My idea for the teaser video is based around dance as this is one of TENS strengths and what many know him for, he has past training in contemporary, hip hop and gymnastics.

All k-pop groups have dance incorporated into their videos and stages and with Tens background it made sense to create a conceptual dance piece as the visual to go along side my business pack.

This idea came to mind after i watched the new video for BTS Black swan as the group wasn’t in the music video them selves but still promoted their message. It is apart fo their connect BTS project and spreading art across the world in all different forms. Having my own love for dance and art it connected with me and i wanted to become apart of this movement with something i love, that being both dance and music while still fitting in love for fashion and design.

Many pop videos in the west and in Korea have dance within their videos, a few i will be looking into will be

• Sia – series with Maddie Ziegler
• Ed Sherran – thinking out loud
• Jimin – Lie
• Troye Sivan – My My My
• Sam Smith – how do you sleep
• Halsey – without me

and more

I want to be able to create my own content for the video as last time i tested and try editing skills within premier pro, doing this dance piece will let me look into staging, styling, casting, filming and editing along with creating a dance choreography which is something i’ve not worked on for years.  Its a big project but a chance to try being creative and connecting with emotions is a range of ways.

Going forward i will research into the two solo songs by Ten pick my favourite and which one will work best for a dance routine, and break down the lyrics to connect and dig into what concept should be chosen for him. Creating a survey to get ideas from those who like ten and what their thoughts are on the proposal to get understand the market in more depth.

Notes –

NOTE (edited after lock down) explained later on in blog and within sketchbook, my process of why i change my idea for the teaser video.

I wanted to make sure i was picking an Idol i was aware of, one that i followed as a fan,  that i have a connection with. Many idols already have solo careers but one that had a moments of solo work through having a couple solo tracks released in TEN. An idol who has been active for a couple years  (2016 debut) and is apart of many groups (NCT U, WayV and SuperM) . I chose TEN as he is a popular idol world wide and has a wide range of experience working within multiple groups, doing duets and working alone. He has toured Asia, America and the UK and is a triple threat being a rapper, singer and dancer so has a range of concepts that could be carried out. He is one of my favourite idols and i connect to his style and message a lot which is why i think it would be a good idea for me to carry out an idea based around TEN as i have more of an emotional connection with him over Jay Park who i used as inspiration within the research project. As an idol he deserves more of a spot light and has waited for a solo moment there for an idea like this is a way to create a message.

The idol i chose to pick to Re brand and launch a solo album for is an Idol called TEN.

POFILE

Stage name – TEN

Thai name – Chittaphan Leechaiyapomkul (birth name)

Korean name – Lee young Heun

Born in Bankok Thailand

Ethnicity Chinese

Tens contracted to SM Entertainment or Label V with his Chinese group.

SM Entertainment is apart of the Big3 in Korea, they are the ones who make the most money and hold the most clients.

Talks 4 languages

• Thai
• Mandarin
• English
• Korean

Plays piano and guitar

Member of 3 Idol groups

• NCT U, he is the main dancer, rapper and vocalist
• WAYV, is a Chinese group. Ten is their main dancer and a lead vocalist
• SUPERM, he is the main dancer, lead vocals and a sub rapper

Ten debuted in 2016 with NCT U so is a fairly senior idol with a lot of experience

He has released 2 solo songs under his management, both being in full english with EDM influence.

• Dream in a dream 2017
• New hero’s 2018

I aim to create a solo album launch pack

• CD
• Photobook
• Photocard
• Teaser images
• Teaser video x1
• Album launch schedule

My TO DO LIST;

• Research into lyrics for his songs
• Research into TENS styles
• Research concept to fit TEN
• Find a dancer (for teaser video idea)
• Find location for teaser video
• Research into Styling and make up
• Put together a pack all about TEN in media pack style
• Put together the Press Pack for the album launch – start with layout
• Questionnaire

Ive attached videos of his solo work, a dance project and a few videos from the different groups to show case his diversity.

Korean pop stars are called idols as they are marketed and expected to be perfect 24/7. A lot of idols are triple threats due to the training courses they take before debut, all can sing and dance and many others act along side. Due to their huge impact and popularity many brands in Korea have idols as ambassadors or models for their brands, may idols are now starting to be global ambassadors and are coming across into American and UK marketing , such as Jackson Wang (GOT7 Member) being the face for Ray ban and Kai (EXO Member) being the face for Gucci eye wear.

A Lot of songs are in both Korean and English, with fan chats involved for live shows. This is something that helps make the fans feel apart of the performances and each group and song has different chants to work best with the beat and lyrics. An  example  shown  bellow.  (Bold font is the fan chant)

Kpop albums and types of contents –

• Lead singles for each album
• B Side tracks
• Into and outro tracks
• Solo songs
• Mix tapes
• Japanese version of their lead singles are very popular, and English version are becoming just as popular recently
• Most groups bring out 4 version of each album photo concept book to show case the ideas behind the album, they become collective pieces for fans
• Many male idols hold a feminine style and push with fashion and make up while still holding a masculinity in their form and aesthetic.
• They all are strong and play with concepts a lot within each album and song. Concepts are a main focus point across all marketing, staging and photo book that comes with the album.

RESEARCH NOTES

Book – The Global Music Industry, By Naoki Sekine and Dick Weissman

Chapter 7 – The music business of Asia

• Unique in the size development speed
• Broadband and phone use is huge
• Digital music down loading services are super quick
• Korean radio plays Korean and English music.
• Korean music is played across all of Asia through radio

• Asian music market is more familiar with CD packages over CDs sold separate

• Korean TV channels receive fee from entertainment companies to play video clips
• No official sale charts in Asia (Melon music Korea is online streaming charts)
• South Korea is reluctant to play J-Pop (Japanese pop) on radios due the history between the two which is why artists do separate Japanese version of their songs and promotions to still connect with their fans.
• Music audiences on Korea see concerts as ‘Fan meetings’ for new promo

• Asian music market is dominated by Asian artists over Western artists

• Production deal – The process of training idols and keeping them set to one entertainment company
• Korean labels have no access to over sea markets which is why many idols work with western labels for over sea promotions, and is changing the more popular K-pop is globally.

From this i’m going to research into an Idol i think would work well to create solo album. T0 understand the elements needed for a specific artist and press packs to fit the way Korean entertainment companies work and what elements i need to create and design to have a full working album launch that would work in both South Korea and US and UK.

I thought i would take photos of some of the K-pop albums i have. The two i have chosen are WayV and BTS. I thought the WayV was a good one to choose as it is one of TEN’s groups and then BTS as they are a group who pack their albums with loads of extra bits. I wanted to add in these photos so its easier to understand why i have chose this as a FMP project, as CDs are usually a throw away item and have lost value over the years within the west due to online platforms. However within the world of K-pop albums are huge and they are a massive collectable item. For many, like BTS they create different versions of the album that work with different concepts and its all a surprise to what content is found inside. These are the type of album packages i hope to create for this project.

The WayV album is bind like a book, with the red being a soft touch with the gold logo and text being embossed in, with the pages all being gold lined which makes the whole thing seem luxuries. This album came with two photo cards (only one shown in the picture other is stuck to my wall at home) as as well a poster, the poster being the blue prints for a rocket as the album is called ‘take over the moon’. This concept is strong through all the photos shown inside, i have attached pictures of a few pages to show the layout, how they style and show case a concept and the quality of the pictures.

WayV, Take over the moon. Second Mini Album.

This is the most recent BTS album, its the biggest one being at A4 size. BTS have always been a group that add in lots of little bits into their album packages. This one had, photo card, stickers, lyric book, colour in page (the 7 logo) and the book called the notes – are stories from the members. This album was created different unlike the usual book bind like the WayV album, this was printed on newspaper and was all separate creating each page to a mini poster. I have tried to show case this through the photos. This album is the ‘Black Swan’ version. There was 4 different ones based on 4 different songs all having very strong concepts. Its all in the surprise elements, adding to wanting to collect all versions per album.

BTS Map Of The Soul : 7   Album

Looking back at what i have produced within the research module to help with step forward for FMP.

Looking into what was successful and what didn’t work so well. Taking time to look at each element and see what points i should be taking through with me into development for FMP.

TOUR POSTER + GRAPHICS

Something i did a lot of research into was the posters, tour schedules and graphic ideas. Through the previous module i was focusing on graphic design and building on this skill. These are elements that are important within K-pop and album launches so its important for me to take what i have learnt into my process for creating FMP. I will need to develop of these by using my own photos and developing on my graphic design with layouts and typography. Working with what i learnt to be able to create graphic designs around the concept i am building for the album.

Some examples of what i previously produced for the recent module : AD394

ILLUSTRATIONS + GRAPHICS

I experimented with illustrations and learning how to use Adobe Illustrator within AD394 and they received high praise from others, therefore this is something i want to develop on and bring into FMP to showcase a skill i have and something i love creating. The illustrations are versatile and can be used across areas of the graphic elements i aim to create for FMP. This is something that was liked by others and its a way to bring in an visuals and details of an artist to add more personality to elements.

Some examples of what i previously produced for the recent module : AD394

ALBUM INSERT LAYOUT + TEXT + PICTURES

Something i will be creating for FMP is the album insert. For the research module, something i did was create flat plans and create a layout from pictures i had from the internet. I experimented with layout and graphic ideas to create the album insert as visual as possible. Something i will take with me is the idea of using Korean through the album as its reflects on the research i carried out on Korean graphics as this style is something i admire. Something i also like its the use of  white space as it makes the layout look fresh and inviting.

Some examples of what i previously produced for the recent module : AD394

PRESS PACK LAYOUT + CONTENT

I created a press pack for the research module to test out layouts and contents. It was something that helped me understand what is was that i needed to research and experiment in. Carrying this knowledge with me into my FMP will be the most important part as its my aim to develop a press pack as my interest lies in marketing and business. Having created this within the previous project means i now know what content is needed, what works well for the order and how information can be displayed for a more visual press pack that is not over whelming or to business focused. Something i need to think about and develop for FMP is this idea but with the use of my own graphics and photos.

Some examples of what i previously produced for the recent module : AD394

KOREAN GRAPHIC RESEARH AND STYLE

The skills i learnt through researching into Korean graphic design. Taking the ideas, colours, typography, language and page layout into my development and graphics for FMP. As i am focusing my project on K-pop and Korean culture i want to make sure that the design elements are seen through my FMP as i admire Korean graphic design because of the colours and how bold yet sophisticated it can be.

VIDEO EDITING SKILLS, TECHNIQUE AND TEASER IDEA.

A teaser video is an element i experimented with in AD394 and it is something Chris loved and believed it was a skill i should be showing off within my FMP. I had edited videos from official music videos and cut and adapted them to fit a teaser style video. This is something that i will be taking through into FMP as its a visual element that i would like to showcase in the graduate show. Taking the ideas of split screen, colour correction and beat timing into my final piece. Something i need to develop on is the videography and creating the footage myself instead of taking clips from the internet.

Some examples of what i previously produced for the recent module : AD394

Having all of these elements shown within my FMP means i am able to showcase all the different skills i have learnt and developed on through university.

• Graphic design
• Branding
• Marketing
• Illustration
• Videography
• Video editing
• Photography
• Design

 

Reflecting on feedback and making sure i’m looking back at comments through my FMP to make sure i will improve on my weaknesses and keep focused.

• Consistent with interest of Korea
• PR specialism, audience has been thought about
• Limited on technical elements such as working within the studio
• What other aspects of Korean culture would i integrate into telling a story?
• I need to be careful with creating content that is based of already existing images and footage
• Explore colour deeper
• Test out shape, choreography and posture
• Strong illustrations
• Good contrast with photography and LED work – allow for more in depth development with this idea
• Core narrative and story needs to be created
• More in depth annotations to show my understanding of creative stand point
• How am i testing and bouncing of references
• More book references

THINGS TO CONSIDER

• My feelings towards Korean culture
• How do they look
• Western culture
• Differences
• Gender
• Symbolism
• Lyrics
•  Analyse why i like the artists and music, as this allows for more innovative creations

DIG DEEPER INTO MY CONNECTION WITH RESEARCH

BE BRAVE!

As the last few days approach I want to make a final check list to make sure i can hand in high quality work showing a clear direction for my FMP. Prepare Presentation and Finish Statement of Intent.

Going forward toward my idea for FMP

• • Research into concept ideas to create a main focus point for album aesthetic
  • Solidify artist
  • Confirm model/s
  • Confirm location
  • Styling ideas and research
  • Packaging ideas
  • Costing and time needed to print album contents
  • Business plan development
  • Display ideas