Genre and Representation

Heavy Metal - Slipknot

http://noisey.vice.com/en_uk/blog/how-the-hell-are-slipknot-so-successful
The bands name Slipknot gives violent connotations and imagery knot perhaps represents a
noose. The band members (shown top right) wear frightening masks, dark make-up and clothing
very similar to that of the horror movie genre. The band could want to seem to be intimidating, or
stand out against other bands of this genre whilst drawing attention. The clear Halloween-style
image they present to audiences means that their target demographic is probably mid to late
teens and over as well as being well-known for appealing to the angry teenager.
Slipknot is an American heavy metal band with a 19 year career span, well known for its
attention-grabbing image. They have one five Kerrang! Awards and received one Grammy for
best metal performance. The band has produced 12 albums, most with the semantic field of
death such as, Antennas into hell and (sic) nesses.
Like Justin Bieber has his beliebers and Lady Gaga has her monsters, Slipknots fans are called
maggots. This website - http://www.wikihow.com/Be-a-Maggot - is a step-by-step guide in how
to become a Slipknot fan. It includes wearing studs, belts, wristbands and band merchandise
such as hats, t-shirts and gloves with the band logo printed on (shown above). Their Slipknot or
DIE attitude suggests that the violent brand image of the band reflects in their audience. A report
once claimed that a South-African school boy murdered a fellow student whilst wearing one of
the band members famous masks. It was said that the violent nature of the band was to blame,
although nothing was confirmed.
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/aug/21/slipknot.school.killing
The bands song lyrics include, the rain will kill us all / Ive felt the hate rise up in me / all
hope is gone and more of a similar tone. The imagery created by these lyrics correlate with the
overall brand image of the band the colour black representing death, for example.

Indie and Folk Mumford and Sons

Mumford and Sons fit under the folk rock, indie rock and bluegrass genres. They have been active
since 2007 and are from London. The band has received ten music awards including two
Grammys, two Brits, and three Billboards. Their success lead to their studio album Babel
debuted at number one in the UK and the US. Their old-fashioned style gives a countryside and
authentic tone, appealing to folk-music lovers.
The fans of this group call themselves part of the Mumfamily giving them a name makes them
feel included and relevant with the band. The family also emphasises that these fans like to be
considered as a close-knit group of people. Their fans consist predominantly of females.

Classical Katherine Jenkins

The brand image of the band is described as an Amish farmhand, woodland look. A company
called Rustic Authentic have created a clothing line inspired by Mumford and Sons so that the
general public are able to dress in the same way. This suggests that their style is in-fashion with
waistcoats, pantaloons and fedora hats with a forest-colours theme.
http://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/who-wants-to-dress-like-mumford-sons-this-fashionlines-for-you
Their lyrics to their songs in particular Lover of the Light, Below my Feet, After the Storm,
White Blank Page and Sigh No More have religious undertones relating to Christianity. This
links to their vintage old-fashioned image, creating coherence.

Pop - Rihanna

Katherine Jenkins OBE is a classical singer and songwriter, popular for her classical-crossover work.
Rihanna
is a singer,
actress and
and six
fashion
active
since
2005. Genres
pop, R&B, reggae,
She won two consecutive
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out ofdesigner
her seven
albums
reached
No.1 in include
the
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andled
dance.
has soldthe
over
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worldwide,
classical charts. Her success
to herShe
becoming
fastest-selling
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Shemaking
has her one of the bestselling
artists
of
all
time.
She
has
received
8
Grammy
awards,
22
Billboard
music awards and 2 BRIT
performed at the Westminster Cathedral and on various television programmes.
awards. In 2012, she was ranked fourth most powerful celebrity of the year by Forbes magazine with
earnings of $53 million that year.

Rihannas brand image has varied over the years to fit in with changing fashions and trends within the
In all of her performances she is seen wearing elaborate dresses; stereotypical of the classical genre.
media. In her early music, she was influenced by her background coming from Barbados her style
She has written an autobiography, Time to Say Hello perhaps to relate to her audience more
was more relaxed with long brown hair and flowing dresses. She then merged into the typical pop
personally. She is known for completing charity events such as the London Marathon where she raised
and R&B look with short hair even shaved on one side. It was at this time she released more of her
25,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support and singing to the troops in Afghanistan. These activities
controversial work with her album Good Girl Gone Bad and songs such as Rude Boy. When her
represent the artist as being part of the community and a good reputation is built.
album Loud was released, her image had changed again red hair became her main feature.
Rihannas fans are names Monsters which appears on some of her merchandise such as phone cases
and hoodies. There are fan sites (websites ran by fans about their artist) and her Facebook page has
over 2 million likes. Her immense popularity means that she is regularly mobbed by fans described
Unlike the artists discussed previously, Jenkins fans do not have a name e.g. Rihannas Monsters.
by the media. This suggests that her fans are perceived to be more outrageous than others.
Perhaps this is because her audience is the older generations. Her music is not aired on popular radio
stations such as BBC Radio 1 or 2 as these channels are targeted towards a younger demographic.
Instead, her music is aired on Classical FM; more targeted towards the older populations.
As well as her image, her style of songs has also varied over the years. Her early music was perceived as
being a lot more innocent than her more recent songs. She took inspiration from Barbados with a more
reggae feel.
She was criticized
for being too similar to the works of Beyonc, and so with her third
Country
Dolly
Parton
studio album Good Girl Gone Bad her music changed and shifted into the R&B genre.

Dolly Parton is a country singer-songwriter active since 1955. She moved to Nashville at the age of
eighteen and in 1967 she rose to prominence as a featured performer on a weekly TV programme. She
moved into the pop genre with her single Here You Come Again, succeeding in both the country and
pop charts. Her single 9 to 5 was her most successful hit of the eighties. She has had 25 songs reach
the No.1 spot on the Billboard Country charts. She has also won 8 Grammy awards and 10 Country
Music Association Awards, along with many others.
Dolly has a typical country style with cowboy boots, hats and bandannas. She is known for having
large amounts of plastic surgery and her famous blonde hair is also part of her brand image. The
merchandise includes denim shirts, bandannas and t-shirts so that fans can copy her style too.

Dolly Partons fans are named Partners. There are fanpages about the artist and she has almost 3
million likes on her facebook page. The Daily Mail wrote an article recently about super-fan Joe Skelly
who spent 10,000 on Dolly Parton memorabilia!

So do we, as listeners, change our fashion habits in order to fit into a particular group?
Stereotypes suggest that we do... and in fact, I agree. The media holds great power over
audiences, and so whoever you follow, whether it's Tim McGraw or One Direction, audiences
choose to represent themselves in a way that will bring them closer to the artist. Music videos are
a great source of gaining knowledge of new trends as it gives audiences an insight into what the
artists are wearing and how they wear it. High street stores make this fashion more affordable
and accessible to us.