Digipak analysis - Miss Miller

Digipak Analysis

A digipak consists of a gatefold style, which is a similar style that is used for books and usually has a paperboard or cardboard outer binding which makes up 6 sides in total, this provides an artist with the opportunity to include more for visual artwork of a higher quality, for example, an image of themselves, and information about themselves for their fans benefit, for example, a digipak will often contain a letter from the artist directly for the audience that helps to add a 'personal' feel to the album as the audience will feel as though they are the only ones that the artist have done this for and that they are directing the letter directly to them and not to hundreds of other people. Digipak's are often used for CD singles or special edition CD albums and are therefore seen more as a collectable and are arguably worth more to the audience due to the fact that there will be the idea that not everybody is going to have them and that they may also include bonus tracks that are not found on the CD. There is usually an unspoken competition between fans regarding who knows more about the artist, or who has met the artist the most amount of times, therefore the audience will want to own something related to the artist that feels more valuable than just a regular CD.

On the other hand, a Jewel CD case which is most commonly used CD case and the one you would expect to see protecting the CD's when they are sold in shops, has a plastic outer shell which helps to protect the paper and CD that can usually be found on the inside, therefore the CD is likely to last longer and may cause the artist to be viewed as more professional. Also, the album details, such as song and album names, are usually solely on the front and the back of the case which is often see-through, therefore this helps to grab the audiences attention because it allows them to see all the necessary information, and if they already know what the album cover looks like it will make it easier for them to spot the album in the shop. Furthermore, a jewel CD case usually contains a booklet made up of the lyrics of the songs from the album, which may appeal to the audience because it will allow them to learn the words to some of their favourite songs.

The digipak that I have chosen to analyse was created for 'English rain' by Gabrielle Aplin which was her debut album. The reason for choosing this album was due to the fact that Gabrielle Aplin is the artist we have chosen to base our final media project on because we are all avid listeners of her music, therefore I wanted to find out more about her individual style so that our group could make a digipak and music video that was more suited to her style, and that the audience who do know her will potentially be able to recognise and associate with her and the indie genre. This digipak represents Gabrielle Aplin as being conventional to the indie genre due to the use of simple, calming colours such as black and white, which can be used to create an emotional atmosphere, for example, the darkened looking sky on the back cover of the digipak, which is the same side as some of the names of her songs could suggest that her songs have a deeper and darker meaning to them that may be personal to her which will allow the audience to get to know more about her, which is conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that indie songs are often based on real life experiences, therefore the lyrics will relate to the artist themselves. The audience may appreciate how honest the artist is being through her music and the use of a deeper meaning could represent the artist as being committed and passionate about her music because she has taken the time to think about the story behind the song and what she wants to express to her audience. Furthermore, the lack of colours on the digipak and album could suggest that Gabrielle Aplin wants to be the centre of attention due to the fact that she is holding a multi-coloured umbrella, which is the only colourful image on the cover, therefore the audience are drawn into looking at her. 'English rain' was her debut album, therefore she needed to promote herself as an artist in order to attract an audience who were going to buy her music, due to the fact that, at the end of the day without an audience an artist will be unable to make any money or being recognised within the music industry, therefore the audience determine the success of an artist and their music. Gabrielle Aplin conforms to Dyer's theory in the sense that this digipak represents her as being talented due to the idea that she has to ability to write her own songs as well as perform them. The audience may feel envious of the skills that Gabrielle Aplin has, therefore she may influence them to develop their own musical talents, for example, by learning how to play a musical instrument or researching other roles within the music industry.

The use of the colours black and white could suggest that her songs are also going to be black and white in the sense that she does not use her music to sugar coat her life, or that as an artist she does not have anything to hide, which could therefore suggest that she uses her music to tell the audience personal stories about herself which will allow them to get to know her better, which is conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that indie songs are often write their own music based on real life experiences about love and relationships. The audience will feel appreciative of her honesty and will be keen to get to know more about her, especially due to the fact that she is knew to the music industry, therefore not many people will know who she is or what her story is. By finding information out about her the audience may also be able to see if they are in any way similar to her, for example, the song name "home" could imply that she is very family orientated, therefore she will also be viewed as more relatable and not just part of this money making industry. Furthermore, all of the images of Gabrielle Aplin throughout the digipak are small and long shot which could imply that she wants to keep her music the main focus, rather than herself. This could make the audience feel as though she cares about her music and therefore what the audience think about her music, due to the fact that they are the ones who she is aiming her music at and who will determine her success within the music industry, therefore Aplin recognises their importance in regards to her career. Having said that, the audience can see that Gabrielle Aplin is holding a multi-coloured umbrella, which is the only real colour used on the cover, which could therefore suggest that in some sense she does wants to be the centre of attention due to the fact that the audience are drawn into looking at her. This is arguably beneficial to both her and the audience due to the fact that she is new to the music industry, therefore not many people will know that much about her or what she looks like. Also, the use of colour allows the audience to recognise that she is the artist and shows them what to look out for if they are thinking about buying her album from the shop. Furthermore, there are constant visuals of the umbrella throughout the entire digipak, for example, she can be seen holding the umbrella on the album cover and on the front of the CD itself which therefore suggests that there will be a theme throughout the album or in her music.

The CD itself is brightly coloured, which resembles the multi-coloured umbrella which Gabrielle Aplin can be seen holding on the album cover, which therefore suggests there to be a theme throughout the digipak and shows the audience that the album name compliments the images. The album is called 'English rain', and England is know for how often it rains, and the audience will know that umbrellas are used to protect people from the rain, also, the idea of rain implies sadness and a bad mood, which could foreshadow what the audience can expect to hear within her music, especially her songs such as 'please don't say you love me' and 'home' which suggests her music to be emotional and personal. This is conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that indie artists are known for writing their own music based on real life experiences which allow the audience to get to know more about them. This is beneficial to the audience due to the fact that Gabrielle Aplin is new to the music industry, therefore they will not know that much about her already. Also, allowing the audience to know personal information about her may make them feel as though she views them as a friend and as someone they can trust, therefore her music feels more directed and personal to listen to. Also, Gabrielle Aplin is from England, which therefore suggests that she is writing about what she knows and cares about and about subjects that are important and close to her which further helps to give the album and digipak more of a personal feel due to the fact that her music will relate to her life. This is beneficial to Gabrielle Aplin due to the fact that she is new to the music industry therefore the audience will want to get to know more about her in order to form an emotional connection with her and her music, which could also help her to build up a fan base of people who will want to buy any of the music that she produces in the future, thus having the potential to increase her exposure within the music industry and help her to achieve a better reputation amongst other artists. This could also ensure her a longer career as there will be a loyal group of people who will buy her music no matter how old she is when she produces it. Moreover, all of the colours used are easy on the eye which compliment each other, and the lighter, peaceful looking colours, such as the blue and purple compliment how laid back the indie genre is perceived as being. Indie artists are often perceived as being solely focused on their music rather than worrying about what other people think about them, which is arguably why they do not fit into the mainstream and do not seek to keep up with or set current fashion trends and are often perceived as always being on the road in order to share their music with new audiences. This helps indie artists to be viewed as more relatable within their audience due to the fact that the mainstream is often expensive, therefore there may be people who cannot afford to buy designer clothes or want to develop their appearance in order to fit into nowadays society.

The use of the colours black and white could suggest that Gabrielle Aplin wants to be the centre of attention as she is seen holding onto the multi-coloured umbrella which is the only stand out colour seen on the entire album cover, therefore the audience are drawn into looking at her. The use of these average colours could also help Aplin to come across as being more relatable because she is perceived as being simple and as not living a lavish lifestyle that the media makes the audience believe artists do, this is emphasised by the fact that her outfit does not look overly expensive, due to the fact that she is not showing off branded clothing. Her light yellow coloured dress could be used to imply her innocence, due to the fact that she is new to the music industry and does not know whether her album is going to be a success or not. Furthermore, due to the fact that she started out on YouTube and knows how hard she had to work in order to get to where she is, it could be suggested that Gabrielle Aplin does not want to be seen as viewing herself as bigger and better than everyone else, and she therefore does not want to create a digipak that alienates the fans who started out by watching her YouTube covers and aided her exposure and current success.

The design and layout of the digipak is pretty plain and simple due to the fact that there are no major details on any of the slides that could potentially draw the audiences focus away from the artist and her music which is what she is trying to promote, due to the fact that she will want to audience to buy her album when it is realised and she will want them to like her as an artist because this will make the audience more likely to want to help her become successful in the music industry. When an audience like a particular artist they will want to continue to buy the future albums that they release, therefore ensuring their longevity in the industry. This could also help the artist to stand out because the audience are drawn to looking at her due to the fact that she is the most prominent feature, which could suggest that Aplin and her music are the most important aspects of the digipak, which is conventional because the indie genre is so diverse and difficult to break into, therefore an indie artist will want to expose their music to as many people as possible and will want to sell more albums compared to their competitors as this will further increase their exposure and will improve their reputation within the industry. The lack of details is also conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that indie artists are usually solely focused on producing and selling their music and do not want to take away from their music. The indie genre is known for not fitting into the mainstream in all senses, especially when compared to the pop genre, for example, who's artists are known for setting fashion trends and influencing the younger generation. This could therefore help the artist to be represented as more relatable due to the fact that the mainstream is often very expensive as artists are often paid a lot of money for what they do, however, not everyone will be able to afford that expensive lifestyle, therefore they will be more likely to have a similar style to that of an indie artist.

A close up would be conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that it allows the audience to see how the artist is feeling and indie artists are known for writing their own music based on real life experiences, therefore their songs will be more personal and allow the audience to understand their emotions and who they are more, therefore, the use of a long shot for the front cover is arguably unconventional due to the fact that the image creates a sense of mystery about her because the audience cannot see clearly what she looks like or how she is feeling, however, this arguably compliments the idea that 'English rain' was her debut album and that she was new to the music industry, therefore the audience will not know too much about her, and this mystery may interest and entice the audience into buying the album in order to find out more about her, due to the fact that indie artists often based their music on real life experiences. This is further emphasised by the fact that she is standing in a secluded, old fashioned appearing area which is conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that the genre is not very popular, therefore indie artists will not make a lot of money and may not be able to afford to hire out studios or travel to fancy locations in order to take part in photo-shoots. Furthermore, Gabrielle Aplin is represented as being someone who likes to do her own thing, similar to the indie genre which is often perceived as being vintage and quirky and as not fitting into the mainstream.

The words 'English rain' look as though they have been handwritten by the artist, similar to that of a signature, which therefore gives the album more of a personal feel because the audience may feel as though Gabrielle Aplin wrote the words herself, which is conventional to the indie genre because indie songs are often written by the artist themselves and are therefore based on real life experiences, which makes them more personal to the artist and allows the audience to get to know more about them, which will help them to view the artist as being actual human beings with feelings and not just a product of the music industry. The audience may appreciate how honest an artist is being through their music, and may also make them feel as though the artist views them more as friends, due to how comfortable she feels sharing personal information with people whom she has never met before. Also, the artist name on the cover looks as though it has ben typed on an old fashioned type writer which is conventional to the indie genre due to the fact that indie is often perceived as being old fashioned, and the use of a typewriter compared to the use of a computer which shows the development of technology suggest that Gabrielle Aplin has a vintage taste which does not fit into the mainstream. This may appeal to the audience members who do not seek or can afford to fit into the mainstream and have their own individual styles.

On the back of the album cover, the name of the songs featured on the album look as though they have been handwritten, which relates to the idea that she has written her songs herself, which is conventional to the indie genre because it suggests that the artist has written the songs herself and that by listening to her music the audience is going to be able to find out personal information about herself, which arguably links to Dyer's theory and the idea that an artist must be extraordinary in order to keep an audience interested, this includes having other talents such as the ability to play a musical instrument which may cause the audience to feel envious of them. Artists within the music industry are often known for the ways in which they influence the younger generation of impressionable children and teenagers, for example, artists from within the pop genre usually dictate the mainstream in regards to the way people dress. Some music listeners may also look up to the lifestyle that people in music have, due to the fact that the industry is very popular and will therefore make a lot of money. However, indie is not one of the most popular genres of music and will therefore not make the most money, which is arguably why they are known for having vintage, more affordable lifestyles. This also helps to give the album and her music more personal, for example, the songs 'please don't say you love me' and 'home' sound very personal and the idea of home is a place that everybody will be able to relate to, and will make the audience feel as though she is allowing them to get to know more about her personal life. This will be beneficial to Gabrielle Aplin, due to the fact that this was her debut album and the beginning of her career within the music industry, therefore not many people will know much about her. Furthermore, some of the songs from the album, such as 'panic cord' will have been released as singles before the album itself, therefore if the audience have listened to and like these songs they will feel more inclined to want to buy the whole album when its released. The pre-release of songs allows an artist to establish a better idea of how successful the release of the entire album is going to be, which is beneficial because it can be an expensive process, therefore an artist and their record label run the risk of losing a lot of money from promotion if the sales of the album are unsuccessful.

The style of language on the digipak is very informative, for example, the name Gabrielle Aplin tells the audience who the artist is, 'English rain' tells the audience what the name of her upcoming album is, and on the back of the album cover the audience can see a list of the songs that feature on the album, which is beneficial to both the artist and the audience because they may have already heard of or listened to some of the songs from the album already, for example, 'please don't say you love me' which was released before the album itself, therefore the audience will be more inclined to buy the album if they know they are going to like the music, therefore this style of writing will usually try to persuade an audience to buy the album. Indie artists are known for writing their own music based on real life experiences, therefore the audience are likely to feel as though by listening to her music they are going to get to know more about her, which is beneficial to Gabrielle Aplin due to the fact that she is new to the music industry, therefore not many people will know that much about her already. The sales of her album will help to increase her exposure worldwide as more people will be talking about her and her music, which could also help to make her more desirable for other artists to work with and therefore increase her exposure in new and unfamiliar audiences which she may not have been able to break into on her own. Furthermore, the use of small images compared to the quantity of writing helps to create a sense of mystery about the artist due to the fact that they are not given a clear visual of her facial expressions or what she looks like, which may interest and draw the audience into wanting to know more about her which they will be able to do by listening to her music due to the fact that indie artists often write their own music based on real life experiences, however, this also means that the audience focus more on the information rather than the artist herself, therefore allowing them to take in all of the necessary and key information. A long shot image is arguably unconventional of the indie genre due to the fact that indie artists often use close ups of their face to show their audience how they are feeling through the use of facial expressions, however, indie artists are also know for being more concerned with their music, rather than what the audience think about them, which helps them to be seen as more relatable because they do not seek to keep up with current fashion trends which are often expensive, and they therefore do not fit into the mainstream and appreciate the idea of having an individual style, which may influence the audience to dress the way that they want to and do what they want to do.

The digipak promotes the indie genre as containing songs that are based on emotional experiences, for example, the use of a background of clouds and a darkened sky connotes the idea of sadness, which compliments the perception that indie artists often sing about emotional experiences that the audience may be able to relate to. The indie genre is a more personal genre of music as the narratives within the songs allow the audience to get to know more about the artist. Through the use of a long shot image of the artist, Gabrielle Aplin is perceived as being mysterious which is arguably due to the fact that 'English rain' was her debut album and she was new to the music industry, therefore people will not know too much about her and in that sense she is a mystery. Also, Aplin can be seen holding onto an umbrella, which is the only colourful piece of iconography on the cover, which could therefore suggest that she wants to be the centre of attention due to the fact that the audience are drawn into looking at her. This could also imply that she is the most important aspect of the album because she is promoting herself as an artist and her music, which would have been necessary due to the fact that 'English rain' was her debut album therefore she would have needed to identify an audience to target her music towards. After researching into digipak's, I have decided to use duller colours for my own digipak due to the fact that this will help me to express the emotion of the indie genre and to show the audience how the artist is feeling. I also plan on using a close up image of the artist in order to provide the audience with a clear image of what the artist looks like and what her facial expressions are, which will make it clearer to the audience how she is feeling and the style that her music will have.