This is the magazine advertisement and digipak for Drake's album called "Take Care"
On the advertisement, the artist name is big and in contrast to the album name, as the audience will be able to recognise the artist's name more than the album's.
The main image on the advertisement is the same as the album cover, a medium long shot of Drake at a a table with a golden chalice among other golden items which again gives off the impression that the album will conform the stereotype of rappers boasting and showing off their luxurious items.Use the term connotations with reference to the items and the ideals suggested as a result. Also, Drake represents himself as a deep thinker as despite being surrounded by golden items, his head is down with a drink in hand, perhaps relating to most human beings who are melancholy but sometimes do not realise what they're actually surrounded by. This goes against the typical stereotypes of a rapper as they portray themselves to be hard men who aren't in touch with their feeling as it is considered feminine. This album looks to be full of somewhat sad content due to the title "Take Care" (making it seem like love problems) in addition to the mise-en-scene (he is wearing all black in a dark room). Also the font used to create the album name looks as though it had been gently and fluently drawn. This gives the connotations that Drake has a gentle side. This sets him apart from other rappers as words like gentle, aren't portrayed in rap, being gentle makes you feminine and weak.However, words such as aggressive, masculine, heartless and rude are more associated with the rap scene.
On the advertisement, it also tells us the date of release. It doesn't specify the exact date, but it was advertised a week before its release. The reason for doing so is so that the audience wont have to remember a certain date and/or end up forgetting its release. However this method enables the audience to easily remember when it releases.
It also mentions two hit singles from the album that have been released as well as a range of other popular artists that appear on the album features to attract fans of the other artists to purchase his album, similarly to the way magazines have side stories to appeal the audience into purchasing it and reading it.
The colours used in the advertisement, besides black, doesn't clash at all. They have used white lettering which stands out from the album cover telling us whose album it is and when it releases
We can also see logos at the bottom of the back of the album. These are the logos of Cash Money Records, this is the record label that produced Drake's album therefore he is promoting them. It is most likely in their contract that he has to use their logos on the products he makes with them.
The connotations of a colour like gold, is success, achievement and triumph. Associated with abundance and prosperity, luxury and quality, prestige and sophistication, value and elegance, the psychology of this colour implies affluence, material wealth and extravagance. This is typical of a rapper as they earn lots of money and all love to boast about it.
The connotations of black relates to hidden, the secretive and the unknown, and as a result it creates an air of mystery. It creates a barrier between itself and the outside world, providing comfort while protecting its emotions and feelings, and hiding it vulnerabilities, insecurities and lack of self confidence. This is typical with rappers as they don't tend to let their emotions known as the typical character is a man who doesn't have feeling or emotions.
The font used for his name (Drake), is a simple one. Through the simplicity of the font, and it being the biggest thing on the advertisement shows that his name alone is good enough advertising. He is already well-known and popular that just his name will attract his audience. However, his name doesn't even appear on the album cover, because like his name, his face is good enough advertising alone.
The font used to write "Take Care" (album name), looks as though it has been gently brushed on, as mentioned before with the connotations of the album name, gives us the impression yet again that Drake is in fact, caring. He continues to go against the stereotypes portrayed in hip-hop. Fonts used in hip-hop tend to be those of graffiti style or old English.
The CD shows simplicity exactly like the album cover. This is because the CD does not include any image, it is entirely one colour. His name is shown on the CD which shows that he still needs to advertise his name to his fans even though it wasn't necessary to do so on the album cover. This is much like the back of the album too, as it is entirely black apart form the text informing us of the songs featuring on the album.
The booklet inside the CD casing has information about each song and has an image of Drake smoking a cigar. This signifies his wealth but also goes against one of his featuring songs in the album "Take Care" as he isn't taking care of himself by smoking in the first place. He's also looking away from the camera which shows his personality, hes focused more on himself compared to anything else around him. This close up shows his audience more of who he is, it brings them closer to him, especially as the setting around him could be his own home. This forms a closer relationship between Drake and his audience. This is a big difference to other rappers as they tend to boast to the listeners or try to make them fear them, however Drake is doing the complete opposite. This can work in Drake's favour as his audience will grow closer to him and will more likely buy his products. This could also change the typical target audience of hip-hop, it could introduce more woman into the target audience rather than just male teens and young adults.
The main image on the advertisement is the same as the album cover, a medium long shot of Drake at a a table with a golden chalice among other golden items which again gives off the impression that the album will conform the stereotype of rappers boasting and showing off their luxurious items.Use the term connotations with reference to the items and the ideals suggested as a result. Also, Drake represents himself as a deep thinker as despite being surrounded by golden items, his head is down with a drink in hand, perhaps relating to most human beings who are melancholy but sometimes do not realise what they're actually surrounded by. This goes against the typical stereotypes of a rapper as they portray themselves to be hard men who aren't in touch with their feeling as it is considered feminine. This album looks to be full of somewhat sad content due to the title "Take Care" (making it seem like love problems) in addition to the mise-en-scene (he is wearing all black in a dark room). Also the font used to create the album name looks as though it had been gently and fluently drawn. This gives the connotations that Drake has a gentle side. This sets him apart from other rappers as words like gentle, aren't portrayed in rap, being gentle makes you feminine and weak.However, words such as aggressive, masculine, heartless and rude are more associated with the rap scene.
On the advertisement, it also tells us the date of release. It doesn't specify the exact date, but it was advertised a week before its release. The reason for doing so is so that the audience wont have to remember a certain date and/or end up forgetting its release. However this method enables the audience to easily remember when it releases.
It also mentions two hit singles from the album that have been released as well as a range of other popular artists that appear on the album features to attract fans of the other artists to purchase his album, similarly to the way magazines have side stories to appeal the audience into purchasing it and reading it.
The colours used in the advertisement, besides black, doesn't clash at all. They have used white lettering which stands out from the album cover telling us whose album it is and when it releases
The connotations of a colour like gold, is success, achievement and triumph. Associated with abundance and prosperity, luxury and quality, prestige and sophistication, value and elegance, the psychology of this colour implies affluence, material wealth and extravagance. This is typical of a rapper as they earn lots of money and all love to boast about it.
The connotations of black relates to hidden, the secretive and the unknown, and as a result it creates an air of mystery. It creates a barrier between itself and the outside world, providing comfort while protecting its emotions and feelings, and hiding it vulnerabilities, insecurities and lack of self confidence. This is typical with rappers as they don't tend to let their emotions known as the typical character is a man who doesn't have feeling or emotions.
The font used for his name (Drake), is a simple one. Through the simplicity of the font, and it being the biggest thing on the advertisement shows that his name alone is good enough advertising. He is already well-known and popular that just his name will attract his audience. However, his name doesn't even appear on the album cover, because like his name, his face is good enough advertising alone.
The font used to write "Take Care" (album name), looks as though it has been gently brushed on, as mentioned before with the connotations of the album name, gives us the impression yet again that Drake is in fact, caring. He continues to go against the stereotypes portrayed in hip-hop. Fonts used in hip-hop tend to be those of graffiti style or old English.
The CD shows simplicity exactly like the album cover. This is because the CD does not include any image, it is entirely one colour. His name is shown on the CD which shows that he still needs to advertise his name to his fans even though it wasn't necessary to do so on the album cover. This is much like the back of the album too, as it is entirely black apart form the text informing us of the songs featuring on the album.
The booklet inside the CD casing has information about each song and has an image of Drake smoking a cigar. This signifies his wealth but also goes against one of his featuring songs in the album "Take Care" as he isn't taking care of himself by smoking in the first place. He's also looking away from the camera which shows his personality, hes focused more on himself compared to anything else around him. This close up shows his audience more of who he is, it brings them closer to him, especially as the setting around him could be his own home. This forms a closer relationship between Drake and his audience. This is a big difference to other rappers as they tend to boast to the listeners or try to make them fear them, however Drake is doing the complete opposite. This can work in Drake's favour as his audience will grow closer to him and will more likely buy his products. This could also change the typical target audience of hip-hop, it could introduce more woman into the target audience rather than just male teens and young adults.
This is the album cover for Lil Wayne's album called "Tha Carter"
CD Front cover: The main focus on this album is clearly the main image on the front cover. It shows the artist as a baby wearing a suit, jewellery and bearing tattoos on his face. Adding tattoos to the face of a baby what are the sygnifiers This is a very outlandish statement as it is not something the viewer would be used to seeing, which makes perceptions to what type of genre it is without even listening to it (rap). The overriding colours red and black connote that the artist lives a gambling lifestyle, taking risks through his life to reach where he is today.
Why do we see him as an adult on the back of the CD? Consider his body language. The growth progression from baby to man - front to back.The theme of the three lines, what does this connote? Positioning of tracks, image and information on the back. What has it been layed out in this way and what does this suggest?
Wayne has chosen a rather traditional album layout with a front cover design, track list at the rear, CD inside with various images of himself etc. This shows he wants to promote his own image as well as his music. The layout doesn't really break away from the norms of album designs.
The close up shots of his face and hands show us his expressions and feelings more clearer. This can give the audience sense of Wayne opening up in his album. This can be effective as opening up isn't an aspect of hip-hop, rather the actual opposite. But it could entice the audience into wanted to see something different, such as a gang affiliated rapper opening up.
Why do we see him as an adult on the back of the CD? Consider his body language. The growth progression from baby to man - front to back.The theme of the three lines, what does this connote? Positioning of tracks, image and information on the back. What has it been layed out in this way and what does this suggest?
Wayne has chosen a rather traditional album layout with a front cover design, track list at the rear, CD inside with various images of himself etc. This shows he wants to promote his own image as well as his music. The layout doesn't really break away from the norms of album designs.
The close up shots of his face and hands show us his expressions and feelings more clearer. This can give the audience sense of Wayne opening up in his album. This can be effective as opening up isn't an aspect of hip-hop, rather the actual opposite. But it could entice the audience into wanted to see something different, such as a gang affiliated rapper opening up.
The CD is very simple, it keeps to the colour scheme and only has the name of the artist and the album title. the colours connotate different things. Black as mentioned before (The connotations of black relates to hidden, the secretive and the unknown, and as a result it creates an air of mystery. It creates a barrier between itself and the outside world, providing comfort while protecting its emotions and feelings, and hiding it vulnerabilities, insecurities and lack of self confidence. This is typical with rappers as they don't tend to let their emotions known as the typical character is a man who doesn't have feeling or emotions.). Red is the colour of sexuality and can stimulate deeper and more intimate passions, such as love and sex on the positive or revenge and anger on the negative. It can also represent blood, Wayne is supposedly associated with the blood gang which is a typical trait to have within hip-hop. White is a colour at it's most complete and pure. The colour meaning is purity and innocence. In colour psychology, white is the colour of new beginnings, wiping the slate clean so to speak. This could mean Wayne is trying to start fresh, a new beginning, and this album will help him do that. Again creates a closer relationship with his audience and consumers of the album.
The use of the three white lines is the continuation of his albums as this is the third addition of "Tha Carter" albums. This could be sending the message that all his albums are pure.
The fact that he has decided to show himself as a young baby (with his tattoos) could tell us that he has been the same since his early years, all his tattoos and decisions have remained the same since he was a baby. This is a trait that is widely portrayed in hip-hop and referred to a "real". It could also be repeating the message of opening up yet again. He could tell us stories of his childhood which many rappers tend to do, such as affiliation/witnessing gang activity from a young age.
The use of the three white lines is the continuation of his albums as this is the third addition of "Tha Carter" albums. This could be sending the message that all his albums are pure.
The fact that he has decided to show himself as a young baby (with his tattoos) could tell us that he has been the same since his early years, all his tattoos and decisions have remained the same since he was a baby. This is a trait that is widely portrayed in hip-hop and referred to a "real". It could also be repeating the message of opening up yet again. He could tell us stories of his childhood which many rappers tend to do, such as affiliation/witnessing gang activity from a young age.
This is the digipak of the album by YG called "My Krazy Life"
The cover consists of two mug shots, and where it should say his name and number it says his name, album title and number. This is a play on the criminal lifestyle in which many rappers choose or claim to live (Michael Earl Dyson). They express these criminal lifestyles through their lyrics, music videos and from the image above, their albums too. YG has been to prison before and is known for his gang affiliation. So he glorifies this by using a mugshot of him on his album. Also, it is something different, so when the audience see this album, straight away they will know its for hip-hop due to typical conventions and would most likely pick it up and read more about it as the mugshot would catch their attention. Due to the album title (My Krazy Life) it suggests he will tell us a story through his music, even about his prison experience. We can also see he has a lot of tattoos which again is a big convention in hip-hop. The use of the k instead of the c in crazy, emphasizes his gang activity as the replacement of the letter c is frequently used with bloods. Everything about this album screams hip-hop. Also we can see the parental advisory logo, which too tells us it contains inappropriate content for a certain age group which too is a typical thing to have in hip-hop music.
The back has all the song titles that appear on the album. It uses a typical old English style font, frequently used with gangsters and appears in many gangster tattoos. This once again stresses the hip-hop feel towards the digipak.
The inside of the CD casing has a picture of him when he was younger, this could give the buyer a feel that he is going to be letting them into his past and that everything in his music is real. In hip-hop, rappers tend to rap about personal things such as committed crimes and sexual experiences. This conforms the theory of Michael Earl Dyson as rap has changed from political to sexualised and criminal rap.
Also on the inside, there is a mini booklet containing the names of the people that were involved in the album and their role with a thank you note.
This is the album cover for Green Day. Essentially, its a hand holding a grenade that looks like a bleeding heart. Grenades are associated with war and explosions. Only negative emotions come from grenades. However, a heart is more loving. But holding a heart in your hands s quite revolting. This rock band have the same feelings towards grenades as we do to hearts and have turned a natural organ from the human body into a lethal war weapon. This could also mean they are telling us that their music will reach your explode your heart, again conforming the typical convention of rock consisting of disturbed imagery and concepts.
The colours used for the digipak, is black, red and white. Black would be the most representative colour f hip-hop so we'd expect to see lots on black also in the other rock digipak we will be looking at. Black has connotations of darkness, evil and impure. Hardly any rock contrast these connotations of black as much of rock contains darkness through storyline, imagery, miss-en-scene and diegetic sound. Red has similar connotations to black. there is a good side to red, the love and romance, but rock follows the other connotations of red. The evil, bloody and gory side of red. White however is a colour of purity and cleanliness. The use of the white for green day on their album would be for the name to stand out in the dark black they already have, rather than to show their pureness.
The back of the album continues to follow the black, red and white colour scheme. The use of the parental advisory logo proves the album will contain typical rock content not suitable for young children, such as demonic story lines and disturbing scenes.
Theres also a convention that appears on all digipaks no matter the genre, is the small text on the back of the album, it informs us of their record label, and copyright etc.
The disc for this album is very similar to the front cover, its like a continuation of the front. It shows the same arm and hand from the front holding the oink from the grenade that looks like a bleeding heart. This is showing us that the grenade is either cooking (getting ready to blow) or has be thrown somewhere and caused carnage elsewhere. Proving the mercilessness of the rock genre as although the artists have their audience by the heart, the won't hesitate to pull the pin and launch the heart-like grenade into danger elsewhere.
The advert follows the colour scheme whilst still showing different conventions of rock. For example the text looks messy, a font you would expect to see in a horror movie like the words have been spelt out with blood. We can also see the main singer from green day, he's wearing black eye liner and has a weird expression on his face, an expression as though he has seen something scary of being possessed which sounds crazy but is the sort of thing that occurs in rock.
We can also see the front cover of their album at the bottom of the advert, this is unusual as the main image tends to be the front cover.
This is an advert for Jessie J's album. It contains the exact album cover which fills the majority of the advert. This way the audience will find the actual album itself easily recognizable.besides the album cover on the advert, it contains text saying two song names which were big hits, this is a technique to persuade the audience into buying it as they may already enjoy these two songs therefore would increase the likelihood of purchasing the album. Due to Jessie J's paleness emphasised through her makeup and the black additional makeup it would come across as a rock advert, however, due certain features of the advert such as font, colour (gold), stylish makeup (designed lipstick) and jewelry, we can see its a pop advert.
Connotations of gold are success, achievement, triumph. Associated with luxury, abundance and prestige and sophistication.
The font used is very stylish. Its use of gold in the text stresses the connotations mentioned above. The font is clear to read yet wavy. Stylish things from adverts, digipak and even clothing is associated with pop more than any other music genre.
At the bottom we can see two logos, Universal Republic and Lava. These are two record labels. Due to Jessie's affiliation with them, she has to mention them on any products she makes with them such as her songs, which this advert is an advertisement for.
Below I will mention the conventions of both digipaks and adverts that appear in all genres of music.
Advertisements:
-Record label logos
-Front cover of album appears somewhere on the advert, mainly the biggest feature.
-Artist website
-Colour scheme matches the digipak
-Date of release
-Popular song titles (may include other artist features)
Digipaks:
-Parental advisory (hip-hop)
-Record label logo
-Colour scheme matches the advertisement
-Artist will feature on the digipak in some way shape or form, mainly through close-up/medium shots
You need to look at other genre digipaks and adverts. You also need to look at another hip hop advert.
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