Audience/Target Audience

'Audience' is a very important concept throughout media studies. All media texts are made with an audience in mind, ie a group of people who will receive it and make some sort of sense out of it. And generally, but not always, the producers make some money out of that audience. Therefore it is important to understand what happens when an audience "meets" a media text.

Audience Engagement : This describes how an audience interacts with media texts.

- So how will my target audience interact with my music video?

My music video is for a song that will be able to be played on a wide array of media. You'd be able to wake up to the song being played on the radio. The video will be played on many different music channels such as MTV Base, MTV, Massive R&B etc. This will be very convenient for my target audience because many teenagers and young adults spend a lot of their time watching music video channels, especially MTV Base because it focuses primarily on music from the world of R'n'B, hiphop, reggae, soul and urban. To add to its marketing and wide availability, the music video will be posted on the Rihanna's (the artist) website which is viewed by millions of viewers every day. The video will also be posted on YouTube and blogs. Furthermore, this is quite a sentimental song. It would be suitable to be used as a soundtrack for films that present the theme of love and relationships.

Audience Expectations : there are what the audience thinks about an artist and their music.

- So what are the things my target audience assumes/thinks about Rihanna and her music?

Rihanna's music is very passionate, regardless of what topic a particular song is about. Taking into consideration all her music since 2009, her music videos have been very diverse but meaningful, as well as her growing comfortably to be known for her sex appeal. However, with Rihanna it is assumed to expect the unexpected because she is so diverse and varied with her music videos, the themes they portray and her tone of voice in the different songs. With Rihanna it isn't safe to say that the video will conform to all of Goodwin's theory, nevertheless, the music video most often an active illustration of the lyrics.

Audience Foreknowledge : this is what my target audience knows about Rihanna as an artist already and what her songs have been like.

- So what do the audience already know about Rihanna?

Rihanna's personal feelings and attitude has been incorporated into her music since she was abused by her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown in 2009. I refer back to this event a lot in my blog because this was a significant change in Rihanna's life, and therefore it affected her as a musician and we were presented with something new.

Censorship

Actual censorship began in 1955, when over 30 songs were banned; many of them by black artists. Examples of censorship of music range from changed or excluded lyrics (this falls into the category of what is known as “radio edit”), to restricted cover album artwork, to the banning of artists airing on the radio or television for numerous conflicts, such as moral and racial/religious issues.

My genre: R&B music videos are known to grasp people’s attention because they place emphasis on sexual desires and drug references. They present these things as no longer having to be secret acts and therefore were/are seen to corrupt young minds and promote immoral behaviour.  Therefore it is most often subject to censorship.

For example, Rihanna’s ‘We Found Love’ video isn’t played on television until after 9pm on a daily basis. This is because it is seen as inappropriate for young viewers as it presents intimacy, drinking and drug abuse.

Neyo's video to 'Lazy Love' is also only shown on TV after specific times on specific channels. It was banned from BET.

Usher's video to 'Trading Places' is shown on TV after 9pm.

In order to allow songs to be played wherever possible, it is common to censor particular words, particularly swearwords. Some music labels or artists produce clean versions themselves, sometimes with alternative lyrics, to comply with the rules set by various radio and television programs.

For example, in Nicki Minaj’s song ‘Right By My Side’, she says in her original and explicit version:

“It ain’t your spit game it’s your dick game”

In the radio edited/clean version, the inappropriate words are distorted; this is when the pitch is altered in order to make the word non-understandable.

However, in other cases, artists simply change the word to one less offensive.

The total censorship of a song is often reported in the mass media and often has the effect of drawing more attention to the song than it would have received had it not been banned. Equally, the censorship of a word can highlight it to such a degree that it makes it more obvious what the singer has said. This is why I have chosen not to include any controversial content in my music video. Furthermore, as Goodwin said, most videos have a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals, the lyrics to my chosen song are in no way controversial and therefore there isn’t any reason for there to be any controversial visuals. Also, I want my video to be able to relate to people within its subculture and outside it, so I wouldn’t want to include content that isn’t suitable for all viewers.

Within my music video, I won't be presenting anything that would have to be specifically labelled as explicit. Therefore, it won't need to be specifically censored.

Alternative Music Videos

Madonna - Frozen

Aphex Twins - Come To Daddy

These are both videos directed by Chris Cunningham.
 - Both videos are very dark and intimidating.
 - Both videos use special effects.
 - Both videos are monochromatic.
 - Both videos are quite gothic themed.
 - Both videos aren't the usual videos one is used to seeing on the television everyday.

Kanye West - Heard Em Say

The White Stripes - Fell In Love With A Girl

These are both videos directed by Michel Gondry.
 - Both these videos are very creative.
 - They both use special effects.

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•Because these are considered alternative music videos, they don't conform to any of the steps in Goodwin's theory. None of these music videos follow the usual sort, or stereotypical music video for its genre. Furthermore, they are all different.

•Kanye West is a very well known Hip-Hop artist and he is the one and only Hip-Hop artist Michel Gondry ever worked with. Using his signature special effects, Gondry created a surrealistic Christmas story within the seemingly living department store, where among other things, toys come to life, suits dance, and beds can be driven like cars. This definitely challenges every theory, and most especially Goodwin's theory. This is because Kanye West is narrating a story in a very creative and child friendly way, when usually Hip-Hop artists usually have music videos that portray violence and/or naked women etc. In this music video, Michel Gondry has used children and special effects instead. This makes the video challange Goodwin's theory about the lyrics and the visuals having a relations, in this case, the visuals hardly relate to the lyrics but it's telling a story anyway. It challanges the subculture theories because Kanye West would be considered to be part of the Hip-Hop and Rap subculture, but here, he would categorized into a more alternative subculture. This goes to show that people are diverse, not only as groups but within themselves. Kanye West made this alternative music video, but he also went back to his usual Hip-Hop/R&B/Rap music videos after. So maybe people can belong to many different subcultures. And rather than it being a rebellion against the mainstream, it is trying new things and styles.

•In a way, they do conform to Hebdige's theory about people being part of 'little cultures' because besides the odd case (Kanye West), all these music videos would appeal to a niche market of its own. And those niche markets may also be called 'little cultures.

•The Advantages of having an alternative music video is that it is different, unusual and therefore insightful and intriguing. It invites the media hype, one of the diverse music videos will have more controversy than a conventional music video and this makes it the topic of discussion in the industry. It is unique, so when the audience see it, it could possibly be memorable than a normal music video. It also presents the exploring of deeper creativity, so the idea of robots having feelings for each other was made possible because the director and the artist had unconventional ideas, which will appeal to their niche audience as they feel the same.

•The Disadvantages of having a diverse music video is that the audience might not understand the concept, or the message the artists is trying to portray, this will make it confusing and not enjoyable to the audience or rather it will only appeal to a niche market so the relationship between the audience and artist is limited. Due to it being an alternative music video, it just may not do as well as a mainstream video commercially and furthermore, it just may not be as enjoyable for as many people.

•Therefore, I won't be using any elements of alternative music videos. My video will fit very much within the conformities of a mainstream video which is my aim because the video is supposed to be relatable.

History of Music Videos

Ways in which people can consume music videos?

-          YouTube

-          Social Networks

-          Television

-          Online Radio websites

 

How do people watch music videos via the distribution channels of television and the internet?

•The music television cable network MTV was launched in the summer of 1981, and brought music videos to the cable television audience. MTV has rocked audiences ever since. The station was created when Robert Pittman, now executive vice president and chief operating officer of MTV Networks, came up with the idea of putting music videos on cable TV. Music videos had already existed; they were primarily used as promotional tools for the sale of albums. Although music videos originated as promotional tools for record albums, the videos themselves present the viewer with far more than music: they provide information about fashion and cosmetics, lifestyles, and social roles and behaviour. (www.acrwebsite.org)

•According to MTV's own research, 54% of its audience is in the 12 to 24 age group.

•Internet is a relatively young distribution channel for music videos compared with television. However, the internet is used to watch music videos more because music television channels such as MTV have changed their focus more to reality TV shows and to entertainment shows.

•Music videos are very important because people feel that by watching them they’re Hearing the music and seeing the musicians performing at the same time and gaining a better understanding of the lyrics through the visualisations.

•ijea.org  have said that educators and artists alike are seeing new ways to express their art though technological means. Digital technology has brought with it new media. Since the digital revolution, the masses have been able to view or listen to digitalized artwork from a drive and on the internet, making it even easier for the consumption art.

 

History of music video’s timeline

 

History of Rihanna as an artist

Rihanna became famous following the release of her debut album Music of the Sun in 2005.

Less than a year after that, she released her second studio album, A Girl Like Me in 2006.

Rihanna's third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad was released the following year in May 2007.

•Rihanna’s fourth studio album was titled Rated R and was released in 2009 and her fifth album, Loud was released in 2010. Rihanna's sixth studio album was Talk That Talk which was released in late 2011. She is currently working on her seventh studio album, Unapologetic.

•Rihanna has stated that Madonna is one of her idols and biggest influences, and said she wants to be the "black Madonna”. She said: "I think that Madonna was a great inspiration for me, especially on my earlier work. If I had to examine her evolution through time, I think she reinvented her clothing style and music with success every single time. And at the same time remained a real force in entertainment in the whole world."

•Rihanna’s image has been seen as one of the best constructed celebrity images of all time. It is evident from her 6 album covers that she has differentiated and broken boundaries and expectations. She has challenged what is perceived as normal with her lyrical content and her style and fashion. New York magazine described Rihanna's early look as that of a “cookie-cutter teen queen” however she remained able to diversify and look edgy. Rihanna began as a sweet good girl and typical teenager who sang songs about young love, dance and having fun. She was often likened to looking and dressing like Beyoncé.

 

•Music-wise, her second album differed to her first album because it wasn’t just up-tempo fun songs and love songs. She showed that she was maturing. Her goal on the album was supposedly to present songs that express many things young women want to say, but might not know how. In an interview, Rihanna said, "Now I'm singing about experiences that I've gone through and stuff that other 18-year-old girls go through, so it's all about progression."

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Her third studio album presented a completely new image and it was supported by its title, Good Girl Gone Bad. Rihanna said "it shows people I'm not trying to look or be anybody else. I basically took the attitude of the bad girl and I really got rebellious and just did everything the way I wanted to do it—I didn't want to listen to anybody. I didn't consult with anybody. I just want to have a little more fun with my music and be a little more experimental in terms of my image and my sound."

•Rated R was released after Rihanna's assault by her then-boyfriend, singer Chris Brown. Larry Meyler of the Sun stated that "Rihanna going bad is very good" and that she had "shaken off any 'teen pop' image." Rated R features different types of songs and embodies an angry tone in terms of her musical and lyrical presentation, and the album incorporated more elements of hip hop and rock than any of her previous albums that were more reggae and pop and R&B. This album was perceived to be presenting her feelings about the assault and her new attitude.

 

•Her fifth album, Loud, offered more flirtatious, sassy and sexual songs and that was presented with her image as well. Rihanna was growing up into a young woman and it was definitely presented through her music and lyrical content.

In October 2011, Esquire declared Rihanna as the Sexiest Woman Alive for 2011. Rihanna has been named the best-selling digital artist of all time in the United States, having sold 47,571,000 million singles and albums.

Furthermore, technology has had a lot to with Rihanna's change in attitude, music and music videos. Rihanna is one of the artists that spend a lot of time on social networks. She has recently advertised the making of her new video 'Diamonds' and claims she was inspired by her fans and what they have told her they wanted from twitter and instagram.
Rihanna's music videos have conveyed an 'I don't care' message more and more over time. This is because she has grown up - age wise and mentally - and it is portrayed through her music by the props she has used more over time (drugs, sexual references/toys, alcohol) which are for an older audience. Also, as mentioned before, the fact she was abused by fellow singer Chris Brown changed her attitude because she became a victim of the media. Despite the fact the situation happened three years ago, Rihanna and Chris Brown have been seen together more and more recently and this has put her back into the focus of the media so her music videos again are conveying the message of not caring and keeping a positive attitude.
I believe that Rihanna's music video history is so distinct and varied because of her personal life and she has presented her feelings and moreover, herself, through her music videos. We've been able to see her on a more personal level due to her opening up Behind The Scenes videos for fans.
Nevertheless, although she has began to use explicit content/lyrics I think she still aims for the same target audience - young teenagers to young adults, this is because they can relate to her, no necessarily all her music videos but to her as a person.