DYERS THEORY

TAYLOR SWIFT CASE STUDY

Richard Dyer created the 'Star Theory' which states that "a star is an image not a real person that is constructed out of a range of materials. These different materials range from costumes, props and make-up to their Non-Verbal Communication (NVC) and the way they present themselves on social media. Dyer's theory reitterates the fact that no star is perfect, it is all an image which has been created in order to attract and engage an audience to sell their media product. "Stars are commodities produced and consumed on the strength of their meanings." This suggests that a stars success depends on how well the star can maintain their image, as well as the initial strength of their image. If they have a popular public persona which is appealing to their target audience, this would suggest that they have a strong chance of success. Whereas if the star has a lack of public persona and doesn't receive much media attention, this could result in a lack of popularity and would support Dyer's theory that "the strength of their meanings" does indeed depend on how well they maintain their image.

Taylor Swift has gradually transformed as her career has progressed throughout the years and this has enabled her to have longevity because the audience see Taylor in the same way, even though she is maturing and her music is growing up with her. This isn't a radical change which means she still has a lasting image of an innocent female who is growing and this also enables her fans to grow with her which creates a personal connection. Taylor was initially introduced as an innocent teenager with trademark blonde curls which made her youthful image attractive and relatable to her youthful target audience. Due to her gradual maturity in the limelight, Taylor has been able to keep her fans, as well as gain new ones as her music has changed and matured. Taylor's Unique Selling Point is that she is a normal girl who is living her musical dream and this allows other young girls to aspire to this dream which makes her increasingly popular. Taylor's chosen pop genre was originally country and has gradually developed into pop. Taylor's most recent album, 1989, was her only pop album and this shows the gradual change from her first album, Taylor Swift, which was country, to 1989 which is pop. Initially Taylor's image was very sweet and innocent and this image has steadily changed as she is now a style icon with her red lips, styled bob haircut and sylish fashion sense. Richard Dyer also says that there are seven common values which artists stick to and these are youthfulness, rebellion, sexual magnetism, anti-authortarian, creativity & talent, disregard for social values and consumption of sex, drugs and material goods. Taylor would definitely support Dyer on this element of his star theory because she would support a few of the values; youthfulness, sexual magnetism and creativity & talent. Taylor's youthfulness allows her to appeal to a wide target audience of typically young girls because they can relate to her. Her sexual magnetism attracts males who may not enjoy her music but may find the music videos appealing, especially Bad Blood which has Taylor and many of her famous friends in tight, black lycra which would defintely appeal to men. Her creativity and raw talent is also intriguing for those who dislike manufactured bands from shows including 'The X Factor' and 'The Voice.' Therefore Taylor does support Dyer's common values element as well stars being commodities produced and consumed on the strength of their meanings because she maintained her image successfully which has led to her ongoing success. However it is uncertain to categorically say that Taylor Swift isn't a real person who is constructed because she came from a grounded background and

is a normal person with values. Therefore she hasn't really had the oppurtunity to be produced or constructed because when she was first introduced into the limelight, she was a normal sixteen year old girl.