Has the music piracy battle been won?

Case Study - Indie Label

Case Study - Major Label

Reprise Records is an American label, owned by Warner Music Group and therefore Warner Bros. Records making it under the umbrella of one of the ‘big four’. Warner Music Group is conglomerate and a global organisation, so obviously Reprise release music all over the world and in many different countries. For 30 years Warner Music Group was a part of WEA with two other record labels Elektra and Atlantic which produced and developed artists for their own labels but also for other labels too. In 2004, Warner Music Group disbanded itself completely with Time Warner, leaving them with no legislational hold over the music that has been produced. Warner Bros. Entertainment which is the major owner of Warner Music Group and therefore Reprise Records, produces a variety, including music, films and television, making them one of the richest entertainment companies in the world.

Reprise Records distributes its music through physical cds at shops like HMV, online shops such as Amazon and digital websites such as ITunes.

My Chemical Romance has been signed to Reprise Records since 2003 and has released three major studio albums through them.  In the UK alone, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge went Platinum and sold over 300,000 copies, The Black Parade went Platinum twice and Danger Days went Gold, selling over 100,000 copies. Over the entire world, they’ve sold 4, 438,500 albums.  They’re not on a 360 deal which would mean Reprise Records would get a percentage on everything they release and sell, including merchandise, cds etc.

Warner Music Group, being a worldwide organisation obviously caters for a wide range of audiences, including global. They have a range of artists, so for the more mainstream ones, they’re promoted for a wider audience compared to more alternative artists, who are aimed at smaller, more niche audiences. The label and artist releases videos on YouTube, allowing audiences to have an active part and a chance to voice their opinion on what they like. People can’t however contact Warner Music Group with a demo in an attempt to get signed.

Web 2.0 has really helped develop the entire music industry and how it’s run, and also how it sells to and targets audiences. As people discovered social networking sites and blogs and other online sharing websites, companies like Warner Music Group and Reprise Records were able to get a clearer and more detailed idea of what audiences want.

There are serious advantages to online streaming as audiences only have to pay a certain amount of money on websites such as Spotify, to be able to listen to whatever music they like. The artists do not lose money through this, and often one will listen to a song on a streaming website, and if they like it, it might push them onto going out and buying the cd, making them more money. There’s an upside to downloading music (It’s legal and the artists get money for every cd that is bought) but there is a downside – People can illegally download music tracks and therefore get away with paying anything, but get the music. There is a problem with file sharing as it means both the artists and record labels and companies lose money and people get to have the music files for free. Record labels do not respond well to this form of piracy and many online websites have legally been shut down because of file sharing.

Case Study – Independent Record Label

Case Study – Independent Record Label

Tigertrap Records

Step Two Tigertrap Records is an independent record label based in London which deals with alternative rock, punk rock and indie and promotes bands such as Mock Orange, Scanners, Tiny Masters of Today, It Hugs Back and Look See Proof. The artists promoted aren’t incredibly well known, but they do/did have growing fanbases with fans of varying nationalities, as they promote bands from all over the world, but mainly from the UK and the United States. Some Tigertrap bands are much more popular than others, as with any record label.

In 2007, Tigertrap Records were Radio One’s Huw Stephen’s DIY Label of the Week. They get a few plays on 6 Music, XFM and Radio One, but much more interest and plays on smaller British stations like Amazing Radio, Recharged, Total and Resonance as well as some pirate stations. They get a certain amount of support from radio stations across seas aswell, particularly in America but also in Germany and France too. Myspace and Last FM stream Tigertrap Records from their websites as well as Facebook and Soundcloud.

It Hugs Back

Last FM

  Plays – 135,461

  Listeners – 14,780

Similar Artists – Canadian Invasion, Team B, When I was 12, Unbunny, Boy Genius.

Youtube

   Video Views – 7,663

Similar Artists – Ben Lee, Corner Shop, Stornaway.

Scanners

Last FM

  Plays – 678,323

  Listeners – 60, 671

Similar Artists – The Ropes, Cassette Kids, Chew Lips, Operator Please.

Myspace – total plays – 758,217

Youtube – suggested artists – The Burned, We Are Scientists, The National.

Tigertrap Records have supplied a few small festivals with their artists such as SOTU Festival, Amsterdam, The Great Escape Festival, Brighton and Supernormal Festival, Oxfordshire.

Ownership

Tom Edwards, Adie Nunn and Gill Barker all founded the London based label. The label is not specifically attached to any sort of club, as far as I know. They produce music on CDs, vinyl and digitally too.

Marketing

The label uses MySpace and has its own YouTube account which promotes live recordings of shows and also pre-recorded tracks.

Distribution

HMV sells Reprise Records cds as does ITunes.  With having a Facebook account, website, a YouTube account and a MySpace account, Tigertrap are putting themselves out there in the new media world, but they could do more to higher their profile, such as trying to get more television time and more plays on the radio.

Sexuality Mock - Notes ~ April 2012

I've written the work out in note form.

Ethnicity!! 30th January 2012

EMPHASIS/COMPLEMENT/ENHANCE

Stereotypes:
 - Exotic
 - Dangerous
 - Pitied
 - Humourous

How is ethnicity represented?

Hustle Clip
Old wharehouse
white man gets more screen time, wears a suit - black man doesn't appear to wear a suit, just a coat.
closer to white man, can see his face, expression - fear.

Eastenders
Asian/Indian ~ Masood family, muslim, takes father's first name as last name. Postman, shop worker, they own their own business, Indian restaraunt. Family orientated, religious, patriarchal. Asians are smart - Tamwar.

Black
Gangs/gang culture, hoodies, hip hop - 1950's soul music. Don't snitch.News portrays them as negative - reinforced. Physcially larger.

Mock - Age - Monarch of the Glen

In the last mock, the main things I needed to address were terminology and explanations of Editing.

In this Monarch of the Glen clip, adults and youngsters are presented in varying different ways. There are lots of wide shots that focus on the adults, all hard at work together, which juxtapose to the mid/two shots of the younger couple. These wide shots show how the adults work together as a unit and a team compared to the closer shots of the youngsters which could represent they’re in their own little world, which stereotypically when you’re a teenager, you think you are – this reinforces the stereotype of youth. The wide shots could represent the ‘bigger picture’ of life which the adults can see, but the younger generation can’t.

Jump cutting to another scene, the younger couple are presented in much brighter costume than the adults of the cast who are often portrayed as wearing tweed suits, dark clothes, and jackets – then youngsters wear a range of colours and the girl wears a flower in her hair. This all presents the idea that the youth can wear what they want but adults have to dress ‘age appropriate’. This all reinforces the stereotype that the youth are well dressed compared to the adults, wear clothes are not as important in society. The sound in this scene where the boy and girl talk is completely different to the sad and melancholy tune that is played later in the clip – it is funky and suggestive and also upbeat, aiming to show that that style of music represents their age much more than any other – they are ‘upbeat’ and ‘full of energy’ as the world expects all teenagers/youths to be.

In the next few scenes, youths are presented in a certain way and then the image is entirely flipped, which causes drama and tries to evoke the audience. Amy is presented at first as being responsible and takes up an errand, claiming to have passed her driving test ‘first time’. As she gets in the car, this presents a strong, confident and reliable example of youth. But it soon turns sour as the girl crashes the car. This quickly juxtaposes what the audience thought they saw with the actual truth, as she is re-presented as being irresponsible, careless and dangerous – much like the stereotype that is portrayed around the Western world of ‘youth’. This irresponsible representation therefore juxtaposes with the image of adults working hard in the previous and forthcoming scenes and reinforces the typical stereotype.

There is a clear juxtaposition between the ages in the next seen, as the Amy the youth fights with the adult and the man of the house – this man has had the most screen time out of all of the characters, showing that he has a large amount of importance. He’s not just any character, he’s the defender of the family – and this has been proved by his actions in the last scene where he stands in front of the teenagers on guard against the elder man. The camera pans quickly back and forth between this man and the boy, showing that although the boy’s emotions/feelings are stronger as he shouts, the man’s opinion is more important, as the camera keeps going back to him, even when the boy is upset and calling out. It is obvious that the man holds all the power throughout the scenes. There’s a flip side to this situation in that the stereotype is that the youth’s opinion is not as important and their parents’ or elders’ and also that kids never get listened to by anyone older than them – they often don’t feel valued. A low angle shot is used on the man as he argues with Amy to show how much more powerful he is than her, and a high angle shot is shown on the girl to show the same – she’s vulnerable and he will have the final say. When Amy shouts ‘I hate you’ and runs off after a tantrum, this leaves the audience with a familiar scene as it is expected of youth to disobey what elders tell them to do and to argue, stereotypically. It is also shown that Amy is a liar which reinforces the stereotype that kids are always ‘up to no good’ and can’t really be trusted.  Saying all this, the boy is often shown in the foreground at important and dramatic scenes with shows that the audience is encouraged to connect with him, as he is presented in close-ups and mid shots, given the audience time to identify with him.

Close-ups are frequently used with Amy too, to invite the viewer into her emotions. Sad music is being played over top to help with this and a slow pan shot is used too, to challenge the idea that the youth is always fast and doesn’t care about anything, as the girl stops to look at a family photograph – which is zoomed in on, to push the viewer right in to the scene. This music also shows that the character is hurting and unhappy. Challenging stereotypes again, in one of the last scenes, the adult man is seen behaving in a way one doesn’t expect of an adult – instead of rationally discussing the issue the elder man has, he simply tells him it’ll all be fine and then pulls a face towards the younger boy.

Throughout the entire sequence, the lighting has not been imposed on, so the effect of real life and day time, is actually real and gives the whole show and storyline a realistic edge, and an insight into the lives of these varying generations.