03 Research - Website

SZA website, matches her album and the target audience which she is aiming for. this can be seen between the convergence of her album cover, music videos, and her website.

These are all images from her album SOS Deluxe : LANA, where there is a clear reoccurring theme between her website, merch and music videos.

Similar can be said for another one of her albums, CTRL:

where there is a lot of convergence of her album within the music video itself, "camp CTRL"

Sza often uses hidden trach releases on alternative profiles such as soundcloud, or instagram so that listeners can discover more than just her professional music. SZA views the songs she posts on soundcloud to be more “loose” and describes them to be “random thoughts”. She released extra tracks from a profile that was not linked to her identity, fans soon discovered the tracks and them spread online, this was part of her marketing scheme. This is and example of participatory culture which shows how audiences can become part of promotion. And rather than SZA only characterising herself through her music, she constructs her identity as an artist across several platforms. 

Artist’s websites are ever changing, they change based on the album, the music produced within them, who they identify as, what they are going through, and who they want to attract to their content. Within an album the music is consistent with each other, the style, rhythm and often the lyrics. This is then connected to the visual representation of their website, and possibly music videos.

I am planning on taking inspiration from Billie Eilish as she has very strong convergence between all platforms. She uses Instagram, Tiktok, Youtube and streaming platforms as cross platform promotion, all in which have unique content to promote the same thing (e.g. a song or album). She uses Instagram story polls for fan engagement, youtube docuseries which include behind the scenes of her music videos etc. This shows convergence because different media platform create a cohesive promotional ecosystem. Examples of partnerships she has made within the media and industry consist of her Apple music documentary collabortation, her Spotify immersive experiences, and her fashion / editorial magazine covers. These collaborations combine music, technology, film and fashion industries. Billie’s fan participation includes immersive campaigns that results in the spread of her music, for example, tiktok trends to her songs, such as “bad guy”.