Magazine Advert- Beyonce 'I am...Sasha Fierce'

Magazine advert for Beyoncé's 'I am' album

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as lead singer of R&B girl-group Destiny's Child. She is now a highly successful and well known solo artist.

 

This magazine advertisement is promoting Beyoncé's album 'I am...Sasha Fierce' which was released in 2008. This advertisement was used in numerous magazines in order to promote Beyoncé and the new release of her album.

 

The album named 'I am...Sasha Fierce' represents the two sides to Beyoncé; who she really is, and her alter ego to which she named Sasha Fierce. This is her on stage performance alter ego so to allow her to perform confidently. The two parts to the album represent this, as to the two parts to this magazine poster. The usage of two images is particularly effective because this does alert the audience that the two parts to the album are going to be very different in genre.

The first image on the left hand side of the advert, represents who Beyoncé really is. This part of the album includes slower, more emotional and touching songs, such as 'If I were a boy' which is shown through the typography at the bottom of the advert. The real representation of Beyoncé is represented through the use of her stripped down look in the image. Direct address is used in this image through the use of a close up shot, as Beyoncé is seen to be looking directly into the camera. This could be because she is subject to the 'male gaze' whereby the people behind the camera are men, and the women, in this case Beyoncé, is objectified. As well as this, she is also seen to be wearing minimal makeup, very natural eyes, and nothing too heavy on the lips either. Her hair is fairly natural too. This definitely markets Beyoncé as being able to create music that is almost 'raw', completely letting her personality come through the tempo of the music and by also creating meaningful lyrics too. Her white t-shirt also supports this notion, it is extremely simple and wouldn't be considered to be a pop star image. The cross bracelet that Beyoncé is wearing could also represent her spiritual side, and how she isn't ashamed to be religious, again supporting the fact that this half of the album is a true reflection of her personality. The sepia effect on this photo makes the colours and tones much softer, enhancing her natural features and also creates a very soft look.

The second image really contrasts the first. Here, Beyoncé is seen to look much more like a pop star. She is seen to be wearing heavy makeup, unlike the first image where she is seen to be sporting a very natural look. Here, her hair is also done to be big and bouncy. This could represent her on-stage image as being very confident and bold. On this image, the shot is more of a medium shot, revealing more of Beyoncé's body. The way that she is stood and her facial expressions are very strong, representing her on stage persona as being confident. Here, the audience can see the fairly revealing outfit. Beyoncé is seen to be wearing a body suit, in the shape of a motor bike with vibrant colours. This could represent how this side of the album is vibrant, loud and exciting. With more of Beyoncé's skin exposed, this is a more daring look which is shown through her on stage persona. The music on this side of the album is seen to be more energetic and 'out there' as well as portraying herself as a more sexual act on stage. Therefore, Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze theory can be applied again, but also voyeurism, whereby the audience may feel pleasure when watching Beyoncé perform. This advert successfully promotes Beyoncé as being a powerful and strong performer.

In terms of typography, the biggest part of the text is Beyoncé's name. This is because she is the main focus, it is her music and her image. She is the most important part and is the person they are marketing. The name of the album is slightly smaller in size, and is definitely not as clear as Beyoncé's name. Furthermore, 'the album out now' lets the audience know that Beyoncé's album is available to buy, and this is very bold and clear to grab the audiences attention. The text underneath is much smaller, revealing the popular tracks that appear on this album. The text is in a serif font, which could represent the complexity of creating an album which is split into two very different styles. As well as this, the text is central to show that both halves of the album are of equal quality and importance.

What have I learnt?

From analysing this magazine advert, I have learnt that images are key in representing both the artist and album. Furthermore, you don't have to use the exact image that appears on the front of the album cover, as different images can appear exciting and engage the audience. This still draws the audience in by representing the music and artist in a different way, whilst still sticking to the same themes from the album.