Digipak Analysis

Digipak Analysis

A digipak is a style of CD packaging. Digipaks usually consist of a book style paperboard, with one or more plastic trays to hold a CD attached inside. A digipak promotes an artist and their music to the audience as it provides them with vital information such as images and song names. The images incorporated on a digipak may provide the audience with an insight into a hidden message behind the artists music. A digipak also makes the appearance of a CD more eye catching to shoppers and is more likely to entice them into purchasing the product. This would therefore result in attracting a wider audience to purchase the CD rather then the artists already formed fan base. A digipak also allows the artist and record label to store additional promotional materials in the sleeve such as a poster or a booklet.

Digipaks and CD albums vary in a number of ways. Digipaks contain more panels than a CD album and therefore provide the audience with additional information and images surrounding the artist and their music. A CD album generally contains the CD, an inside cover which may contain an information booklet and the front and back covers. In turn the CD album is ideal with protection of the CD disc but a digipak provides the audience with additional information which may engage the audience more with the artist and their music. They are both produced from different materials and therefore their quality and life-span can somewhat vary. Digipaks are usually made from cardboard and are therefore prone to more damage than a CD album which is generally made of plastic.

For our artist we will be creating a 6 part digipak to include relevant images and information linking to our artist and their music. I will be analysing a digipak of Jack Johnson as it is of the indie genre, however the digipak only has 4 parts to it as finding a 6 part indie genre digipak proved a struggle.

Jack Johnsons digipak does not contain a high number of images of him as an artist. This gives the audience the opportunity to interpret their own representation of him based on the images they are provided with and is typical of indie genre artists. On the front cover the audience are presented with the image of Jack Johnson as a silhouette. The image is relatively small in proportion with the image of the tree on the rest of the cover. This leaves the audiences attention not primarily focused on the artist himself. The silhouette image may be significant of the idea that his music can provide a representation of him as an artist without the audience seeing his full identity. In this same image Jack Johnson is seen picking something off the tree which may present his connection with nature through the music he writes and sings. It may also be representative of the journey he is taking as an artist. On the inside cover of the digipak there is an image of Jack Johnson holding his guitar which provides the audience with the representation of his musical talent and that he plays the guitar. On the same image Jack Johnsons face is slightly covered by his hand which in turn hides his mouth. The image may be representative of his music being the most powerful aspect of him illustrating himself as an artist to the public, and therefore the visuals of him are not a vital component in highlighting this to the audience. This further gives the audience the opportunity to interpret and discover Jack Johnsons image through his music.

The main image is of Jack Johnson picking something off of the tree, this illustrates a sense of nature. Therefore the image may be significant of Jack Johnsons' connection with nature through his music which may also highlight his purity within his music. In addition to this it make be significant of the journey he is taking, maybe through his music. The main colours employed on the digipak are yellow, black and white. The colour yellow attracts the audiences attention and connotes the idea of joy and happiness. It provides the audience with an insight into Jack Johnsons' music and the idea that it may be uplifting for the audience to listen to. The colour black is significant of power which may highlight Jack Johnsons' status within the music industry. It also adds an element of elegance to the digipak and therefore results in it being visually appealing for the audience. The colour white provides a connotation of innocence and purity which may relate to Jack Johnsons' music. It may highlight the idea that his music is true and representative of him as a solo artist as he strips back any extravagance to allow the audience to focus on his music. It is also seen as the colour of perfection which may relate to the purity of Jack Johnsons' music.

The colours incorporated on the Jack Johnson digipak somewhat break the typical indie genre conventions. However the colour yellow included grabs the audiences attention and in turn is visually appealing. It may in turn entice the audience to purchase the digipak. The colour black contrasts well with bright colours, so the combination with the colour yellow further enhances the visual appeal for the audience. It allows the text and images of the digipak to be clear and bold for the audience to visualise and enjoy. The colour white generally has a positive connotation. This may evoke a positive response from the audience towards Jack Johnsons music, enticing them to purchase the digipak.

The front cover of the digipak is mainly covered with the image of a tree and Jack Johnson picking something from the tree, highlighting his connection with nature which is evident throughout the digipak. There is also an oval containing information regarding the music on the cd in the top left corner attracting the audiences attention to the music on the cd. The text of Jack Johnsons name is relatively small on the front cover compared to the images included. This may be significant of the fact that he uses his music and the images of the digipak to speak for themselves so the focus is not primarily on his well known name. The inside cover contains a picture of him holding an acoustic guitar which takes up 50% of the cover. This presents to the audience that he has a talent playing the guitar and is conventional to the indie genre. The other half of the inside cover contains a black silhouette image of a plant which relates to the theme of nature throughout. The album title is also included to further inform the audience of its name which may spark their thoughts as to what his music may be about. The cd compartment contains the cd which is yellow with an image of a plant in black on it. This further relates to the theme of nature and follows the colour scheme of the digipak making it more visually appealing. The back cover is yellow and contains the song titles in a column layout to the left of the cover. The column layout allows the audience to concentrate on each song title one by one. The song titles text is relatively small further allowing the songs to speak for themselves. There is also an image of a tree trunk which relates back to the theme of nature evident.

The main images employed on Jack Johnsons digipak allow the audience to learn and understand the theme of nature running throughout. The front cover contains an image of a tree which symbolises the idea of nature and the freedom that Jack Johnson has, maybe in relation to his music. It may also be significant of the journey he is taking with his music within the music industry. In addition to this the digipak contains images of a tree trunk and a recurring image of a plant leaf. This further highlights the theme of nature through the digipak. On the inside cover of the digipak is an image of Jack Johnson holding an acoustic guitar. This introduces the audience to the artist of the digipak and informs them of his musical talent with the acoustic guitar. The image further illustrates the indie genre of his music through the acoustic guitar.

The typography is standard, rounded style lettering. It is simple which is conventional to the indie genre and therefore does not distract the audiences attention from the images and song titles on the digipak. Using simple typography for the song titles on the digipak highlights to the audience that Jack Johnson leaves his music to express his feelings to the audience, and allows them to understand him and his music by listening to them. The colours of the typography are yellow, black and white which follows the digipaks colour scheme. This therefore makes the digipak visually appealing for the audience and allows each part of the digipak to link to the others. 

The main text evident on the digipak is that of the artists name (Jack Johnson) and his song titles. This therefore provides the audience with the initial information of who the artist is and his music. The language is very simple to make this clear and precise to the audience so that they are aware of the information in their first glance of the digipak. The digipak also contains information regarding the special bonus tracks included on the album. The language used is simple english so that potential fans are able to understand what the text is telling them quickly and with ease. The incorporation of simple, informative language means that potential fans will spend minimal time reading information regarding the digipak, and in turn the audience are less likely to feel disengaged. This may assist in persuading them to purchase the digipak. 

 The digipak promotes the genre through the components that are combined together. The overall design of the digipak is simplistic which is conventional of the indie genre. There is also a theme of nature evident throughout the digipak with further portrays the indie genre. An image of Jack Johnson holding an acoustic guitar is incorporated into the digipak. The acoustic guitar is typical of an indie artist and therefore informs the audience of the genre of Jack Johnsons music. However the digipak somewhat subverts the typical indie convetions through the employment of the bright yellow within the colour. The use of this leaves the audience with the opportunity to use their imagination when it comes to their interpretations of Jack Johnsons music as they create a link between this and the indie conventions.

The digipak easily attracts an audience through the images and colour scheme incorporated. The use of the bright yellow combined with the black and white allows the images and text to be visually bold and stand out to the audience, making the digipak visually appealing. The simple language used and the small sized text for the song titles leaves the music to express itself, which may entice them to purchase the album and try out Jack Johnsons music.

The research I have conducted into the Jack Johnson digipak has provided me with a wider knowledge into indie genre digipaks. From the research I have learnt about important components to combine together to create a successfully conventional digipak. This research will assist me with planning and creating my own digipak for my artist as I have been able to depict ideas from what I have analysed. In addition to this my wider knowledge surrounding digipaks means I am more likely to create a digipak that is conventional to the indie genre and also is visually appealing to the audience. As Jack Johnsons digipak subverts the conventions of the indie genre through a number of elements I am now more aware of how to create a successful digipak that is conventional, and also that breaks conventions, but is still appealing to the audience.