Indie Rock Mood Board

We have chosen Indie Rock as our genre. The reasons for choosing this particular genre in my opinion is due to the very deep meanings and emotion that a lot of Indie Rock artists stereotypically have. In addition, I also wanted to be able to target a niche audience as those types of audiences appreciate their artists music and products a lot more than major labels and their artists. Moreover, the definition of Indie Rock simply means independent music, Indie simply represents independent and this type of music is made by artists that are on very small record labels which are not known or even unsigned. I am very excited to be discussing ideas and creating our own video inspired by this genre.

Pop Genre Research

Pop:

Pop music is one of the most popular genres of music and it originated in its modern form in the United States and United Kingdom during the mid-1950's. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other styles such as urban, dance, rock, Latin and country; nonetheless, there are core elements that define pop music. Identifying factors include generally short to medium-length songs written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), as well as the common use of repeated choruses, melodic tunes, and hooks. Some characteristics of pop music include an aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology, and an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal "artistic" qualities. Music scholar Timothy Warner said it typically has an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, rather than live performance; a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments; and aims to encourage dancing or uses dance-oriented rhythms. The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes - often love and romantic relationships - although there are notable exceptions. Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and spoken passages from rap. Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960's) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre.

Justin Bieber:

Justin Drew Bieber was born March 1st, 1994, and is a Canadian singer and songwriter. His fame began when a talent manager discovered him through his YouTube videos covering songs in 2008 and signed to RBMG, Bieber released his debut EP 'My World' in late 2009. It was certified Platinum in the U.S. In addition, he became the first artist to have seven songs from a debut record chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Bieber released his first full-length studio album 'My World 2.0' in 2010. It debuted at or near number one in several countries, was certified triple Platinum in the U.S. and continued his single "Baby". Following his debut album, he had his first headlining tour, the My World Tour, releasing the remix albums My Worlds Acoustic and Never Say Never - The Remixes - and the 3D biopic-concert film Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. He released his second studio album, Under the Mistletoe, in November 2011, when it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. Bieber released his third studio album, Believe, in 2012. His fourth studio album 'Purpose' was released in November 2015, spawning three number one singles "What do you mean", "Sorry" and "Love Yourself". Following the release of 'Purpose', Bieber was featured on several successful collaborations, including "Cold Water", "Let Me Love You", the remix of "Despacito" and "Im the One". His U.S album and singles sales total 44.7 million. He has sold an estimated 100 million records, making him one of the worlds best-selling music artists. Moreover, Bieber has won numerous awards, including the American Music Award for Artist of the Year in 2010 and 2012. In his career, he has won one Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording for the song "Where Are U Now" at the 2016 ceremony. He has been listed four times by Forbes magazine among the top ten most powerful celebrities in the world in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Bieber also became the first artist to surpass 10 billion total video views on Vevo.

Lana Del Rey:
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant was born June 21st 1985, known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer, songwriter and model. Many people liked her music for its stylised and cinematic aesthetic, its preoccupation with themes of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, and its references to pop culture, particularly 1950's and 1960's American. The genre of music she produces is pop, however she incorporates many different kinds of pop music, for example; Baroque pop, Indie pop, Dream pop etc. However at the beginning Del Rey was born and raised in New York and embarked on a music career in 2005 and first received widespread attention in 2011, when the music video for her single "Video Games" became a viral internet sensation. Moreover, Del Rey received further recognition after her major-label debut Born to Die peaked at number two on the United States charts and was the fifth best-selling album of 2012. A remix of its single "Summertime Sadness", produced by Cedric Gervais, peaked at number six in the United States, and the Paradise EP followed that November, garnering Del Rey her first Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Album. Three of the EP's tracks were featured in her short film Tropico, which premiered in December 2013. In addition, in 2014 Del Rey released her third studio album, Ultraviolence; it became her first number-one album in the U.S. In 2015, following a North American tour with Courtney Love and Grimes, she released her fourth studio album, Honeymoon. Both albums received positive critical response. Lana Del Rey is set to release her fifth studio album, titled 'Lust of Life', on July 21st, 2017.

Justin Timberlake:
Justin Randall Timberlake was born January 31st 1981 and is an American singer-songwriter, actor and record producer. He was born and raised in Tennessee and went to appear on the television shows Star Search and The All-New Mickey Mouse Club as a child. Timberlake rose to fame in the late 1990's as one of the two lead vocalists and the youngest member of NSYNC, which eventually became one of the best-selling boy bands of all time. However, in 2002 he released his debut solo album 'Justified', which yielded the successful singles "Cry Me a River" and "Rock Your Body", and earned his first two Grammy Awards. Moreover, his critically acclaimed second album 'FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006), characterized by its diversity in music genres, debuted atop the U.S. Billboard 200 and produced the Hot 100 number-one singles "SexyBack", "My Love" and "What Goes Around... Comes Around". During the beginning of his solo career his first two albums both exceeded sales of 10 million copies. He produced records and collaborated with other artists. From 2008 to 2012, Timberlake left his music for a while and focused on his acting career. However, he resumed his career in music in 2013 with his third and fourth albums 'The 20/20 Experience' and 'The 20/20 Experience - 2 of 2'. He became the best-selling album of the year in the US with the largest sales week, and spawned the top-three singles "Suit & Tie" and "Mirrors", while the latter produced the top-ten song "Not a Bad Thing". In 2016 he produced his fifth Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping single, "Can't Stop the Feeling!" which was also the soundtrack for DreamWorks Animation's 'Trolls' where Timberlake voiced one of the characters. Among numerous awards and accolades, Timberlake is the recipient of ten Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, three Brit Awards, and nine Billboard Music Awards. 'Time' names him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2007 and 2013. His other ventures include record label Tennman Records, fashion label William Rast, and the restaurants Destino and Southern Hospitality.

Hip Hop Genre Research

Hip Hop:
Hip Hop music, also called hip-hop or rap music, is a music genre developed in the United States in the 1970's. Some characteristics of this genre consists of a stylised music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. It developed as part of hip hop culture, a subculture defined by four key stylistic elements: MCing/rapping, DJing/scratching with turntables, break dancing, and graffiti writing. In addition, other elements include sampling beats or bass lines from records (or synthesised beats and sounds),  and rhythmic beat-boxing. Hip hop's early evolution occurred as sampling technology and drum machines became widely available and affordable. Techniques such as scratching and beat matching developed along with the breaks and Jamaican toasting, a chanting vocal style, was used over the beats. Rapping developed as a vocal style in which the artist speaks or chants along rhythmically with an instrumental or synthesized beat. Notable artists at the time include DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Fab Five Freddy, Marley Marl etc. In addition, the 1980's was marked the diversification of hip hop as the genre developed more complex styles. Before this hip hop was confined to just the United States. However, during the 1980's, it began to spread to music scenes in dozens of countries, many of which mixed hip hop with local styles to create new subgenres. Moreover, the popularity of hip hop music continued through the 2000's, with hip hop influences also increasingly finding their way into mainstream pop. Starting in 2005, sales of hip hop music in the United States began to severely wane. During the mid-2000's, alternative hip hop secured a place in the mainstream, due in part to the crossover success of artists such as OutKast and Kanye West.

Kendrick Lamar:
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born 17th June 1987 in Los Angeles) better known as just Kendrick Lamar is an American rapper and songwriter. He begun his musical career as a teenager under the name K-Dot, he released a mix-tape that garnered local attention and led to his signing with indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). He began to gain recognition in 2010, after his first retail release, "Overly Dedicated". The following year, Lamae independently released his first studio album, "Section.80", which included his debut single, "HiiiPoWeR". By that time, he had amassed a large Internet following and collaborated with several prominent artists in the hip hop industry, including The Game, Busta Rhymes and Snoop Dogg. He continued to gain success when his major label debut album, "good kid, m.A.A.d city", was released in 2012 by TDE, Aftermath and Interscope Records to critical success. It debuted at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 chart and was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The record contained the top 40 hit singles "Swimming Pools (Drank)", "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe" and "Poetic Justice". Kendrick went onto win his first Grammy Award for "i", the lead single from his critically acclaimed third album "To pimp a Butterfly" (2015). The album drew on free jazz, funk, soul, and spoken word, debuted to the top of the charts in the US and the UK. Then continued to win the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 58th ceremony. Moreover, he released his fourth album Damn in 2017; its lead single "Humble" topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. Kenrick has received a number of accolades over the course go his career, including seven Grammy Awards. He has been described as the number one "Hottest MC in the Game".

Nicki Minaj:
Onika Tanya Maraj was born in December 8th 1982, and is known professional as Nicki Minaj. She is a Trinidadian-born American rapper, singer, songwriter and model. Minaj earned public attention for her music after releasing three mix tapes between 2007 and 2009. She was signed to Young Money Entertainment since 2009. Minaj's first and second studio albums, Pink Friday (2010) and Pink Friday; Roman Reloaded (2012), both peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 and produced the successful singles "Super Bass" and Starships", respectively. In 2010, Minaj became the first female solo artist to have seven singles simultaneously charting on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Her third studio album, The Pinkprint (2014), was preceded by its second single, "Anaconda", which peaked at number two on the Hot 100 and is her highest-charting single in the U.S to date. Minaj was the first female artist included on MTV's Annual Hottest Mc List, with a New York Times editor saying that some consider her to be "the most influential female rapper of all time". In addition, in 2016, Minaj was included on the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. Her rapping is distinctive for its fast flow and the use of alter egos and accents, primarily British cockney. Early in her career, Minaj was known for her colourful costumes and wigs, She has the most Billboard Hot 100 entries for a female artist in the charts history, while being ninth overall. Minaj has received ten Grammy nominations throughout her career, and has won six American Music Awards, eleven BET Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, and was the recipient of Billboard's Women in Music 2011 Rising Star award. She has also sold over 20 million singles as a lead artist, and 60 million singles as a featured artist worldwide.

Eminem:
Marshall BrucE Mathers III was born October 17th, 1972, known professionally as Eminem is an American rapper,record producer, and actor. Eminem is the best-selling artist of the 2000's in the United States. Throughout his career, he has had 10 number-one albums on the Billboard 200 and five number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. With US sales of 45.1 million albums and 42 million tracks as of June 2014, Eminem is the second best-selling male artist of the Nielsen SoundScan era, the sixth best selling artist in the United Stated and the best-selling hip hop artist. globally, he has sold more than 172 million albums, this being one of the world's best-selling artists. Rolling Stones ranked him 83rd on its list of 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, calling him the King of Hip Hop. Moreover, after debut album Infinite (1996) and the Slim Shady EP (1997), Eminem signed with Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment and subsequently achieved mainstream popularity in 1999 with The Slim Shady LP, which earned him his first Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. His next two releases, 2000's The Marshall Mathers LP and 2002's The Eminem Show, were worldwide successes, with each being certified diamond in U.S. sales, and both winning Best Rap Album Grammy Awards- making Eminem the first artist to win the award for three consecutive LPs. They were followed by Encore in 2004, another critical and commercial success. Eminem went on hiatus after touring in 2005, releasing Relapse in 2009 and Recovery in 2010. Both won Grammy Awards and Recovery was the best-selling album of 2010 worldwide, the second time he had the international best-selling album of the year (after The Eminem Show). Eminem's eighth album, 2013's The Marshall Mathers LP 2, won two Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album; it expanded his record for the most wins in that category and his Grammy total of 15.

Soul Genre Research

Soul:

Soul Music is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the late 1950's and early 1960's. This type of genre combines elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and blues and jazz. The popularity of this genre was due to the fact that it was popular to dance and listen to in the United States. During the Civil Rights Movement record labels such as Motown, Atlantic and Stax were influential. Soul also became popular around the world the world, directly influential rock music and the music of Africa. Some characteristics of soul music would be Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and extemporaneous body moves, are an important feature of soul music. Other characteristics are a call and response between the lead vocalist and the chorus and an especially tense vocal sound. The style of music also occasionally uses improvisation additions, twirls and auxiliary sounds. In addition, Soul music reflected the African-American identity and it stressed the importance of an African-American culture. The new found African-American consciousness led to new styles of music, which boasted pride in being black. Soul music dominated U.S. R&B charts in the 1960's, and many recordings crossed over into the pop charts in the U.S., Britain and elsewhere. Moreover, over  the years Soul music has changed and developed depending on the popularity of other styles of music. In 1968 some soul artists developed funk music, while other singers and groups developed slicker, more sophisticated, and in some cases more politically conscious varieties. In the early 1970's, soul music has been influenced by psychedelic rock and other genres, leading to psychedelic soul. The United States saw the development of neo soul around 1994. There have been many other sub-genres and styles of music that have influenced a change in soul music, while still keeping with some of the original characteristics. Some examples of popular soul artists from over the years are; Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Prince, David Bowie, John Legend etc.

Adele:

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was born on May 5th, 1988, in North London, England. Early on in life she developed a passion for music. The type of songs she liked where by artists like Lauryn Hill, Mary J. Blige and Destiny's Child. However her true eye opening moment came when she was 15 and happened to come across a collection of Etta James and Ella Fitzgerald records at a local shop. Adele explained to The Telegraph in a 2008 interview that; "there was no musical heritage in our family." and "Chart music was all I ever knew. So when I listened to the Etta's and the Ella's, it sounds so cheesy, but it was like an awakening. I was like, oh, right, some people have proper longevity and are legends. I was so inspired that as a 15-year-old I was listening to music that had been made in the '40s.". In addition, instead of a normal school Adele's mother enrolled her in the BRIT School for Performing Arts & Technology, which counts Amy Winehouse as an alum. While at school, Adele cut a three-track demo for a class project that was eventually posted on her MySpace page. When executives at XL Recordings heard the tracks, they contacted the singer and, in November 2006, just four months after Adele had graduated school, signed her to a record deal. Since that leap she has only grew and grew with her success, realising album after album, hitting number one's on the charts and winning awards for her amazing music. For her album '21' (released in 2011) the singer won numerous awards in 2012, among them, a record-tying six Grammy Awards, including Album of the year; two Brit Awards, including British Album of the year, and three American Music Awards. With sales of more than 100 million records, Adele is one of the best-selling recording artists in the world.

Pentatonix:
They are a five-member American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kristin Maldonado, Avi Kaplan, and Kevin Olusola. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements with vocal harmonies, baselines, riffling, percussion and beat boxing, they are widely known for their covers, mostly of modern pop works or Christmas songs, sometimes in the form of medleys, along with original material. The group first formed in 2011 and subsequently won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, receiving $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. Even though Sony's Epic Records dropped the group after The Sing-Off, the group formed its YouTube channel, distributing their music through Madison Gate Records, a label owned by Sony Pictures. with over 13 million subscribers and 2.4 billion views, Pentatonix's YouTube channel is currently the 13th most-subscribed music video channel. The groups video tribute to Daft Punk had received over 240 million views as of mid 2017. Since forming, Pentatonix's have had a lot of success including; Their album PTX, Vol. II, debuted at number 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums and number 10 on the Billboard 200 in 2013. In addition, in 2014, Pentatonix signed with RCA Records, a "flagship" label of Sony Music Entertainment. Pentatonix have won three Grammy Awards: they were the first a capella act to win Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, doing so in 2015 and won 2016, and Best Country Duo/Group Performance in 2017.

Rag'n'Bone Man:
Rory Charles Graham (born 29th January 1985), better known as Rag'n'Bone Man, is a new found popular English singer-songwriter. He released his first hit single "Human" in 2016, with Columbia Records, and his debut album, also named "Human", was released in February 2017. At the 2017 Brit Awards he was named British Breakthrough Act and also received the Critics' Choice Award. In 2011, Graham begun working with UK hip hop label High Focus, releasing a number of recordings with them such as; a collaboration E.P with MC/Producer Dirty Dike under the name "Put That Soul On Me" (2014). He has had a major break through this past year, including another hit single he has released called "Skin" reaching number 13. Expectations are high for what he has yet to offer.

R&B Genre Research

R&B:

R&B, also know as Contemporary R&B, is a music genre that combines the elements of rhyme and blues, soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance. Contemporary R&B originated at the end of the disco era, which was around the late 1970's, when Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones added more electronics elements to the black music sound of the time. This created a smoother dance floor-friendly sound. One of the first results of this was 'Off the Wall' (1979), according to Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic, "was a visionary album, that found a way to break disco wide open into a new world where the beat was undeniable, but not the primary focus - it was part of a colourful tapestry of lush ballads and strings, smooth soul and pop, soft rock, and alluring funk". In addition to the new found R&B music Richard j. Ripani wrote that Janet Jackson's 'Control' (1986) was "important to the development of R&B for a number of reasons", as she and her producers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, "crafted a new sound that fuses the rhythmic elements of funk and disco, along with heavy doses of synthesizers, percussion, sound effects, and rap music sensibility." Moreover, R&B that we know today has changed in many ways along with its time. Many things have been added or changed it order to make R&B music more modern and interesting. An example would be; the use of Auto-Tune and new computerized synths have given R&B a more futuristic feel while still attempting to incorporate many of the genre's common themes such as love and relationships. The evolution of the genre's production and instrumentation have spurred the successes of performers such as Beyoncé, Christna Aguilera, Usher, John Legend, Frank Ocean, Drake, Tianshe, Ne-Yo etc. Todays R&B is far more diverse and incorporates more sonic elements than before, as it expands its appeal and commercial viability. Other examples of things that have changed are how R&B artists will sometimes collab with non-R&B artists, e.g. combining R&B artists with wrappers.

The Weeknd:

Abel Makkonen Tesfae was born on the 16th February 1990. He is known professionally as The Weeknd and is a Canadian singer, songwriter and record producer. In late 2010, Tesfaye anonymously uploaded several songs to YouTube under the name 'The Weeknd'. He released three nine-track mixtapes throughout 2011. The names of those mixtapes are 'House of Balloons', 'Thursday' and 'Echoes of Silence', which were critically acclaimed. In 2012, he also released a compilation album 'Trilogy', thirty tracks consisting of the original mixtapes and three additional songs. It was released under Republic Records and his own label XO. In 2013, he released his debut studio album 'Kiss Land' and 'Live For'. His second album, 'Beauty Behind the Madness', which became his first number one album on the US Billboard 200, including the number-three single 'Earned It' and produced the number one singles 'The Hills' and 'Cant Feel My Face'. In addition to his success, The Weeknd has won two Grammy Awards and nine Juno Awards. In september 2016, the release of the third album 'Starboy' was announced along with the release of the title track single 'Starboy', which subsequently reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The type of genre his music has been described as having conventions of Contemporary R&B, Alternative R&B, R&B/Soul and Pop music. His music shows clear characteristics of R&B music and has been that way since the very beginning.

Ne-yo:

Shaffer Chimere Smith, or more commonly know as Ne-yo, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. His fame began when many people started noticing his songwriting abilities after he penned his 2004 hit 'Let me Love You' for singer Mario. The success from this in the United States allowed Ne-yo to get a meeting between him and Def Jam's label head, and the signing of a recording contract. He released an album called 'In My Own Words' in 2006. It turned out to be a success and reached number one on the Billboard 200. It is certified platinum in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and Australia. Ne-yo's first single 'Stay', was released in September 2005. The song made a big impact on the R&B charts. In April 2007, he released his second album 'Because of you'; this was the second the second number one platinum-selling album debuting on the US Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. In addition, the album also won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 2008 Grammy Awards. Ne-yo went on to have a lot of success with his musical talents and continued to get nominated and win awards. His upcoming seventh album, entitled Good Man, is expected to be released sometime in September 2017, with 'Another Love Song' released in May 2017 as the albums first single.

Boyz || Men:

They are an American R&B vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. However, before they reached their fame the group would practise in the high school bathrooms, because of their excellent acoustics but lack of any other place to rehearse. This was convenient, considering they all attended the same high school. Boyz || Men are a trio which includes Nathan Morris alongside tenors Wayne Morris and Shawn Stockman; they were also one of the most memorable boy bands from the 1990's. They found fame in the 1990's through Motown Records. During this time they gained international success, which began with the release of the number one single 'End of the Road' in 1992, which reached the top of charts worldwide. In addition, this songs remained number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 weeks. The only person who was able to achieve such a feat before them was Elvis Presley. In 2012, the music industry rewarded Boyz || Men for their remarkable longevity. The group received a star Hollywood Walk of Fame and they remain popular around the world, especially in North America, Europe and Asia. Moreover, Boyz || Men still remain one of the most truly iconic R&B groups in music history. The group redefined popular R&B and continues to create timeless hits that appeal to fans across all generations.

Indie Rock Genre Research

Indie Rock:

Indie Rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1980's . Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated  with the music they produced and was initially used interchangeably with "alternative rock". As grunge and punk revival bands US, and then Britpop bands in the UK, broke into mainstream in the 1990's, it came to be used to identify those acts that retained an outsider and underground perspective. In the 2000's, as a result of changes in the music industry and the growing importance of the Internet, some indie rock acts began to enjoy commercial success, leading to questions about its meaningfulness as a term. Some prominent indie rock record labels were founded during the 1980's. During the 1990's, Grunge bands broke into mainstream, and the term "alternative' lost its original counter-cultural meaning. By the end of the 1990's indie rock developed subgenera and related styles including lo-fi, noise pop, emotion, slow core, post-rock and math rock. In the 2000's, changes in the music industry and in music technology enabled a new wave of indie rock bands to achieve mainstream success. In the early 2000's, a new group of bands that played a stripped-down and back-to-basics version of guitar rock emerged into the mainstream. The commercial breakthrough from these scenes was led by four bands: The Strokes, The White Stripes, The Hives and The Vines. Emotional also broke into mainstream culture in the early 2000's. By the end of the 2000's the proliferation of indie bands was being referred to as "Indie landfill'.

Imagine Dragons:

Imagine Dragons are an American rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, consisting of lead vocalist Dan Reynolds, lead guitarist Wayne Sermon, bassist Ben McKee, and drummer Daniel Platzman.  Imagine Dragons music style has been described as mainly being alternative rock, indie rock and pop rock. Some examples of their songs would be; "Believer", "Radioactive", "Demons", "Tip Toe", "Monster" etc. In addition they have won two American Music Awards for Favourite Alternative Artist, a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance, five Billboard Music Awards, and a World Music Award. In May 2014, the band was nominated for a total of fourteen different Billboard Music Awards, including Top Artist of the Year and a Milestone Award, which recognises innovation and creativity of artists across different genres. A specific example of an award they won was a BMI Pop Award, which are awarded to honour songwriters, composers and music publishers of the year's most performed songs. In 2016 Imagine Dragons were awarded this for their song "I Bet My Life". They have also won this same award three times before, in 2014 and 2015 for their songs "Radioactive", "It's Time" and "Demons". As of January 2017, Imagine Dragons have sold 9 million albums, 27 million singles worldwide and continue with their global success.

Arctic Monkeys:

Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner (lead vocalist, rhythm/lead guitar), Matt Helders (drums, vocals), Jamie Cook (lead/rhythm guitar) and Nick O'Malley (bass, backing vocals). Former band member Andy Nicholson (bass guitar, backing vocals) left the band in 2006 shortly after their debut album was released. They have released five studio albums: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006), Favourite Worst Nightmare (2007), Humbug (2009), Suck It and See (2011) and AM (2013), as well as one live album, At the Apollo (2008). Their debut album is the fastest-selling debut album by a band in British chart history, and in 2013, Rolling Stone ranked it the 39th-greatest debut album of all time. The band has won seven Brit Awards - winning both Best British Group and Best British Album three times, and have been nominated for three Grammy Awards. They also won the Mercury Prize in 2006 for their debut album, in addition to receiving nominations in 2007 and 2013. The band have headlined at the Glastonbury Festival twice, in 2007 and again in 2013. Arctic Monkeys were heralded as one of the first bands to come to public attention via the Internet, with commentators suggesting they represented the possibility of a change in the way in which new brands are promoted and marketed.

Bloc Party:

Bloc Party are an English Indie Rock band, currently composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Louise Bartle (drums, percussion). Former members Matt Tong and Gordon Moakes left the band in 2013 and 2015 respectively. Their brand of music, whilst rooted in rock, retains elements of other genres such as electronica and house music. The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer, Alex Kapranos, a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices". In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named Indie Album of the Year at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain. The band built on this success in 2007 with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, which reached a peak of number two in the UK Albums Chart and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, Bloc Party released their third studio record, Intimacy which entered the UK Albums Chart at number eight and number eighteen on the Billboard 200. The band fifth studio album, Hymns, the first to involve Harris and Bartle, was released on 29th January 2016. Bloc Party have sold over 3 million albums worldwide.