STAR IMAGE

BY LAUREN SHIELS

• One of the reasons so many pop performers are described as pop stars is that they are quickly promoted to this status by their management

As soon as a pop musicians begin to get more and more famous they are labelled as becoming the ‘next big pop stars’ purely based on their good looks and pop song covers• Stars are constructed, artificial images, even if they are represented as being "real

people", experiencing real emotions etc.In the publicities eye, stars are perceived as being ‘fake.’ When something happens to them such as experiencing emotions it is often dramatized by the media to ensure that their artificial image is still being shown• TV programmes such as The X Factor show us the supposed construction process, how an

ordinary person is groomed, styled and coached into fulfilling a set of record company and market expectations.

A number of artists in the charts now are coming through via constructed competitions such as ‘The X Factor.’ The judges help transform ordinary people into pop stars that are already on the scene by changing their style and image whilst coaching them to sing in a particular way. An example of this is Union J. They were created on the X Factor and coached into singing and styling in a particular way that made them look like any other boy band. They were quickly identified as being the next ‘One Direction’ purely based upon their performances on the TV show. During their stint on the show, member Jaymi Henley was perceived in the media as being fake when he came out as being gay. The media said the reason why he’s told the world now is because he wants to gain votes however he denies these and says it was just to simply get the news out of the way.

Jaymi- The Gay One JJ- The Shy One

George- The Cheeky One Josh- The Heartthrob

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE3v4Bv8NaYUnion J- Beautiful Life

They tend to manufacture what they think audiences want, hence the 'photocopied' nature of many boy bands, teen bands etcAs soon as upcoming bands release covers of popular stars they are often branded as the next one of them. This is often because the bands and their managers know that there is an audience for those so by replicating their image and songs they know that a particular listeners will like them. Bands like ‘Hometown’ support this theory. They started in 2014 to upload cover videos onto YouTube and then were part of a project in Ireland ran by Louis Walsh and were successful. They were quickly labelled as the new ‘Westlife’ and ‘Boyzone.’ They supported pop boyband ‘The Vamps’ on their tours in 2015 and 2016 which helped to improve their fan base as they are touring with a band similar to them. They released their first single in 2014 called ‘Where I Belong’ which got to number one in the Irish Charts. This is the same for Westlife’s first single ‘Swear it Again’ which also got to number one.There are some artists that don’t welcome the labelledness. An example of these artists are ‘The Vamps.’ They first began to rose to fame in the latter half of 2012 when they uploaded cover songs YouTube. This lead to comparisons with One Direction and being labelled as a boyband. They quickly rejected this association by coming out publically and stating ‘we are completely different bands’ due to a different more indie sound to them and the fact that they play their own instruments. There images aren’t matching fully but they do understand that their fan bases overlap.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrDistB6y_sHometown- Where I Belong

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCDdQwVRwxMThe Vamps- Wild Heart

Another way is to produce a star with long-lasting appeal, who, once their brand is established, can cater to a fan audience for decades (in the way U2 or the Rolling Stones have done).There are few artists that get to their 10th album because after a while their audiences find someone new to listen to. ‘Rolling Stones’ and ‘Coldplay’ are a great example of how artists can last a decade in the music industry and still hold a fan audience for that time. These artists often fulfil this by adapting to the years trends whilst still having their quirky unique element that was there on their first album. Coldplay have been together since 1996 and have released 7 albums. Each album they release still has the ‘hard rock’ that Coldplay is known for but they often explore with different sounds from electronic and acoustic elements. For instance their first album ‘Parachutes’ mainly contained slower songs with songs like Yellow’ whereas their latest album ‘A head full of Dreams’ sold colour and happiness with upbeat songs like ‘Hymn For The Weekend’ When you think of Coldplay you instantly think of high-tops and denim shirts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKNxeF4KMsYColdplay- Yellow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YykjpeuMNEkColdplay- Hymn For The Weekend

• All of this spells out big problems for independent labels. First of all, independent labels are unable to afford the high production costs attached to music videos. Several labels do make videos for their artists, but these are low-cost (about 1/6 the cost of the average MTV video) and rarely make it onto MTV, who plays flashy, high-cost video

High production videos get more views and broadcast than unsigned acts. This is because high production videos have more money to spend on CGI and special effects compared to an independent video which has a limited budget and are often a bit similar and restricted. Although this is often the case, there are some independent videos that become quite successful. For instance, ‘The Candle Thieves’ released their song ‘The Sunshine Song’ in 2009 and it got nominated for best pop independent video at the UK Music Video Awards in the same year. Therefore this illustrates how independent videos can become just as successful as one done by a label. An example of a high production video that justifies how independents struggle to compete is ‘Bad Blood’ by Taylor Swift. The video cost almost $500,000 and included 15 female celebrities such as Selena Gomez and Cara Delevigne. The plot of the video revolves around the characters fighting. The video used special effects such as fireballs, CGI for a London skyline and expensive tailored costumes. The video broke the Vevo world record with over 20 million views in its first 24 hours.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcIy9NiNbmoTaylor Swift- Bad Blood

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i7eZbqCXaQThe Candle Thieves- The Sunshine Song

• The 'conveyor belt' approach to new stars means that talent isn't developed, and a star's value may be very short-lived. A star may only be significant or relevant for two years, or two albums

• Because a pop star's persona is constructed on the basis of a narrow text, continually re-read and reassessed, this may lead, in many cases, to second album syndrome, when an artist is unable to sustain their persona over a period of time (largely because they got rich off the back of the first album and bought all the houses cars etc they'd ever wanted) and they are unable to create a consistent account of their character and personality in their second major release

A lot of artists do not make it past their second album and are often know as ‘one-hit wonders.’ The hype sustained in the first doesn’t live onto the next album and often results in them getting dropped from their label. Examples of this is Ben Haenow and Sam Bailey who both won ‘The X Factor’ but their second album didn’t gain the success that the first album had. For instance, Sam Bailey’s first album got to number one whereas her second album got to number 33.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kh2cMMFanB8Sam Bailey- Skyscaper

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJV2zrt-U6MSam Bailey- Sing My Heart Out

• A star may initiate a fashion trend, with legions of fans copying their hairstyle and clothing

Certain music videos produce a excitement due to the artist rocking a new hairstyle or a particular type of clothing. This consequently starts off a new trend. Examples of new trends set from music videos are Justin Bieber with his swooped hair style in ‘Baby’ to his blonde look in ‘Purpose.’ The blonde hair look began increasingly popular when he dropped his album ‘Purpose’ prompting numerous celebrities to follow in his footsteps such as Aaron Ramsey and Marcus Butler.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kffacxfA7G4Justin Bieber- Baby

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdx7gN1UyX0Justin Bieber- Company

• Serious songwriters are never pictured without a guitar within reach, as if it’s their emergency medicationSinger-songwriters are always seen within the media with a guitar. It is essential for them to have their guitars because after all it is just them. If your playing on stage or filming a music video they will always have their guitar because it is part of the act. When you think of songwriters you instantly bring up he word busking too as a lot of tem started out this way. Buskers heavily rely on their guitars when they perform as this creates the sound that spectators listen to and is often played as both guitar and drums. If buskers didn’t have their guitars they wouldn’t have gotten anywhere. An example of a songwriter is ‘Passenger’ with his song ‘Let Her Go.’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBumgq5yVrAPassenger- Let Her Go