Arts + Entertainment
The central nexus for all things film, gaming, art, and music.
How To Stay Safe at a Music Festival
Some people enjoy attending music festivals once or twice a year — and then, there are people who make raving a lifestyle, such as myself. For the past 10 years, I've been attending raves, festivals, and parties like it was my job. (Well, it kind of was at one point, but still!)
By Skunk Uzeki8 years ago in Beat
I Do It To Be Normal
My mom is in a hurry, but that was okay because she usually is. It doesn’t stress me out. I am late for class, but that was normal. I had given up trying to be normal when it came to getting to places on time. She drops me off and gives me a rushed hug as she opens my door, handing me my back pack and checking to see that I have my half completed homework and my special gluten free lunch.
By Cat Charity Jude8 years ago in Poets
The Visual Culture of Album Covers
The importance of the visual image to the success of a boy band might be overlooked by the general population, but is certainly not underestimated by record labels and PR experts. It is easy to argue that the images produced are just as crucial (if not more) as the music to the overall success of the group. Boy bands like Backstreet Boys and N'Sync were successful in a time when the image of the group could be carefully controlled by marketing experts and PR representatives. Photo shoots and some paparazzi pictures were the main source of image proliferation. In 2010, the producers of X-Factor brought together five boys to create the group One Direction. The success of this group has been major, even during a time when the internet has made fans producers as much as they are consumers. Fan art and fan fiction has created a legacy for this group far out of the reach of their management's marketing experts. The visual images produced by the fans through things such as artwork and cell phone photos have been more influential among fans than any well-crafted photo shoot in a teen magazine. Four is One Direction's fourth studio album. Compared to the previous albums, the image appears less planned, or "constructed." Through affect, genre, and tension, the artists involved in the latest One Direction album cover attempted to recreate the fan created image in order to catch the attention, and cash, of the internet generation.
By Kendra Brea Cooper8 years ago in Beat
