Concept Research

Screenshots of 'Diva' by Beyonce Music Video

The board above shows the screenshots of different scenes in the 'Diva' music video by Beyonce in order of appearance. These screenshots highlight different aspects that Beyonce believes are characteristics needed to be a diva which is further explained below.

The concept will be based upon the definition of diva explained in the lyrics and the dictionary. I chose this as I believe I can relate to a lot of the keywords used to describe a diva. I shortened the lyrics slightly in the board above to remove some repetition. In Beyonce's song Diva, she describes a diva to be a hustler, independent and a money-driven boss.

In the music video, she also presents a diva as a glamourous performer with expensive taste in jewellery which is why my templates will be drawn to have expensive jewellery on them. She also shows them to be powerful successful women who work/perform with other powerful successful women, which also showcases the idea of girl power. These different characteristics of being a diva according to Beyonce, have been shown in the board below using images from the music video.

After looking into the different characteristics of a diva, I remembered that Beyonce had an alter-ego named Sasha Fierce who she would call upon before a performance. I then decided to conduct further research into this as it would fit into the characteristics of a diva. I was only able to find one time when she would describe her alter-ego which was on The Oprah Winfrey Show shown on the board below. She explained that her alter-ego would almost be a character that had the characteristics she lacked. When she became Sasha her language, mannerisms and body language changed into someone who fit the person she needed to be on stage.

In 2008, Beyonce stated that "Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken side and more glamorous side that comes out when I'm working and when I'm on the stage,".

Even though Beyonce explained that she doesn't need her alter ego anymore in an interview with Allure magazine in 2010, I still find her old alter ego fascinating as it shows everyone can call upon a character we want to become and embody. When it comes to my collection, I also would want my customers to embody a powerful character when they wear the clothes I create to feel more confident and sexy.

Sasha Fierce Interview Below:

After watching the interview above, I recalled a Todd Herman interview I watched a couple of months back with Tom Bilyeu about The Alter-ego Effect. The interviewer Tom Bilyeu is an entrepreneur and Todd Herman is a mentor and the author of the book The Alter Ego Effect. The book showcases his understanding of how developing personas can be beneficial in people's lives as you can achieve your desired results by doing so. In the interview below, he explains that Beyonce needed to develop an alter-ego, as the person she needed to become on stage was a complete contrast to the person she is. He also mentions how anyone can create an alter-ego if they feel as though they are holding back in any area in their lives, they can create a version of themselves to help them become more successful.

Full Interview Below:

Beyonce 'Homecoming' Film

Through my research I found that Beyonce mainly uses her alter-ego when performing on stage, I then decided that I would gather images from her 'Homecoming' film to further explore the different sides of her diva. The board below showcases the images I gathered from the film. I took these images with my phone camera as I admired the warped and slightly darkened effect it gave.

I also looked into the film 'Black is King' by Beyonce to gather more images of her diva as shown below. Most of these images are screenshots from the movie and some were taken using my phone camera whilst it was playing on my laptop.

After exploring these videos, I decided to look around my house to see what items I have that links with diva, glamour and other accessories or items I knew I could incorporate into my concept boards for effect. The board below showcases the different items I have gathered.

I also bought a Beyonce magazine to retrieve more images for my concept boards, as it was released in 2012 the magazine showcases her more innocent side before she became very successful in her music career as a soloist.