Artist Representation Through Texts

There are a variety of examples that can be used to show how artists are represented through these use of texts. A great example of this is that of Lady Gaga.

Lady Gaga's Meat Dress

Lady Gaga is a very talented individual but it is the way in which she is both perceived and presented that contributes heaviest to her success. The music industry has a variety of views and opinions on Gaga these range from 'weird', 'extravagant' 'controversial' as well as 'crazy' and 'mad' to name but a few. The reasons for such labels are clear. Lady Gaga is all of the above and so much more, from her ludicrously expensive music videos to her collection of infamous outfits and even the way she talks about herself to the media all contribute to such opinions. But it is these opinions that help drive Lady Gaga's success forward, it is because of the way in which the world see's Gaga that makes her so different from everyone else and what helps her to appeal to such a wide range of people.  For example the album cover of her second album The Fame Monster which included Number 1 smash hits such as Poker Face and Just Dance coupled with Gaga's appearance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards sporting an entire dress made out of meat really reflects the type of character she is. The dress sparked a mass media frenzy and the dress made purely raw beef soon became known as The Meat Dress, Gaga went on to pick up 8 awards. The album cover for The Fame Monster depicts Gaga in a variation of a black leather jacket in which she is covering her mouth in a type of defensive pose whilst being centre frame on a black background. She also has a rather outrageous haircut and it is this that catches most peoples attention, but she also stays true to her religious roots with the inclusion of a small cross within the title of the album. All this is typical Gaga as she delivers a number of signs and messages within a relatively simple album cover. For example the small cross represents the religious side of her image where as her haircut represents the outrageous and controversial side of her image. Lady Gaga loathes controversy and publicity it's what helps to drive her sales to the next level. Her fans adore her because she is just so unique and because of this image she has created. 

This album cover symbolises who Lady Gaga is and what she is about

Having said this not all artist's use texts to the same extreme as Gaga. For example someone like Ben Howard, his use of texts would still be very astute but not quite to the same extent to that of Lady Gaga. For example the cover for Ben's debut album Every Kingdom portrays an unknown individual swimming gracefully underwater with the title of the album in big bold letters positioned at the top of the cover creating a sense of mystery and magic. No outrageous haircuts. The message and signs Ben's album cover portray's are very basic and in contrast to Lady Gaga far from controversial. Ben's album cover is taster of himself and the music he produces and it is as a result of this that he attracts a very different crowd and set of fans to that of Lady Gaga. Ben's image is also created through the type of clothes he wears too, Gaga is famous for her outfits where as Ben's image is very different and far more simplistic. This is all solidified by the texts the artist use.

This album cover is a complete contrast to that of The Fame Monster

It is very important to understand how and why the use of texts can be so influential to an artist. The combination of texts can determine there success very easily as an artist image can be difference between attracting a few fans or attracting millions of fans.