Peliminary- CD cover design and CD research

Research- Dyer's star theory

Dyers star theory holds the idea that compares and defines the thin boundary between a music performer and a music star as a performer is someone who plays music to audiences while stars are more idolised and there daily activity becomes something of interest to the audience as well, a good example of stars would be David Bowie who become renowned for there feats outside there music career due to fan interest or in the case of his controversy and due to there famousness become well known outside there fan base or cult followers often stars create persona's or identities which are not there actual selves just what they know the crowds would expect of them or want them to be such as Amy Winehouse or lady gaga. Amy Winehouse was believed to be a drug abusing alcoholic performer this was her "claim to fame" which rose her to be a star when in actual truth she didn't begin as one at all, however through the pressures of her audiences and fans drove her to become this persona and she eventually died from drug misuse which shows that the star and the person are not necessarily one and the same. While lady gaga simply was considered a strange person so she constantly tried to create new ways to shock people so she leapt at every chance to be controversial till it was the main thing she was known for and became a "star".

Dyer stated that "A star is an image not a real person that is constructed" meaning the person themselves don't change its simply a mask that's used for attention, while the image itself can eventual change the person (Amy Winehouse) the image is manufactured through how the person is managed using materials at there disposal such as magazine columns tour adverts news feeds social media, things that entwine with day to day life of the potential consumer till news on them becomes frequent. While performers such as "Korn" a metal band tend to only be well known but only within there own genres consumers and with fewer people who follow there life outside the music industry and will either lack a persona or simply have one but is non-functional in the aims of becoming a star.

The current artist I am using "rat boy" an artist who appears as a layabout rebellious teen who comes across as common  creating songs such as "sign on" (to benefits) and "fake Id" he come across as a rebellious spirit while also seeming average as he comes across as poor from a small town making him relate-able to some. Although with him being a singer its doubtful he's poor so he appears to have a fictional "star image" about him although he isn't a star himself as he's a small time niche singer and he's not well known.

Research- music genre theory

Research- Music video regulation and distributrion

Music video regulations are controlled by the same company that regulate films and there minimum age for viewers, this company is called the BBFC, (the British Board of Film Classification). They regulate adult content in media and occasionally ban it from certain media such as when music videos were displayed on the TV in top of the pops, where on occasion the music but not the video usually by being too controversial for the time periods values or in rarer cases of offence or discrimination. Other music video regulations are put into place by the sources of the media in the first place usually in that of YouTube which occasionally bans media. However, this raises an issue as it’s easy to fake your age. This raises issues as the lack of control over media and then hence a surplus of freedom, this means that with the range of music videos there are some that are inappropriate for specific groups of age or that are objectifying or too controversial are easily accessed by anyone. So to combat this the BBFC attempted to regulate YouTube's videos (and music video's) with age rating labels before viewing which was very short lived as people prefer uncensored unregulated media due to the far higher rate of individually who are not offended by much of the material available in comparison to the minority who do usually parents.

 Below is a well-known old controversial music video called "like a prayer" by Madonna that shows how ideas become less controversial over time and the ideas behind it.

 However that in question most music videos banned within the last 30 years or so have been lifted off there "Banned" statues This would include such videos as Madonna's "like a prayer" which featured a black Jesus during a time when there were racial rights but not vary much acceptance let alone for that "blasphemy" insinuates rape by a white gang and the black man is the saviour which some people found unnecessary for viewing. Political injustice is shown as the black man is arrested and shows obvious racism in criminal justice department i.e. the police hastily locking up the black man with no evidence and finally potential male gaze material of Madonna in a black sexualised nightie, this may have been banned and considered as unfit for media as it portraits white's as the villains in the narrative.