SOCIAL GROUPS

What is a Social Group

A social group can be defined in many ways and many different interpretations. This is because in the grand scheme of things each of the groups link together in some way. You can break the groups down by common similarities between people and the unity of people by their shared characteristics.

For example • Age • Gender• Race• Likes/Dislikes• Styles.

MY Social Group• Who is the Social group (Urban) – Young teens

maturing in an urban environment collectively sharing the same style, vibe and interest. Urban refers to rural areas, these areas are populated by people who are stereotyped as having gang culture or misconduct behaviour.

• What did you do to represent this – I have done this by including similar themes that appear in urban magazines. And I embedded Ideas of stereotypical urban characteristics.

• Why have you done this – I have done this to attract my target audience and appeal to their needs. If I can replicate similar themes of an urban lifestyle, or characteristic that my target audience can recognize. Then I can draw them in to my magazine.

R’n’B/Hip HopR’n’B and Hip Hop are different genres but because of the artists involved they commonly mistaken as the same thing when listening to the two by ear. This is because there are a lot of hybrids themes involved in the musical technically of the songs. This not only brings the genres together, but it also brings the fans audiences together too… THE AUDIENCE

Appearance plays a big role in R’n’B/Hip Hop. It presents them as a character in the music industry for their status and music. Artists want to promote and display their music in a particular to attract and appeal to their audience. This can be through things as small as a pair of shades to promote the theme of being suave and having authority. Male artists in the R’n’B/Hip Hop side of the industry tend to promote themselves as being powerful and females tend to lean more to a seductive and provocative theme with a handful of dominance place in. A lot of these ideas of power, dominance and seduction are implemented through the artist music videos, images, and album covers.

Dominance

Power/Status

Gang culture/Misconduct

Seduction&

Provocativeness

ProminenceIn these images the themes of dominanceAnd prominence have been explored. The females in the images have been dressed as royals, royals are very wealthy people who are in control of a particular country/region. In the images their crowns and gowns represent their reputation and wealth. Also in one of the images a female artist is dressed in leather. The connotations of leather are sporty, because athletes wear tighter clothing to allow them to perform better. The wardrobe was used to represent her as a leading lady in a race, causing her audience to see her as significant to the rest.

Power and status has been represented through stance and props.

In the images of this male artists gang culture has been represented through typography, and facial expressions.The album title’s ‘Graffiti and ‘F.A.M.E’ Literally resemble graffiti. This has been done to replicate street art, to reflect Chris's theme of music/songs on the album. This will attract his audience because people who familiarise with it will be attracted to the product. The colours used in the second image symbolise the spray paints used in street art.

The posture of the male artist in the image is representing him as being powerful. His right arm is held above the person next to him, closing off their space and making them feel cornered. He is also staring directly at them, looking down on them making them feel inferior. Females are stereotyped as being feeble and less superior to males, and males being in control. A females was positioned beside to emphasise his strength and status because

The female artist in this image is represented as seductive through her provocative wardrobe. Beyoncé is wearing very revealing clothing, and she is also showing a lot of skin. Her posture enables her to push her breasts out. and her shirt is low cut and wet, making it see-through. This was done to really emphasises Beyoncé’s features and make her beauty stand out.

In this image Beyoncé is stark naked continuing the theme of seduction. Her hair is parted to one side, displaying her face (beauty).

In my front cover of my magazine I have used the words urban and Jam in the title to appeal to my target audience being very straight forward, if your stereotypically urban and like the style of music, this magazine should attract you.

I also used leather for wardrobe and make-up. The leather aspect is to promote prominence as previously discussed and make-up (pink/purple or red lipstick) to connote seduction.

I also used thick typography to replicate street art to embed the gang culture and rebellious behaviour as another theme of urban style.

In my contents page I developed the stereotypical urban style to attract and audience through the main image and design. Aesthetics is the main way that attracts an audience, weather it be the colour pallet or recognising a high listed celebrity.

The mug shot ties in the theme of crime/gang, the rebellious hair onto one side replicates the theme of presenting beauty, and the jewellery shown in her left ear symbolises royalty and wealth.

The design uses contrasting colours to highlight more important information, making it stand out and look more dominant to the rest.

In my double page spread I have used themes of the artists music to embed features of urban groups to attract my audience. In Beyoncé's tour ‘Mrs Carter’ she uses the theme of royalty to attract her audience, and in my magazine I have used the theme of dolls/toys. A lot of musicians not just urban musicians use themes of their music to promote themselves, so my double page spread reflect the upcoming single ‘Urban Dollhouse’. I embedded the urban style by having a very vague expression on her to symbolise both her restrictions of emotion as a doll, and the dominance theme by having a stern look on her face, just like Beyoncé.