Analysis of a Star and Dyer's Theory - Miss Miller

Over the recent years of the music industry various artists have chosen to reinvent themselves in order to gain publicity and become what is known as a 'star'. Richard Dyer gives an in-depth analysis of this theory of 'stardom' and the ways in which a 'star' is developed. Artists often have varied reasons for reinventing themselves into a totally new image producing new genres of music and attracting anew target audience. One reason could be simply to gain publicity, this was evident clearly through the evolution of Miley Cyrus. She changed her image from being an innocent artist aiming to appeal to a much younger target audience of older children and young teenagers to become a reckless and revealing pop artist, aiming to attract older teenagers and young adults. She gained a lot of publicity for this due to reckless behaviour, especially seen within her music videos. Another reason may be to appeal to a more reasonable, larger mainstream target audience. Again evidence of this can be seen through the change seen by Eminem. He changed his songs and his image slightly to actually become more acceptable to society. This allowed him to appeal to a more mainstream target audience as his songs were played on radios and music channels on a international level, allowing him to reach out to a more mainstream target audience and even younger teenagers. Artists may also change an appearance for personal reasons. This can often be seen as an artists gets older, they tend to change their music and genres in order to relate to an audience. This can be seen through the likes of Tom Jones and even Justin Beiber.

The 'star' I have chosen to analyse is Justin Bieber. He is an interesting artist as he is seen to have developed his image and 'stardom' through various stages and for different reasons. He has developed his image from being an innocent pop artist to becoming a more reckless RnB artist and eventually, in more recent years, becoming a more respected dance/house artist that now reaches out to a very broad mainstream target audience.

One Time 

This was Beibers first song, a pop song released in 2009 when he was of 15 years of age. Goodwin's theory is evident in this music video through the link between the lyrics and video itself. The lyrics are seen to match the visual aid. When the lyric states 'one more time', the artist indicates to the camera, pointing his finger as if to resemble the number one. This specific gesture is used throughout the video as this is the main lyric, often repeated throughout the chorus. Having the artist doing the specific dance moves that match the lyrics makes the lyrics more engaging and meaningful. Also, the artist is seen singing this lyric to the audience, this could be said to make them feel more engaged and involved in the video; making them think that Justin is personally directing the lyrics to them as an individual. His target audience of younger teenage girls appeal to this as they want to feel as though they can personally connect with the artist that they may fantasise about.

One convention of the pop genre that is evident throughout this video is the use of dancing. Dancing is seen in almost every pop song and is conventional to the happy, 'feel good' theme of the genre. In the video Justin is seen dancing in the party both with his friends and with a girl. He is also seen dancing in the chorus as he sings to the camera; this is mostly shown through mid shot's and slow paced editing highlighting Justin's emotions. This dancing is used to appeal to the audience as it shows off Justin's talent and shows his confidence which may appeal to teenage girls. It is highly conventional to the pop genre as pop artists usually aim to create a happy image to their music which is developed through the use of performance and dance. 

Dyer's theory is clearly utilised throughout the video. This is seen as Justin's appearance is adjusted in order to sell himself to an audience in a way that allows him to promote separate products. Evidence of this is seen towards the start of the video as Justin is shown to be playing Xbox with his friend; it is shown through numerous mid shots emphasising the fin they are having plus the use of close ups of the Xbox itself. By doing this Justin is showing his star qualities, allowing him to market other consumer products through his stardom. The use of the Xbox further develops the evident use of Dyer's star theory through the fact that Justin is seen to present himself as being an ordinary conventional teenager of the time. Although this is shown through the Xbox, it is also elaborated upon through the use of a mobile phone. Teenagers of this modern era are seen to use mobile phones almost obsessively, easily being able to communicate with each other, also conventional teenage boys of his age are constantly seen to play Xbox with each other. This relatable presentation would vastly appeal to his audience as they feel that they can aspire to be like him by showing his lifestyle to be accessible to everyone.

Boyfriend

 

This is a very popular song from Justin's third album. It was released in 2012 and Justin was 18, you can clearly see many changes in Justin' style, appearance and performance. This is especially evident from his hair and costume. Goodwin's theory is clearly evident throughout the video through the constant close ups of the artists face as he refers to the camera whilst driving his car. He does this whilst stating 'if I was your boyfriend'. This is used so that the artist is able to build a relationship with the individual viewer as he is seen to refer specifically to them. It again complies to Goodwin's theory and may be used to entice the female audience as they may aspire to be his girlfriend and aspire to be treated in the way in which he treats the female character. Also, the constant reference to the artists facial features seen through the numerous close ups is vital to Justin's presentation with his looks being a key feature of his stardom.

A conventional aspect that links towards the R ‘n’ B genre consists of the expensive items displayed. Firstly, one of the first shots to the video is of the artist driving a new, flash expensive looking convertible car with the roof down. This particular shot shows the artist driving the flash car with the title of the song 'Boyfriend' spread across it. This is conventional to the R 'n' B genre as the artists tend to emphasise their wealth and present it through examples of materialism such as cars or expensive clothing and jewellery. Having expensive items can reflect success and so can make the artist seem so a higher status as they are seen in a more impressive way. The fact that Justin is only 18 in this video emphasises his success as it is rare that someone can be so wealthy and popular at such a young age. The way he is singing about being someone's boyfriend makes him seem as though he wants to express his success and high social status. This is clearly seen through the large amounts of dancers surrounding him and the girl that he is constantly with, it portrays his rich lifestyle and success, often seen within the R 'n' B genre.

Justin presents himself as being extraordinary in this video opposed to being ordinary and relatable in previous song. This is specifically done through the use of iconography with expensive clothing, cars and jewellery. Plus the use of performance as he shows off his versatile talents with examples of him rapping and playing the guitar. The iconography in particular emphasises his extraordinary lifestyle and 'stardom' as he shows his wealth and status through cars, girls and jewellery. The video places fans in favour of hegemony as they are easily influenced by the artist's lifestyle. He makes his lifestyle appear relaxed yet exciting through having expensive cars, limitless friends and a love interest. It makes his teenage audience aspire to be like him.

What do you mean

This is one of Justin’s more recent releases from August 2015; here the artist is 21 years old. Goodwin's theory is again displayed in this video. This is shown through the link between the lyrics and the visual aid seen from the music video itself. The lyrics state 'what do you mean' as part of the chorus. This sung over both the artist and his female companion being both sexually engaged yet also ignoring one and other. It shows the meaning and reasoning behind the song as Justin is made out to be confused over what the girl wants. This helps the audience understand the song and also gain an insight into Justin’s emotions and thoughts. It helps the audience engage as they feel involved with the narrative alongside the song. Also the video shows the girl being very seductive towards Justin with a lack of clothing. This makes the artist seem sexually magnified and the audience begin to aspire and fantasise about being him or being with him.

Within this song the artist moves more towards the dance genre. A conventional aspect of the video is particularly emphasised towards the end of the video as the artist is seen at the centre of attention within a party crowd. This is another convention of the dance music genre as the videos are often seen to revolve around a party lifestyle or atmosphere, emphasising the happy positive feelings that the music is made to create. People are seen dancing and socialising all together in this part of the video giving off a positive, welcoming party atmosphere. Having the artist as the focal point during this makes it seem as if he is the one who has created this positive atmosphere and that he is the centre of attention. This is done to show the positive side of the song and the positive side of Justin’s feeling towards the girl in the video. It is added to also present the party lifestyle that dance fans are often seen to aspire towards.

One aspect of the Dyer's theory that is evident within this video is Justin Biebers marketing ability and his presentation as a product. This is shown through both the indications that the video itself was part of a start for a film plus the marketing of the underwear brand, Calvin Klein. The movie style presentation of the video was seen through the credits added at the start of the video. This elaborates upon Justin's stardom by showing him to be iconic, elaborating upon the entertaining factors of his music whilst also emphasising his talents as an actor. This may appeal to an audience as they aspire to be as talented and iconic as him. Also, his marketable presentation is shown through the close up of his Calvin Klein underwear as Justin takes his top off mid way through the video. This emphasises his stardom as it shows his ability to sell a product and his influence upon his target audience. It also expresses the artists sexuality, appealing to a female artist who may fantasise about the artist as he utilises his looks.

To conclude, Justin has vastly changed his image as he has evolved from a young teenage boy into a young adult. This is clearly evident through the different genres he has gone through such as pop, RnB and dance. Plus the self representations that are clear within each stage of his career. He has done this to make himself marketable to a wider target audience through each stage in his career. When he was younger he aimed to appeal to young teenage girls, presenting himself as innocent and using the pop genre to reach out to his selected audience. When he turned 18 he aimed to broaden his audience by turning to the R 'n' B genre which is listened to by all genders from wider age groups, here he shows his great lifestyle, his success and his wealth in order to emphasise his stardom and appeal to both genders. Finally, he turns to the dance genre which has one of the largest audiences of a wide range of teenagers from both genders; here he expresses his maturity by showing his sexuality and controlling behaviour as he saves a girl from an antagonist. Overall he has developed his image so that he can appeal to a wider target audience of all genders and older age groups through expressing his maturity; these wider audiences have helped him develop his international stardom.