CD COVER ANALYSIS
Chris Brown - Fortune
Fortune is the fifth studio album by American recording artist, Chris Brown, released on June 29, 2012. The album is Brown's first release through RCA Records, following the disbandment of Jive Records in October 2011. As the executive producer of the album, Brown collaborated with several record producers, includingThe Underdogs, Polow da Don, Brian Kennedy, The Runners, The Messengers, Danja and Fuego, among others.
The front cover of the album gives off a futuristic vibe due to the use of symbolism and graffiti imagery to write the title 'Fortune'. The title was written in hieroglyphics and this was decided by Chris Brown and his art director Courtney Walter. The title has been fitted to the centre of the digipak and is spread along the width of the digiback in a large, bold typeface. The name of the artist 'Chris Brown' has also been placed in the centre of the digiback underneath the symbols in a smaller size and darker typeface. In the left hand corner of the digipak there is a sticker which states the name of the singles that have made it to number 1. These singles include:
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Turn Up the Music
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Strip
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Till I Die
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Don't Wake Me Up
In the right hand corner on the front of the digipak there is also a Parental Advisory sticker as the tracks contain explicit content.
Looking at the design of the front cover we can see that there is a single spotlight shining down on Chris Brown as he poses on a blue backdrop. The blue backdrop has the album name written in all different languages which could be connoting that this album is diverse. He poses against the blue backdrop in a sleek, slim-fitting suit with a skinny tie and thick black framed glasses.
The back of the album has the tracks on the digipack listed down the left hand side where each track is numbered using a symbol. This CD includes 14 tracks whereas the Deluxe Edition of the CD includes 19 tracks in total. The same blue backdrop with the album title is written is used on the back cover to show consistency with the front cover. The artist is also wearing the same clothing items as on the front cover, however, this time his suit jacket has been removed to give him more of a causal look compared to a smart, sleek and sophisticated look he had on the front cover. Underneath this we have the names of the Executive Producers,
The barcode for this CD has also been placed on the back of the cover in the bottom left hand corner. By the barcode is the name of the record label that produced this album 'Sony Music'.
Andrew Goodwin's theory of the voyeuristic treatment of women is shown in this album cover as Chris Brown is sitting on the floor with several women wearing black leotards. This genre of rap and hip hop music particularly shows the voyeuristic treatment of women within it's music videos. The digipak includes several different camera shots and angles that expose the females' bodies. The us eof long shots used in the digipak reveals their full figures focusing on their physical assets. This rap and hip hop genre tends to exaggerate the objectification of women especially in their music videos, for example, women that are used as extras are usually dressed in minimal clothing drawing in the male glance.
On the inside of the booklet within the Digipak there is a list of all the tracks that feature on the CD and underneath each track title the names of all the producers, song writers etc are listed. Within all of this, the copyright information for each track is also written.
Drake - Take Care
Take Care is the second studio album by Canadian recording artist Drake, released November 15, 2011, on Aspire Music Group,[1][2] Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records.[3][4] It is the follow-up to his 2010 debut album Thank Me Later.
The front cover of this CD uses mise en scene to convey the features of a successful rap artist. The all gold accessories used imply wealth, especially the gold chalice that he holds, however, the main artist is sitting alone in a dark corner which implies that he is lonely.
This CD has the parental advisory explicit content sticker in the top left hand corner of the CD cover.
Another sticker placed on the front cover of the CD states the name of the artist 'Drake' in spaced out capital letters and also states the name of the CD 'Take Care' joint together in bold italics. Also on this sticker the singles on the CD that made it to Number 1 in different charts are written on the front. This includes the track 'Headlines' and 'Make Me Proud' Feat Nicki Minaj. The title is then written again in gold in the bottom left hand corner of the CD cover.
Tracks from Chris Brown's Album
The disc inside the CD packaging is very simplistic. It is a plain black disk with 'DRAKE' written in spaced out letters with the name of the album 'Take Care' written in joint up italics underneath it.
The booklet inside the CD has each track listed in order and underneath each large track title the names of the producers, directors and lyric writers are given credit. The booklet shows coherence from the front cover by showing an image of drake in a very similar dim coloured setting in the same clothing. This shows a house style and consistency throughout the digipak. The image of Drake on the inside of the booklet shows him smoking a cigar which creates a 'rebellious' persona and this connotes his music genre of rap and RnB. The background image throughout the entire booklet inside the digipak maintains the image of a wealthy looking mansion and continues with the gold theme, this could connote the need to stay consistent as a popular artist in the music industry.