possible images for my CD cover

Here are a few example of the images I am considering using for my CDcover. the include images of my main artist, the images are close up featuring facial features similar to the artist Nicki Minaj. Some of the images include revealing clothing also which is reflective of Nicki Minaj and the RnB genre, i can incorporate colour and backgrounds into the album cover later using photoshop.

CD cover five

 




This is an example of a more traditional RnB album cover, it complies with the codes and coventions of this genre completely. The album cover is simlar to the first CD cover i have included an example of the model here is also stood with her legs apart suggesting sexual connotations, this is the same as Nicki Minaj in the first cover, The use of Red writing is bold and also connotes love and lust which are evident in the lyrics for a lot of RnB hits. the use of an expensive, white limo suggests fame and fortune and the use of cars is very prominant in RnB music video as it suggest wealth and fame. the use of a bracelt and ring suggest wealth also and is also portrayed in music videos as 'bling', this is also evident in a lot of Nicki Minaj's videos. The model is wearing a small white dress which does not cover much of her which is also simialrly done in the first Cd cover example I have included of Nicki Minaj. Nicki Minaj differs from this as a lot of her album covers include a close image of her facial features and expressions to appeal to her target audience. This album cover does not focus on one artist imparticular, i chose to analyse it as it follows the codes and conventions of the RnB genre. The cover also includes a stamp that says 'parental advisory' in the bottom left hand corner this is to suggest that the album may not be suitable for younger audiences.

CD cover four

This is Nicki Minaj's most recent CD cover example. Similar to my lasat example, shown in CD cover three this shows a close up of nicki minaj placed on a fuschia pink background. The use of yellow in the background to state her name helps it stand out to her target audience. Her hair is no longer bright blonde, however the style and volume is still iconic reflecting her excentric personality. her facial features include a curled lip which suggest attitiude but could also be seen as a reference to another sex icon which was Elvis Presley, who was known for this particular pose. This gives her an impression of power and dominance and also reflects her successful career. Pink is the main theme and colour included in this cover and many of her other album covers which i will consider when designing my own front cover. She is a well established artist and therefore her name does not need to be as bold as the album name as her face can be recognised without her name, i will keep this in mind for my CD cover also.

CD cover three

this example of an album cover of Nicki Minaj is very similar to the second example of her album artwork that i have shown in my previous post. The way she is posed with her mouth open and eyes closed is very sexual and through her music and photographs she is not afraid of showing this, this shows confidence. The use of bright colours again and the continuing idea of paint being splashed across the covers suggests a mess of bright ideas and her excentric personality, this time she is also covered in the paint making this even more obvious, more colours have been introduced, overlapping one another, and her name has been printed in black to emphasise her as the artist, this helps it to stand out from the background image and the song name. her blonde hair also still stands out and does not have any paint in which is keeping her iconic image as 'barbie'. Even though this image doesn't patricularly follow any of the conventions of the genre of RnB, it is still refelctive of her own unique style and ecentric image which i will keep in my mind when creating my CD cover.

CD cover two

This is another front cover of one of Nicki Minaj's albums. The image is again more dominant tahtn the text and this time the image focuses solely on her face, instead now her hair is blonde and her inspiration is barbie, the use of bright colours such as pink, orange and yellow suggest fantasy and i think this album would perhaps target a slightly more female based audience. The use of the effect of paint being splattered across the white background behind the image of her could connote her putting her own stamp on the album or adding colour, which generally her songs are upbeat and interesting so this could be the idea she was hoping to achieve. It could also connote her expressing her perosnality with the bright colours as often her outfits and music videos are quite excentric and they way she is portrayed is definitely unique from other examples of female artists. The text 'roman reloaded' is written in the effect of a paint brush which keeps a theme making the cover look professional. I will keep the idea of her style and genre of music in mind when creating the front cover as i want to ake sure i can include the bright colours and iconic image of Nicki Minaj visible when creating my own CD cover.

CD cover one

This is the CD cover of the single i have used for my music video, the image is the most dominant part of the cover consuming the majority of the space, the artists name are set in neon pink and orange to stand out. The colour is dark, showing navy and blues, her costume is an all in one animal print which is suggestive of her suxuality and also the lack of coverage suggests confidence and the outfit almost becomes iconic. The rrack is shared with 2 chainz, we can see him slightly on the cover however by dressing him in black this means Nicki Minaj is the figure our eyes are immediately drawn to and what we focus on. Nicki Minaj is quite a unique and abstarct atrist and soemtimes quite outrageous with her choice of outfits and song lyrics, here her outfit is revealing once again but also her stance is confident, standing tall but could also be percieved as slightly inappropriate by standing with her legs open wearing tight colthing around her bottom. Her bottom is quite iconic and therefore the lighting has been focused on this, this has been done purposefully. this is also emphasised by the fact we cannnot see her face this is suggesting that she is so well known by her image and her bottom that we dont need to see her face to know it is her.

Id like to use an idea like this for my subsidiary texts as it is not overcrowded, the image is refelctive of the artist and the writing is easy to clear, the song title is in bold and the artists are clearly stated.

The target audience is most probably young females that enjoy her music however by featuring 2 chainz on this track she expands her target audience to perhpas young males also. This particular cover could appeal to males also as Nicki Minaj is also seen by audiences as a sex icon.

essay one - society and culture - postmodernism

Alicia Baldwin – essay one

Postmodern media- ‘society and culture has changed radically since 1945 but how far have the changes in technology and the rise of mass media affected peoples understanding and experience of the world around them’

Society is arguably unrecogniseable from the 1940s, the significant rise in mass media has meant that our culture has become completely consumed by the media, to the point of hyper reality, we can no longer interpret what is real and what is not because the public have become so subdued to believing what they read in the media. This has been taken to such a point that innocent people have been accused of crimes in papers such as news of the world and the sun and had rubbish thrown at them in the streets despite being completely innocent and not even under arrest from police forces. The idea of postmodernism is unavoidable in our culture due to rises in mass media and technology, society is obsessed with the idea of being individual and different due to the media trying to form us into something identical to one another. However cultures are so different and there are so many different religions and choices in life people make that there will never be one successful ‘objective’ truth, because unlike in the 1940s freedom of speech and actions is accepted and not only that is encouraged at the present time. This has meant people can experience what they wish and gain a better understanding for culture if they wish to do so. The public can no longer avoid being subjected to the media as it is everywhere we go and we cannot guarantee we are being given the truth, televisions, internet, mobile phones, and communication has improved so drastically that it has become almost impossible not to hear about the latest scandal in the news, whether you want to or not, it is impossible not to be affected by what you read on the internet or in magazines and because it has become such a big part of everyday life it almost seems unnatural if you are not involved. Particularly, with the younger generation of today, from using mobile phones from the minute of waking up to going to sleep, using social networking sites such as facebook, twitter, instagram, you are never able to miss what is going on. This has been proven to be unhealthy for society and the immense pressure the media has put on society in the past century is truly shocking. However, there are definitely positive outcomes from technology as people are now able to communicate better meaning people can keep in touch with one another despite long distance, security has improved with people being able to ring you to see where you are or use their mobile phone to track your mobile phone, CCTV has rapidly reduced crime as people are less likely to commit a crime if they know there is a chance they are being filmed and could get caught, however rises in technology and media influencing everyone to have the latest gadget and this undeniable competitiveness to be the ‘best’ has lead to an increase in crime as people are stealing what they do not have, and breaching privacy rights for example paying the police forces to gain storylines to publish in their papers or hacking celebrities phones in order to receive information to sell stories that the public so desperately want to read, I struggle to believe their need was this intense in 1945. Arguably now we live in a society filled with freedom of speech but have we become a little too exposed to this and resulted in there being too much freedom of speech and if so where do we draw the line and where should this stop? This has definitely had a growing affect on society and how we interpret and understand the world around us due to mass media and technology and this has now become irreversible, it is now a way of life as opposed to a factor in society. Privacy rights are being breached every single day in newspapers making certain members of the public feel embarrassed and ashamed which does make us question the positivity or progress in technology and what is published in the media. The progress in technology for medicine and health care is undoubtedly a positive and something that has made so many positive changes for the NHS system and the nation’s health, perhaps he should be giving more of our money towards findings for medical health as opposed to the latest phone or even just the pound we pay for our morning newspaper. The difference between  positive changes in technology and negative changes is what they bring to society and how that influences our culture, ultimately positive changes will influence it positively and negative changes will influence it negatively, but is our culture to blame for the changes made to society and culture since 1945, possibly so as we are the consumers.