Typography: Minimal text

is included in the digipak.

The text that is included

‘Rihanna’ is in white, plain

font and is very spaced

out. This emphasises the

simplicity of the album

and sort of suggests a

completely different

image for the artist in

comparison to her

previous album. The title

of the album ‘Loud’ it too

written in this plain

spaced out font, and is

shown to be much larger

than the other text. This

again is suggesting a sort

of fresh start and new

image, which coincides

with the fact that Rihanna

had new hair and a new

promotional image.

Andrew Goodwin’s idea of demands of the record label

can be identified here, as the main focal point of the

image on the front of the cover is Rihanna’s Lips and red

hair. Together, both being bold red, attract all of the

attention from the viewer. Red hair became Rihanna’s

trademark for a while, so the record company would want

this to be featured as it is a selling point of her image.

Goodwin’s notion of

looking as well as

Mulvey’s male gaze

theory can also be

recognised here as

some people may

argue that red lips

are a sexual part of

the woman, and this

is where the eyes

are attracted to. The

lips together with

her bare shoulder

could be said to be

through a man’s

perspective

Dyer’s star theory can be seen as

it could be argued that Rihanna is

a fake character and is presented

as just an image and this may not

be the same person as who she is

behind the scenes.

The colour scheme,

images and

typography of this

digipak all contribute

to what was

Rihanna’s new image

for the CD. This

image promoted a

very feminine version

of the artist, the pink

of the flowers

connotes girliness

and is stereotypically

the colour that

represents women or

what women are

attracted to.

This soft and feminine image was maintained in her music videos

where she wears pink skirts and girly outfits etc. She also

promoted her own perfume at this time, and the campaigns for this

used the same theme as this digipak did. This theme of Rihanna’s

new image is comprised within this digipak.

Rihanna is the key signifier within this artwork. She is the most

important aspect of this and it is very obvious from the fact that a

close up shot of her face is used. This use of a close up of her

face and minimal text emphasises the fact that she is a huge

and very influential figure in the music industry, therefore her

image is important however her name is not because everybody

already knows it.

Reception –

The preferred

audience will

immediately

recognise the

image as being

Rihanna and will

enjoy the visuals of

her face and her

new image.

Oppositional

audience may not

receive the image

well and may say

that Rihanna Is

highly sexualized.

The colour red of the

roses could connote

the theme of the songs

within the album which

are about love,

passion, pain, romance

, heartbreak etc. This

theme is running

throughout the visuals

such as her hair, her

lips and the roses. This

could however also be

symbolic of danger

which is something

that can also be

recognised in the

music. Therefore this is

sort of creating a

mystery as to what

theme her songs are,

and the audience can

look forward to finding

out and interpreting it

in their ways.

In the inside cover the dark reds are contrasted

against Rihanna's skin and her white dress, which

connotes innocence and purity. This is something

that is also linked to her new image – as her

previous album ‘R’ displayed a sexual, fierce and

edgy Rihanna. This image is pure and refreshing

and promotes a character that is sexually

attractive in a more wholesome way.

The image of her lying down displays sex

appeal however she is not flaunting her body

in a provocative way which means she does

not appear threatening to her female

audience whilst still appearing attractive to

her male audience.

Rihanna's star

image is now

focused around

her bold red hair.

This hair change

may be

representing

also a change to

her music, and

did in fact set off

a worldwide

trend of female

fans dying their

hair ‘Rihanna

Red’

The CD’s contain a

graphic image of a light

pink rose on them, this

connotes the theme of

the digipak, showing a

soft feminine feel. The

colour of this rose is

contrasting against the

dark red of the roses

that Rihanna is lying on

and this symbolizes

variety within Rihanna’s

character and music.

Perhaps the red roses

connote to her more

sexual music such as

‘skin’ and the light pink

flowers relate more to

her love ballads such

as ‘California king bed’.

These roses signify a

balance of the themes

within the album.

In the large image of the artist lying down, her body

language and facial expression suggest a sense of worry or

distress, perhaps sadness. This links back to the theme of

her songs being mainly about love in the album, however

she does not show this distress in an obvious way which

creates an enigma and allows the audience to work out what

it means, the audience may also be able to relate to and

sympathise with the artist in her distress about love. This

ambiguity is contrasting with the LOUD title and this creates

the idea that there is more to the artist than meets the eye,

thus creating an attraction to the album. A sense of passion

can be recognised in

Rihanna’s facial

expression on the

front cover as she

has her eyes closed

and looks like she Is

thinking, she could

be embracing the

music. This relates to

the artist’s passion

for her music and

what it means.

It could be argued that this album

cover is not stereotypical of the pop

genre as it appears very minimalistic

and almost could be similar to a

classical music album. However I

think the heavy makeup helps the

audience identify that it is pop.