Dyer Essay...

To what extent does a pop stars image influence their audience? 

“A star is an image, not a real person that is constructed (as any other aspect of fiction is) out of a range of materials (e.g. advertising, magazines etc.) as well as films (music)” Dyer 1979

Due to the media, stories can be misconstrued and the public will agree with them to such an extent that they become obsessed. The ideology and culture of a star has the ability to influence their audience, in terms of fashion. For example, if a star is spotted in a magazine, then most likely their fans will attempt to adopt the same style as them. This could be so that they feel close to them and get a sense of how they’re living or because they want to be them. An example of this would be Eminem’s music video ‘ Stan’, which takes place in the house of Eminem’s ‘greatest fan’, he even dyes his hair blonde (like Eminem’s). However, if the pop star was to dress badly, they might adapt to the style anyway because they like their music or to defend them. Dyer suggests that humans are naturally driven by gossip, and fashion trends will only give the artist more publicity if their style is copied over and over again. This causes them to be an icon, because their fans are so dedicated to them.

Dyer also suggested that their character and personality has to appeal to their audience, this is to make them look like a ‘real’ person and also to make them relatable to their target audience. This can be through their songs or when they go out in public. But it all depends on the way they convey their emotions when addressing their fans or how they act towards them. An example of an artist being a ‘real’ person is when Lady Gaga won an award and she began to cry, this was an attempt to make her as normal as the rest of the world (infamous).

Lastly, another way that a pop stars image influences their audience, is by creating a character or an alter ego. This influences fans to create either their own look or they copy their icon. For example, when Lady Gaga made a bow out of her hair, it became a fashion statement and other girls wore it too. Another example is Beyoncé (Sasha Fierce), when she sported large quiffs and dark make up; it became popular for others to do so.

If they don’t appeal to their audience then they lose fans, it could make them lose profit and they might get dropped from their label if they do not generate enough attention from the public.  It can also cause fans to start doing drastic things like the ‘cut for bieber’ incident to get their favourite artists life on track.  On the other hand, there doesn’t seem to be any consequences if huge, well-known artists continue to do the wrong thing. For example when Justin Bieber and some of his friends found it amusing to spit on his fans head’s, as they crowded underneath the balcony of his hotel room.