CD DigiPack Casestudies

CaseStudies

Lil Wayne – I am not a human being

I Am Not A Human Being album by Lil Wayne was released Oct 12, 2010. The CD contains a single disc with 13 songs. The CD cover has a long angle shot of Wayne standing. His youthful attire portrays that this album will be of the hip-hop genre. Selective focus has been used so Wayne is the centre attention of the cover. As he is standing with sunglasses and both his arms by his side, this shows that he is standing casually hence relaxing and posing for the camera. From his reflective sunglasses you can see buildings in the far distance which shows that Wayne has his attention on something future away. The colour contrast of black and white works well as the titles in the middle of the cover stand out and are easily visible to the audience. As the letters on the cover are spaced out slightly, this makes the title easily readable. The bold white font used on the cover, back and insert is useful in catching the audience’s attention as it stands out and works well with the low key lighting used to create a dark atmosphere.  The image of Wayne used in the insert portrays him sitting down looking at the camera. This creates the effect that Wayne is directly looking at the audience even with his sunglasses on. There is focus lighting on his tattoos which may have been done deliberately to show that there is more to Wayne that what meets the eye. The image used on the cover shows Wayne fully clothed hence his tattoos are not shown and he seems like an ordinary male however in this image the amount of tattoos he has connotes that he has another side to him. This is because it is not common to be covered in tattoos as Wayne is and to have tattoos all over your face as well, this shows that he is unique. His body language shows that he is not fazed and is just sitting down on the middle of the road without and concern. This links to the genre of hip-hop and rap as Wayne is shown to be in the streets in his album cover, the heart of where rap is located. After viewing this CD digipack I would like to use some of the elements when creating my digipack. I would like to use selective focus on Drake when creating my digipack as it is a nice effect that allows the artist to be centre of attention. I also like the font colour as it allows the writing to stand out and be easily visible hence I would like to have the font colour as white in my digipack. The fact that there isn’t much on the front cover works well I think because it intrigues the viewer to want to find out more about the album as not is given away by the front cover.

Pitbull – Global Warming

Global Warming album by Pitbull was released on 3^rd December 2012. The CD contains a single disc with 16 songs. Long angle shots have been used on both the cover and the back of the CD package. Both images are of Pitbull’s back facing the audience, this may have been done to portray an element of suspense that only his back is being shown.  Pitbull only showing his back to the audience could have been done to show that the songs in this album will be from his perspective. This may have been done to signify his high status and power as he is shown standing up with is back straight, representing his high class. A mixture of high key and low key lighting has been used. In the front cover high key lighting mixed with special effects has been used as in the background there is an image of earth. From the earth there is a significant amount of light shining which connotes that global warming is taking place. The earth is the centre attention of the front cover however Pitbull is on a stage and there is also a red curtain above him. This could represent that he is seeing the earth being destroyed whilst he is on the stage, or he will represent his views on global warming from the stage hence from his songs. The curtain opened symbolises that some sort of entertainment is taking place hence could be connoting that the album is going to be entertaining. Pitbull is going for the smart look as he is dressed in a black suit which could be to show his audience that he is maturing. The title on the cover is bold and stands out clearly as it is positioned on the middle of the cd package. The words “Global Warming” are written with an orange and yellow colour as this is represents global warming as the sun is yellow and heat is represented by the colour orange. As the letters are spaced out well, this makes the title easily readable and gives it more emphasis. Also, the title size of “Pitbull” is larger than the album title itself, this connoting Pitbull’s status and authority. The back cover has low key lighting as it is an image of Pitbull performing on stage in front of thousands of people. This may have been done to portray that the focus is on Pitbull. The album listing is written in a white font which allows the names of the songs to be easily visible to the audience. From this CD package I like the use of special effects as it makes the CD package unique and stand out amongst other CD covers. I would like to include some sort of special effects in my Digipack cover which is possible as I will be using Photoshop when creating my digipack.

Drake – Take Care

Take Care album was released by Drake in November 2011. The CD contains a single disc with 18 songs. A medium angle shot of Drake has been used for the cover of the CD package. Drake is being portrayed as being depressed, sad and lonely hence the reason why he is dressed in all black to connote his emptiness. In the background there are two large paintings which look like antiques, there is a cup made out of gold and Drake is wearing a lot of jewellery. This has been done to connote that Drake has a lot of wealth however there is something still missing from his lonely life. This links to Drake’s public representation as he is portrayed to be lonely and depressed in his career as he hasn’t been in luck when it comes to love. Low key lighting has been used to represent Drake’s feelings of being sad and depressed. Drake’s body language suggests that he is sitting down reflecting on what could have gone better as he is shown looking down into the glass staring into it as if he was in a deep thought. The title “Take Care” has been written in a stylish font and is placed on the left bottom corner of the cover. Although the title does not stand out and catch the audience’s attention, the title is easily visible after you notice it. This may have been done so there is more attention on Drake as he is the centre of attention. I like the idea that less writing on the cover has more emphasis on the artist who is on the cover therefore I would like to include this when creating my Digipack as I could have a shot of Drake just like this cover with minimal writing. The bold white font used on the insert to describe each song is useful, as it allows the reader to view the writing more easily as the background image is overpowering.

The audience can see that Drake is wealthy from his attire and the surroundings as he has a gold candle holder, gold cup and gold chains. It is clear that Drake is going through a break up which could be the reason why the album is called ‘Take Care’ as he says ‘bye’ to his girlfriend. As a result, from Drake's facial expressions and the surroundings the message that we receive is that money can buy you anything and everything apart from love, because it is priceless.

In the background we can see that there is a picture and gold figure of a bird which symbolises freedom. This connotes that he might have been trapped in a relationship as a result, himself and his girlfriend are now free to live their own lives how they want. The album ‘Take Care’ is about fighting for the person you love. In the cover we can see that Drake has lost the fight as he is sitting alone on a table. The fact that he has not shaved also suggests that he is going through severe depression. One of the main colours used in this cover is the colour gold in ‘Take Care’. The colour gold symbolises power and strength where we can see that Drake is rich and wealthy and has everything apart from his love who is Rihanna. Even though she is not in the album cover she is in the song hence he is telling her to take care of herself now that they have split up. Another colour used is black which symbolises sadness, unhappiness and wealth which is exactly what Drake is going through even though he is wealthy and capable enough to afford anything he wants.

Within the insert, the songs have been named and there is a little paragraph underneath each song which has some information about the song. I like this as the audience may want a little bit more information about each song. This shows that time and effort has been put in to the CD therefore this may attract the public into purchasing the album rather than downloading it. On one of the insert pages, there is a page in which Drake writes a message to the audience regarding his album. I think this is effective as this engages the audience even more and it gives the album more meaning as Drake explains his thoughts about the album and why he created the various songs. This results in the album being purchased not just because of the songs but because it can be considered a collectible.  When creating my insert, if possible I would like to have an insert page in which there is a message from the artist as I believe this is a USP and will increase sales of the CD.

Magazine Adverts

Blue Print

This is a magazine advert for Jay Z’s Blue Print album. This advert has the general conventions of a magazine advert such as:

·         The record label branding – RocNation

·         Name of album – Blue Print

·         Release Date – 09.11.09

·         Name of artist – Jay Z

·         Website – www.Jayz.com

The masthead of the artist is placed at the top of the advert in bold black capital letters; this is effective in catching the viewer’s attention and wanting them to continue reading the advert. The large font and space in between each letter of the title allows the title to stand out. As the Rocnation logo is made up of the colours black and red, the advert is made up of the colours black red and white. I think this colour scheme works well as although the black and white is plain the red stands out resulting in the whole advert standing out. The instruments shown in the background, all piled on each other look unusual hence attract the viewer to wonder why they are placed there. As they are placed in the corner of a white empty room this put emphasis on them and this helps the image stand out as it is the centre focus of the advert. The three lines going across the instruments in red means “is the same as” therefore this may connote that all the instruments shown all together are the same as the album itself. Therefore Jay-Z may be stating how great his album will be as he is comparing it to numerous instruments put together. All the writing on the advert is centred, making it easier for the viewer to read it. The album blue print 3 is just under the image hence the viewer is bound to read it after seeing the image hence this is a great way to get the album’s name acknowledged. Emphasis is put on the date as it is written in block bold numbers which make it stand out so the audience can easily know when the album is going to be released. I like the fact that the simple design of the advert still leaves the reader intrigued to find out more about the album, having less on the album hasn’t had an impact on the advert itself and when creating my advert I am considering having less and centring the titles.

This is a magazine advert for Wretch 32’s album Wretchprospective.  Evident on many music adverts is a prominent feature image of the star in question, in this instance it is Wretch 32. The advert is somewhat less informative than other types of media it simply informs the viewer of the artist, the work and the release date. It does however sell the album by letting the reader know of the talent that has helped produce the album. The image of Wretch 32 is a casual yet romantic one of him he could easily be seen as a role model because of his enviable style and suaveness.

You can see from the artist’s attire that he is a producer of urban music and this is given away by his choice of clothing, his race and the block of flats situated behind his shoulder denoting that he is from 'the streets'. He may not be from 'the streets' at all it could be a marketing ploy to engage viewers who are from working class backgrounds who would be interested in this artist. The animation has been used cleverly in this image as the artist’s arms are animated which blend in to look like they are his arms. The colour scheme of black and white with some elements of blue works well as the colour contrast allows him to stand out and be centre of attention. The masthead is clearly visible so the audience can clearly see the artist’s name. The handwriting effect of the font used in the masthead enables it to stand out and be different against other ones hence makes the advert more intriguing. I like the use of animation mixed in with the artist as it gives a nice effect and makes the advert seem unique. I would like to use some elements of animation mixed in with the artist when creating my advert. I would also use the same technique used in this cover by placing the artist’s image in the centre as it stands out and attracts the viewer’s attention. I like the fact the information about the music is not written in a straight line, as it is wonky this could be connoting that the album is out of the norm hence unique.

 This is a magazine advert for All time low’s Don’t panic album. This advert has the general conventions of a magazine advert such as:

·         The record label branding – HopelessUK

·         Name of album – Don’t panic

·         Release Date – 8^th October

·         Name of artist – All Time Low

·         Website of seller: hmv.com

This advert has a basic and simple design however it works well with the range of colours that are used creating the advert look colourful. The image is the USP of the advert as it is unique, the animation used puts emphasis on the genre of the song which is rock. There are many colours used and there is great detail on the characters in the animation, this makes the advert more appealing to the audience and attracts them to find out more about the album.  

The bright colours shows the band isn’t a normal band advertised in Kerrang! magazine however the animated characters in the image can draw a link to a heavy rock look as the animation is very much like the animation used in the Gorrilaz’s music video which were a band linked with a heavy music look and scene. The masthead is placed at the top of the advert and is in a large white font hence helping it to stand out amongst the image. I like the fact that the album’s name is written in a speech bubble as it makes the advert look unique and also adds a sense of humour as all the characters in the image are panicking and the album is named don’t panic. I am not going to be using animation when creating my advert however I like how the information of the album is right at the bottom of the advert as it doesn’t take the centre focus of the advert. The details on the animated characters are crucial as the audience is able to distinguish the difference between the zombies and the humans. When creating my A4 advert I will ensure that there is emphasis on the facial expressions I want to show the audience. I like the idea of having the artist’s name and the album’s name spread out in the poster as it is different and makes the poster more appealing.