This is some research into the pop genre and how it made a name for itself in Britain.

1. POP GENRE RESEARCH

2. Examples of artists who come under the pop genre
include:
• Justin Bieber
• Taylor Swift
• Ariana Grande
• Miley Cyrus
• Olly Murs
• Rihanna
• Katy Perry
• Selena Gomez
• Cheryl
• Beyoncé
• Nicki Minaj
• One Direction

3. BACKGROUND OF POP
▪The pop genre stands for popular music.
▪It originated in the western world during the 1950’s and 1960’s.
▪However, recordings of modern pop music began in the early 1920’s.
▪An example of an early pop artist is Elvis Presley because his music was vey popular in the 1960’s
and is still quite popular today.
▪Most pop music is just thought of as singles that are in the charts. However, some popular music
comes under the genre of urban, Latin and country.
▪A characteristic of the pop genre is appealing music to a general audience. This shows that popular
music is relevant to everyone.
▪The most common instruments used in the pop genre are guitars, drums, pianos and strings. A
good example of string instruments is the song “Viva La Vida” and a good example of a piano is “A
Thousand Miles”.
▪Music magazines such as “Top of the Pops” and “billboard” are some examples of pop genre
magazines. On their magazines, they use typography, a house style and typefaces.

4. EARLY BRITISH POP MUSIC
In 1950’s Britain, American music dominated the British charts with popular
music such as “All shook up” by Elvis Presley. However, in the 1960’s, many
groups in the UK began to become popular. One city in particular where
these groups used to emerge in, was Liverpool. In 1962, the Beatles had a hit
record and their single went into the charts. I think this was the gateway for
British Pop music because after 1962, many other British Pop artists
emerged. Pop artists such as Cilla Black and The Rolling Stones came after
the Beatles had became popular. From the 90’s till the present day, there
have been many successful pop artists from Britain. Such as Take That, the
Spice Girls and Girls Aloud. The reason bands like the Spice Girls and Girls
Aloud were so popular is because they were seen as a sign of girl power.

5. BACKGROUND TO THE MUSIC
INDUSTRY AND MAGAZINES
One music magazine I have been researching is Billboard. Billboard publishes
17,000 magazines a week. However, it has a total of 15.2 million monthly visitors.
The first issue was published on the 1st of November 1894, in Ohio. Billboard
magazine is a weekly magazine that covers the genre of popular music and
entertainment. The first of the magazines were only 8 pages long. The average
price of a billboard magazine is £6.91.
Another music magazine I have researched is Q magazine. It was founded in 1986
in Britain by Mark Ellen and David Hepworth. Their standards are set very high
which makes them stand out from other pop music magazines. They use
professional photography and printing for their monthly magazine. The average
price of a Q magazine is £3.75.
Music magazines usually contain a front image of the pop artist, current things
they’re doing in the industry (albums etc.), interviews and photoshoots.

6. TERMS OF PRINT IMAGES
Typography – This is the arrangement of words which makes them legible and appealing, when it is displayed. For
example, the typography in Billboard magazine will be very recognisable because they use the same font on every
magazine. You will identify this magazine as billboard, because it’s the first thing you spot. Other examples of typography
include line spacing and line lengths.
Typefaces – This is how words and text on the magazine are presented. Examples of this are the font, colour of text, and
the size of the text. Examples of this can be found on the billboard logo. On each magazine, their logo has the san serif
style, meaning their text is without little detail on it. This gives it its “bold” look. As the look of the text is bold, it stands out to
the consumer which makes them interested in the magazine.
Mise-en-scene – This is used in magazines to arrange everything that you see on the front cover of a magazine.
Examples include where the artist is on the magazine, the clothes they’re wearing, the light/colour used and costume,
hair and makeup. For example, in the Q magazine of Ed Sheeran, you can see he’s holding a guitar. This would be
classed as a prop and it tells you straight away that he is a pop artist.
Digital Manipulation – This is when a picture has been changed or altered using software from a computer. An example
of when this has been used in a magazine is Katy Perry's clear skin in the Billboard magazine. I think this because her skin
looks very clear and she has that perfect look. A second example would be the shape of her face. This gives her the
perfect look once again.