A-Level Media Studies
Star Theory: Jessie J
Richard Dyer
Name- Jessica Ellen Cornish
Age-28
Birthday- 27/03/1988
Albums- Who you are (2011)
Alive (2013)
Sweet Talker (2014)
Awards- Kids choice award
Brit awards
Grammys
A large amount of her awards were recieved for her unique vocal style, mixing R&B and soul vocals.
'A star is both ordinary and extraordinary'
'A star is an image, not a real person. That is constructed out of a range of materials'
'A star is both present and absent'
At the beginning of Jessies career she had a very signiture look. It had a grungy vibe to it as she originally was going a tough look after the release of her first single 'Do It Like A Dude'. Her look consisted of a black bob with a full fringe, dark smokey eyes and dark lipsticks. Over time her image has adapted massively, even to the extent of having a bald head for over a year after she shaved her head for charity.
'You have to go through lifes experiences, good or bad, to learn from them'- Jessie J
Lets start from the beginning...
Jessie J began her career in a small girl band called Soul Deep, they released a couple of songs but had minimal success. It was for this reason that Jessie decided to leave and focus on reaching her goal of a successful solo vocalist. The most successful song that Soul Deep released was called Why, it was written to support a campaign against gang violence and shootings. At a young age Jessie was interested in performing, so much so that she joined the west end production of Whistle Down The Wind when she was 11 years old. This production stemmed Jessies passion for music, which is why she joined the group Soul Deep.
Getting Signed-
After Soul Deep, Jessie worked hard writing songs and eventually got signed by an independent record company called Gut Records. Before Jessie J was able to release her first track, Gut records went bankrupt leaving her to start over again. Fortunatly this didn't knock Jessies confidence and she began writing songs for other successful artists in hope to work her way up to fame. She wrote some very popular songs for other artists such as 'Party In The USA' for Miley Cyrus and 4 TIMES for Kodi Kumi, this was all done during her time working for Sony ATV. Due to her success in songwriting and her online performances many record companies were excited to sign her, this was a long process but eventually she formed a contract with Lava records. Once signed, Jessies career blossomed. She began working on her first album 'Who You Are' in 2005, which ended up rating number 2 in the UK. Her first single released from her album was 'Do It Like A Dude' and ' Price Tag' followed closely after. These 2 songs topped the charts in 19 countries including the UK, Jessie was the first British female artist to have 6 songs off a single album to reach the top 10.
'Do It Like A Dude'-2010
Do It Like A Dude was Jessies first single released, it showcased her look, personality and style resulting in her whole image being formed from this single track. The message the audience recieves through the lyrics in this track is female power, Jessie sings about the females ability to do everything that males can do. The song was initially written for Rihanna due to 'Rude Boy' being released around the same time as Jessie was writing the track. Rihanna was a large inspiration for her song, Jessies management refused to release the track to Rihanna due to it being perfect to start Jessies image. Do it like a dude made it into the top ten in over 10 countries, the most successful rating was number 2 in the uk. Many people would agree with Dyers theory that stars are constructed through 7 common values. In this video Jessie is displaying anti- authoritarian attitudes and rebellion, she showcases these mainly though her language and the mise en scene present in the video. In this video Jessie is wearing a grey playsuit accompanied by large heels and an orange jacket, this bold outfit allowed her to make a massive first impression for her rapidly increasing fan base.
Rolling stones reviewing site had this to say about Jessie; Jessie J is no girly girl — she's a Brit newcomer who wears her hat low and often avoids pants. The 22-year-old already has a sugary hit on her resume, but on her debut single she her stomps her way across the pond, presumably with tongue in cheek: "Do It Like a Dude" finds her grabbing her crotch and dropping MF-bombs over rock riffs while calling her girls "sugar" and throwing in a brawling pop chorus. Fierce!
Although Jessie made a large impact through this track, she decided to switch it up when it came to her overall genre. She went from fierce and in your face, to slightly more mellow and focused on showing off her vocal talents.
I was writing some songs in the studio, but I was bored with the song I was writing and there were two boys—two producers called Parker and James—and one of them wears [his] trousers ridiculously low. So I just started free styling like a dude, and it was fun. I wanted to write a song that was tongue-in-cheek and a parody of a stereotypical male. But also, I wanted the song to be empowering for girls, but not kind of an "I hate men" song - because I don't, and I don't say that in the song. It's about feeling hardcore.
Jessie J
Price Tag- 2011
Price tag was Jessies follow up single which suprised her entire fan base. The message, genre and overall feel off the entire track was completely different compared to Do It Like A Dude. The music video itself is very mellow, consisting of a lot of high key lighting and pastel colours The use of these qualities gave Jessie a completely different look, she very quickly transitioned from a hardcore rebel to a pretty in pink popstar. Within the lyrics of this song Jessie sings about money not being a necessity in life, she sings about it being more important to make an impact on the world than to be rich. The theme of this song links well with the theme from 'Do It Like A Dude' because it is still about standing up for yourself and being the best you that you can be. Price tag reached number one on the uk charts and reached the top ten in many other countries, this proved that Jessie was becoming a well loved artist.
Reviews stated that- 'Both Jessie J and B.o.B. are big talents, and the combination of their skills in this song is like musical fireworks. Backed by a mellow yet fun beat, Jessie's booming, full-of-life vocals and B.o.B.'s crisp rap delivery make this song great in terms of its sound as well as its message'. The huge change between 'Do It Like A Dude' and 'Price Tag' supports Richard Dyers theory of Stars being an image, constructed out of a range of materials. This is because Jessie was able to easily adapt herself to fit different criterias to increase her popularity.
I Miss Her- 2013
This track showed a completely new side to Jessie that her fans wasnt aware of. The song was written in honour of her grandmother who was suffering with Alzheimers, the lyrics show Jessies vulnerable and emotional sides. The song wasnt released in the charts but only kept on her album, plus she performed it at her live shows on tours. The song itself doesnt have a music video, this is because Jessie wanted it to continue to be private and wanted to share it with her closest fans who brought the album. I miss her is now a very popular song, and one of Jessies fans favourites at her concerts. The guardian stated- Jessie's impressive vocal range soars over this piano composition as she sings about a relative suffering from Alzheimer's. "It's about somebody in my family who's unwell, and it's the most personal song I've ever written, that person is still here, but they are not their old selves any more." According to Richard Dyer this song portays Jessies Ordinary side, he claims that Stars are both ordinary and extraordinary, through Jessie writing such a personal track she was showing that she is just as ordinary as everyone else.
Braving the shave- 2013
In 2013 Jessie shocked the nation once again by shaving her entire head for charity, she did it on stage at Comic releif and raised an amazing $500,000. This shave made a huge impact not only due to her raising so much money for charity but also due to her getting rid of her iconic black, full fringed bob. To make an even larger impact, she allowed Lenny Henry to cut the first chunk of her hair off, which also was seen as very impressive to her growing fan base. Jessie rocked the bald head look and even styled it in her new album alive. The shaved head inspired Jessie to create a more raw and personal album , she wanted her fans to get to know another side of her that they didnt yet know.
Bang Bang- 2014
The old Jessie is back when she released her hit collab 'Bang Bang' starring Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande. After her pretty mellow album 'Alive' Jessie made a fierce return with an album full of upbeat songs to get her fans going. Bang Bang was a massive success reaching number one in the uk charts and reaching the top ten in over 17 countries. The lyrics in the song emphasise the importance of confidence and making an entrance, the song has a feel good vibe to it and is designed to get people off their feet. Jessie said the song coming together was like "It was like a real females, coming together, empowering, supportive [vibe], and then Nicki jumping on it was like the icing on the cake'
The music video is very upbeat and includes a lot of dancers, high key lighting and vinbrant colours. The use of these technical elements gives a heavy feel of excitement and general high energy, which is one of the reasons that the song was so popular.
