Official Artist Websites/Myspace Analysis

Calvin Harris:
http://www.myspace.com/calvinharristv

Main Features:
A clear artist image at the top with his name and the genre of his music – ‘Electro/Indie/Punk.’ Underneath this is links to his photos and videos. His photos contain lots of pictures of him at specific events that can be recognisable to the audience, and his videos contain videos such as the making of his latest music video and his actual music videos themselves. There is also a playlist that plays his two most recent and well-known tracks. Right at the top, there is a striking web banner that is advertising his new album through the bold album cover image. It tells us what hit singles the album contains, as well as informing us of when his new single will be out and a link to where we can download it now. There is also a list of his upcoming shows and links to his blog entries – the most recent one informs us of his album release. There is also other information such as a link to his main website, a list of his main musical influences, the name of his record label and its type. There are also links to his merchandise store as well as a chance for fans to sign up for his mailing list. There is also an email link where fans can email for his management, production and remix requests. There are also links to other sites that fans can find him on such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. There is then links to his friends and his chosen ‘Top 12.’ There is then a chance for his friends to leave comments. Very interactive as the fans can really get involved.

Design/Layout:
Image of him right at the top so it’s the first thing you see and is instantly recognisable. His music playlist is then directly beside this so it’s all about selling his music and getting the fans to listen to his songs and then buy them. Underneath all this is the list of his upcoming shows, blogs and general information about him as an artist. The prominent colour used for this site is grey and this is consistent throughout. It all ties in with his key images such as his album cover which is shot in black and white. The background used is a compilation of the same image of Calvin Harris using the same colours of black, grey and different shades. The key iconography is the glasses that we see Calvin Harris wear. These are instantly recognisable to his fans and feature on his album cover, MySpace background and he is wearing them in the main artist image. It also ties in a lot with one of his most successful singles, ‘I’m Not Alone’ where he also wears them. There is also a phrase where it says ‘Protected by forensic science’ and this all ties in with the overall image and reflects what he was going for in his ‘I’m Not Alone’ music video. The font stays the same but bold font is used to highlight key areas.

Audience & Institution:
Primary target audience seems to be older teenagers and young adults – males and females. The design of the website is stylised but not over the top. Its clean cut and its simplicity will appeal to this audience. The website also mentions Calvin's Record Label (Fly Eye/Columbia) and describes it as major.

Gym Class Heroes:
http://www.myspace.com/gymclassheroes

Main Features:
Clear band image with their name above it and the genre of their music, ‘Indie / Hip Hop.’ Underneath is links to their photos which contains an album of the band themselves (featuring press shots, live performance shots on stage, and general photos of the band for fans to enjoy), as well as an album for performance photos of them in London and also an album for Gym Class Heroes fan tattoos where fans send in photos of tattoos they have dedicated to the band. The link to their videos contains their music videos and live performances. There is also a playlist of some of their songs and a list of upcoming shows. At the top is a large web banner advertising their new album ‘The Quilt,’ which can be downloaded and is available for $9.99. There is also links to their blogs and links to their official website, as well as a list of the band members and the role they play such as Travis on vocals. There is also a link where fans can join their street team where they play a role in helping promote the band and their music such as putting posters up, handing out fliers etc. Other links include those to band member’s twitter pages and other bands/artists that are their labelmates (a way for their label to market other bands). There is also a link to their UK webstore where fans can buy band merchandise. There are also slide shows of photos from their recent music videos, with links underneath for fans to watch the video, buy the album and download the video. There is also a chance for fans order albums or download them, as well as a link to join their official fan club where they can receive access to exclusive news, videos, contests etc. you can also sign up for alerts by entering your email address, mobile number, postcode etc. There is also the name of their record label ‘Decaydance / Fueled By Ramen’ which is said to be ‘Indie’ by ‘Type of Label.’ There is then links to their friends, a box for their ‘Top 24’ and a chance for users to leave comments.

Design/Layout:
The most striking feature for the design of the website is the background which is in the style of a quilt in order to fit in with the album name and image. There is then ‘stitching’ around the edges which fits in with the band logo seen on the album cover. This same font/logo is used above the main band image of their MySpace. They use a simple white font, however, important information is highlighted in red. The overall image all ties in together and is consistent regarding the bands image and their album cover.

Audience & Institution:
I think their band appeals to teenagers and this is shown a lot through their MySpace, regarding the range of colours they use, the font etc. There are lots of chances for fans to really get involved with the band and their seems to be a large fanbase with a lot of dedication, shown through the fan tattoos, the official fanclub, and the street team.

Plan B:
http://www.time4planb.co.uk/main.php

Main Features:
Immediately see a photo of him at the top which is also the gallery. When you click on the photo it changes, like a slide show, and you can see all his photos.
One the right is a video which you can change to four different songs that features Plan B playing acoustic versions of his songs.
On this poster, you can click on links to lyrics of about 15 of his songs – a chance for the fans to sing along. There is also a link to his blog (http://www.bendrew.blogspot.com/) which tells the fans various information on himself, performance dates, interview etc. There is also links on his blog to a page for official Plan B ringtones, as well as his official YouTube page.
On his main website, there is a link to where you can shop for Plan B music and buy downloads for his albums, music videos, singles etc.
There is also the Plan B street team where fans can post up photos of themselves on the Plan B forum, in order to have their photos on his main websites and be part of his unofficial street team.
There is then links to news (his blog), the forum, dates and locations where he’s performing live, links to downloads, a poster for his friends missing dog – Mushky and a links list to sites that relate to Plan B and that he likes.
You can also sign up where you put in your name, email, country, and mobile.

Design/Layout:
Set up like posters on a wall. It all navigates from the central yellow poster where he’s performing. From there, you can click on links and the posters will move around to bring what you want to the front/middle.
Overall, the websites reflects the artist’s down-to-earth image and urban lifestyle.
All very interactive for the audience.

Audience & Institution:
Appeals to young males.

Katy Perry:
http://www.katyperry.com/

Main Features:
Enter the website and her songs automatically start playing. You can then go through and pick which ones you want to listen to. Next to that is a phone number and a chance to ‘Call Katy Perry’ and keep updated with the latest. Underneath that is links to the home page, news, shows, her ‘dear diary,’ lyrics, pictures, telly (videos that feature Katy Perry), her biography, extras (eg. downloadable wallpapers, banners, widgets, buddy icons etc.), as well as a link to her store where you can buy official Katy Perry merchandise. There is also links to where you can order her debut album ‘One of the Boys,’ as well as watching her music videos. There is also a chance to download remixes of her songs from iTunes, a link to her street team, MySpace, Message board, ringtones (where you can also make your own Katy Perry ringtone) and her mailing list.

Design/Layout:
It is very simple to navigate and this therefore appeals to its young target audience of girls. The layout is simple with all the links down the right hand side and a large image of Katy Perry on the left. The colours of blue and pink dominate the website and this is all coordinated as a theme throughout the whole site. These colours would stereotypically appeal to the girls (her main target audience) but the use of blue can also be seen as appealing to boys, as well as the title of her album, ‘One of the Boys.’ However the fonts and the graphics which include stars, hearts and birds are all very girly. Also the spelling of things such as pictures which is spelt ‘Pix’ and television which is spelt ‘telly’ will appeal to young girls as it makes it less formal, as well as her blog which is called ‘Dear Diary.’

Audience & Institution:
Her website seems to appeal predominantly to young girls, and we can see this through the use of pink as the dominant colour, as well as the graphics which include birds, stars and hearts. The fonts used are also very girly. The main image of Katy Perry on the website (see picture above) also ties in with the themes and appeals to the girls through her pose and costume. The website also has international appeal and allows audience abroad to really get involved with her music. There is a news section which gives news on Katy Perry in 13 different countries. This widens the appeal of the website.

The 4 P's of Music Industry Marketing

1. Summarise in your own words what the 4Ps of music marketing are. Use the following categories:

a) What band/artist related products can audiences buy?
Audiences can buy CDs (singles and albums), DVD’s (Live or documentary), posters, biographies on the artist, digital media such as music videos, podcasts etc., band merchandise (t-shirts, bags, jumpers etc.), as well as more specific products such as the headphones that Lady Gaga is promoting where she is working with the company Heartbeats.

b) Where can audiences buy/listen to music/merchandise/hardware?
They can buy CDs from music shops such as HMV, general stores like W.H. Smiths, as well as online from sites such as Play.com. Audiences can also listen to music on the internet, such as through steaming on sites such as YouTube, as well as buy it online eg. from iTunes. Because of the portability of things nowadays, people can listen to music anywhere, such as on their phones, iPods etc. Merchandise can be bought online, usually from the artist/bands site or sites like Amazon, as well as from their live shows.

c) Give 2 or 3 examples of paid-for/subscription based and free products.
You can pay for products such as band merchandise eg. clothing, usually on their own website.
Free music downloads which you can usually get off the artist/band’s website.

d) List between 5 and 10 examples of creative music marketing strategies

• Fashion Takes Control - Topman offers bespoke access for music fans: UK high street retailer Topman handed over control of a music campaign to a selection of emerging artists. The CTRL platform – inspired by the recognition that fans want greater access to bands – enabled one act per month to put on a live event featuring a selection of their favourite artists, whilst also taking hold of the creative reigns of the Topman CTRL blog. This shows synergy between fashion and music industries.

• Pixie Lott performed a couple of free gigs to promote the release of her new album, Turn It Up, and the fans had to print the tickets off.

• If the shoe fits: The Dolly Rockers have entered into a partnership with KangaROOS footwear in order to promote their latest single ‘Gold Digger’. The ‘How do you rock your Roos?’ competition asks visitors to a Bebo (social networking site) page to record their own dance routine to the new Dolly Rockers single. The winner will get to spend a day with the Dolly Rockers and their choreographer, get a behind-the-scenes experience during the filming of the Dolly Rockers’ third music video, get themselves a Dolly Rockers makeover and receive a whole bunch of KangaROOS and Dolly Rockers goodies.

• Get your Little Boots on: Nokia turns a part of London into a roller disco - Nokia Skate Almighty. The event offers up a free hour of skating accompanied by DJ’s and live performances from Little Boots and Calvin Harris. Nokia is to offer an exclusive remix of the Little Boots track Remedy (A1 Bassline remix) via the Nokia Music Store and Comes With Music for four weeks.

• Tight Fit – Band in a Banner: This campaign promotes upcoming Universal act VV Brown, is simple but strikingly effective. VV Brown climbs into her own web banner ad, crouches down and proceeds to sing acoustic versions of the songs ‘LEAVE!’ and ‘Crying Blood’ from within the banner alongside her band.

• The Great Escape – You can buy without fear: Lily Allen’s single The Fear is being promoted via a viral music game. The game, entitled Escape the Fear, features Lily as the main character, where players must help Lily navigate 10 levels whilst avoiding obstacles. The site includes the video for the single and plenty of embed options for the user’s favourite social portals. It also has the option to email the viral game to friends. Plus there is a competition attached to the game to win tickets to Lily’s sold out date at Koko on 28th January.

• Reward Ceremony - Mika offers brand loyalty: Island Records Group and Casablanca Records are teaming up on a unique reward based online venture in support of Mika’s upcoming album. Mika is launching a loyalty scheme via his website which will enable fans to earn points that can then be traded for rewards. Points are awarded for creating a profile, uploading content, adding comments and buying products. Points can be used to acquire free music, video downloads, screen-savers and even a private acoustic gig from the artist.

2. Who is Frukt UK and what is their mission statement/company ethos?
Frukt UK is a specialist music marketing agency that creates and develops ideas that use music as a means of marketing.
“We’re all about music and are really very fond of it. Music colours people’s everyday lives…We help brands access the passion and the communities, the lifestyle and the artists.”

Lady Gaga - Marketing and Promotion Case Study

1. Summarise the changing image of the band/artist as it has developed over time. It might also be useful to summarise the music genre also.

Having initially focused on avant-garde and electronic dance music, Gaga found her musical niche when she began to incorporate pop melodies and the vintage glam rock of David Bowie and Queen into the mix. She made this change to put a twist on the music and differentiate herself from the underground rockers of New York. She has been primarily influenced by glam rockers such as David Bowie and Queen, pop singers Michael Jackson and Madonna, artist Andy Warhol, poet Rainer Maria Rilke, fashion icon and entertainer Grace Jones, and fashion as a whole. Her vocals have drawn frequent comparison to Madonna and Gwen Stefani, while the structure of her music is said to be reminiscent of classic 1980s pop and 1990s Europop.

Her image is unique and extremely extravagant. Her interest came from initially being inspired by her mother and her later work in burlesque shows. Gaga has stated that she is “very into fashion” and that it is “everything” to her. She claims that: “When I'm writing music, I'm thinking about the clothes I want to wear on stage. It's all about everything altogether — performance art, pop performance art, fashion. For me, it's everything coming together and being a real story that will bring back the super-fan. I want to bring that back. I want the imagery to be so strong that fans will want to eat and taste and lick every part of us.” She was called Lady Gaga early in her career after the Queen song ‘Radio GaGa,’ as her vocal style was similar to Freddie Mercury and these comparisons still continue.

She has also her own creative production team called the Haus of Gaga, which she handles personally. This team creates many of her clothes, stage props, and hairdos, as well as collaborating with her on her clothing, stage sets, and sounds. Gaga says that she considers Donatella Versace her muse. Her fashions have also been compared to that of Christina Aguilera, noting similarities in their styling, hair, and make-up.

2. Who are the fans? Do you have any sense of how the music companies have segmented the audiences? To what extent has the branding of a band been linked to target audience?

Lady Gaga’s fans are primarily the gay community as she had support from them from the start with some of her first major performances at events related to gay culture, including early performances at the San Francisco Pride event where she sung ‘Just Dance,’ as well as later on when she performed on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. These are two highly rated events by the gay community and she is gradually being considered by some as a rising gay icon. She claimed difficulty in the early stages of her career in getting her songs to receive radio airplay and stated, “The turning point for me was the gay community. I've got so many gay fans and they're so loyal to me and they really lifted me up. They'll always stand by me and I'll always stand by them. It's not an easy thing to create a fan base.” She also said that “every time I go to cities to play, even in arenas, I always make sure I play a second show at a gay club,” this maintains loyalty from the fans.

As well as this, Gaga’s outrageous clothing, make-up, hair and overall image are appealing to the gay community. Her lyrics often have underlying bisexual meaning which the marketing companies draw on in the videos, such as her song "Poker Face" which lyrically discusses fantasizing about a woman while being in bed with a man and therefore this appeals to the gay community. Other fans include younger people as the genre of pop appeals to them, as well as males due to her provocative clothing and females due to her upbeat, dancing songs with entertaining music videos.

3. What marketing strategies can you identify? What kinds of stategies can you list?(above/below-the line? unexpected promo stunts? etc). List any examples of the use of synergy with other industries to promote other media/products in connection with a band/artist.

Lady Gaga has her own official website (http://www.ladygaga.com/) which helps promote her as an artist, with information, news, a chance for fans to join, her music videos, events/tour dates, photos, biography etc. The style of the website reflects Gaga’s image with eye grabbing photos and an overall bold image, which is also reflective of her album cover image.

There is also advertising for Lady Gaga headphones (www.ladygaga.com/heartbeats/) where she works in synergy with ‘Heartbeats’ to promote ‘the latest high resolution headphones.')She also has her own MySpace page (www.myspace.com/ladygaga) which advertises her album, provides information on upcoming shows, a chance for fans to sign up for a Lady Gaga regular newsletter, advertisements for Lady Gaga products such as jackets, notebooks etc., as well as samples of her songs for fans to listen to and be made aware of.

Lady Gaga’s live performances, such as on television on the Ellen DeGeneres Show also promotes her as an artist.

4. Add any relevant links to your blog, especially Myspace page/music vids/official websites etc. A couple of illustrations (e.g key web design graphics/album cover photography) would also be useful to add to your blogs.

http://www.ladygaga.com/
www.myspace.com/ladygaga