Rock Brands: Selling Sound in a Media Saturated Culture, edited by Elizabeth Barfoot Christian, is an edited collection that explores how different genres of popular music are branded and marketed today. The book's core objectives are addressed over three sections. In the first part of Rock Brands, the authors examine how established mainstream artists/bands are continuing to market themselves in an ever-changing technological world, and how bands can use integrated marketing communication to effectively 'brand' themselves. This branding is intended as a protection so that technology and delivery changes don't stifle the bands' success. KISS, AC/DC, Ozzy Osbourne, Phish, and Miley Cyrus are all popular musical influences considered in this part of the analysis. In the second section, the authors explore how some musicians effectively use attention-grabbing issues such as politics (for example, Kanye West and countless country musicians) and religion (such as with Christian heavy metal bands and Bon Jovi) in their lyrics, and also how imagery is utilized by artists such as Marilyn Manson to gain a fan base. Finally, the book will explore specific changes in the media available to market music today (see M.I.A. and her use of new media) and, similarly, how these resources can benefit music icons even after they are long gone, as with Elvis and Michael Jackson. Rock Brands further examines gaming, reality television, and social networking sites as new outlets for marketing and otherwise experiencing popular music. What makes some bands stand out and succeed when so many fail? How does one find a niche that isn't just kitsch and can stand the test of time, allowing the musician to grow as an artist as well as grow a substantial fan base? Elizabeth Barfoot Christian and the book's contributors expertly navigate these questions and more in Rock Brands: Selling Sound in a Media Saturated Culture.
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 9780739146354
Number of pages: 344
Weight: 544 g
Dimensions: 231 x 158 x 22 mm
As a rock critic—a lifelong fan who has had the privilege of seeing his passion become his profession—I abhor the very notion that the music should be viewed as commerce as well as art, and that musicians need to think of "branding" to assure a long and fruitful career. But Elizabeth Barfoot Christian and the contributors to Rock Brands: Selling Sound in a Media Saturated Culture approach the issue as scientists and academics, setting aside the question of whether an artist should or shouldn't "sell out," and instead offering a fascinating, insightful, and, yes, alternately inspiring and distasteful look at the the place where music and marketing intersect in the new millennium. - Jim DeRogatis, rock critic, author, and co-host of Sound Opinions
Rock Brands offers an impressive analysis of the popular music industry at a pivotal moment in its history. Changes in technology and commerce are driving a revolution that's complicated, fascinating and a little bit scary. These 17 essays offer remarkable insight into the impact of this revolution on music, and they help explain what it means to American culture. The book leaves no popular music genre uncovered and critically examines the careers of many of the most important pop musicians of our day. - Christopher Campbell, Director, School of Mass Communication and Journalism, University of Southern Mississippi
Catching students where they are, immersed in pop culture, Dr. Christian and other authors explore communication theories through the prism of heavy metal, rock and roll, country, and other forms of music. She examines the continuing popularity of KISS, fueled by the cross-promotions engineered by Gene Simmons, for example, and challenges readers to figure out why we know certain names and not others. Weaving in such 21st century phenomena as reality shows, free file sharing (illegal downloading), and distinctive cell phone rings, she provokes critical thinking about matters many young people take for granted. One intriguing section, subtitled "how religion and politics play in pop music culture," investigates the soft spirituality of Bon Jovi and the scary vibes of Marilyn Manson. This timely book concludes with a chapter on Michael Jackson, whose brand is even more powerful in death than in life. - Nancy Day, Chairperson, Journalism Department, Columbia College Chicago
Rock Brands: Selling Sound in a Media Saturated Culture is one of those handful of important books that chart the important relationship between popular art and commerce. Its assortment of highly readable essays provides valuable cultural insight into both the music business and the business of music. This is a must have book for those who want to learn more about how popular culture really works. - Gary Hoppenstand, Editor, The Journal of Popular Culture
What makes some bands stand out and succeed when so many fail? How does one find a niche that isn’t just kitsch and can stand the test of time, allowing the musician to grow as an artist as well as grow a substantial fan base? Elizabeth Barfoot Christian and the book’s contributors expertly navigate these questions and more in Rock Brands: Selling Sound in a Media Saturated Culture. - Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Museum Library and Archives
While media studies acknowledges the business side of communication and marketing considers advertising strategies, few people bring the two together in a systematic fashion. Elizabeth Barfoot Christian takes a first step in remedying this with a volume devoted to the branding and marketing of rock music genres. . . .The overall collection offers a wealth of historical information, music industry developments, applications of new technologies, and artists' strategy. - Communication Research Trends
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