research into music channels

The purpose of having music channels on television is simply to give the audience a different but equally effective method of watching music videos or hearing their favorite songs. And as the music channels are on a television, the audience are able to enjoy listening to their favorite music in the solitude of their own home. In addition, music channels are a beneficial way for an artist to be promoted and there are many different types of music channels; the most famous amongst them are MTV, Kerrang! and VIVA.

MTV is by far one of the most dominating music channels on the television. The channel was first broadcasted in 1981 with the purpose of playing music videos for the public when the artist was unable to perform live. The huge promotion of artists and music videos has grasped the attention of the older teens/young adults demographic as the channel puts a lot of focus upon the top of the charts music. The reason for this is simply as this age group is a mass market for the channel; more people would appeal to 
see the latest trends as opposed to seeing niche genres/artists. However, the logo that MTV is also a huge benefactor of attracting the target audience as it is quite appealing for them. The reasoning behind this is due to the fact that when the channel launched, in the very first moments of MTV consisted of an edited adoption of the first moon landing whereby the American flag was replaced by the channel's logo. Therefore, the logo stuck in people's minds and meant that the channel became increasingly well-known and popular. From then on, the channel stuck with a lot more "wacky" designs for their logo in order to appeal to the younger members of the public. The contemporary logo the channel uses is predominantly the same as the original logo (as seen in the picture above). The logo is extremely efficient in directly addressing what the company do: they are a "Music Television" channel, as illustrated on the bottom of their logo. This is actually beneficial in probing the audience to remember that MTV are not just about listening to music, but rather about broadcasting music videos and shows. In addition, the logo is quite simple and neat yet extremely artistic; a graffiti style has been employed, appealing to the young target audience as they would enjoy quite "cool" designs which connote rebellion and standing out. The use of the monochrome colors creates an extremely contrasting effect, making the logo more eye-catching, despite the lack of color.

Within the channel, there are certain artists who appear on a regular basis as the producers are fully aware that they will attract more people. Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Calvin Harris and Drake are just a handful of the artists that MTV heavily promote. These artists in specific all feature in the UK Top 4; however, they are from a mix of different genres. Calvin Harris for instance, produces dance music, whereas Taylor Swift and Beyonce feature in the pop genre and Drake is a hip-hop artist. Therefore, promoting a range of genre of artists is more successful for the channel as it brings in a wider audience, making MTV more popular. Furthermore, all these artists individually reach a younger target audience, the same demographic as MTV, and therefore will all be able to relate to the audience. Many of the audience, especially females, will aspire to the likes of Taylor Swift and Beyonce, which is why MTV deliberately put emphasis on them in their channel. In addition, David Guetta reaches the older teens/young adults demographic through his upbeat dance tunes as this age group stereotypically like to party and therefore will thoroughly enjoy his music.

Everything that MTV play on their channel reflects the target audience as the shows range from reality TV to music videos being shown. The types of programmes that show are what a lot of the teenage population would enjoy, such as "Catfish", "My Super Sweet Sixteen" or "Keeping Up With the Kardashians". It is crucial for the channel to provide these types of shows as otherwise the audience will not be particularly entertained whilst watching the channel. As MTV is primarily considered a music channel, they must stand out against other channels, such as E! entertainment show, which holds all types of reality shows and gossip that a lot of MTV's audience would be interested in. From looking at MTV's schedule, it is evident that the channel focuses more on the entertainment side slightly more than the music side, as a lot of music such as "Clubland" is played early in the morning, rather than later during the day. A lot of the more older entertainment shows such as "Ridiculousness", which features celebrities, is broadcasted later during the evening time. 

The channel is actually owned by Viacom Media Networks, who are known for their other channels such as Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. Both these examples given appeal to a younger audience; Comedy Central is known for being a popular broadcaster of the television series "Friends" and Nickelodeon is obviously known as targeting the children aged demographic. Therefore, it is advantageous for MTV to be associated with these types of channels as it promotes MTV in a better light, as it gives more to the audience than just music.

Kerrang! is another television music channel; however, this channel specializes in heavy rock, nu metal and pop punk. The channel heavily features artists such as Green Day, Panic! At The Disco, Paramore and Fall Out Boy. The channel focuses a lot on rock artists such as these listed as more mainstream rock artists are more favored by the audience. Kerrang! rarely play death-metal or even just heavy metal music as they feature a smaller audience group. The channel is actually a subsidiary of a magazine (with the same title) and therefore the music played must be a reflection of the magazine; the channel will not play unsigned artists but nor will they play too mainstream music either. The artists I listed earlier are the most popular as they are not too mainstream for the style of the channel but they are extremely popular by a large group of people. Artists such as Fall Out Boy dip not only into the rock genre but also the pop genre and a lot of the audience of the latter have heard the band's music; therefore it is a good way to bring in a wider audience. In addition, bands such as Green Day who have featured in the Top 40 would also be well-known by a wider audience. 

The target audience itself of the channel would be older teens/young adults between the ages of 16-30, which is an extremely flexible demographic to cater for. Furthermore, the channel does something unusual in that they allow the audience to request the music video they want to be seen playing; the majority of other music channels play videos according to which ones receive the most votes. The content of the music videos the channel shows are sensitive to the appeal of the target audience; violence and references to religion with heavy blasphemy. However, a lot of these videos have to be censored as to cater for the watershed. 

The logo which Kerrang! has established is effective in appealing to their target audience as the color of it is the first thing the audience see. The color of black reflects the genre of music which is shown and stereotypically, the audience who like Kerrang! also like the color black as it connotes rebellion, being different and darker emotions, etc. In addition, the color black also links with the instruments used within the genre as black is quite a stand out color, which against the white background, is quite heavy and loud; the rock genre consists of heavy drumbeats and loud guitar riffs.The use of the logo being written in capital letters is more effective as it immediately stands out and attracts the audience's attention right into the company. Furthermore, there is an almost shattered look to the logo which matches the loud beats of the rock genre and the quite violent style adopted by artists; slamming instruments etc.

Kerrang! is actually owned by a British television company called The Box Plus Network, that acts as its music television programme production supplement. Subsidiary channels of Box Plus include 4Music, Magic, Heat and Kiss. All these channels play variating genre of music; for instance, Magic focus more on music from the 80s, 90s and 00s, whereas 4Music focus more on music that is in the charts and mainstream. Having such a variety means that a wider audience is being catered for and therefore the channel will gain more popularity.


Clubland TV is a music channel which broadcasts on the Sky network. The channel specializes in showing upbeat pop music videos in the mornings as well as dance music videos from the channel's compilation albums. This is due to the channel's target audience being focused at 16-25 year olds who appeal to the party/club style music. Furthermore, the logo that the channel uses is appealing for this demographic as it uses a "techno" style, which brings the club feel straight to the audience. The logo connotes a glitter ball that is often associated with clubs and the contrast of white against the black background reminds the audience of strobe lighting, a visual effect that is extremely common in clubs. In addition, this use of color contrast helps to make the logo stand out more and grab the audience's attention. The inclusion of "TV" underneath Clubland's name is helpful in reminding the audience that this is a television channel and therefore there will be more than just music being played; the channel will show videos and shows too.

Clubland TV is a channel that is owned by "All Around the World Productions", a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. The channel is in fact so popular that it has five times the viewing ratings as the MTV Dance channel. This is simply due to the high profiled artists who play on the channel: Avicii, Martin Garrix, Fatboy Slim, David Guetta and Shift K3Y are just a few to name. As these artists also feature in the Top 40, the channel may receive audience from a more mainstream demographic who enjoy popular dance artists.

VIVA is a music television channel that is owned by "Viacom International Media Networks" and is broadcasted in both the UK and Ireland. The channel was actually launched by famous singer-songwriter Alexandra Burke with an unprecedented live performance of her single "Bad Boys". Although being primarily a music channel, VIVA also previously showed programmes from other Viacom channels (e.g. MTV, Comedy Central and Channel 5) such as Catfish, Pretty Little Liars, Jersey Shore and My Super Sweet 16, etc. This successfully bought a larger group of audience into the channel as the channel became one huge hub for people to watch/listen to music and watch their favorite shows. 

The target audience of VIVA predominantly consists of 16-25 year olds, as the channels are focused more on a more older teen/young adult lifestyle. The channel promotes enjoying life and having fun, with more mainstream music being broadcasted and therefore will appeal to the younger audience demographic. Famous artists that are played on the channel include One Direction, Katy Perry and Pixie Lott. The channel pays close attention to the UK Top 40, as well as constructing their own Top 20 or 40 tracks for the audience to enjoy. From looking at the channel's schedule, it is clear what age group they are focusing on. A lot of the music videos are broadcasted earlier in the day, more towards the morning. Whereas the more explicit programmes such as behind the scenes of music tours or new music videos released, are shown more towards the evening. For instance, The Weeknd's new music video was played at midnight last night as the content of it would be more for slightly older teens. During the day the channel shows ordinary entertainment programmes and music videos that have been seen many times before. This is simply as less people would be watching TV during this time as the target audience would most likely be in education. Therefore, they would show the more exciting things such as programmes relating to X Factor or new released music during the evening.

Furthermore, the logo of the channel instantaneously gives away who the channel is really focused at; young adults who are mostly female. The use of a bold color pink automatically grabs the audience's attention, particularly the females and they can tell the channel is full of mainstream and upcoming trends. In addition, the programmes that air on the channel are a reflection of the audience; shows such as Pretty Little Liars and My Super Sweet 16 are more likely to appeal to females.

AKA, formerly known as "Channel U" is another music channel that is owned by All Around the World Productions and is available on Sky in both the UK and Ireland. The channel is completely dedicated to broadcasting upcoming UK urban/grime/hip-hop music. Famous artists who frequently appear on the channel include the likes of Dizzee Rascal, Wretch 32, Tinie Tempah, N-Dubz and Tinchy Stryder. The channel's aim is to provide the public with "raw and unsigned talent we have in the UK" and give these unprecedented artists a platform to perform on. 

The target audience of the channel move more towards young adults as opposed to teenagers; around the ages of 18-30. This is due to the fact that hip-hop and grime artists tend to include more "mature" content in their lyrics which does not appeal as much to the younger audience who like party anthems instead. However, it is stereotypical to say that those who do listen to the music on the channel who are of a younger age would primarily be male as they prefer the lyrics used. 

The logo of the channel is extremely appealing for the target audience as an almost smoke-like effect is used; a common stereotype of the genre is the association with drugs and smoking. Therefore, this aspect of the logo would strongly appeal to the male-dominated target audience. In addition the use of the color red connotes violence which is often depicted in hip-hop songs and therefore is another appealing factor for the audience. The contrast of the black and red colors makes the logo stand out more and makes it look bolder and stronger which makes the channel seem quite masculine. 

Going back to the music channel MTV, I think it is sound to say that the reason it is broken down into different channels such as MTV Dance, Rock, Classic, etc, is simply as this is the easiest way to draw in as much popularity as possible. Catering for all different types of audience demographics as possible ensures that more and more people will be satisfied and will want to tune into MTV. This is the main reason why MTV are as successful as they are; they have efficiently established themselves as something more than just a music channel. The various programmes that are aired on the different channels help to attract a wider audience and keep coming back to the channel.

Through my research I have also seen how important it is for a music channel to use branding in order to really boost their popularity with their desired target audience. Branding is used to identify a company or person and allow them to stand out against all other competitors. For example, MTV used the picture of Neil Armstrong on the moon and replaced the American flag with the MTV flag. When the audience see this, they will become more familiar with the channel as every-time they see the picture of the man on the moon, they will remember MTV as well. Furthermore, MTV are a huge advocate of social media networks and therefore through connecting with their audience on sites such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, they are successfully increasing their popularity and branding themselves to be a more personal and fun music channel. Each of the channels I have looked at use branding for the company. For instance, MTV have a huge variety of different channels which helps to connect to a wide audience range and enforce a more positive brand image for the company that they are different to other music channels. However, other channels such as Kerrang! or Clubland TV that focus more on one genre also ensure good branding of the company as they provide ultimate and up-to-date information on the music of that specific genre so that their fans feel they are getting all they need about their favorite music. As Kerrang! focuses on punk rock and metal music, the channel can play the best of this genre and provide a more intimate connection between the audience and artists as they have more time to focus on a singular artist. The logo is a huge benefactor to the branding of the company. Going back to what I mentioned previously about the MTV logo of the man on the moon, the channel's logo itself caters to the target audience, as the graffiti style is more appealing for them. This helps to give the channel a good brand image of caring for the needs of the audience and making sure they are being thought of. Kerrang!'s logo is also helpful in terms of branding as the destroyed look it has reflects the company's interest in the punk rock and metal genre. Viva's logo also has the same effect as just by looking at it, you can tell that the company is focused on more upbeat and fun, mainstream music. As the channel consistently shows the logo during breaks of shows or at the bottom or top of a TV screen as a programme is being shown, the audience will be constantly reminded of the type of channel they are watching.

Overall, my research has helped me in choosing the genre of my own music video. I personally think that making an indie music video would be the easiest as looking at all the channels I researched, they all feature quite complex videos that are out of my budget. In addition, none of the genres I looked at like to use narrative based music videos and therefore it is more difficult to put across a story with emotions to connect to the audience. Indie music videos use extremely accessible locations and storylines that are easily adaptable and interpretive which the audience can relate to more.