'its Rizz'

At the start of the song which we have created a video for the first words are its 'Rizz' and our tracklisting, features the title 'It's Rizz!' while our artist is signed under the title Iceburg, This is simply the name we have chosen to present. Many rappers have alternative names, for example UK rapper Wiley also goes by the name 'Esky boi', and Eminem of course is also known as 'Slim Shady', we decided that we would use the name Iceburg to promote our artists instead of his alternative 'Rizz'

video latest edit

this is our video after taking into account the feedback from the primary audience and with new footage to try and hit the new objectives.

digipack outside panels

This is the outside panels of my CD digipack which was developed and edited on photoshop, and unlike the inner layers it send out a more business message.

The first picture(front cover) is very unorthodox as we see Iceburg doing up his jacket from the top... he clearly doesn't conform which sends out a message like other artists including ed sheeran whose album cover showed simply his face with no other information making the target market have to listen to his music to see what he is about.The text is sharp and stands out on the white background so that it is easy to read after receiving feedback saying that the title and artist name couldn't be distinguished  we chose to spread it out so that it is very clear that we can tell which is which. the explicit content was a label requirement as we have to inform the consumer that the lyrics may be more than they expected.

The second shot (back cover) shows off the more business end of the album we see the artist in the studio as if busy at work. this shot was taken from the set for the music video 'Im 17' but because of the effectiveness it was promoted to the digipack. the tracklist is from the left because of the back backdrop which conveniently was in the studio and greatly contrasted with the font colour and style. 

The third panel is similar to that of the inner panels and shows the mise-en-scene of the artist that i have developed. The hi top trainers and the jeans are the only items that can be seen on a seemingly invisible background this is because using the art of contrast (and the magic wand) the background was feathered out and brought emphasis onto the two items in focus. 

digipack inside panels

For my digipack i have decided to make a six panel cd case to try and promote and expose 'Iceburg' as much as possible. These pictures are to show off the swagg and personality of our artist so that the fans can get to know the artist. The first picture (left to right) shows Iceburg in a serious thoughtful pose, although the promotion song from the album shows a lot of vanity part of common new english rap image is serious mixed with fun. The serious pose shows that he can be a more down to earth performer. The middle picture where the CD would sit is a close up of the artist in a similar way that Wretch 32 is shown on the cover on 'Black and White' as a similar we chose this shot so that we could market from the same angle. The the last picture shows the artist sitting on the corner of fountain. this is to reflect and remind the fans that he is one of them a boy still in college chilling doing what he enjoys.

finished magazine ad

possible digipack pictures

The first picture is of the artist 'Iceburg'  sitting in a thoughtful pose on the edge a fountain in a stereotypical pop culture pose.

This shot is a high angle of 'Iceburg'. The digipack needs to show a lot of the artist as it is his first album so the desired image needs to be promoted.

This shot is a close up of the artist's trainers. We may include to use this shot to show off the swagger of the artist to again promote the desired image.

label research

After the creation of Iceburg it was time to find an appropriate label to enter talks with about possible promotion and this meant going into depth on searching for the right label. As the rap hybrid genre was becoming more popular it was a good idea to start looking at some of the more commercial labels that would possibly sign him.

The label we looked at was 'Atlantic Records' because of its success and fame for producing successful artists's such as 'Wiz Khalifa' and 'Lupe Fiasco'. "Over its first 20 years of operation Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most important American independent recording labels, specializing in jazz, R&B and soul recordings by African-American artists, " With credentials such as these and with their market expanding to the UK this seemed like a sensible label to use for the purpose of this task. As Lupe Fiasco showed with his debut album it was possible to mix the idea of rap with rock beats, The potential was spotted and Atlantic records chose to distribute this artist's music and with Iceburg being of a similar mould in a generally new market this gave him the opportunity to follow a similar pathway.

As Atlantic Records is a predominantly American label with UK links we thought it would make sense to look at other labels closer to home. This lead to the attraction of 'Island Records' which "is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group. The label now operates as a division of The Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the United States (where it is now a largely rock-oriented label, much like in its heyday) and as a standalone label in the United Kingdom (also known as Island Records Group or Universal Island).Since 2007, there is also a frontline local artist and repertoire label in Australia known as Island Records Australia, run by Universal Music Australia. Island Records was also the founding company behind the highly influential Anime licensor Manga Entertainment, which has changed hands numerous times during the 90's and early 2000's" and  has a more recent record of producing UK artists. With success stories such as 'Rizzle Kicks' on their books this was the logical path if we were to try and tackle the UK market. However as it was a rock based label we were not sure that it would such a great idea. This was still a possibility however. 

The avenue of looking at a UK grime label was also explored as the new interest and commercialisation of this genre meant that the market was fast growing and contained our target audience. With Wiley and Skepta becoming growingly popular the idea of singing with 'Boy Better Know' became more appetising. "The band and label were established by Jamie Adenuga (born 4 May 1985). "Boy Better Know" is a registered trademark, clothing line and Boy Better Know sim cards.In 2008, they pioneered a short-lived dance fad called the "Rolex Sweep" which accompanied the song of the same name by Skepta. The song and dance was later referenced by Chris Martin of Coldplay during a rendition of "In My Place" at Brixton Academy". With an advertising plan and commodity ideas already in place this label had a strong appeal as with a pioneering label in place this made a strong point for being considered as being a debut artist on a label surrounded by newly found success the fan base would have already been in place. This could have been a risky move as the general hype around the label could have died quickly and this would mean our artist would have a limited opportunity and may not make it. Similarly Professor Green's first record contract fell through when the label went bust meaning he could not legally release anything that he recorded with them and had to start his career effectively from scratch.

All three of these labels made a strong point for consideration which we would late have to address for our artist's journey to progress.