desired outcome. We found this interesting idea as we like the concept of the repeating of the same event and also the fact that this could easily be incorporated into a music video within our desired genre.  

• Goodwin Theory- Another idea that we had was the inclusion of some of Goodwin theory's within the music video. Elements such as the link between lyrics & visuals and music & visuals could potentially be included within our music video. Other elements such as using either performance based, narrative based or concept based could be incorporated to meet the generic conventions of Pop Rock, with mainly performance and narrative being used within this genre. This is gain exampled in Coldplay's song "

How will this help me with my music video?

When making the music video this will help me as i now have a few ideas that i can could possible used within the music video, whereas before i was limited on the ideas that i had. With this knowledge, i now have in overall idea for the music video. 

Inspiration from Real media Texts;

Inspiration from Real media Texts;

After researching around my chosen genre (Pop Rock), i found a variety of real media texts that i could benefit from and take some inspiration from. One example that would be very beneficial is the music video for "Clocks" by Coldplay, as this is the song that we have chosen for our actual music video. After reviewing the entire music video multiple times, my view was that there are a wide variety of performance shots that could be replicated within our music video from the band that we will be using for the video. From closeups of the band members and instruments to wide angled shots of the the whole band playing, these are only a couple of shots that could easily be duplicated from this video in particular but there are many other music videos that use similar shots that could also be replicated within our music video. 

Effective shots that could potentially be duplicated; 

Closeup of lead singer- (0.38 secs)

Closeup of Guitar- (2.58 secs)

Over the shoulder shot of drummer- (3.46 secs)

Closeup of lead singer- (3.58 secs)

Another real media text that we could potentially take inspiration from is Craig Davids "7 Days", which was one of his first initial songs he released. within the video creates a narrative where one day keeps rewinding until he finally gets the outcome that he is looking for. After reviewing the music video a number of times, my view is that i could easily be Incorporated within the meaning of "Clocks" in some way.

What have i learnt from this research?

After researching into a variety of real media texts, it has helped me gain inspiration from these different sources to use within my own music video that i will be creating. If i hadn't of done this research, it would of been a difficult task to come up with a completely original idea that could potentially of not worked well with our song. 

Research into Coldplay

Kings Of Leon Brief Magazine Analysis; 

The bands magazine advert has used the same main image as they have for their album cover to give a sense of synergy between the two products. This means that after an individual has seen the magazine advert, they are able to recognise the album cover and band easily.

This magazine advert also shows a number of songs that are included on the Kings of Leon album. This helps to attract customers and the bands general target audience who have listened and also like the songs, as they recognise the songs on the album which gives them an incentive to go out and buy the album.

The adverts shows the band's record label, advertising them to people who like this music. This would also promote the record label as because the band is successful, it gives the record label recognition as they are associated with the band.

The title of the album matches the colour scheme of the picture above it, helping to make the advert more appealing to the audience.

The band is well advertised as you can clearly see the name at the top of the page in white text on a black background.

How will this help me with my coursework?

Analysing this magazine advert will help me when making my own, as it has shown me the value of including the same image for the advert and the digipak to create a sense of synergy.

Research into Pop Rock

What is Pop Rock?

Pop rock is a fusion genre that mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its (typically) guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a sub genre of pop music.

A large proportion of pop rock music has been very similar in sound including the instruments used and even the lyrics within the songs. The terms "pop rock" and "power pop" have been used to describe more common successful music that uses elements from, or the form of, rock music. Pop rock has been defined as an "upbeat variety of rock music" represented by artists and bands such as The Beatles, The Script, Maroon 5, and Coldplay.

Examples of Pop Rock music videos; 

The Beatles Example; 

The Script Example;

Maroon 5 Example;

Coldplay Example;

How will this help me with my own music video;

This will help me when making my own music video, as i am able to get inspiration from previous Pop Rock music video to use in my own video. As well as this, i will also be able to compare my finished music video with current videos in this genre and see weather it will attract my target audience and also look professional.  

Initial ideas on Genre and Audience

Initial ideas on Genre and Audience; 

To decide on a genre and the audience that we were gonna use and also target, myself completed some research into a variety of different genres that could potentially be used/ chosen for our final decisions. When researching in different genres, we narrowed them down to small number that could easily chose one from. These where the shortlisted genres that we chose to chose from for our final decision;

• Pop Rock (e.g. Coldplay)
• R&B (e.g. Drake)
• House Music (e.g. David Guetta) 
• Rock (e.g. Radiohead) 
• Grime (e.g. Skepta) 

After considering all of the above choices, we both decided to go ahead and use the Pop Rock genre as our final music video and promotional Pack idea. We have chosen this genre as we both have an interest in it, as well as some of our initial ideas for a music video wold fit well within the genre. 


How will this help me when making my music video?
This will help me when it comes to making my own music video as it will enable me to focus on one genre and can create a music video around that one genre. If i wasn't to pick a genre the music video may become very confusing and wouldn't be able to target a specific audience. 

What is Lip Syncing and the importnace

What is Lip Syncing and the importance;

In the majority of music videos, there are scenes where an actor or the musician is seen to be singing to the song that the music video is for. when these people sing within these videos, it looks like a they are actually singing along to the song but they are likely lip syncing to the lyrics of the song. this shows the importance of lip syncing as it can turn a well structured music video, easily into a bad one.

When lip syncing, it is often very helpful for the artist to actually sing the song, rather than just mime it. This is because they will be taking breaths at the correct times, making it look like they are actually singing. If the artist simply mimes the lyrics, they can look out of time, which is then easily picked up by the audience watching the music video.

If the music video features someone playing an instrument, it is also important that the actor or band member known how to play the song off by hear, otherwise it is immediately obvious that they are not playing the instrument or are out of time when playing along with the song. Also, if they are playing it correctly, it is important that the video is synced with the music, as the audience instead of watching the music video, may then be distracted by the out of time instruments.

Brief Magazine Advert Analysis

Kings Of Leon Brief Magazine Analysis; 

The bands magazine advert has used the same main image as they have for their album cover to give a sense of synergy between the two products. This means that after an individual has seen the magazine advert, they are able to recognise the album cover and band easily.

This magazine advert also shows a number of songs that are included on the Kings of Leon album. This helps to attract customers and the bands general target audience who have listened and also like the songs, as they recognise the songs on the album which gives them an incentive to go out and buy the album.

The adverts shows the band's record label, advertising them to people who like this music. This would also promote the record label as because the band is successful, it gives the record label recognition as they are associated with the band.

The title of the album matches the colour scheme of the picture above it, helping to make the advert more appealing to the audience.

The band is well advertised as you can clearly see the name at the top of the page in white text on a black background.

How will this help me with my coursework?

Analysing this magazine advert will help me when making my own, as it has shown me the value of including the same image for the advert and the digipak to create a sense of synergy.

Brief Digipak Analysis

Brief Digipak Analysis;

This is the Digipak that was created for Rhianna’s song "Loud". This has been created like almost all Digipaks to promote the artist and also the album.  

The text on the album is in very simplistic font, connoting that the album may have themes of Love or romance. 

The CD design have rose pictures on them, supporting the that the album may be about love or romance. The background also contains roses furthering the theme. 

How will this help me with my Digipak?

Analysing this digipak will help us when making our own digipak as it gives us a professionally designed example to refer to. This will help us make our overall digipak visually more appealing to our target audience as well as other individuals which may be attracted to the album b the design.

The Purpose of Digipaks

Purpose of a Digipak 

Digipaks are used by artists for a variety of different purposes such as; 

·         To make the CD graphics eye-catching

·         To list the contents of the album

·         To promote the album

·         To use art and images to express a message

·         To attract as large an audience as possible

What have I learnt from this post?

From this I have learnt what I need to include when I comes to creating my own Digipak and how to make the overall look of the graphics look appealing to my target audience and also make it look professional.

The Purpose of Magazine Adverts

Purpose of a magazine advert;

Magazine adverts are used to attract a very large audience - everyone who reads the magazine. Making adverts for specific magazines that are popular among your target audience is a very effective way to notify the audience that the song or album will soon be release. It also tell the audience where they can purchase the CD.

Magazine advert examples;

What have I learnt from this post?

From this I have learnt what I need to include when I comes to creating my own magazine advert and how to make the overall look of the advert look appealing to my target audience and also make it look professional.

Music Video Audienecs

Audiences;

Artists will create their music videos towards their target audience. They do this by using different characteristics and generic conventions that are specific to their audience has become used to or what they enjoy to view.

For example, boy/girl bands will usually include some sort of dance routine in their music videos as it has been previously proven to be effective at attracting their target audience. 

An example of this is the girl band "Little Mix", where the generic conventions of pop have been used within the music video to engage their target audience and also to go with the genre of music that little mix generally go towards.

Another example of an artist using generic conventions of their genre to target the audience is Plan B. Within the song "Stay Too Long" by Plan B, the use of a night club for the general setting of the video targets Plan B target audience of teenagers/ young adults as they can relate to the messages within the video as well as the themes within the video. 

What have I learnt;

from this I have learnt that when making my own music video, I will need to really take into consideration the themes and also messages within the video. This is because the music video will need to target the specific audience we chose, so by including conventions not generically seen by this audience, the music video wouldn't be successful and target our specific audience.