Analysis of Digipak

                                Analysis of a Digipak

Infinite - Digipak - Eminem 

In this post, I will be analysing Digipak's in detail, and explaining how they meet the conventions of the rap genre, as well as artist conventions. Today, I will be analysing Digipak's from the rap artist Eminem, with his two albums Infinite and Curtain Call. 

This is an image of Eminem's Infinite Digipak. As you can see, the Digipak uses a darker colour for the background (black), which is conventional for the rap genre, as the colour black is commonly used throughout the industry due to the connotations of the colour, which are death, struggle, danger and poverty.

This medium shot (camera work) of Eminem, is used to create a star image for the artist. The image shows Eminem positioned directly between four show lights, therefore emphasizing that he is the center of attention. This is also very unconventional for Eminem, as he usually doesn't show off his star image, as he believes more in the artistic creation of music instead of sales, profits and star image (Institutions). This also shows Richard Dyers theory, as an Album acts as a revenue stream for the artist therefore, the artist needs to be seen for the product to sell, which means the institution have to create a star image to attract audiences, as a star image can relate to the audience, which is why Institutions focus on this, as it creates more demand for a product if the audience has a physical connection with the artist.

This cover of the digipak, appears to contain a montage of different pictures of Eminem. Again, this can relate to star image, however it comes across as artistic and creative which is a convention for Eminem. As well as contacting pictures of himself, he has also included certain images showcasing most of the background, this could be used to showcase messages about poverty, by using images of places with poor infrastructure. With him also being in the picture, it could show how Eminem used to live, compared to the rich and luxurious life style he lives now.

Curtain Call - Digipak - Eminem

Unlike Eminem's previous Digipak shown on this blog post, this one is more conventional to the rap genre. First off, the background used, is once again black which is a theme that appears in Eminem's last digipak as well. The colour black, overall is very symbolic of the rap genre as it implies messages and values about the harsh reality of living in poverty and being surrounded by gang culture, and it also implies a visceral feeling of being trapped and the ability to escape is non existent, which creates a cyclical feeling towards this life. However, the green font is extremely unconventional of the rap genre. The colour green has a strong emotional correspondence with safety. This subverts the rap genre, as it normally depicts violent behaviour, which puts people at risk, not safety. This could be conventional of Eminem however, as he likes to subvert genre conventions due to him wanting to be unique and seen as a "true artist".

Eminem has also intentionally used backwards fonts like the E directly in the middle of the digipak. We see the backwards E used multiple times in Eminem's album titles, and could represent his past life. Backwards has connotations of negativity, and is possibly the reason why Eminem has chosen to use it, as it represents the struggles of his past life.

This close up (camera work) image, is very conventional to the rap genre, and although isn't conventional to Eminem himself (as he doesn't often talk about gun crime within his lyrics), it has impacted his life greatly, as close friends of his, as well as his inspiration to get him into music, were killed by gun crimes in Detroit.
This creates a personal message about how guns have affected Eminem negatively, which could suggest why the depth of field is short, blurring himself out.This artistically shows the impact of guns on his life, and how they have corrupted him. He has also chosen a black background to match with what a gun suggests... death. The prop itself, is also a heavily used convention within rap, to promote power and strength into the main star. It's also used to showcase gang culture and symbolises the violent lives rappers have had.

This image is very conventional of the rap genre, as well as Eminem. The colour of the image (black and white) is very conventional of the early rap era for example, the 80's and 90's. This was a predominant element during these times as it represents corruption, which was a huge issue in america during the 80's and 90's, and can be shown through N.W.A attitude towards police, which really influenced people from these poorer area's to rebel against authority, therefore resulting in more issues and problems relating to gangs. This black and white image also shows Eminem in a conflict, which expresses his life issues as well.

Summary of what I like and will include in our digipak
Overall, these two individual digipak's both offer a lot that I could incorporate into our main task. One of the key features that appeals to me, is the limited amount of colours shown. Black and white, create a vintage rap atmosphere, as well giving the piece a smooth feel and tone.