Diary: 29/11/12

Diary 291112 by hannahalley

Article Draft

We were lucky enough to chat to R&B icon Cassie Starr about her latest album ‘Prelude Lust’, her upcoming tour and her possible future on the big screen. I entered the deeply lit studio; it looked very clean – everything was folded and the flowers looked fresh. Two red velvet sofas faced eachother, a small glass coffee table inbetween them. There are a few pieces of paper and two glasses of water sat neatly on the table top, plus a large flat-screen TV up on the cream wall. The audience wait patiently, as do I, and must I add, the silence in the air is quite symbolic for the excitement and anticipation that lingers for Cassie’s arrival.

Suddenly, we hear foot-steps. We perk up. Cassie strides in confidently without encouragement, her long wavy brunette hair bouncing past her shoulders as her heels trot towards me. She is grinning brightly, her teeth gleaming. The atmosphere within the audience is ecstatic. Everybody stands and there are cheers, shouts, screams and a tremendous amount of clapping being done and it echoes throughout the room. I greet Cassie as she sits down and I am suddenly struck by the ‘breath-taking beauty’she is claimed to hold that everybody has been talking about. She is wearing a long, red Maxi-dress that hangs elegantly off her body, with small glistening jewels lined at the top. Oh my, she looks so classy. It’s refreshing to meet a star that doesn’t look worn-down from partying all night every night. No, not Cassie. Cassie looks bright and young; Full of real potential. Her eyes sparkle as she scoops her dark hair off her shoulders and blissfully scans the audience, quite obviously taking in the heavenly atmosphere. She almost looks lost in the fame. Then she looks back at me.

Interviewer: So Cassie, I bet it’s been a crazy year for you, right?

Cassie: Yeah, it really has! [laughs]

Interviewer: I mean, can you begin to explain what you’ve been experiencing in your new life?

Cassie: Every morning I wake up and still get the urge to pinch myself because my life just seems so surreal.. I’m so thankful for my incredible supportive fans helping me to get this far, I really am. I love them all so much!

Interviewer: And judging by the success of ‘Prelude Lust’, I think it’s fair to say they love you too! I mean, look at the atmosphere of this place today. It really is something, isn’t it.

Cassie: I know, I can’t believe it! I’ve had so much fun creating the album and trying to create a new sound, but I’m always apprehensive as to whether the fans will like it or not. It’s all about pleasing them; - that’s all I wanna’ do!

Interviewer: Well you only have to listen to your album to know you have nothing to worry about!

Cassie: [laughs] Thankyou. I still can’t believe it though! When my management rung me to tell me the reaction, I literally couldn’t believe it but it’s just great to know I’ve gained some new fans since releasing the album. This is just the beginning.

Interview: I bet it is! So, I was going to start by asking, what would you say is the message of ‘Prelude Lust’?

Cassie: Well, I sort of linked the two words together because there’s a story behind it. I’m really happy in my current relationship and I really feel as if the small relationship I was in months beforehand really led to this one right now. I mean I don’t like to go into detail of my personal life too much but basically I like to call that previous relationship a ‘prelude lust’ because it was just lust and the ‘prelude’ for my relationship right now. So I’m thankful for it. [laughs]

Interviewer: That’s interesting! It’s always nice to know there’s a reason behind an album title, it gives it more of a personal meaning doesn’t it.. So, how are you handling life at the moment with all your success? I bet it’s hectic!

Cassie: I’ve just been taking everything in my stride and remaining humble about it all but honestly you have no idea how much I appreciate all the support from my fans because, without them, I literally would not be here doing what I love to do. It’s hectic but it’s so, so brilliant.

Interviewer: And they must love what you do! The reaction we’ve had from the audience is just incredible. I mean, the positive reactions are the main thing but I bet with all this success you get a few negative reactions too. I saw something in the newspaper about Brandy criticizing your music recently, is this true?

Cassie: Yeah, that is true. I hadn’t heard about this either until I saw it on the newspaper, too. She had written a Tweet about me on ‘Twitter’ basically saying that I was ‘just another unoriginal copy of other R&B artists’ and that I ‘wouldn’t make it very far’.

Interviewer: Woah, I mean I bet that was surprising really wasn’t it. What was your reaction?

Cassie: I mean yeah, it was surprising. But I suppose it would be more hurtful if I’d met her before and we were friends.. but I don’t really know her. When I found out I was quite hurt really; - It’s not nice hearing somebody higher in the music industry than you talk about you badly. It’s a shame aswell ‘cause I really like her music but I guess you can never be everybody’s cup of tea.

Interviewer: Yeah, I think in this industry you have to just take in criticisms as they come whether it’s because they’re jealous or not. It’s bound to happen! But any how you’re still going to be touring so it’s no skin off your shoulder, right?

Cassie: Definitely, I’m so looking forward to touring. It’s gonna’ be amazing!

Interviewer: I bet it will! I’m sure you couldn’t of wished for a better reaction from your fans too.. I mean, your entire tour sold out in just 8 minutes; - that’s crazy!

Cassie: My fans are just incredible and they really never fail to surprise me.. My music is made for them and I love touring because I get the chance to actually meet the people who helped me get to where I am. I’ve never been happier!

Interviewer: So what can your fans expect from the tour?

Csssie: They can expect something… different! I have a crazy, fun set lined up and I really can’t wait to just get on stage! I want this tour to stand out and show my fans that I’m really doing this for them. The atmosphere of it will just be incredible and it never gets old.

Interviewer: That sounds absolutely brilliant, Cassie. What are you looking forward to most then?

Cassie: Well it’s safe to say that the early mornings can do one! [laughs] But once rehearsals are out of the way, I’m really looking forward to waiting backstage listening to the crowd cheering for me. I get so excited and full of energy when I experience the reaction of the fans when I start performing. It’s just so meaningful and priceless; - I always feel so sad when the tours are over! It’s like a fairytale dream or something.

Interviewer: Well not to worry this time because I’m pretty positive you’ll be experiencing that many times! A little birdie told me that there may be a future for you on the big screen. Is this something you’re considering?

Cassie: Well all I’m going to say is, never say never; - to anything. I’d be a fool to turn down an opportunity like that so yeah, it’s definitely something I’d consider. I’d love that. Nothing too cheesy or over-dramatic though. [laughs]

Interview: Well it’s for definite that I will look forward to that and so will the rest of the world! Lastly I’d like to ask, what is a word of advice or something inspiring that you could give to the audience and your fans right now?

Cassie: Always believe in yourself, and put in the hard work to get to where you want. If you do those two things, you will be on your way and nothing can stop you.

Interviewer: Such lovely words! It’s been a pleasure talking to you, Cassie. And we at The Game wish you the best of luck with the tour and your future!

Cassie: Aww, thank you for having me!

‘Prelude Lust’ is in stores now.

Equipment

I made this video with ADOBE PREMIERE PRO which presents all of the equipment I used for my photoshoot and the advantages of using this equipment. This equipment included the photography studio equipment and also the camera equipment.

However, I also have a Powerpoint version of the video too:
Equipment


This video and powerpoint both present the equipment I would have to use in my photoshoot to take my photos in order to make sure they are the best quality possible. I have also explained the advantages and effects of using all of this equipment.

Diary: 21/11/12

Diary: 21/11/12

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part 2:






















Transcript: 
Today I continued to work on my Proposal. I had done all of the slides apart from the last two and these two were the Institutions and the Representations. The only difficulty I found with this was that I wasn't quite sure what to write for my Institutions so I figured I would finish this off at home tonight and get inspiration from elsewhere. Also, for my Representations part of the Proposal, I'm not quite sure how to describe what I want my model to wear and describe how this will represent my R&B genre, so I need to go home and think about this too. Hopefully I will have my Proposal completely finished by the end of tonight or by tomorrow.

Codes and Conventions: Double Page Spread

110807068 Codes and Conventions Double Page Spreads[1]

Draft Questionnairre

Draft Questionnairre

Draft Questionnaire by hannahalley

This is the draft of my questionairre I made with EDEXCEL. Planning out the questions I will use in my questionnaire has helped me a lot in preparation with my questionnaire because now I can ask for other people's opinions on this, etc..

Diary: 08/11/12

Diary: 08/11/12

Today I discovered a magazine in the magazine box in our classroom and analysed its front cover for inspiration and ideas for my magazine that I'm going to make. I created a new post on Blogger and made sure to blog about this front cover and explain what features of it inspire me for the magazine I'm going to create. I also thought the good thing about this will be that blogging this down allows me to look back on the post and remember the things I noted down that inspired me and make sure I use these in my magazine in the future.

Then, I started on my Target Audience coursework and finished it by near the end of the lesson. I was proud of this as one positive thing about it was that I was pretty certain on what I want to include in my magazine so I knew what to write, however the hard part about it was just setting up the powerpoint and making sure it looked suitable to upload. Then, I uploaded my work.

This is a printscreen of the post I made analysing the 'MORE!' music magazine I found:

Magazine Inspiration: 'MORE!' magazine

I found this magazine in our classroom's magazinebox and after analysing the front cover I discovered quite a few things that could be good help/inspiration for when I create my own magazine.

Firstly, I saw that the main image of artist Tulisa has enhanced features, for example she has purple eyemakeup but blue eyes, and it seems as if the producers of the magazine have enhanced her makeup and made it brighter on a program like Photoshop. I can see that it definitely makes the main image look better and draws your attention to it which gives me inspiration for when I make my magazine. I might choose to do this with my model for my main image too. Also, Tulisa's stance looks laid-back and easygoing; - my first interpretation of this was that this stance makes her look friendly and approachable, which could therefore draw audience in even more. I have taken this particular stance into consideration and have added it to my ideas of how I will make my model pose/stand.

Furthermore, the magazine has a use of bright colours - a bright orange masthead and some of the other text is big bright and orange too. Also, the banner of the magazine is bright yellow and some other features are yellow too. This really stood out to me when I first saw the magazine and therefore it inspires me to perhaps use bright colours for my magazine too.

Lastly, I noticed on this magazine that some of the features e.g the 'INSIDE!' box are placed diagonally on the front cover giving it an informal look. However, I think this is quite effective as it allows the front cover to look casual and not too intimidating for the reader, because otherwise if they see a well-structured and formal front cover, they might instantly feel as if its contents will be too formal aswell and this will result in a negative effect. Therefore, I have taken inspiration from this and will keep this in mind for my magazine too.

Diary: 07/11/12

Diary: 07/11/12

part 1:


part 2:

Transcript:

Today I continued working on my Codes and Conventions for a double page spread. I had completed every other coursework task that I needed to so I decided to carry on with this. I got up to nearly the last slide, and the difficulties I found with the Codes and Conventions was that I felt as if I really had to concentrate and block out all distractions in order to get it the best I could. However, I felt as if I was quite knowledgeable about double page spread codes and conventions and so I was familiar with exactly what to write for each slide.
        Also, in today's lesson our teacher went through the magazine Proposal and our new coursework we will need to be doing, so I made sure to write notes in order to know exactly what I would have to do next.

Institutions

Institutions

Codes and Conventions: Contents Page

I have presented the codes and conventions to making a good contents page on Prezi. This presentation will help me making my own magazine as now I have established what things you need to include to make a good one.

Representations of an R&B Magazine

I made this video on ADOBE PREMIERE PRO and it presents the representations of R&B magazines, so this includes mainly how artists are represented as males and females. Creating this video really helped me because it helped me established how I should take the photos of my model when I go to create my magazine and what she should wear etc to make sure that she is represented in the right way for the R&B genre.

I have also made a Powerpoint version of my R&B representations if you want to view:

Representations of r&b Magazines

Existing Names

Existing Names

Masthead Ideas

Masthead Ideas by hannahalley

These are the masthead ideas I have for my magazine which I created on a WORD DOCUMENT. I have tried to use a variation of different types of masthead ideas so that I have many unique choices. I used my inspiration for these off of other R&B magazines.