Star theoryRichard Dyer

Overview

• Richard Dyer’s star theory is the idea that celebrities and icons are produced by institutions for financial reasons and are built to target specific audiences or groups of people. The theory can be broken down into three categories :

- Audience and institutions

- Constructions

--Hegemony (Culture beliefs)

--Character and Personality

Audiences and Institutions

• Stars are made to make money for that purpose alone. The institution then modifies the stars image around the target audience, for example Rihanna. Rihanna is molded by what trends are being set right now and her persona’s character and personality rely what trends are relevant right now.

Character and Personality

• The star starts as a ‘real human then they are transformed so they can provide an image of their time and culture. The audience tends to not read them as entirely fictional rather they read them as very much of their time and as a product of a particular generation that shows them what they meant to be like

Constructions

• The star is built for a specific audience and is not an actual person although it may seem to be. The star is built specially with their own unique signature to distinguish them from other stars. For example Lady is known for her shocking fashion having worn a bin bag and actual meat on a red carpet.

Hegemony

• This is also referred to as ‘culture’. It is the ideas that we relate to the star because they possess features that we admire, share with them or wish we ourselves possessed those features. This is developed from an admiration, and some fans may attempt to replicate thing that the star does, wears and their behavior. This is has a negative impact on society because some stars are known to abuse drugs and alcohol which leads to people who admire them following them down the same path. For example Rihanna often posts pictures of herself smoking cannabis on social media influencing her fans.

Moreover

• Stars represent shared cultural norms and values, and market a certain ideology. Their ‘star quality’ is enhanced by audience interest which means that the more of an audience a star has the more of a star they become. This is done through conveying beliefs, ideas and opinions outside music performers help create their star character to their fans. Fashion trends, hairstyles and clothing are things that a star may start and their fans copy in order to acquire the stars traits. Social media helps stars today benefit from cultural discourse as it gives them the opportunity to establish their character and values outside from the music industry.

Maintaining Stardom

• Richard Dyer claims that true pop stars have lasting significances if they make sufficient sociological or cultural impacts if not they will be forgotten by all their most passionate fans with in a few years. In order to maintain stardom stars engage in activities that help wider society. For example Rihanna has a charity, The Believe foundation (founded in 2006) which has had a huge impact on society. The charity aims to aid 10,000 people in need of bone marrows transplants.

Rihanna is a prime example

of Richard Dyer’s idea of a

star

Rihanna is a prime example

of Richard Dyer’s idea of a

star• Rihanna is a pop star who is known for her identity

which isn't constructed by her singing career. The Record Label, Def Jam, transformed Rihanna from a pop star who had no identity past her career to a pop star with her own unique identity that many of her fans adore. She has a celebrity boyfriend, Chris Brown, she attended many premieres, celebrity parties, awards shows and appeared in many popular magazines which led to her being identifiable outside of her music career. She has had a huge transformation from the time that she was introduced to the world in 2006 to now 2014.