Star Project

“A star is an image constructed (as any other aspect of fiction is) from a range of materials – eg advertising and magazines, as well as films and music.” Richard Dyer

So Ms Foster has asked us to research a big 'star' and look into how their image has changed over time. I have decided to focus on the woman who everyone knows, Madonna!
Madonna started her music career in 1979, from then on, gaining a huge fan base as it can be said that this period of time was perhaps her most prominent. However, Madonna is still in fact producing music and touring today, as well as collaborating with huge artists continuously building up her fan base and boosting her record sales. She also appeared in the 1996 film, 'Evita' taking centre stage as a lead role. This also made Madonna known worldwide, building up her legacy. The fact that Madonna also delves into various genres such as; pop, dance, electronic and rock was a leading factor in gaining such a huge fan base as these genres reach a wide audience overall.
  
Madonna has released 12 studio albums over the past years, the first few probably being the most successful and well known. Her first album being the self-titled 'Madonna' which made £10,000,000 in record sales, worldwide was also available for fans to buy on vinyl. However, her third album 'True Blue' made a large sum of £25,000,000 in sales worldwide, being her most successful album to date! She has also released 77 singles to date, 'Everybody' being her debut. 

Madonna was often on trend with fashion, as seen in her album cover 'Madonna' - supporting an 80's styles that she made very popular, many of her fans following her fashion trends, supporting her style. Whether its her music videos, song, look or celebrity approach, Madonna manages to appeal to her fan base. she often dresses provocatively, is outrageous in her style and sends out a message of her being wild and free. For example, in the 1989, 'Like a Prayer' video, caused a lot of controversy, one man from a record label stating "It's condemnable on the face of it because it exploits a symbol of evil [the burning crosses of the Ku Klux Klan] in order to sell records." Her appearance has changed over time, becoming more modern, although she often is seen wearing dance wear in her videos, such as leotards and leg warmers (Hung Up) much like her previous fashion statements. We do a see a more provocative choice of clothing from Madonna, often wearing skimpy garments and limited clothing, perhaps to appeal to a male audience. 

Madonna often appears in the media, but her prime time was when she adopted two young children from Malawi. This caused a lot of publicity for her as well as good press, illustrating her motherly side as well as charitable and noble, promoting adoption, something a lot of celebrities followed in her footsteps with. She also often appeared in newspapers and press releases, as well as on talk shows discussing another factor - this being her yo-yo relationship with Guy Ritchie, the media often showing the ups and downs they faced, finally resulting in divorce after their 7 years of marriage. 

We have seen a great change from Madonna, watching her develop from a young age of 21 to 55 in the limelight. Her sound as well as connections within the music industry have changed, as well as her look and status in society overall. Still often causing controversy and appearing in papers, her fan base is bigger than ever and she is till seen as a 'Star' in many eyes.