Critical approaches to media

Monday, 26 January 2015

Production timetable

Project Name: CREATING A BAND
Project Dates:	From: To:
Agency Name:	Blue Bird Management
Project Team Members:
1. Sophie White	3. Jasmine Cole
2.	4.

Research Tasks	Strategy & Planning	Allocated to	Progress	Completion Date
Secondary Research: Research into record labels Further research into the pop rock industry	We have carried out research not only into the bands genre which is pop rock as it allows us to show why we have chosen the band genre and identity. We have carried this research further by looking into the labels that may sign us and are creative outlook. To do this we completed a collage of images that inspire us.	Sophie and Jasmine	Complete
Primary Research: Focus group	We have completed our focus group using a presentation displaying what we have created so far helping us develop the final decisions. From our presentation we got various feedback mostly positive. This has gave the results that we needed the only changes that this has sparked is is the change of logo.	Sophie and Jasmine	Complete
Creative Tasks	Campaign Strategy &Planning	Allocated to	Progress	Completion Date
NAME OF BAND AND IDENTITY PROFILE.	We created an outline of our developed band PRIM and have established who the individual members of the band are and what they are bringing to the band.	Sophie and Jasmine	Complete
DEFINING THE AUDIENCE	we have clearly defined out target audience throughly using accurate language. Studying things such as Physcographes and Geo demographics.	Sophie	Complete
CREATING LOGO	We both created a logo that we thought suited the band. This was decided using focus group feedback and have devloped our ideas further.	Sophie and Jasmine	Complete
CREATING MEDIA PRODUCTS	For our media products we have used a photoshoot featuring are lead singer. These photos have been eited through photoshop to create a CD cover and promotional poster.	Sophie	Complete
CREATING THE PITCH	The pitch was the hardest of the products to create as it had to summerise everything into a final presentation. This included a script which was placed upon cue cards. This then had to be presented to the class. This was completed to present all the information needed.	Sophie	Complete

A) Introduce your management company

Hi, we are Sophie from Bluebird management a small company focused launching the careers of young professional bands such as the one were discussing today. This Pitch has been set up to launch the career of PRIM an pop rock brand with an independant approach to the music industry as seen through their truely unique style.

B) Present the band/ artist to the record label

I am here today to present the small pop-rock band PRIM. Bluebird management truly believe that PRIM will thrive at Marshall Teller Records as they fit with your unique label in both style and production methods. As the management team we have carried out extensive research into the field and have came up with the findings that as the small band they are they will suit the independant label as it incouperates the right mixture of lifestyle and professionalism. They will suit your label particularly due to the musical backround which is very similair to that of bands that you have already signed such as The Vaccines and Winter Drones. Marshall Teller will suit the band as it allows them and the record to hold a tight relationship allowing them to develop further, this is needed as PRIM are new to the industry and have to take the first steps. This developmental period also helps the label in the way that they are slightly moldable and have the ability to grow.

C) Explain the band's genre and music- Link it to the label's existing roster and specialised genres

Prims existing genre is of the indie/pop rock genre this is mixed with retro influences mostly from the teddy boy era this can not only be seen in their style but also throught there musical choices. This is the top selling genre in the music industry at the moment as famous band like Fall out Boy and 5 seconds of summer are starting to take over the charts. Your label particular has produced larger stars in this industry this can be seen with the band The Vaccines and many more your label. Prim has unique twist in the way that they play that brings back the memories of old rock n roll this alternetive style can help the label grow the diversity of the bands that you sign.

D) Discuss the bands profile/identity - give musical background etc., then describe their demographic ( audience profile ) and explain their popularity ( existing fan base and social media followers)

Name: Prim

We chose Prim because of the line 'Prim & proper' which we feel matches our bands concept and style, hopefully contradicting the genre of music the band will play.

Number of members: 4 (Singer, Guitar, Bass & Drummer)

We choose 4 after iconic bands such The Beatles and All Time Low. This is also typical of a pop rock band. The lead singer will be female whilst the three male, we are hoping that this will make our band stand out in a limited market where male lead singers have dominated.

Music they will play and what it's about:

Pop rock

The bands music will have a message, each album will a concept for example, Green Day's album American Idiots and MCR's album The Black Parade. We have chosen this because these are often best selling albums in a popular market, it hooks young people, creating memories around the band and giving them a snapshot of their youth.

The look:

They will be suited to fit their name Prim (and proper) but with an underlining of mischief, for example how you would see someone looking in a suit after coming out of a club. We are hoping to take inspiration from Teddy Boys from the 80's (and 50's).

Individual members:

Lead singer
Name: Jennet Jane
Age: 21
Height: 5'6
Description of looks: fierce red hair with olive skin, slim physique, strong fashion sense, greeny grey
Interests: Instruments, art, foodie, music fanatic
Style: Vintage/Teddy Boys

Guitar player
Name: Nick 'Nasty Nick'
Age: 23
Height: 5'9
Description of looks: short dark hair (curled/messy), bit on the chubbier side (not fat!), olive skin, grumpy looking, baby blue eyes
Interests: foodie, singer/songwriter, fashion
Style: Rock/Teddy Boy (forced into vintage)

Drummer:
Name: Ted 'Teddy Boy'
Age: 18
Height: 5'11
Description of looks: weedy looking, pale skin, bad posture, hair colour changes, longish hair, black/dark brown
Interests:Social media, instruments, revolting (teddy boy era)
Style: Vintage/Teddy Boy

Bass Player
Name: Nate
Age: 21
Height: 5'6
Description of looks: Baby faced, dark hair, cropped short hair, bit of a posh tot, baby blue eyes
Interests: movie & comic buff, instruments, social media
Style: younger version of nick (nick wannabe)

The style inspiration seen on presentation.

To establish where our brand PRIM will market towards we have had to create a clear audience identity. This identity will be inspired from the resources we have gained whilst carrying out research on simlair bands within the same genre. The considerations will be :

Age : The age group of PRIMs audience is difficult to determine as although they are of a pop rock genre which will typical attract 18-25 year olds, they also have a vintage theme in their music that may appeal to older teddy boys at the age of 50-60. This wide spread audience is hard to pinpoint although we do think because of the nature of the music and the fact that its not about the look for the band they will attract mostly people in their early 20's.

Gender : The main gender of PRIM's listeners will mainly be male although we are hoping to make it as gender neutral as possible. The lead singer in the band is female, this has been done to attract female to the band despite the genre and style of the band that is more male orientated.

Social economics : PRIM's fans will be within the student age bracket meaning they fall into the C an D groupings. My fans will fall into this bracket as they will have limted money ti amy mean the band keeps their ticket prices low and may play only small independant gigs.

Physcographics :

A) Personality
The typical listener will follow vintage values. This may mean that they are quirky and confident as they don't mind sticking out from the crowd. They will carry this through to everyday events such as shopping by doing it in a truely orginal way. They are not afraid to buy second hand and do crafting and DIY. They highly respect fashion and music including the connection between the both. They will be talkative and have strong sense of humour and originality.

B) Values
They will have strong values that include helping charities that support difference and are against predjudice. I think this will be because they are different that have had to hear the odd comment about the way they dress or the music they like because its different and not mainstream.

C) Interest
I think that they will be into history, fashion and music. They will follow these religiously and because of the age bracket they are in it will be the majority of their social life time. They attend gigs regualrly to find new bands that are starting in the industry. They are strong beleivers in not only the music market but also the music itself.

D) Attitudes
They are forward thinking positive people that are confident although they are part of the rock scene which can have negative connections. This is similair to the attitude of the band who are part of the rock scene but have a niche approach to it.

E) Lifestyle
The age bracket means that they are most likely to be students so they will have a hectic lifestyle and may attend weekend gigs to calm down. This will be how they have social interation instead of going to pubs and clubs. They will enjoy music although they may not be hardcore fans of every band they enjoy.

Overall, PRIM's listeners will be confident with a relaxed approach to life and enjoy a wide variety of music. They are interested in smaller bands that are new to the market. They will spend the majority of their spare money on gigs and music supporting the indie music industry.

Geo demographics: England- They are a british based band that will typically tour in the UK. This will mean that these small indie band lovers will live typically in this area. They will tour round universities in this area as well.

Ethnicity: British- This will be because they are based in England and they will sell their music and tour in this area.

Sexual Orientation: Hetrosexual- I think that the listeners will mainly be straight although this will only be the typical for the majority of the audience. This means that there maybe outliers that also enjoy the band. The band themselves are hetrosexual and this will be projected in their followers.

Consumption History : I think their consumption history will be mainly made of smaller indie bands that are not well known and may play small pub or club gigs. These may be artist like The Holidays, Gold motel and Wilson. They will enjoy the industry but may not like what the larger more commercial bands are like.

Cross-Cultural Consumer Characteristics: I think that the listeners of our band will fall into the reformers into reformers category. They will be do gooders to the enviorment and the industry they support. They like the idelogy that is caring and supportive of the product.

Exsting fan base :

PRIM has a small following of students across the UK as they have toured university cities and town allowing them to reach to their desired target audience. They have also reached out using social medias such as facebook and twitter in which now they are gaining more and more followers on the daily basis. Their music has been published through Youtube to gain further knowledge from the market around them and allowing them to gain a proffesional edge. There typical follower will go to more then one gig a week and maining attends local pubs and gigs in smaller locations like university union rooms and more.

E) Media products- Explain design concept of Logo/CD cover and Poster.

To establish the band appereance and look we have made a mock edition of the CD cover for the bands first album The lady in Red. The first element of this photoshoot was the image taken proffesionally to suit the cover. We looked into the style that we wanted to portrait and found that it was an indie feel with the pop of the retro syle and colours this can be seen most in the photoshoot when looking at the contrast of the background from the lead singer who can be reconised on both the cover and poster. This was soon edited into the cover that you can see hear.

The poster is very simlair to the CD cover and had the same influences this includes the direct lines to the main subject and the use of clear bold text in simair fonts.

As you can see on both of these products the main logo has not been used this was due to difficulties in the production company.

F) Focus group research

In the development of PRIM we carried out research into the correct image for the band, we gathered mostof our research through primary research such as s focus group. When presenting PRIM to this group the main reaction was positive as they were unique and did not follow the trend. Although some changes were made through this including the decision of logo and some changes to the overall feel of the band including the age range of followers.

G) Wind it up- find something positive

Thank you for listening I hope to be hearing from you soon, have you any questions ?

Sunday, 25 January 2015

A photo shoot : Creating a public image.

Whilst developing our PRIM we have focused on developing an image that can be seen on the cover of the CD and for any public images that may be seen when promoting the band. To do this I carried out a short photoshoot with a model that has a similair image to the band we have developed. To improve this photo shoot I would have used more models to represent the whole band not just the lead singer. Here are a few of the selected photos that have been taken :

Friday, 16 January 2015

Management ID

The management company for my band will be bluebird management. This is a small company that will specialise in indie and niche bands. The logo is :

Tuesday, 6 January 2015

PRIM audience profile

Structure of the Contemporary Music Industry

Top Music Industries and the record labels they own:

Sony Music Entertainment (company) owns:

Syco Music/Syco Records (One Direction, Olly Murs, Little Mix, Cher Lloyd)
Columbia Records (AC/DC, Adele, Beyonce, David Bowie, Bullet For My Valentine, The Byrds, Matt Cardle)
Epic Records (Michael Jackson, The Fray, Meghan Trainor, JLS, Avril Lavigne, Sara Bareilles)

Warner Music Group (Company) owns:

Atlantic Records (James Blunt, Bruno Mars, Cold Play, Tracy Chapman, The Click Five, The Foo Fighters. Death Cab For Cutie, Ed Sheeran, Fun., Genesis, Hunter Hayes, Jason Mraz)
Warner Bros. Records. (Blur, Avenge Sevenfold, Gerard Way, Goo Goo Dolls, JYJ, Linkin Park, Kimbra, MIKA, MCR)

Dreamboat Records (Independent Record Label) (Bear In Heaven, This Is The Kit, Robin Allender, The Rollercoaster Project, Whalebone Polly)

G! Discs (Independent Record Label) (Billy Bragg, The Beautiful South, Madness, Paul Weller)

Imaginary Records (Independent Record Labels) (Sonic Youth, XTC, Nirvana, The Chameleons)

Friday, 5 December 2014

Major VS Independant record labels

Major VS Independent record labels

Introduction

The music industry is large expansive industry that is constantly growing. In this report I will compare the contrast between independent and major record labels and hopefully come to a conclusion what will be the best for my newly produced band Prim. In the modern age the music industry is becoming available to everyone as we can self publish music online and through many other services, my band Prim will already have done this so I want to find a label that leaves them with some entitlement to their songs allowing them to keep some independence. To compare the labels, that will possibly sign my artist to help produce their music and launch them, I will look at what they have to offer but I will also evaluate what the business will be losing in the process.

'Major' record labels

70% of the music industry is made of 'major' record labels mostly owned by american based companies. America is one of our largest media producers and often in connected to the whole entertainment industry because they are the largest investors. This is the control that major records have over the industry. Being such a last investor means that they are able to fund thousands of musicians allowing them to plough more money into marketing and producing the band. The larger labels in this market include Warner music group, EMI, Sony Music and Universal music group. All of these labels have connections to many other connected businesses allowing them to use the produced music in many ways including on soundtracks.

There are many advantages to being signed by a major record label the most important being the fact that they can provide exccessive amounts of funding for newly signed artists. This has happened due to the fact that the record labels have not only produced funding through other successful artists but also because they are connected to investors from within connected companies that provide money for the newly signed artist. With this amount of funding you can produce higher quality music because they can use the newly developed recording suites and the best technology available. This higher quality means that is also more likely to reach higher places such as the top of the charts and is more likely to be played on the radio. Networking and growing contacts are major elements in the music industry as they help for promotion. If you are part of a major record label you have more opportunities to network not only with the people within your label but also any other connected companies that your label may have worked with. This is mainly because of their size and reputation the label would have worked with many people in the industry in the past and could also be part of a synergy allowing you to work with other companies that the conglomerate may own giving you promotion through tv and print.

Major label also come with their disadvantages such as artist unfriendly deals where the artist is forced to be something they don't want to be because its commercially viable. These deals have been known to be damaging to artists within the business cause it limits their freedom and sometimes their choices as a artist. They also own the rights to the music meaning that you cant choose what projects its connected to and who plays it on the radio. Overall,major record labels limit the freedom that the artist may have in the industry tieing them down to a specific image. This can mean there is alot of pressure from the label and the industry as a whole because if your first album does not sell well you may get dropped and this can happen at any time they want. This can lead to artists struggling with the pressure.

'Indie' record labels

Indie labels have become a major movement in the music industry slowly growing in popularity over the year. The definition of an indie label can be blurry but the official definition I found is a "a recording label that operates without the funding from major organisations". This in basic terms means that they have no funding bigger couperation also meaning they dont have the pressure that major labels have. Indie label can consist just of one person if they want as you do not have to be part of a large group to have your own label. Popular examples of Indie labels include Cooking Vinyl and Pink mist who also have big named artist signed but are not part of the major label group.

Their are many advantages to being signed to an independant label including the fact that artist get all the rights to the music produced giving them full control of what is done when its produced meaning that they control their own careers. Indie labels also sign you because of their belief in your music and career, they do not want to mold you to fit a sellable image. They also form close personal relationships with the artists because they chosen them personally as the artists career is one of the most important things. This comes together to form pro artist contracts that give the artist the ability to grow without any un needed pressure. They provide the growth that is needed for an artist that is new to the buiness and is finding themselves. These labels also have many schemes that are positive for the artist as the artist will be paid for their music eaither through profit sharing programmes or royalties which they are being paid directly for their work. Indie labels are more personal and postive through systems that help the artist.

There are disadvantages to being signed to indie labels as they cannot provide the funding that a major label can because they have a smaller budget. This smaller budget does mean that there is less chance of recording also meaning that they will have to use less advanced technology. They will also cut down cost through cutting down on production, packaging and distribution. These cuts also extend to the amount of marketing that the label can provide often leading the artist or group to create their own marketing in whatever way they can especially using self promotion through popular site such as facebook or twitter. Indie labels are also smaller so they haven't built the reputation that a major label may have this mean they will also have less influence and power within the music industry although this is currently growing with the modern age. Overall the lack of money does mean that the label is closer to its artists but does leave them at a loss of quality produced music.

Conclusion

The music industry overall is complex trading ground and this is seen through the two different sized labels. Major label have the funding that is needed to get the first step into a bigger career although they don't have the personality and comfort independent label can provide. This also harms the artist trying to make a descion as they must know what they want. If they love music and producing it no matter what the cost they will be at home with an indie labels that can help them grow and produce music that might not come with the benefits from excessive amounts of money. If the artist on the other hand is looking for fame and popularity they may sign to a major that can provide them with all the marketing and promotion that they might need to accomplish this goal. Overall major labels are powerful and influential although they are less intimate and personal with their artists where as indie labels are smaller pro artist companies that dont have the funding that they need.

Recommendations

Due to this report we at Blue Bird management have decided with our newly produced band Prim we are going to sign to a Independent label. We have chosen this mainly sue to their pro artist contracts that will allow Prim to grow before they are forced into the pressures that are connected to being in the major music industry. This way they will control every turn of their career and can use their music anyway that they want. Prim are more interested in making music then becoming famous.This is also suited to their already established fan base. As they will be able to carry on doing smaller gigs for their student aged fans without raising the prices. This way they will be established in the industry but can still keep their independent and unique background.

The independent label that we think as management will suit Prim is Marshall Teller. This small independent label started with the creator Leon Diaper and his couch producing music from 2010 with some of the biggest names in alternative rock such as The vaccines. This will suit Prim build their audience as the connected bands within the label have similar markets meaning that the label have simlair knowledge and history with marketing for this niche audience. The label is said to be great with newcomers to the industry and have other specialist bands that are very alike to Prim. Overall, the choice of a independent label that specializes in alternative rock not only suites the choices that Prim would make but also has less pressure then a major label.