Research: Star image in music videos

Star Image

What is star image?

Star image is the way in which an artist is portrayed to the audience, taking into consideration their image, in the way they look, dress and behave. Star image is effectively represented through music videos, as a mainstream and international audience are able to identify star image and recognise how it changes over time. An artists star image is important as it determines the success of the artist and allows the audience to form opinions about them. It is further important for the music industry as artists success determines the industries overall success and their financial gain. 

How can music videos help boost an artist's career?

• Makes the artist more popular- A successful music video can enhance an artists fame and popularity making them more famous in the music industry. 

• Shows the artist off to a mass audience- Without a music video, an artist may only be known by a small audience, whereas a music video that is available on numerous platforms such as Youtube, iTUBE, iTunes etc, is likely to show an artist off to a larger, audience, possibly making the artist globally or internationally successful. 

• Promotes the artists image- The way in which an artist is portrayed within their music video allows them to promote their image to the audience, giving them a sense of individuality and uniqueness. For example, Lady Gaga promotes a unique image through her different outfits. 

• Music videos live longer than an artists single- Once a music video has been uploaded onto media platforms and social networking sites it is unlikely that they will be removed, unless there are censorship issues, therefore, they are likely to receive many viewings over time, in comparison to an artists single which is unlikely to be listened to after the hype revolving it has dispersed. 

• Artist and audience build a relationship- A music video allows the artist to build a relationship with their audience as the audience feel closer to the artist and can relate to particular lyrics or narratives within the music video. This also allows the artist to build a fan base. 

However, music videos could also jeopardise an artists career if they are misinterpreted by the audience, causing them to lose loyal fans, and unsuccessful due to lack of viewings and interest shown by the audience. 

Case study...

Kylie Minogue 

As a class we looked at the developments of Kylie Minogue's music videos over time discovering how they changed and how this also influenced her image to change as a result. 

1980's 

• Started in the soap industry, playing in 'Neighbours'. 
• Her target audience was teenage girls as they were able to relate to Minogue's songs and behaviour.
• She had an innocent and sweetheart image and girly body language.
• Her singles were never sexy or based around hardcore relationships.
• She had young girl values which were cheerful and chilled.
• Her lyrics were childish and innocent.

Early 90's

• Her target audience drifted to boys and girls in their late teenage years.
• She began to intimidate young teenage girls as they were unable to connect or relate to her. 
• Her appearance also changed: she become more glamorous and sophisticated in a sexual way to attract attention from the opposite sex and to be admired by females. 
• Her dancing changed into choreographed dance routines where she was centre of attention.
• Her values became attractive to the opposite sex.
• Her lyrics become more mature and deep.

Late 90's

• Her target audience drifted from teenagers to a wider male audience due to her maturing looks.
• Minogue become more sexy and daring which was perceived as more intimidating and empowering for some audiences. 
• Her values as changed, she was perceived as becoming more independent and portrayed flirting suggesting that there was no harm in it at all.
• Her dances also developed, as she began to dance alone in skimpy outfits. 
• Her lyrics become very confident and daring towards the opposite sex. For example, she claims "I've got nothin' left to hide".

2000's

• Minogue's target audience become young adults in their 20's, due to Minogue producing music for clubs. 
• Her appearance become very sexual but in an aggressive and intimidating way. 
• She began having more backup dancers and the style of it was very sexual and daring.
• Her values suggested that you should be confident in yourself.
• Her lyrics changed becoming more aggressive, supported by Minogue's daring tone.

Miley Cyrus

I looked at how Miley Cyrus's music videos have changed over the years, and how this has influenced her image. 

2007

Miley began her career through the Disney programme 'Hannah Montanna' and was seen as a role model, appealing to the young female audience. 

She went on to develop her career beginning to sing. Her music video '7 things' which was released in the 2007 portrayed Miley as innocent and relatable to the young female audience, as she sang about a popular girl problem, talking about a boy, claiming "You're vain, your games, you're insecure, You love me, you like her". Although she was talking about relationships despite her young age, she talks about it in a very innocent way, not sexual at all, her values being that every girl experiences heartbreak. 

Miley is seen to have minimal makeup on with her long hair open and curly, promoting her as a conventional teenager. She is perceived to be wearing a vests and skirts,  however, they do not show any of her personal assets in an inappropriate way. Moreover, she is seen to be performing alongside other young girls who also experience the same situation, making the video appeal to young female teenagers. She is dancing alone in the video supported by a band suggesting that the attention is on her. This video encouraged her to promote this image through the fast paced editing and basic locations where the video was set. 

2010

In 2010, Miley released her song 'Cant be tamed' which differs from her previous songs as it promotes that she is becoming more rebellious and does not take the audiences opinions into consideration. She also wears less clothing, revealing her cleavage with the camera capturing her sexual assets through close up shots. She is perceived to be wearing more makeup, with highlights in her hair  which also highlights that she is older.


The lyrics of the song are related to her life and the fact that she is ambitious and wants to be set free, the daring lyrics, " I can't be tamed, I can't be tamed, I can't be blamed" indicate Miley Cyrus's changing image, through the use of the repetition which also suggests that the artist is desperate to change. Her target audience drifted to older females from the ages of 17-21, who also felt they could relate to her situation. The close ups and long shots of the artist in the video highlights her developing stages into adolescence. Her dancing also involves more backing dancers making the video more daring. Her values within the video are that individuals should be free to do what they believe in, preventing them from being forced to do what others want.  

2013

However, her music video 'Wrecking Ball' which was released in 

2013 portrayed Miley Cyrus as changing completely, with her video evoking harsh criticism and controversy due to its inappropriate nature. Throughout the video Miley is seen to be sitting in a large ball, licking building tools such as hammers which are phallic imagery, relating to the artists sexuality. Moreover, she is perceived to be wearing minimal clothing, with the camera capturing her personal assets, which is supported by her bright red lipstick which symbolises love and lust reflecting Miley's personality. Her hair has also changed, becoming short and blonde which has supported her changing persona and image. Her dramatic change in image and behaviour has led to Miley's audience adapting from a mainstream audience to a niche audience, due to her behaviour not appealing to the younger audience. The younger audience would also be unable to relate to her, instead, perceiving her as a threat, due to her songs becoming more sexual and intimate rather than playful and light hearted. 

Stars and their image on the industry... 

Adele is portrayed as a quiet and powerful artist who is highly regarded within the music industry and seen as a role model by many females. Her behaviour and outfits reinforce this star image, as she is very modest and dresses in clothing that does not flaunt her body. 

Beyonce is regarded as a sexy and independent female artist as she is particularly known for her body, which is portrayed through her tight clothing which clearly outlining her body. She is seen as a role model to young females as they look up to her and hope to achieve as she has. 

Justin Bieber is perceived as a 'lad' as he is young and seen as every girls dream boy. His sexy image, behaviour and persona also promote this star image, also making Bieber a role model to young boys who aspire to be as successful as him in the future. However, his change in image from an innocent young boy to a young lad has created some controversy and led Bieber no longer having a mainstream audience, as young females are unable to relate or understand his music, instead his audience is older, teenage female audience. 

Rihanna is seen as a bad girl, as she has been seen to experiment in her music videos, trying numerous things that the audience regard as mental and unheard of. Her tight, skimpy outfits and colourful hair also reinforce this bad girl image. Rihanna's success and independence has also led to her being viewed as a role model by the teenage female audience, although it can be questioned as to whether this has developed into them perceiving her as a threat and intimidating due to her changing image over the years. 

Star image: Sexual reasons, political reasons, moral reasons and social reasons

• Star image...Sexual

Some people can use music videos to exploit or to feel comfortable with their sexuality. For example, Jessie J and Macklemore promote their support for the LGBT community by mentioning it in their songs. For example, Macklemore released the song 'Same Love', which talks about legalising same-sex marriage.

• Star image...Political 

Some artists, including Kanye West and George Michael use their music videos to promote their political views in order to spread awareness to a large audience informing and educating them about important, political issues. For example, Kanye West's Sierra Leone music video consists of a narrative showing young black children from west african countries who have been forced to mine conflict diamonds in order to make jewellery for other rich countries. This video was created in order to promote poverty and trafficking in third world countries, to influence his audiences opinions and decisions. However, due to the content, this music video was portrayed as controversial. 

Kanye West- Sierra Leone music video

• Star image...Moral 

Particular artists use music videos to express their personal opinions on issues what they believe are important and have value. For example, Michael Jackson promotes his opinions about morals through the 'Earth Song', using realism and harsh imagery to open the audiences eyes and to evoke emotion from them. 

• Star image... Social 

Some artists simply use their music videos to represent a type of lifestyle or ideologies they believe in. For example, 'The Saturdays' and 'Drake' are portrayed to reflect their lifestyles within their music videos through party- like and lively atmospheres. 

Drake

The Saturdays 

• Conclusion: 

Star image is particularly important as it encourages the audience to form opinions about artists and their decisions within music videos. seeing the transformation of artists can be shocking for the audience as they discover the changes that occur in an artists image and persona over time. When creating my music video I plan to represent my star in a conventional manner, ensuring that I follow Dyer and Goodwin's characteristics. This will prevent my star from receiving criticism about not suiting their role, and will ensure that the star image is appropriate to the genre of my song. I want my artist/ band to promote their moral values through the lyrics and their performance, as it is important for an artist to draw upon certain issues within society they feel should be addressed or lack the importance they deserve. In order to relate to the target audience my artist/band will also use the music video and the narrative to represent social values, by highlighting their lifestyle, making them conventional and reinforcing their mainstream values. I also want my artist/band to be represented through their image, such as their costume, hair and makeup determining their personality and values. This is important as the audience are likely to judge based on first appearances, therefore, it is beneficial to portray the artist/band through their image, expressing their persona to their target audience. Moreover, I want my artist/ band to maintain continuity, ensuring they do not change their image dramatically overtime resulting in them becoming a controversial subject within the music industry, like other artists such as Kylie Minogue and Miley Cyrus who are criticised for their dramatic transformation. Instead I want my artist to be portrayed as mainstream and niche, relating to a wider audience which can be done, as they can be represented as fullfiing a stereotypical image through their character however, maintaining originality within all of their music videos.