Research Into Music Channels

Research into Music Channels

Every music channel appeals to a specific target audience through the type of music it plays. It features a set genre of music with specific artists that are within this genre. The logo of each music channel is designed to specifically appeal to its target audience and gives the audience an initial insight into the genre of music it plays.

The target audience for MTV is teenagers/young adults. This is because MTV mainly plays popular genres within this age group e.g. pop & dance. MTV mainly plays songs that are currently in the charts or previously have been as they are popular amongst their target audience. Examples of artists regularly featured on MTV are; Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Beyonce, Lady Gaga and One Direction. MTV operates a group of channels under the name MTV networks e.g. MTV Dance, MTV Classic, MTV Rocks, etc. On some of these channels a number of television programmes are aired as well as music videos. MTV also owns their own official website which allows fans to access news podcasts, interviews with celebrities and other information. MTV also owns a magazine providing fans with further access to music information. MTVs’ logo appeals to their target audience as it has bold font for the M and more fun font for TV. This connotes how MTV provides entertainment and amusement for their viewers.

VIVA has a target audience of teenagers/young adults. It mainly airs music that is current in the charts and of a pop/dance genre as this is what teenagers/young adults tend to listen to. Artists aired on this channel include; Justin Bieber, Olly Murs & Katy Perry. VIVAs’ logo appeals to their target audience as the channel name is in bold, capital font. The colours used are green and pink, which are bright and reflect how the music channel appeals to the younger generation. Also the use of green and pink conveys how the music channel is aimed at both males and females. 

Scuzz is aimed at older teenagers/young adults who listen to rock music. During the daytime the channel tends to play more pop-punk, current metal and up and coming artists, whereas in the evenings the channel plays predominately heavier music including; traditional heavy metal, hard rock, punk and death metal. Examples of artists on this channel are; Enter Shikari, Young Guns, You Me At Six, Deaf Havana and more recently Lower Than Atlantis. Scuzz has had a number of logo revamps, first on April 1, 2006, where the old black and white logo was changed to a blue, smokey look. After this the channel begun to air more special, dedicated shows. Then as of 31 December 2007, Scuzz was revamped once again, being given a more industrial style look. The channel runs weekly competitions, giving viewers the chance to win brand merchandise, signed guitars and concert tickets. Scuzz is owned and operated by CSC Media Group and has a number of sister channels including; Chart Show TV, Bliss and the Vault. Scuzzs’ logo font is silver and in capitals. The font has a sharp appearance with spikes off of some of the letters. This appeals to their target market as the silver connotes the heavy metal music and the sharp, bold letters conveys a punk side to the channel. 

Flava has a target audience of young adults. It broadcasts 24 hours a day and play music from the Hip-Hop, R&B, Garage and Drum ‘n’ Bass music genres. This is because this type or music appeals to young adults. Examples of artists music aired on this channel is; Kanye West, Drake, Ciara, Nicki Minaj and Chris Brown. Flava is owned by CSC Media Group who own a number of other music channels. Therefore Flava has a number of sister channels consisting of; Bliss, The Vault, Chart Show TV and several more. Flava’s logo is big, bold font in capitals. The font is gold which appeals to the target audience as Hip-Hop & R&B genres feature elements such as money and expensive cars. 

VH1 is targeted at a slightly older audience than its sister channel MTV, focusing on the lighter, softer side of popular music. VH1 occasionally plays music videos and the Top 20 Video Countdown, but its overall focus is on pop music in order to appeal to the target audience of 18-35year olds, and maybe even older. Some of the artists featured on this channel include; Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Elton John, Sting and Olivia Newton-John. Both VH1 and its sister channel MTV are currently part of the Viacom Media Networks division of corporate parent Viacom. VH1 also has a website that fans can visit to access further insights into the music they play. VH1s’ logo appeals to the target audience, as it is made up of bright colours including; orange, pink and blue. This therefore means the logo appeals to both male and female and does not limit the age of audience members it may attract. Also the use of the colours connote a fun, joyful impression which relates to the fact the channel plays pop music. 

MTV is broken down into different channels to appeal to the various target audiences and the specific genres/music they enjoy listening to. This therefore allows MTV to play the correct music that appeal to the certain target group that they are aiming towards. Music channels are important in appealing to a target audience so that they provide the audience with playlists of the genre of music they specifically enjoy and want to listen to. Therefore audiences don’t have to waste time flicking through channels to discover a song of their desired genre. I think there are a variety of music channels so that each one can appeal to a specific audience. In turn this would mean audiences would be more content as they would be able to turn on the channel which played the music they enjoyed and appealed to them the most, without wasting time trying to find a song they enjoyed. From analysing music channels I have learnt of how there are various music channels that specifically appeal to a particular target audience as it plays a certain genre of music. This will therefore allow me to differentiate between various target audiences so that I can specifically aim my music video production to a particular audience who enjoy a certain genre of music.