AN - Codes and Conventions of Girl Groups Part 1

Girl groups are exclusively made up of female singers of a young age, usually the members are portrayed as being vocalists. However, this convention is not usually followed. These types of bands are usually related to the disco, R&B and pop etc.

Usually in the girl band music videos, the members wear skimpy, seductive clothing in order to gain sex appeal and to attract a male target audience. To quote The Seattle Times, "For today's female singers, sex appeal is a must." A prime example of this statement can be seen in the Girl's Aloud video, Long Hot Summer because the video focuses on the band members wearing coveralls while working in garage. In order to get themselves "cooler" from the heat, each member strips from their coveralls to reveal skimpy clubbing outfits underneath. It could be argued that they are portraying the female grease-monkey stereotype.

While sex appeal is a prime convention for most girl groups, there are countertypes. For example, Korean-pop group, 2NE1 focuses on songs from a feminist prospective which focus on anthems on girl bashing and boy bashing. When the band aren't performing or filming music videos, they are making a statement in the fashion world which is claimed as being, "fierce". The song, Ugly is represents the fact that most teenage girls consider themselves unattractive, due to world of stereotypes around them which make them question there own looks. This fact links in with the idea of the band members wearing masks on their faces, in order to hide their "ugliness".