Cross Media Case Study

Justin Timberlake Cross Media Case Study from cerenkangal

Ryan Adams

Record Labels

Record Labels:

• Manage bands and artists
• Copyright protection
• Distribute albums
• Represent an artist
• In control fo funding
• Talent scout

There are two types of record label:

Major:

The big three record labels are major labels:
Sony BMG
Universal Group

Warner Music Group

Major record labels can at any time represent 75% of the music sold within a year. 

Minor/Independent:
A smaller record label that operates without the funding of the big three record labels.

Many big artists begin their career in a minor/independent record label. 

The artists/bands are more artistic and independent, they have more freedom to do what they want in their music videos and with their image.                                        

Some examples, for a record label such as RCA are, Alexandra Burke, P!nk, Justin Timberlake, and Christina Aguilera.
Also some examples for a record label such as Columbia are, Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, Kings of Leon, and Editors. 

The All-American Rejects - Goodwin Analysis

The All-American Rejects - Gives You Hell: Goodwin Analysis

As soon as the video begins, it is obvious that it is going to be a narrative video rather than any other elaborate, abstract video or even a live performance video. As the lyrics start, there is an immediate relationship between lyrics and visuals when he sings "wake up every evening with a big smile on my face" as that is exactly what he is seen doing. However, despite the first impression of the music video, it cuts to the band set up in the setting of the video, performing the song and there is a clap which the whole band do in sync with the sound of the clap in the music. The whole concept of the  "gives you hell" idea is put across and expressed in the video, as one man is giving another man a hard time whilst living next door to each other. 

There is another relationship between lyrics and visuals when he sings "where's your picket fence love?" as it shows the more mature, sensible couple in their home, the stereotypical american family couple who live in a house with a white picket fence. When more of a beat kicks in, the shots cut to the band playing drums and are completely in sync with the music. Due to the fact that the whole video has a massive narrative, the two men (played by the same man) are actually singing the lyrics to each other. Small guitar solos are accompanied by a guitarist playing. 

There is a notion of looking in this music video which also relates back to the lyrics when he sings "when you see my face" he looks into a mirror to look at the camera once again, which is one of Goodwin's points in his analysis. The glaring of the mirror onto the other man is also relating to the song's title "gives you hell" as he is quite literally making his life harder.  

The other people in the music video then proceed to sing the chorus through cones to make their voices seem echoed, this is related to the sound of the lyrics and it makes it seem like they all contributed to the song. There are many close ups of the band and especially the lead singer Tyson Ritter to show that they are the main focus of the entire music video, and the fact that there are actually two of Tyson Ritter emphasises the importance of him. 

Overall, I think that whilst having a completely narrative based music video is fun to watch, it is actually quite basic and can get boring. Once it has been watched once, it's been seen but with a more artistic music video, there can be parts missed on the first viewing and it becomes more and more interesting the more you watch it. I think that relating music and visuals is again seen as very important in all music videos and it is definitely something to consider when planning my music video. 

Tribute music video - Goodwin Analysis

Tenacious D - Tribute    -    Goodwin Analysis 

The video for Tenacious D's song Tribute, is seen as two men telling a story (the lyrics) and it shows them going into a booth to create a music video for it. This music video keeps to Goodwin's theory by having a link between the lyrics and the visuals, for example, as they sing "All of a sudden, there shined a shiny demon, in the middle, of the road" a 'demon' does appear. The lyrics and the visuals link throughout the whole video and song, which creates a narrative and takes the audience on a journey, as they tell the story. 

There are also many two shots of the men, showing them singing and playing the guitar, recording their song. This could represent Goodwin's point about close-ups being used in order to market the artist. They are frequently seen playing the guitar, showing that they are the ones telling the story. At the beginning of the music video, there are slight references to other music videos as they say they want to make a video and be like famous musicians/bands. There are close ups of them and also of the demon, 

to show who is singing and it also contributes to the fact that the whole video is telling a story. A complete narrative, the lyrics match the visuals throughout the whole video. 

The video also has a frequent reference to the notion of looking as they are recording their entire song and making the record during the video. The music includes people playing guitars and could be considered a rock song, therefore the fact that you can see them playing, demonstrates the genre's characteristics but it also isn't a liver performance or the usual rock music video because it has a narrative and it does have moments where you can see them singing the song mentioned in the lyrics, rather than the actual lyrics. 

Goodwin's Music Video Analysis

Music videos are a promotional tool to market an artist/band. Throughout the years, music videos have evolved and become more popular ever since the 1920s. The first modern music video was made in 1965 for Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues. In 1970 tv shows started to promote artists and made promos to replace live performances.

 In music videos, close ups of the singer or main performer are predominate and emphasise half of the commodity on sale. Most videos are centred around the artists/band in order to be popular and watched. In music videos fast cuts are used as much as possible in order to make the audience watch the video multiple times. The slower the cuts, the more the effect the video makes on the audience.

 In the last 30 years, CGI created its own style and made the videos more visually interesting. The videos evolved into concept video and made it so it wasn't just the performance by the artists and the music videos could be completely unrelated to the artists. The use of green screen and the advancement in digital technology made it easier and cheaper to create music videos. In 1990s they became more about the video. 35mm film was used. In the 1980s, music videos became standard. 

Goodwin's Music Video Analysis:

• Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics, for example stage performances in rock video and dance routine in pop videos.
• There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals along with a relationship between the music and visuals.
• Demands of a record label will be present in the music video, e.g close ups of the artist in order to market them or develop a motif which recur across their work.
• There will be frequent reference to the notion of looking, such as screens within screens, telescopes etc and also a voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
• There may be intertextual reference to films, tv programmes and other music videos etc 

Music videos are a promotional tool to market an artist/band. Throughout the years, music videos have evolved and become more popular ever since the 1920s. The first modern music video was made in 1965 for Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues. In 1970 tv shows started to promote artists and made promos to replace live performances.

Culture industry

The culture industry is a term adopted by Adorno & Horkheimer explaining how people are easily manipulated and results them in becoming a product rather than an artist. For example, the theory explains how every winning contestant in a talent show goes through a transformation to become someone who would be more accepted and more successful, making them the same as everyone else and resulting in no unique and separate music act in the industry. Adorno & Horkheimer criticise this themselves and due to the fact that this has been seen as the norm, in the music industry especially, we have become expectant and accepting of it.

Whilst the majority of music acts nowadays can be categorised into mainstream music, due to the X Factor being a big factor of new music acts, it could also be argued that there are still some artists who are an exception to this theory. The music act 'Brandon and Leah' could be classed as an exception to the Adorno & Horkheimer theory as they left a major record label and began to make music and release an album on their own and have become popular. Their most famous song 'Showstopper' from EP 'Cronies' could be classed as a pop/indie pop song and they haven't changed their image or style since.

 They haven't been influenced by the media or been driven to evolve into another image by a record label to keep up with the latest trends. Singer Leah said in an interview ''It's really cool to be able to do it on our own and use the people that we have, the people that we know, to gain those things'' Showing that whilst they have had help getting the attention, they have been independent and original.

However, due to the fact that they are completely independent, they haven't become overly famous and they are still not on any official record label. This could suggest why they aren't known well and their songs are never in the charts. They aren't heard of much, which could affect their popularity as they haven't branched out as much as other artists. Nevertheless, they make music videos, perform small concert sessions, and win 'rising star' awards.