Gramsci's concept of hegemony refers to the dominance of one social class over others through not just political and economic control, but also by shaping popular perceptions of "common sense" and "natural" views that benefit the dominant class. This hegemony requires ongoing consent from subordinate classes that must be continually maintained, as people's real social experiences can undermine the dominant ideology through reminding them of the disadvantages of subordination. Thus, hegemony involves an ongoing struggle over ideology at the intersection between a society's dominant views and the lived experiences of subordinate groups.

1. The Star Theory

2. The terms “pop performer” and “pop star” in media terms, are not
the same thing. This is because pop performers perform pop
songs, however pop stars have a star persona and identity. Pop
stars are promoted by their management, curtesy of new
headlines such as a new boyfriend/girlfriend, attendance to
premieres and parties and featuring in magazines for style.
A real pop star has a lasting significance and hasd brand
awareness amongst a market over a long period of time and
also a constructed image.
Example: The X Factor
This is an example of how an ordinary person is transformed into a
star through construstion process, creating a unique identity
through styling and image and being coached. They are meeting
the market expectations and making room for themselves.

4. Career Timeline
Late 1990s- Lead singer in “Destiny's Child” one of the worlds most successful R&B girl groups.
2001- Acting debut in the film “Carmen: A Hip Hoperer”
2002- Acting in “Austin Powers in Goldmember”
2003- First debut solo album “Dangerously In Love” earning her 5 Grammys.
2005- Disbandment of Destiny's Child. Beyonce and her mother opened their family fashion line “House of
Dereon”.
2006- Second solo album “B'Day” and starred in the musical film “Dreamgirls which gained her 2 Golden Globe
nominations.
2008- Third solo album “I Am... Sasha Fierce”.
2010- Six Grammy awards. Broke the record for most grammy awards to a female in one night. She also released
her first perfume “heat”. Beyonce was also ranked first on the list for “100 most powerful and influential
musicians in the world” and second for “100 most powerful and influential celebrities in the world”.
2011- Fourth solo album “4”. Beyonce announced that she and JayZ her husband were expecting a baby.
2012- Named “World's Most Beautiful Woman” by People Magazine. Beyonce gave birth to her first child Blue Ivy.

5. Beyonce has been in the public eye for a very long time and across every year she has either been
releasing new albums, touring, appearing in movies or releasing fashion.
Beyonce has a star image which separates her from other artists in the public eye. She has an
incredibly curvy figure and big curly hair as well as a fantastic powerful and sometimes moving
voice. She performs so well in front of any crowd and is confident within herself which is
particularly inspirational to women because she is a “real woman”.
Her songs have ranged from upbeat dance songs to R&B beats to incredible ballads so she is
always bringing something new to the market and keeps her fans aware of this.

6. Beyonce's Videos
Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)- Music Video This video sells to her target audience
because it is unique and shouts out to
http://www.youtube.com/watch? the women who are single and shows
v=4m1EFMoRFvY them how to have fun. Her video is
unique and the dancers are all in time
with eachother creating an effective
video.
Love On Top is a powerful song and
Love On Top- Music Video shows off her powerful voice. The
video is colourful and fun and different
http://www.youtube.com/watch? and has a great beat and great
v=Ob7vObnFUJc dancing. Beyonce has a wide
audience of people who love R&B
beat and so in a lot of videos she is
dancing and having fun.
This video is very very simple in
comparison to her other videos but it
One Plus One- Music Video works effectively to promote herself to
her audience as vulnerable, The
http://www.youtube.com/watch? powerful lyrics along with her powerful
v=KaasJ44O5lI voice are used to speak out to her
audience and get heard. A lot of
people feel they can relate.

7. Interviews With Beyonce
April 2012- The View
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=s3Jn8gADEX8
Beyonce and Jay-Z talk about their baby Blue Ivy Carter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGtmr8-
BGi4&feature=related
You learn a lot about an artist and their star persona not only through
performance and style but also through their interviews. This is where you get a
sense of the Stars personality and the way they interact with people and their
fans. Beyonce is an artist who has always come across as a warm hearted
celebrity who people look up to and this comes across in her interviews.

8. Parodies
A Parody involves changing or copying existing music ideas. It is used
usually as humour.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ieNCmD7jKug
This is a parody of Beyonce's “Single Ladies” starring Justin Timberlake. The
video is exactly the same as her original video however seeing Justin
Timberlake in a black leotard and doing the dance movies adds humour! This
can also help to promote the song and artist.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=XvOucvTpKrE
There are also parodies such as this one which can take the mick overa
video but also add humour. For example, in this parody for Beyonce and
Lady Gaga's Telephone, the lyrics have been changed to add hummour.

9. Gramsci and Hegemony
Antonio Gramsci, an Italian (1891-1937), was a leading Marxist thinker.
Gramsci used the term hegemony to denote the predominance of one social class over others (e.g. bourgeois
hegemony). This represents not only political and economic control, but also the ability of the dominant class to
project its own way of seeing the world so that those who are subordinated by it accept it as 'common sense' and
'natural'. Commentators stress that this involves willing and active consent.
'Consent must be constantly won and rewon, for people's material social experience constantly reminds them of
the disadvantages of subordination and thus poses a threat to the dominant class... Hegemony... posits a
constant contradiction between ideology and the social experience of the subordinate that makes this interface
into an inevitable site of ideological struggle' (Fiske 1992: 291).