Here is my Thesis Proposal folks...

Research inspired by my love for Kesha...

Title: Communicating Misfortune Through Celebrity Rebranding.

Research Question: How do celebrities communicate sexual assault and drug abuse? How is rebranding expressive of these events and how does it affect their fan group?

Motivation: Before nearly each of my speeches during my college career, I have listened to Kesha to pump me up and boost my confidence, so it makes sense to me to dedicate my final speech to her. Unfortunately, sexual assault is become more and more prevalent issue in society as more women come forward to discuss this issue. A contribution to this movement could have been in part from Kesha coming forward about her sexual assault in 2014. She has praised on her song “Rainbow” which can be considered a compassionate way to discuss this matter through song. In addition, Kesha has recently come out with a documentary that partially addresses her struggle with drug abuse, which is also becoming more prevalent with the recent struggles main stream stars overdosing.

Three dimensions: Idea, Data and Tools

                Idea: Sexual Assault, Eating Disorders, Drug Abuse

                Data: To collect my data I will have several focus groups watch Kesha’s recent documentary that focuses on her reemergence to fame after changing her name. It also addresses her struggle with drug addiction and her eating disorder. In addition, I will show these focus groups one of her earliest music videos and one of her newer music videos to get their opinion on how she has changed in these artistic elements.

I will also analyze theories behind celebrity rebranding and other theories in media and pop culture. Mead’s theory of “I” and “Me” may also provide insight on these dynamics.

                Tools: In addition to conducting focus groups to get responses on the way Kesha expresses these things it will be beneficial to analyze articles discussing other responses to this. Examples including an article written by times who crowned Kesha as one of the top 100 influential women in 2018.

What’s new? Unfortunately, drug abuse and sexual assault aren’t new. But as these events become less taboo we need to understand how they can be communicated and perceived.  
How is sexual assault and drug abuse communicated by celebrities and how is this perceived by normal people?

So, what? These subject matters are important. It’s important to understand this as normal civilians but understanding the ways celebrities are affected by and express these matters is crucial as they are such a powerful source and can be influencing to many individuals.
How much of an influence do celebrities have on their fan base?                                                           

Contribution: I feel like this is a project that could have no specific endpoint, I also think it will be hard to determine this until I fully submerge myself in my research and start getting responses. I believe that once I have a solid consensus from a variety of groups that I will be able to form an inkling of a conclusion to my focus group data.

Other considerations: An obstacle could be that I am unsure of a solid “Kesha” fan base that I could have easy access to, so it may be a struggle to find people that like Kesha as much as I do that are willing to give me their responses. I would like to conduct a few focus groups with a variety of populations (men, women, women specifically in college). The Kesha documentary that my focus groups would be watching could be triggering if anyone in my focus group has struggled or is struggling with an eating disorder or drug addiction, so being sensitive while still collecting adequate data could be a struggle.