What is the Industry Thinking Part II: Image

Welcome to part two of our blog where we ask, "What is the industry thinking?"  Last post we talked about the case of international pop star M.I.A.who's latest album had been pushed back due to some "changes" that needed to be made.  This week's topic will explore other familiar instances where record executives placed their hands in the creative molding of their artist music. We will also take a look at the overall image that is expected from other artist trying to become relevant in the industry.

Before moving any further let us acknowledge what imagery is and how important it is to music industry. Imagery, in any form, is the formation of mental images, figures, or likenesses of things, or of such images collectively. Imagery is used in all forms of art and in many forms of the media. Imagery in music is the key to sculpting a masterpiece composition that causes the audience to visualize scenery within a song. Like poets, songwriters create full descriptions of emotions and surroundings for their listeners to understand their music better.

Imagery in the music industry is used solely for the gain of profits by managers and labels. So how is it used you ask? Through the artist! As an artist will use imagery in their songs to create a great hit the industry will use imagery in the artist to create profit. If you have not figured it out by now, the performing artist is what sells the song. The artist must reflect the current popular culture while continuously reinventing it. If your fans can not identify with the way you look, sound, and live then they will not be interested in purchasing your product.

In today's industry, music sells are not the only means of income for a record label. A successful label will build an investment in their artist by selling t-shirts, books, movies, clothes, and other merchandise that they can put their artist's face on. The more followers an artist has the more money in the bank! So does this mean that any joe shmo artist can be seen as a superstar? Only if they are willing to "sell their soul" in order to please their fans and management.

The creation of a performing artist is much like the creation of a wrestling superstar (for my WWE fans out there). First you need a backstory, an outfit, a persona (or multiple personas), and a particular crowd that your star will identify with. Most up and coming artist try to build their own market when getting into the business but they are ultimately changed into what the industry and society wants them to become. Check out these before and after pictures of various artist.

As you can see, no matter what they say in their interviews (which is probably written out by their managers) the artists are never what they seem to be nor is it easy for them to simply "keep it real" in the early stages of their career. There are, however, artist who have played the system in their favor to win over loyal fans that would follow them no matter where they go in their music career. Pink was successful in debuting in the r&b market and later crossing over into the pop rock genre. Check out her first music video and notice the change in style in her latest video.

So as young musicians and artist should we be worried about staying true to ourselves in the industry? That depends on one's morals and integrity. You don't have to conform to what your managers say but be aware that supply and demand is prominent in the industry and it is ultimately the audience that states what is hot and what is not not the artist. If you want to succeed you must play the game while being cautious of those that are handling your image.

Live the Music.....