Richard Dyer was an English academic born in 1945. He specialises in cinema and is a professor of film studies at Kings College University, London. His theory was known as the star theory and this was also presented in his 1979 book 'Stars'.
Richard Dyer stated that the terms pop performer and pop stars have become interchangeable but in fact they have two separate definitions. Pop performers are forced to be a pop star. By this, Dyer means that artists are forced into a new image which the managers believe represent the industry and genre they are a part of.
A pop star must have a unique selling point to be successful. This can be seen through both old and new artists. For example, Madonna's golden cone bra gave her something that her fans could replicate as did the beehive of the late Amy Winehouse.
Dyer said that a true pop star is someone who can last. Again, examples of these include Madonna, Prince, Bon Jovi, David Bowie and The Beatles.
Richard Dyer also said that there is no formula for construction and that managers make a pop performer into a pop star based upon an image that does not exist. There is no set way in which a pop artist must look, it is simply the managers beliefs that they must be manipulated into an image which makes the special. In short, pop stars are not real people. They are fake. The real person lies within the pop performer.
'A star is an image not a real person that is constructed (as ant other aspect of fiction is) out of a range of materials (eg. advertising, magazines etc as well as films [music])'
Richard Dyer 1979
Ideology and Culture
Stars can influence their audience by the decisions that they make. The life of a pop star is constantly under scrutiny and not their work itself. Aspects of a pop star that impact on their audience are things such as their image including what they wear and how they portray themselves. An example of this is the Jonas Brothers. They began wearing purity rings to show that they were pure men. This then led all of their fans to also wear purity rings as a sign of recognition and loyalty. Another example is Rihanna. She has a star tattoo running from her neck down her back. The star tattoo on the neck then became popular with a lot of people around the world, further showing their devotion to the star.
Character and Personality
A star begins as a real person and is then constructed into someone who is false and unreal. Pop stars can be seen as actors, especially as many of then change their image to suit eras or phases. Receiving publicity keeps a star in the spotlight regardless of whether it is positive or negative. An example of this would be Rihanna. When she first came on to the scene at 16 she was a 'girly' teenager who was just finding her feet within the singing industry. She then went through a phase of a dominant woman who was very hard looking and fierce. From then, she turned almost gothic and quite scary before proceeding to a phase of erotic and sexual. This is where Rihanna is now in the current day.
Within a character, it is also common for some artists to create their own alter egos or characters. an example of this is David bowie and his Ziggy Stardust personality.
Fandom
Fandom is used to describe a subculture which have a common interest in a certain topic. Many artists have a fan base which support them throughout every thing that they do. However, there are also times when fans become too attached to artists that it becomes almost dangerous to the individual and sometimes other people. An example of fandom that has pushed boundaries is stalking, copying an image that can effect your health or have financial impacts and having a mind set to harm others over the artist or group.
