Synergy Task

The genre of our chosen song is rap, so I decided to research Young Jeezy's most recent album: Seen It All: Autobiography. I chose this album because I am familiar with the artist's previous discovery so I am keen to see the progression that took place in terms of branding.

Both the albums front and back covers share the same colour scheme of black and white. This could be due to Jeezy's long history of legal issues which has led to him being arrested on several occasions. However, the colours could also indicate that he is going to take a straightforward approach in his lyrics to connect with the listeners while telling his life story. The contrast in fonts on the front cover also reveals ideals of the album. This is because the artist's name is in a graffiti font whereas the album title is in a more refined font, thus showing his personal progression from a criminal to a law abiding citizen. In addition to this, the leathery background that is evident in both covers connotes the wealth of Young Jeezy. Finally, the eye on the front cover reflects the aspect of him looking back on his experiences in life, however it may also be to gain attention because of its links to the Illuminati.

This trailer both promotes the album and gives us an insight into Jeezy's past. The montage of short clips and images that feature throughout the trailer,  such as tabloids pertaining to the legal issues that Jeezy experienced combine to create an atmosphere of progression. This is also reinforced by the black and white colours that are used, which makes it seem like we are looking at Jeezy's memories. In addition to this, things like: guns, drugs, chains, alcohol (Avion), money, police and cars all contribute to branding him as a gangster and proves what he was talking about on the radio at the beginning of the clip. Finally, the trailer culminates with a picture of the album cover and a song playing in the background, which implies that the album provides you with a sense of everything that was shown previously in the trailer.

This song by Young Jeezy called 'Me Ok' epitomises the message of the album, so it is a prime example of branding. From the outset of the song the album is promoted via various DJ's giving shout outs to give the campaign more attention. In addition to this, the opening credits show Jeezy's name in the same in graffiti and the song name is in the same font as the album name as it is written on the cover, which gives the project a sense of consistency. The video also features many people wearing t-shirts relating to the album and cameos of other rappers such as T.I. and Rich Homie Quan to further promote the release. Jeezy is also seen promoting the drink Avion in this video as well as in the trailer as he is the multicultural advisor of the product. The settings that are used in the video also convey themes of the album. This is because the two main locations that are used are his old neighbourhood and the top of a building overlooking the city. The contrast between these settings shows his progression from the bottom to the top at the same time as showing the fact that he never sold out and forgot his roots.