Our first step was researching general industry examples, for video, digipak and social media. General research included SUICIDE SILENCE, Arctic Monkeys and Chris Stapleton until we found our ‘dark pop’ genre, and looked at Melanie Martinez, Lana Del Rey and finally Billie Eilish. Looking for visual ideas, (and following Goodwin's conventions) we took inspiration from TRIPTYKON’s abstract visuals and narratives (contrasting Vernallis,
TRIPTYKON’s abstract visuals
suggesting music videos are too short to portray a narrative + more elliptical). Pixies (Silver Snail) playfully deconstructed the conventional video (Neale’s ‘difference in repetition’ - tweaking genre expectations). We used ‘colour pop’ (form of escapism - uses and gratifications), inspired by AJ Tracey (Rain) and Yoko Oh No (Love u), with their ‘camp’ male protagonist wearing excessive makeup, bows in hair, and extreme lighting). Eilish explores dark themes (through her ‘dark pop’ genre), targeting her youthful female audience, so we contrasted concepts between the above artists.
The couple is heteronormative, however explore gender fluidity (queering) by reducing the male character's presence, with him lip-syncing to Eilish’ lines
Melanie Martinez’s doll-like look
. We applied Butler’s gender performativity concept, moving away from the simulacrum (Baudrillard) of Eilish’s brand/genre. We encoded polysemic potential feminist/post-feminist readings (after researching Cyrus and Sinead O’Connor Twitter conflict on queering). This was expressed through costume and makeup, taking Melanie Martinez’s doll-like look (another dark pop artists), including black lipstick, pigtails (through the video and on our digipak) and ‘gummy bear’ earrings. Laura Mulvey would argue there is male gaze present, with revealing shots of her bust, although our protagonist has agency. This deconstructionist hyper-feminist look conforms with Judith Butler’s queer theory. Most of the females clothing was promiscuous and tight-fitting, however, we stuck to some of Eilish’s branding, wearing baggy trousers, rejecting gender binary. There is arguably ‘female gaze’ connecting to our secondary male character with shots of his bare chest present.
Eilish conventional avoids any sexual connotations in her videos despite being common in the ‘dark pop’ genre. Our character wore revealing ‘lingerie’ in bed, low-cut tops, with the narrative anchoring sexual connotations, with a shot of the couple under the sheets. In this case, the agency is shared between our couple, most prominent when the male character pushes the female onto the bed, which is a playful postmodern approach to
male character pushes the female onto the bed
gender norms. We chose to hit the generation Z 'woke' zeitgeist while ironically eating fast food after Eilish sparked controversy in a recent music video (eating fast food in an empty shopping mall). BBFC’s age rating scheme provides a voluntary rating for UK artists signed to the 'big 3'. We took this into account and avoided excessive explicit imagery potentially offensive for our t(w)een audience.
We are aware of lack of diversity, eg no BAME or disabled characters, however, this was due to covid restrictions. Eilish targets a globalised brand, therefore we avoided anchorage of any locations. Inspired by Madonna, our character wore crucifix earrings; however, this is left polysemic, with playful lyrics and use of promiscuity. In our video, we incorporated an easter egg (Invisalign next to the bed), intertextualising
intertextualising The Shining’s twins, with our protagonist doubled on screen
a prior Eilish reference. Intertextuality links to Altman’s intellectual puzzles, boosting someone's cultural capital if a reference is picked up on. The influence was taken from film, intertextualising The Shining’s twins, with our protagonist doubled on screen. We uploaded a gif of ‘here’s Johnny’ on Twitter to hint at this.
We created 2 logo’s and applied them to our merchandise, website, digipak and socials. I photoshopped a collection of contrary merchandise products, from a record player (engaging an older audience) to a child’s handbag (targeting a 6-10s). Her socials incorporate filters/themes, often dark and red, tying in the hellish connotations. I integrated her darker themes together with her relatable teenage content (engaging identification, uses and gratifications theory). O’Reilly's Web 2.0 theory suggests the
We created a diegetic outro, in which our protagonist break's role
consumer is becoming increasingly more involved in shaping an artist’s brand. We created a diegetic outro, in which our protagonist break's role (Eilish had also done this previously, maintaining her brand). We produced a reaction video, unboxing video and dance video, produced by both our primary and secondary audience. We released a lyric video as artists took previous user-generated content and uploaded them while monetising them (Justin Bieber ‘Yummy’).
Eilish is a leading figure on social media, with 106m followers across Twitter, Instagram and TikTok (being 3 social media’s, engaging the most followers), posting relatable content (Uses and gratifications theory - McQuail). She has been featured on Vanity Fair and Rolling Stone
She has been featured on Vanity Fair
which pushed her into the older secondary target audience. We utilised personal identity, escapism and social interactions (aspects of this theory). I set up the Instagram ‘BillieTheAvocado2001’, referencing our fans’ nickname (avocado’s), creating a sense of personal identity. We established an image our primary audience could identify with, targeting t(w)eens with the exaggerated stereotype of the ‘doll’ and sexualised elements (along with older teen cast) targeted older teen/young adult. The performativity/playfulness of gender (Gaga - Bad Romance), help reinforce Eilish’s appeal to the LGBTQ+ community. The colour pop earlier mentioned provides escapism.
We used conventional ‘t(w)een language (emoji’s, slang, direct address and hashtagging), with one caption to a fan account repost being, “LOVE THIS!! Thank uuuuuuu @emmyeeeeee this is incredible (fire emoji) (bomb emoji) #new single #okaygirl”. After researching TikTok
accepted the LGBTQ+ community through our Instagram
(Ariane Grande), we used a ‘trend’ to create audience pleasure, where we use a bed transition (camera falls into bed, rises up from the other side). We launched competitions and QnA’s to engage the audience, creating ‘fan accounts’ to participate. A ‘fan’ says “Where’s the music video you promised us?”, and we replied as Billie Eilish, “don’t worryyy keep patient & u won’t be disappointed!! Xx”. We created a tweet to instil shared experience in the genre community (Chandler), writing, “tonight/midnight/stay tuned”. We address the body image concerns and accepted the LGBTQ+ community through our Instagram, retweeting fans discussing body confidence, and reposting a TikTok (of a counterhegemonic male wearing makeup), captioned as “@Aaronstray slayyyy honey (heart eyes emoji) everyone can wear makeup y’all #changetheworld”.
We initially did some experimenting for thelyric bookletwhich we took photos for in front of agreen screen. Cutting out the image was harder than expected so it didn't look as professional as we would have liked. It was really tough to cut out the hair and the trousers reflected thegreen screenso it didn't look clean. Here is the first draft:
We decided to have 14trackson ourdigipak, 3 of which are "live from Miami, FL". This is the listing we decided to go for:
all the good girls go to hell
I dare you
no
left crowded
crucifixion
successful failure
trapped in reality
shadow
different notes
sweet tooth
I'm your doll
friction (live from Miami, FL)
age too slow (live from Miami, FL)
enemy (live from Miami, FL)
We chose songs that we think would work well with Billie Eilish's image andbrand. For example, adding in the religiousconnotations. We also wanted to add a lot of contradictory names, like age too slow and successful failure. I wrote my ownlyricsto the song different notes:
I look you in the eye You make me wanna cry As you're waving goodbye But I just wanna try
We should be perfect together But our paths don't lead to forever
We're singing different songs Everything you wrote How can this be wrong? We're on different notes
How could we have known Our time has overgrown I'm feeling so alone I'm drawing blood from a stone
We should be perfect together But our paths don't lead to forever
We're singing different songs Everything you wrote How can this be wrong? We're on different notes
We're singing different songs Everything you wrote How can this be wrong? We're on different notes
CHOSEN IMAGES/ART
These are our chosen images for thedigipak:
We think that these are reallystriking visualswhich will work perfectly for ourDigipak.
For our seconddraft, we decided to steer away fromPhotoshopso that we could have more creative control, as we found thatPhotoshopfelt quite limiting, due to the lack of knowledge we have on thesoftware. We think that it's not massively beginner-friendly, so we reverted to working with PicMonkey. Here is the draft:
Our notes on this draft:
Thiscolour schemeis significantly different to our first draft. After the audience feedback, we've decided to go for thecolour-poplook, rather than it being so dull.
The inner and outerpanelsdon't gel very well together, but we like the concept oflyricsoverlaid onto the innerpanels.
We've decided not to have theartist name, which Billie Eilish has done before, but we did want thealbum title and I think thefontis good for that.
I like the HD picture in the front and then thespineand backpanelare blurred.
AUDIENCE FEEDBACK
There was a lot of positive reception for the front and backpanels, with just a few points to changes, but the innerpanelwasn't as successful. The colours don't merge very well, so we will be changing it, almost entirely. Thelyrics were praised, and we like them, so we will be keeping them. We're also going to make the image in the innerpanels slightly clearer, as people weren't able to tell that there was a person in it.
DRAFT 1
Our first digital front cover draft was created onAdobe Photoshop 2021. It was our first time using this application. Our draft:
Our notes on this draft:
Follows acolour schemewe are likely to include in our final product
We are likely to include 2 visible versions of 'Billie Eilish' on our front cover, expressing different emotions, much like this draft
We feel thetitleandalbum titlefit well into the cover, followingconventions, yet also being unique as many are in thedark pop genre
Theserif,bubble, dark red, white and blackfontworks well, however we will search forfontsthat work better, and stick to what Billie Eilish uses generally
We have added and played around with filters to the images, which make it stand out. When we create our next draft, we will use makeup to further imply the contrast between who this character is/isn't.
We will also use different clothing, hair etc. toconnotethe meaning of ourDigipak
We will play around withlayeringmore, and will look at using themagnetic lasso toolonPhotoshopto create more abstract visuals
Planning for our first backpaneland innerpanels, we will note up our plans for the backpaneltheme, innerpanelthemes and other aspects of theconventional Digipak
We want there to be a religious element on the front cover as well
We will look at having a strongfontcontrast between thealbum titleandartist name
Here is a short video explaining the process of getting to our first draft...
AUDIENCE FEEDBACK
The audience feedback we got on this draft was not massively positive. I agree that it's not the most striking visual and it's hard to fully see the facial expressions. I think it's very different to the vibe we're giving off in the video, so I think that we should make it a bit more coherent.
INITIAL IDEAS
Our initial ideas are to play off of the contradictory music video we've created/the song we made the music video to. As the song is called all the good girls go to hell, we're thinking of creating an image with two faces which have a lower opacity so we can see the difference between the two images. I think that this would look best with exaggerated facial expressions in a close-up.
On the left, is Billie Eilish's logo. It is very simplistic, and has little relation to her brand, however due to her extreme success, it is widely known to be associated with her. It is a stick man, slightly slanted. This can be interpreted as Billie Eilish suggesting it is okay to be 'quirky' and 'unusual' (similar to a dutch angle). We will likely create a design with her initials, while still following her colour scheme. Possible incorporating another image related item. Ideas include:
- Her green hair - Fire - A snake
Here are some ideas that we will look at for inspiration
After struggling for inspiration when creating the logo for our brand, I tried a few versions by hand, as I had ideas, just not the ability to execute them on photoshop. This is the first draft, and the hope is to upload it to photoshop and adjust the colours. This works as a logo for Billie Eilish because:
- Has her initials in bold, serif/sans-serif font simplistic - Has a snake covering the letters
- This animal links to her brand image
Prior to arriving at this draft, I came up with one other idea, which was slightly more simplistic. It is also an option, because of how simplistic is it. With the other image having a snake on it, it could mean that when the image is small, the drawing might get confusing, and could be interpreted as a letter. Another option is to have different versions of the same logo, for example, the simplistic logo could go on our digital and website, whereas the other logo could be a social media profile picture.
This article identifies the similarities between Billie's audience, Khalid's audience and the audience of 13 Reasons Why. It explores Billie's 'blow up', identifying a core reason as her song 'Bored' appearing in the series '13 Reasons Why'. Another reason being her audience similarities with Khalid. All three explore 'teen' issues, including struggles with mental health and relationships. 13 Reasons Why explores a character named Hannah Baker, and explores her suicide voice recordings. Some of Billie's 'bored' lyrics include:
The games you played were never fun
You'd say you'd stay but then you'd run Giving you what you're begging for Giving you what you say I need I don't want any settled scores I just want you to set me free Giving you what you're begging...
These lyrics started her career into the 'dark pop' genre, with the beat contrasting with the lyrics and tone of the song.
Billie secured another major placement, as her song “Bored” was featured in the popular Netflix series, 13 Reasons Why, on March 31st 2017. 13 Reasons Why is, perhaps, a perfect sync for Billie as the demographic of the audience and nature of the show corresponds excellently with her audience and lyrical themes.
Khalid is another artist that fits beautifully with the themes and audience of the show, as well as Billie’s own audience (he was featured in Logic’s hit song, “1–800–273–8255,” about suicide). He has a similar aged and gendered fanbase, is another teen artist, and sings about similar topics in his own unique manner. Below are the demographics of Khalid’s Instagram following…eerily similar to Billie’s shown above. This collaboration, both with Khalid and 13 Reasons Why, epitomizes the incredible results when one finds the right partnership.
This article also provides charts on Billie's demographic, taken from her Instagram following.
In terms of demographic of the audience, according to Nielsen, the show’s audience skews 65% female and 35% male. Furthermore, about 75% of the viewers of the show are 34 years old or younger. Additionally, the show revolves around a teen suicide — fitting for Billie’s lyrical themes (to be discussed). This fit is absolutely critical — Billie didn’t get just any sync placement but one that fits perfectly with her audience. As noted below, Billie’s Instagram following is mostly female and between 13 and 24 years old, beautifully matching the demographic of 13 Reasons Why’s audience.
The majority of her Instagram audience is female, aged 18-24, while the general gender split is 69.7% female, and 30.3% male. The following most popular age group is 13-17, with (at the time of the article being published) Billie being aged at 16-17. I expected the primary audience on Instagram to be the 13-17 age group, as the Uses and Gratification theory suggests her popularity with that age group largely comes from identification.
As her music and audience has progressed, her career paths have matured, with her most recent song being 'No Time To Die'. This song is featured in the upcoming James Bond film. The progression to go from a suicide teen romance Netflix series to one of the film industries most popular film franchises is a clear attempt to expand her target audience, opting to bring in the 25-34 and 35-44 audiences. James Bond is also more popular amongst a male audience, with the genre (Spy/Action) being more appealing to men.
Although the streaming site does not release viewing figures for its shows, TV ratings company Nielsen estimates that more than six million US viewers saw the first episode of 13 Reasons Why's new series in the three days after its release, compared to fewer than three million for The Crown's season two debut. (source)
Latest. The season 2 premiere episode of “13 Reasons Why,” Netflix's controversial teen-suicide drama series, averaged 6.08 million viewers in the U.S. in the first three days of its release, according to Nielsen estimates. (source)
There are already well-established stereotypical traits attributed to Billie Eilish fans. Essentially, many believe that those who frequently document their love for the artist reflect the majority of her following. Sure, the most vocal of her fans tend to imitate – or share – her fashion style; after all, the performer is regularly regarded as a modern fashion icon and role model for younger listeners. Fanbases which appear particularly active and outspoken can be pretty irritable and obnoxious sometimes, but the danger here is that Eilish’s fanbase may prevent older listeners from consuming her music.
This article explores the audience her debut album, WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP WHERE DO WE GO, received, as well as her authenticity as an artist. Similar to Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish has formed a very loyal and dedicated fan base, with many of the young females posting their love for her on different social media platforms. She has a strong influence over her fans, releasing her mercy/clothing line, creating her own art of subculture (largely evolving around the colour green/darker colours, taking in a mix of the pop subculture and the goth subculture).
The question is raised as to whether these 'obsessive' young fans have a negative impact on Billie's attempt to appeal to a wider audience. Considered 'irritable' and 'obnoxious', this excessive social media presence can put off a potential older audience.
Generally, her fans are largely believed to be teenage girls, and of course, that’s clearly the target demographic. The artist is still quite
young herself, and it’s refreshing to see that this target audience has someone like Eilish as a role model – she’s ambitious and hardly the figure of controversy that many young pop stars conform to. The primary issue is that such strong associations with youth culture may alienate older audiences, when in fact, her music may appeal to older audiences who instead just avoid her product under the belief that it’s not for them.
Her tendency to create relatable content for her audience to identify is seen to alienate the older audiences, despite the fact that her music differs from 'generic' pop. Here is a clear example of an older man firmly against Billie Eilish's music and 'movement'.
Quotes include:
"This trash emo drug addict"
"I understand it's a different generation of morons that like this emo garbage"
"If you guys are fans of that horrible horrible music, then that's fine. You've got to take the L though. You know that music is trash"
Her debut album is actually a pretty accessible and interesting record, boasting some alluring material. It’s a shame to think that many older audiences have already shrugged it off because they think it’s for teenagers. This attitude will affect Eilish in the long run, as she’s already established that she wants to grow as an artist. Sometimes, in these cases, the fanbase doesn’t grow with you; they may just latch onto the next trend when it comes. Yet, Eilish clearly strives to be much more than a passing trend. It’s an impressive debut of wide appeal, but as things stand, it’s unlikely to reach as wide an audience as it perhaps should.
This article highlights her approachability and relatability. It covers her instagram posts, comments and style of language, emphasising her similarities to 'normal' teenage social medias. After winning 5 grammy's, she captioned her photo (of her holding the awards) with, "5 ARE YOU KIDDING ME". This unprofessional style of caption is highly relatable, as it is clear that she shares the shock and excitement with her young fanbase. This means that when her audience read this, they engage with the post, often liking, commenting or sharing the post. Her language matches the normal 16 year old teenagers language, and this image of Billie Eilish is created to connect with these fans.
In her captions, Eilish shows her fanbase she’s just another girl on the internet, fluent in internet-speak. Dragged out words like “NOWWWWW” and the slightly hysterical tone in “FIVE ARE YOU KIDDING” mimic speech, it is as if Eilish is talking not writing.
In others, she writes in lower-case entirely - vague phrases like “been gone” or “careful who ya talkin to” that come across as fragments of thought.
These captions sit well on Eilish’s instagram page, but would easily fit in as some 16 year old teenager’s snapchat caption, or as tweets on any young person’s twitter feed.
The article draws the similarities/differences between social media platforms, comparing Billie Eilish to Ariana Grande. Ariana Grande follows a theme (monochrome) on her instagram, whereas Billie Eilish posts random pictures, with no filters and no specific captions. It appears that, as she is a young celebrity, she is in charge of her social media (continuing the identification theory), whereas Ariana Grande's social media is controlled by her record label.
Examining results from our image semiotics model, no clear clustering was found for Eilish’s instagram pictures. Unlike most pop stars who cycle through various “themes” for their instagram - for example, Ariana Grande’s mostly monochrome feed with occasional glam selfie shots, Eilish’s profile has everything from media shots of her to shots of her leaning against an abandoned mattress in a street alley. A lot more real. And way more approachable.
Screengrabs of her music video/advertising collateral are followed promptly by a post showing her slumped down in a seat, with a Rick and Morty backpack. A picture of tour dates is preceded by a shot of Eilish leaning against the railings, in baggy ordinary-looking clothes and messy hair.
Eilish’s instagram aesthetic ranges from celebrity-like content such as magazine covers and paparazzi pictures to the homemade and common, showing her audience that she knows she’s not exactly a regular person with a regular life, but yet is relatable.
This link takes you to a reddit page, with the question being posed to the sites users. Generally, reddit have a slightly older audience in comparison to most social medias, therefore some of these opinions might be negative, reinforcing the opinion shared in the earlier article, stating older audiences are put off by the 'obsessive' fans. Here are some of the responses:
"10-20ish year old girls and gay boys. A LOT of younger teens who are vicious and will do anything to see her or get closer etc. and mom’s who will encourage their kids to do so. But I highly recommend even with the kinda shitty fans. Billie is an amazing performer"
"i think its probably 12-16 year old girls. thats my personal experience though. it also seems to be the main demographic that attends her concerts."
"I'm glad I'm not the only one wondering.. I'm 24 and my roommate is 27 and we really wanna go.. but volunteering myself to be around 16 yo girls and boys with their parents goes against everything I believe in LOL"
"No one older than 25 unless its a parent. I’d say there was 1 boy every 7 girls."
All of these examples seem to be fans of Billie Eilish and her music, however are overshadowed and put off by her younger audience. This suggests that her secondary audience could be the same that was suggested through an analysis of her instagram demographic, being 25-34. This may not be the type of fan to buy merchandise, or attend shows (pushing into the front row), however sit back and enjoy her music.
WEB 2.0: AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT
LIVE CONCERT AUDIENCE
I have put together this powerpoint to identify the leading audience to attend a Billie Eilish concert. It is clear that there is a certain demographic that attend her shows. Young females (and occasionally males) at the front. Towards the back, you have the secondary audience, with less desire to scream her music, and more desire to hear her sing. This information gives us detail over her most dedicated fans, meaning we will adapt our products to fit the appeal.
