Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment, also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment and managed by the American umbrella division of Sony. Sony Music is the worlds second largest record label, behind Universal Studios. Sony owns a huge amount of labels, in several different genres. Flagship labels (meaning the best or most important thing owned or produced by a particular organization) include;

- Columbia Records

- RCA Records

- Epic Records

- Arista Records

Genre limited labels include the likes of Country Music, Christian/Gospel Music, Dance/EDM music, Latin, Classical, Jazz, Metal and Progressive.

In the UK, Sony Music (UK) owns; Columbia Records UK, Relentless Records, 5K Records, Black Butter Records (joint-venture), Dream Life Records, Insanity Records (joint-venture), Magic Star, Robots + Humans, Since ’93, Sony Music Nashville UK, WEAREBLK (joint-venture) and District 18 Entertainment (joint-venture).

Sony Music has an amazing roster of artists, and it's no doubt that it's able to produce stars. With such a wide genre of music, part of Sony's sucsess comes from it's high budget productions, stylised sets and making the artist the main focus of the video.

Industrial Context - Distribution and Ownership

The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, represent and supply music creators.

With the evolution of the industry, from national concerts to digital distribution, 3 main conglomerates have risen to dominate the industry;

- The French-owned Universal Music Group

- The Japanese-owned Sony Music Entertainment 

- The US-owned Warner Music Group.

Any other record label that does not fall under these three brands are known as "Independant" or "Indie" record labels. The largest portion of the live music market for concerts and tours is controlled by Live Nation. 

Artists in the late 20th and 21st century have a new found reach and freedom with the rise of the internet, allowing distribution online. American alternative indie band "They Might Be Giants" released their album "Long Tall Weekend" exclusively online, making it the first commercial album to ever be an online exclusive

Distribution

In our current time, the main distribution of music is digitally, through downloads and on demand streaming. Consumers still like to have physical forms of media and enjoy CD's and Vinyl, but prefer the ease of an on demand piece of music. Music is distributed on platforms like Spotify and iTunes, allowing it to reach a broader audience. This allows for more money to be made for artists and the sites hosting their music. Some platforms allow streaming for free, with adverts to make revenue, some platforms take a percentage of royalties from artists and some platforms allow music to be digitally brought, and provide a set amount of money to an artist for a digital download.

Industrial Context

Introduction to Music Videos :

- The "music video" dates as far back as 1960s promotional films for the Beatles, but the music video form didn't really take off until the introduction of music television channels, most notably MTV​

-  Early music videos were shot and edited on film, but with the development of technology involving digital editing, and a big budget, music videos were able to cement an editing style involving fast-paced movements.​

- In 1981 MTV launched, airing the music video to "Video killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles, and beginning a 24-hour streaming service on television. The start of MTV is credited to be a central role in growing the careers of artists such as Duran Duran, Madonna and even Michael Jackson. ​

- Music videos became something much more than a standard video to accompany music. They were able to tell a story and explore current political and social themes within society. This trend expands onto current day music, seen in iconic videos such as Childish Gambino's "This is America".​

History :

- 1960 - 1973 : Promotional clips - In the late 1950's, a visual jukebox as introduced in France. Short films would be made to accompany french artist's songs. This practice spread to other countries. In 1964, an experimental short film named "Scorpio Rising" used popular songs instead of dialogue. In 1965, The Beatles began to make promotional clips known as "filmed inserts" for distribution and broadcast in different countries - primarily the U.S to promote their record releases. David Bowie featured in a series of promotional films during late 1972 - 73, including one with a budget of $200, filmed at an afternoon rehearsal for Bowie's Rainbow Theatre concert. The clip was turned down for broadcasting by the BBC, who found the homosexual undertones "distasteful".

- 1974 - 1992 : Beginnings of music television -   During 1975, Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" was occampanied by a promotional video on Top of the Pops. It is “widely credited as the first global hit single for which an accompanying video was central to the marketing strategy”. In 1981, MTV launched with the music video for "Video killed the Radiostar". MTV became a crucial place for artists to promote their music. The DIY video approach that initially inundated the MTV in the early 80s soon fade toward huge production budgets and an era where music video cost more than feature films.

- 1992 - 2004 : Music videos began to encompass directors. Directors in the industry revolutionised music videos - making it so videos could have meaning to accompany the song instead of promoting only a band. Directors like Michel Gondry grew and were given new platforms and budgets to express ideas. Around the Wold is considered by Gondry as the music video he most likes and we can see why– It packs all the elements that he got famous for, the visualization of the music through choreography, a minimalistic set design and dreamlike imagery that later became his signature. Gondry is also known for playing with camera angles, as seen Cibo Matto's "Sugar Water". Another notable example encompasses a beloved childhood toy - lego, as shown in The White Stripe's "Fell In Love With A Girl". 

- 2005 - onwards : Nowdays, the main streaming site for music videos is YouTube. A focus on new ideas made low budget music videos go viral and unshackled from the censorship of broadcast television. Ideas that weren’t possible to be broadcasted before started appearing in music videos. Artists are able to upload and liscence their own music videos, thus giving artist's their own creative outlets. 

Initial Ideas and Song Ideas

 1) I/Me/Myself - Will Wood

This song is widely considered an anthem in terms of gender identity. The singer sings about how he wishes he could be a girl to be considered pretty in today's current climate - something a lot of 16 - 25 year olds find themselves open to exploring. The nature of the lyrics create ideas of percieved feminity and masculinity, which allows me to create an illustrative connection with visual aspects.

2) Kate - Ben Folds Five

This song follows a girl called Kate. She's very down to earth and likes "retro" things such as mixtapes and the song "Wipeout" by Bob Berryhill. The lyrics do reference this, which is a piece of intertextuality. The singer seems to have an infatuation with Kate, seeing her as really cool and different, yet eventually does run out of things to say about her actual charachter, as she is quite superficial, resorting to stating she "speaks" and "breathes". This song poses as an anthem of admiration, but ultimately just finding the girl in the song attractive, which is a cruel truth i feel would resonate with 16 - 25 year olds.

3) Rockin' the Suburbs - Ben Folds

Rockin' the Suburbs is a song by Ben Folds that makes a statement about how hard it is to be a teenage (white) boy who is relitively well off and is a part of a rock band. The song reflects on the archetype of those who feel their life is so hard, despite being middle class and white. The song features intertexuality, referencing Micheal Jackson, Mcdonalds, Quiet Riot, and Bon Jovi, something 16 - 25 year olds would understand.

4) Everybody Loves Raymond - Lemon Demon

Everybody Loves Raymond is a song by the band Lemon Demon about the sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond". In the song he lists a total of 42 sitcoms, which is great intertextuality and would allow for different camera shots in a neon aesthetic. The lyrics are quite fast paced and gritty which could allow for rough animation in the form of lyrics on screen.

5) Greener - Tally Hall 

Greener by Tally Hall is an anthem of love (and the inevitable breakup), following a relationship that has aspects of jealousy and mistrust, stating that there is always a reason why the relationship "can't be". Because the song has aspects of angst and worries, it relates to 16 - 25 year olds who typically enter their first "serious" relationship in these years. The singer talks about how he misses his partner and how he wishes they were close again.

6) How Ya Doing, Emily? - Logan Whitehurst & the Junior Science Club 

Similar to the song "Kate" by Ben Folds Five, How Ya Doing, Emily? is a feel good song about making the world a better place, that encapsulates all the good things about the world, and how simple things can make a change. A lot of the lyrics describe actions that could be reflected by different camera shots. It acts again as an anthem for the girl the lead singer describes, who is called "Emily".

Moderator's Report

Points of Guidance:

1)    The best products must show an understanding of specific requirements of the brief relating to genre, representation and industrial contexts. which requires prior research before planning. Strong technical skills and a clear fundamental understanding of relevant codes and conventions is necessary for gaining top marks.

2)    As an extension of point 1),  there needs to be a certain level of quality to gain top marks. The product must be "accomplished", "sophisticated," "highly appropriate," and "highly developed."

3)    Many of the best products that emphasised the performance aspect (by filming the artist performing the track several times in different locations) provided alternate, yet appropriate mise-en-scenes and included a variety of camera shots and movements along with well-edited lip-syncing.

4)    Less successful products often followed a theme of a) missing key elements of the brief or b) did not adhere to the codes and conventions of the form. Examples of this include:

- Camerawork and camera movement which did not demonstrate the level of skill, finish or excellence required for Level 5 marks

- Pieces were performance footage was used in a perfunctory manner, or where lip-sync was not fully effective

- Editing which did not match the pace/BPM of the track

- Failure to mention the name of the band/artist track at the start or end of the video

5)    Superb examples of online products clearly showed an understanding of real-world examples of websites and had applied knowledge of this effectively. In order to achieve top marks I should appreciate that the website element is worth the same number of marks as the analogue products and should put in an equivalent amount of time creating it.

6)    The statement of intent should be detailed, and go into depths as to how and why specific elements should be created and how these ideas link to ideas shown in other areas of the course - the appreciation of theorists or particular products. The statement of intents should highlight every requirement and how it will be addressed.

7)    Links between the products should be clear and strong, with examples of tweets, Instagram posts, newsletters, merchandise or discussion of other products available to buy such as tracks, tour books and subscriptions. Simply the addition of social bars are insufficient proof of understanding of technological convergence.

8)    Convergence that was insufficient did not develop further than shared font and colour palettes. Insufficient convergence often included: 

- Music video sites that did not include the video

- Logos on websites that didn't match the partner product

- Models / actors that were not used in the partner product

- Products that did not mention the website at all.

9)    Digital convergence must have examples of coherent branding and synergy that effectively engages the audience and provides insightful and coherent meaning.

10)    Practice the technology I plan on using in order to become familiar to it before shooting.

Audience Research

Name: Robyn Gardener

Gender: Female

Age: 21

Occupation: Student/Retail Worker

Annual income: £25,000

Location: South-east England

Psychographic: Aspirer - (Materialistic, seeks status, oriented to image and appearance)

Lifestyle: Buys designer clothes to post about online. Very well-versed in social media. Watches reels/tiktoks of celebrities, and is interested in their lives.

Favourite music genre: Indie Pop

Robyn is very loyal to the brands she subscribes or buys from, incoperating them into her day to day life. She is very likely to buy into apps and loyaltly schemes, and any extra money will be spent on materialistic objects, or expiriences involving celebrities she subscribes to. She likes to imagine herself as a friend to these celebrities, and enjoys personalised expiriences.