Digipak Analysis
Zayn Malik- Mind of Mine
The front cover of Zayn's album 'Mind of mine' features a picture of him from his childhood years with an addition of his tattoos on his hands and arms that he had done as an adult. Zayn adapted a different approach with the tattoos on his arms signifying how he discovered his creative side at a very young age and trying to move away from Pop genre and more to the style of music he enjoys making, R&B.
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The font used for the artist name is bigger than the actual title of the album. This is because they want the artist's name to stand out as people buy the album because of the artist who sings it and the interest in their music. Also, by the font being white it helps for the album title and artist name to stand out.
The colour in the album front cover background is black this showcases the type of music that will be on this album. This album would be classified as R&B these colours are typical colours used for an R&B album. This could be said it shows Zayn moving away from his One Direction career as black is not a typically used colour for pop albums as it suggests mystery and depth.
The colour of the CD for Zayn's album is unusual compared to the rest of the cover of his CD as it is full of dark colours whereas the CD is a bright, neon green colour. It is possible to imply from this that Zayn is trying to break from the mould he is seen in, as this is his first CD after leaving One Direction and therefore he might be wanting to show his fans a different type of artist that he has become. The bright green colour is vibrant and instantly catches your eye. The CD only contains the artist's and albums name as that is the most important information that a consumer would want to know.
Rihanna- Loud
The colour of the CD and cover for Rihanna's album is mainly a strong use of red which demonstrates that the album is full of strong emotion such as love, anger and a sense of danger. This could be inferred that the songs on the album may have emotional attachments. Rihanna is shown on the cover as wearing a white dress, connoting innocence and vulnerability. The physical CD disc is designed to look like a flower which also reflects the image of love and vulnerability. Th CD colour is a pretty light pink colour which could represent femininity and innocence.
The front cover of Rihanna's album 'Loud' features a close up picture of her face showing her with her eyes closed. This could be to illustrate her being relaxed and calm. We are instantly drawn to the boldness of the red colour on her lips and hair which can convey love and heartbreak. The expression on her face looks extremely passionate which shows the audience she is passionate about the album she is producing and therefore engages her target audience.
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The font used for the artist name is smaller than the album name which is unusual for albums as they want to promote the artist more than the album itself. However i think how Rihanna has chose to have her album name shown as the most important showcases how much she believes in her album and how she wants her fans to like her for her music not just her status in the music industry. The font style used is a simple, thin white font which is basic but effective as it works well with the background image. The font style and colour could represent the innocence and emotion of the albums content.
The back cover of the album includes a list of the songs with deluxe additional tracks that are on the CD. It also includes information such as the record label name and logo, production company and the bar code for purchase. This information is usually displayed on the back cover of an album to promote the production company to other similar artists that maybe interested in producing music and for the audience to know which record label Zayn belongs too as they may like other artists from the label which produce similar music to Zayn.
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The colour of the font is the same throughout the front and back cover which shows how they keep the same sort of colour scheme through-out the album and showcases professionalism.
The background of the back cover continues with the theme of dark colours with a pattern containing a mixture of black and brown shades. This again illustrates how the production of the album cover uses the same colours throughout both sides of the cover. The back cover pattern is a soft pattern which is contrasting with the genre of music Zayn records.
The back cover of the album includes a list of songs and the names of the producers and co-producers on the right-hand side. It also includes information such as the record label name and logo, production company and the bar code for purchase in the shops. This information is usually on the back cover as it shows which production company and record label Rihanna belongs too. This promotes the record label, as when one of her album sells the record label make a profit from it and status.
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The colour of font on the back cover is partly the same with the white font however the song names are in a red colour to make them stand out the most on the cover. The style of font stays the same throughout both covers which is effective as it shows there is a pattern and looks smart.
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The back cover of the album continues with the theme of pink and red colours which is illustrating the love/heartbreak inspiration again like on the front cover It features another image of Rihanna looking vulnerable which makes her relatable to her audience. Also, the back cover consists of the rule of thirds.
Shawn Mendes- Illuminate
The font for 'Shawn Mendes is noticeably bigger than the title of the album. This is common across pop CD covers because it is important for their name to stand out, in order for more people to identify whose album it is.
Shawn is looking directly at the camera whilst sitting on a chair playing his guitar. By looking at the camera, this is an effective way of attracting an audience to the album because it appears as if Shawn is looking at them.
The lighting is mainly quite dark, however the light which seems to be from a window is beaming over Shawn in order for him to stand out more. The colour throughout the whole album cover is predominantly forest green. This is quite a dark colour which isn't conventional for a pop album cover because they are normally bright in order for them to stand out. However, forest green isn't a colour that is often used for album covers therefore this colour choice makes the cover more original and different, so it still stands out even though it's not bright.
The CD itself is very minimalistic, likewise with the rest of the album. It sticks to the theme of forest green and at the top it has the name of the artist; "Shawn Mendes" and the name of the album; "Illuminate." This is in the same font and colour to the front of the album cover keeping it all very simple.​
On the back of the album, the track list is displayed. Instead of choosing a font for the tracks on the back, he has used somebody's handwriting, perhaps his own, to write the tracks on the back of the album. This gives the album a personal touch as it is almost as if Shawn has handwritten the tracks for each and every person who purchases his album.
To the left of the back cover, Shawn's guitar appears to be leaning against the wall. Shawn is known for playing his guitar therefore by featuring a guitar on the back cover as well adds personal characteristics of Shawn to the back cover.
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​Production details are kept small at the bottom of the back of the album cover because the majority of his fans will not be interested in this. This is also not a selling point for the album so there is no need for the print of these details to be any bigger.
Harry Styles- Harry Styles The Album
Harry Styles appears to be submerged in a pastel pink bath. The shot is a close-up on his back. which is the least tattooed part of his body giving off a feeling of additional nudity.
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The only thing Styles seems to be wearing is a double necklace which is almost the focal point of the album. Harry is known for wearing pendants, therefore this can help identify him. The necklace is of a lotus flower which One Direction fans have associated with the lotus in Buddhism which states a symbol of purity.
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Conventionally, albums have either the name of the artist or the title of the album or both but on this album,neither is displayed.This keeps the album very minimalistic and simple. Also Harry is a very identifiable person due to his huge following, therefore Styles does not need his name on the front as people will be able to tell who it is by the photo.
The CD is plain white with only some writing around the outside of the CD and the logo's of the record company he is signed to. The CD again enforces the simple layout. .
Throughout this whole album, Harry has showcased his unique style by not following the conventions of a pop album cover but instead putting his own twist on it. This could largely be due to the fact that this is his debut solo album so he wants his audience to see who he is and recognise his own style. Before this, Harry would've been restricted to how creative he could be as his other band members would have to agree on what the album looked like but as this is his solo album, Styles could be as creative as he wants to be.
On the back cover, Harry is dipped deeper in the pink water- as deep as his collarbone Around him are lotus flowers floating in the pink water which links to the lotus flower pendant, Harry is wearing on the front cover.
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The image on the back cover of Harry is very small. Conventionally, the back cover image would take up the entire space.on the back, however for this album it doesn't as the majority of the back cover is white. Again, Harry is going against the conventions of a pop album cover by keeping it very minimal.
The tracks are listed to the left of the photo in a simple black font keeping to the minimalistic theme. They are also parallel to the image making the album appear almost immaculate.
Similarly to other album covers, the production details are kept at the bottom as his audience would not be interested in this.