1. E V A L U A T I O N
ICON843
F T J O J O R D A N
H E R E TO S T A Y

2. IN WHAT WAYS
DOES YOUR MEDIA
PRODUCT USE,
D E V E L O P O R
C H A L L E N G E
F O R M S A N D
CONVENTIONS
OF REAL MEDIA
P R O D U C T S ?

3. IN A NUT SHELL I BELIEVE T HAT OUR
PRODUCTS DO CONFORM TO GENRE
CONVENT IONS RAT HER, T HOUGH T HERE ARE
ELEMENT S OF T HE PRODUCT S T HAT DO
CHALLENGE GENERIC IDEAS.
BUT BEFORE WE CAN CONCLUDE ANYTHING,
W E M UST F I RST LY ASSESS T HE G ENRE O F
MUSIC T HAT OUR ART IST AND HIS SONG
FALL INTO. IT CAN BE AGREED T HAT ICON
843 W O ULD G ENERALLY BE SEEN AS A UK
H I P - H O P A R T I S T, B U T A S A N A R T I S T
H I M S E L F, H E C H A L L E N G E S T H I S S E N T I M E N T
BY MAKING MUSIC T HAT WOULD MORE
L I K E LY F A L L I N T O T H E R N B C AT E G O R Y.
WITHOUT DOUBT THOUGH, ICON 843 WOULD
M O ST CERTAI NLY BE CO NSI DERED AN URBAN
A R T I S T, A S A N U R B A N A R T I S T, T H E R E A R E
CERTAIN EXPECTAT IONS OF HIM, T HAT I
T HINK W E HAVE ADDRESSED W ELL.

4. T HESE EXPECTAT I O NS USUALLY DI CTAT E
THE ARTIST’S STYLE, BOTH IN TERMS OF
CLOTHES FASHION, BUT ALSO THE MUSIC’S
C O N T E N T. I C O N 8 4 3 ’ S C O N T E N T I S
CERTAI NLY A PART O F A NEW BRAND O F
RAPPER. T HESE RAPPERS HAVE G ENERALLY
ABANDONED T HE FEAT URES OF WHAT
T YPI CALLY W O ULD M AKE T HEM A HI P - HO P
A R T I S T. T H E Y C A N D I S TA N C E T H E M S E LV E S
F RO M T HE HYPE, AND ALLO W T HEM SELVES
TO CONNECT THEIR MORE FEMININE SIDES.
THESE RAPPERS INCLUDE, DRAKE, J.COLE
AND WALE. AGAIN, W HILE T HEY MAY NOT
EXCLUSI VELY M AKE T HESE T YPES O F SO NG S
(HIP-HOP/RNB HYBRIDS), T HEY HAVE
DEMONST RAT ED T HAT IT IS A POPULAR
VARIAT ION ON T HE GENRE, AND ONE T HAT
P R O M I S E S T O O N LY G R O W I N P O P U L A R I T Y.

5. SO AS WE BEGIN TO CONSIDER WHETHER OR
NOT OUR PRODUCTS DEFY GENRE
CONVENT IONS, WE MUST ACCEPT T HAT DUE
TO T HE NAT URE OF T HE ART IST AND T HE
SONG, THE ACTUAL GENRE CAN BE
D E B AT E D , N O T O N LY T H AT, B U T I T S
CONVENT I ONS ARE NOT F ULLY DEF I NED. W E
CAN ARGUE T HAT IT TAKES T HE KEY T HEMES
FROM RNB, WHILE RETAINING THE RUGGED
E L E M E N T S O F T R A D I T I O N A L H I P - H O P.

6. OUR MUSIC VIDEO WAS SHOT IN THREE
LOCAT IONS, A HOUSE, AN URBAN
UNDERPASS AND AT CENT RAL LONDON.
WITHIN THIS DYNAMIC, WE SHOT THE ARTIST
W I T H I N T H E M O R E U R B A N E N V I R O N M E N T, I N
AN AT T EMPT TO REPRESENT T HEIR ROOT S.
T HE LOCAT ION WAS INT ENDED TO
SUBCO NSCI O USLY SI G NAL TO T HE VI EW ER
T HAT T HAT WAS ICON 843’S NAT URAL
E N V I R O N M E N T. I T WA S O U R B E L I E F T H AT
T HIS CHOICE OF LOCAT ION SHOULD AID IN
HELPING T HE AUDIENCE IDENT IFY T HAT HE
I S I N D E E D A N U R B A N A R T I S T, C O N F O R M I N G
TO THIS COMMON CONVENTION.

7. OUR LONDON LOCAT ION WAS CHOSEN IN
TANDEM WITH THE SCENES OF THE FEMALE
LEAD BEING ALONE AND THE SCENES OF
HER AND THE MALE LEAD TOGETHER, BOTH
TO ROMANTICISE THE CAPITAL, BUT ALSO
TO SHO W T HAT I T CAN BE A LO NELY PLACE.
THIS CAN BE SEEN AS A DIRECT CONTRAST
TO T HE REPRESENTAT IONS MADE ABOUT
ICON 843, BUT IT IS THESE SAME
CONT RAST S, OR BINARY OPPOSIT IONS, T HAT
HELP TO REPRESENT THE GENRE’S
S T R U G G L E F O R A N I D E N T I T Y.

8. THE PERFORMANCES BY BOTH ICON 843 AND
JO JO RDAN CO NT RAST HEAVI LY W I T H T HE
DEEPLY EM O T I O NAL NARRAT I VE, I N W HI CH
T HE ACTORS PORT RAY ONE OF T HE MANY
D I F F I C U LT I E S O F B E I N G I N A R E L AT I O N S H I P.
AS PROMOTED BY MANY RNB SONGS OF A
SI M I LAR NAT URE, T HE O UT CO M E I S M O ST LY
ALWAYS A PO SI T I VE O NE, I N W HI CH T HE
MALE AND FEMALE LEADS FIND/REKINDLE
T HEIR LOVE. ONE WAY IN WHICH WE
DEVELOPED THIS IDEA TO BOTH CONFORM
AND CONTEST WAS TO DO A ROLE REVERSAL
– IN T HE VIDEO YOU WILL FIND T HAT IT IS
THE FEMALE WHO WALKS OUT ON THE MALE,
WHILE HE STAYS AT HOME AND CRIES (A
T YPI CALLY F EM I NI NE T HI NG TO DO ) .

9. B Y T H E S A M E W AY, W E C A N J U D G E T H AT T H E
CD COVER AND MAGAZINE ADVERTS DO WELL
AT ALSO CHALLENGING CONVENT IONS. T HEY
ARE NOT T YPICAL REPRESENTAT IONS OF A
LOVE SONG. INSTEAD THEY BRING TO BARE
T HE MORE URBAN AND GRIT T Y NAT URES OF
T H E A R T I S T. T H E S E C H A L L E N G E S T O
EXPECTAT I O NS ARE O NES F ULLY EMBRACED
BY T HOSE INDEPENDENT LABELS T HAT OUR
ARTIST BELIEVES HE IS MORE SUITED TO.

10. THIS IS FURTHER REINFORCED BY THE LACK OF
THE ARTISTS’ IMAGES ON EITHER OF THESE
PRODUCTS – MAINSTREAM CONVENTIONS
DETAIL T HAT T HERE SHOULD BE AN ART IST
P R E S E N T, I D E A L LY M A K I N G E Y E C O N TA C T. T H I S
BLATANT DISREGARD FOR CONVENT IONS CAN
BE SEEN AS A FORM OF REBELLION,
SIGNIFYING T HAT T HIS IS NOT A T YPICAL
ARTIST WHO IS CONCERNED WITH FITTING IN.
INST EAD T HE REPRESENTAT ION CREAT ED IS
ONE OF ANT I -CONFORMIT Y AIMED AT OT HER
GENERIC PRODUCTS.