Tori Kelly Star image

Tori Kelly (born December 14, 1992), is an American organic singer and songwriter. Tori begun her career at a young age by starting to upload videos on Youtube showing her musical talent at the age of 14 through making covers of popular songs. This helped Tori gain recognition, as Youtube appeals to a wide range of viewers from ranging ages and interests, it helped her to start building a core fan base by allowing them to view numerous videos and subscribing to her channel, allowing them to keep up to date with her latest videos.

Her breakthrough in the industry occurred 2 years later at the age of 16 where she auditioned for the singing competition television series called 'American Idol'.Which offered a major exposure in the industry as well as having her talent judged by experts in the business, receiving constant feedback and guidance to help improve her performances and vocals as well as help create her star image. This increased Kelly's awareness in the industry by having millions of viewers watching her from the US as well as from all over the world as it is a very popular TV show.

Even though she didn't make it too far in the competition, as she was eliminated before reaching the 'Top 24 artists', she was very driven to succeed in the industry and immediately begun writing her own songs in order to still have her fan base and stay on the buzz the show created around her by increasing her popularity and awareness.

In 2012 she released her on EP which was self titled 'Handmade songs by Tori Kelly' to help sell her star image to her target audience by having her name on the title of the album, to remind her fans and her target audience who the album is by after receiving the recognition from the show. The EP contained only 6 songs on her own label called 'Toraay Records', where Kelly wrote, produced, engineered, and recorded the entire EP by herself in her bedroom, as it was on a low-budget. Nonetheless when the EP was released on iTunes it made it to the Top 10 Pop as well as selling more than 14,000 copies and reaching 'No. 9 on Billboard's Heatseekers Albums chart'.

 

Tori wearing natural clothing in some of her music videos

 

As a result of her astonishing success in April 2013, Kelly performed at eight different venues across U.S. for her "Fill a Heart" tour, which was named after a single she released to help increase the awareness of child hunger. This helpes sculpture her star image showing that she is like the 'girl next door' helping her build a connection with her target audience by allowing them to identify with her. Furthermore she has also been featured in magazines such as Teen Vogue, Elle and Glamour which are stereotypical magazines her target audience reads. Kelly's target audience is mainly females ranging from the ages of 15-28 which is very similar to the target audience our artist would have.

During mid-2013, Kelly's newly assigned manager Scooter Braun introduced Kelly to the heads of Capitol Records which released her second EP titled Foreword. The EP has sold more than 16,000 copies and "debuted at No. 16 on the Billboard 200". Kelly was the sole supporting act to Ed Sheeran at Madison Square Garden and supported Sam Smith on his 'In the Lonely Hour' UK tour which further contributed to her popularity and success in the industry by having her perform for one of the biggest pop-stars in the business at their biggest venues, helped create a buzz around her.

Kelly's fashion and make-up tens to be very minimal enhancing her natural beauty, as she doesn't use voyeurism or her sexuality to help gain recognition and sell her star image, but rather through her character and music. Which emphasises and matches to Richard Dyers paradox 1 theory where she is seen as both ordinary and extraodinary to the consumer. As she writes her own songs which come from personal and relatable encounters and experiences she has had, which portrays her geniuness and stereotypical a girl her age would come across. However having her performing at the largest venues with pop sensations artists, as well as releasing her first EP by herself under her own record label which is unusual.