Transcription
Today we're going to talk about the most important part of storytelling for your brand, the plot. You have to understand plot to create a strong brand narrative, which in today's world, the core story is what it's all about. The biggest artists in the world are using well-defined, compelling plots with their brands and storytelling. It's a big part of why their brands connect with millions of people. If you want to grow your artist project and build a real connection with your audience, you're going to need to understand brand plot.
Many artists may have a rough sense of what their story may be, but the difference between them and top tier artists is the top tier artists know exactly what their plot structures are and are applying them to their brands every day. Brand plot is how to engineer your storytelling to get a viewer to care about you, your project, and your story. If you can properly execute one of the plot structures that we'll talk about in today's video, and combine that with a strong identity and great music, the sky's is the limit on how far you can take your project.
So, who am I to even talk about this? I have a longer video on the neighborhood art supply channel that goes into my backstory and my 20 years working in the creative arts. But I'm Chris Alba. I own a niche creative agency called the Cole Creatives where we help artists and creative companies help better tell their stories. We've done tens of millions of dollars in business over the last 10 years. And we've worked with many household names in the music industry as well as Fortune 500 companies. Over the last 10 years, we've written brand stories for hundreds of artists. and plot and what the story is about is always one of the key elements that we spend a lot of time building out and defining.
Today, I'm going to walk through the seven main plots we look at and how we apply them to the artist projects we're working on. So, in terms of structure, how I'm going to structure today's video is I'm going to explain each plot type of the seven plots. These are all taken from Christopher Booker's book, The Seven Plots, which is regarded basically as the Bible when it comes to plot structure. It's 800 pages and it took him 30 years to write and you'd be hardressed to find any new plot structures out there. So, I'll discuss the plot type and its structure and then I'll talk about how this plot could potentially be applied to your artist brand and your content strategy. Because in terms of content, the plot structure is as important as the brand personality archetype.
So, before we dive into the different plot structures, let me explain why plot matters as much as it does, and why posting your great art or great music and making a few creative content pieces may not be enough to really bond someone to you. The bond or the connection is what makes them curious to see what you do next. They're interested in you and they want to see where the story goes. There's a deep psychology to why having a structured plot surrounding your brand gets more people interested in your story and the things you have surrounding it.
The first and main reason plot works the way it does is psychology. The human mind craves finding patterns. It's how we're genetically wired to learn and it's tied directly to our survival. A plot creates a recognizable arc, beginning, middle, and end, and moments that our brains are wired to follow. It gives us a sense of anticipation on what's to come next.
The second reason plot works is tension and curiosity. Plots introduce problems, stakes, or mysteries. They create curiosity loops for the mind. The audience sticks around to find out what happens next and how it all resolves. When you open a curiosity loop, the person viewing is primally wired to see how it ends. It's why that cliffhanger keeps you there through the adbreak.
The third reason plot works is emotional engagement. A well-crafted plot connects us emotionally to characters and situations. We feel their struggles, growth, and triumphs which keep us invested. There's another video on the neighborhood art supply channel that goes into the psychology of why fans will follow your artist project. So, if you haven't seen that yet, it's worth checking out as it'll pair nicely with the information I'm going through today. But understanding why someone may be following your project can help inspire where you go with your plot and your storyline.
The fourth reason that plot works is comfort. It's comforting when there's a plot that we consciously or subconsciously recognize. Structure makes information more easily understood. Instead of random events, a plot organizes content into a meaningful sequence. The more confusing a story is, the harder it is to pay attention, and it takes more brain power. We're genetically engineered to protect our cognitive load for the things that actually matter. So, if your story is confusing, you may be losing a huge part of the people who may love your art, but they just don't want to spend the time to decode your complex or confusing story.
And the fifth reason that plot works is identification and reflection. Plots often reflect universal human experiences. Things like loss, growth, love, revenge, triumph, making it easier for the viewer to see themselves in the story. When someone sees themselves in your brand or what they aspire to be, the brand means more to them because now you represent who they are or who they seek to be. It's a totally different kind of bond than somebody who's casually listening to your music or viewing your art.
So these are the reasons why plot is so important in your storytelling efforts and why it must be a foundational element that holds up the rest of the project. Okay, so let's dive into the structures and before we get into each one at a high level, what are the seven basic plots?
All right, so plot structure number one, overcoming the monster. So overcoming the monster is our first classic plot type in which a protagonist or hero faces a great evil and overcomes an antagonist or monster. The monster can be literal, metaphorical, or symbolic, or could be anything representing fear, oppression, or inner demons. I had a brand we built a few months back that was a hero brand, and the antagonist was the music industry. We made the artist the hero, and the villains in the story were the different gatekeepers and expected stereotypes for artists. It gave his story a very clear villain, and it gave us something to be heroic against so the audience would understand that he was a hero brand. And right now, if you're asking what's a hero brand, there's another video on the Neighborhood Art Supply channel titled Addicting Storytelling that has good information on brand archetypes. So, if you don't know what those are yet, I'd suggest going and watching that.
But for plot structure of overcoming the monster, it goes like this. First, there's a call to action and a threat emerges. The protagonist becomes aware of a looming danger or challenge. Second, there's an initial defeat, which leads to then preparation. Third is then confrontation. The hero faces the monster either in a physical or symbolic battle. Fourth is near defeat. So the monster seems to be winning and the hero hits the lowest point in the story and then finally it ends in victory where the hero overcomes the monster and then emerges transformed or empowered.
So let's take this plot structure and run it against an actual movie. And for this I'll use a quiet place which has a literal monster or monsters to be defeated. So first was the call to action and then the threat emerges. So, in A Quiet Place, it starts by defining a world that's full of terrifying alien creatures that hunt by sound. And in this world, if you make a noise, because they have superhering, you die. So, then it's set up that the main characters, the Abbott family, are trying to survive this world in silence. So, then the second plot point is there's an initial defeat, which then leads to preparation. They set up in the beginning that they're walking barefoot and they use sign language. The mom is pregnant, which in this world is a huge problem because babies cry. The dad is working on ways to protect his family by using different sound devices. And we know the stakes in this world because they've already shown that they've lost a previous child to one of these monsters.
So then we get into the confrontation part of the movie. So the mom goes into labor, the creatures hear it, they come into the house, everything starts falling apart. Then the next plot point is you're near defeat. You're at your lowest point. And in this moment, the dad tragically gives his life to save his children. Then his daughter realizes that her hearing device can actually hurt these monsters, which then leads to the final victory where the mom and the daughter work together. They use the hearing devices to weaken the monster and then they shoot and kill the monster. So now they have a way to win and they have overcome the monster.
So hopefully that all makes sense and this is great for a movie and sold tons of tickets and followed the plot structure exactly, but how could this plot be applied to an artist brand? So, if you believe, as I do, that current brands are movies or shows that the audience is watching, if somebody's watching your ongoing show or your channel, those shows are going to need a plot, and you're going to need to set up that plot so the audience understands the story.
So, as an example, for Taylor Swift, her and her team have done a lot to create the monster that is the media and fame, and how that monster is constantly trying to take her down. That's why her Swifties come to her aid and fight for her when they feel like she's being oppressed because deep down, even though they may not be a well-known pop star. They relate to her story about bullies and standing up for yourself. An artist like Lady Gaga is another good example of overcoming the monster plotline. In the early days of her career, she had a lot of hate. The industry wasn't quite sure what to do with her, and the hate and industry rejection was actually her monster to overcome. Her calling was to break through in the pop world, but to do it in her way, in her self-proclaimed non-conforming persona. And when you look at the plot structure and you look at the different points that number two, her initial defeat was the early industry rejection phase. And she's talked about this at length in different interviews. By the way, interviews are a great tool for storytelling and plot setup, but she was sure to tell the stories about how she was told that she was too weird and not marketable. So then comes the confrontation. It's now her and her little monsters versus the music industry and societal norms. She started a whole movement using this platform of celebrating being your weird self. And this plot and her ongoing show carried on for years and eventually led to overcoming the monster by solidifying her place in pop music history with her millions of fans, Grammys, Oscars, and a Super Bowl halftime show.
Now, hearing this story and plot structure around Lady Gaga, it may be easy to chronicle all of this in retrospect, but how can you do it now? How can you do it with your project? So, you'll just need to set up the plot for the audience with your storytelling. What or who is the monster? What's the calling? How could you show defeat or confrontation? You probably won't need to figure out a climax or an ending as that will be years from now if you ever want to retire the project. But once you've defined these different elements, make sure that everything lines up with your archetype and that it all makes sense. And keep in mind, new people are discovering you every day. And if they discover you today, they may find you in the confrontation phase of your plot structure. So, it's good to have content here and there that reminds the audience of the monster you're fighting. And the most important part of all this is to stay consistent with your plot story and not to deviate from the main challenge in the story.
Plot structure number two, rags to riches. So with this plot type, it's a started from the bottom, now we're here story. The story of ascension and rising in the ranks of status. The main character or characters start in rags or a low-level state, and then they rise to greatness. Greatness could be wealth, fame, power, love, or inner fulfillment. These story types are often tied to transformation, personal growth, and overcoming adversity.
So, here's the plot structure breakdown, and I'll use one of my daughter's favorite movies, Cinderella, for one of the examples, and then I'll use one of my wife's favorite movies, Harry Potter, for the other. So, in the beginning, you start with rags. The hero starts in a poor, powerless, or miserable place. They might be ignored, overlooked, mistreated, or stuck in a bad situation. So, for example, in the beginning of Cinderella, she's treated like a servant. And then Harry Potter, he lives under the stairs.
So, next there's a call to rise, and then there's an opportunity. So something happens that offers a chance at getting a better life. The hero gets a glimpse of their potential or a change in their fortune. So in Cinderella, she meets her fairy godmother and in Harry Potter, he gets the letter to go to Hogwarts.
So the next plot point is there's a moment of initial success. So the hero begins to rise. They experience early success like winning attention, gaining wealth, or discovering a talent. So in Cinderella, this would be her going to the ball. And in Harry Potter, this is when he starts to get noticed and he becomes one of the popular students.
So then the next plot point is there's a crisis or a fall from grace. The hero is not ready for an outside force and that causes them to lose what they had gained. So in Cinderella, this is where the magic wears off after midnight. And in Harry Potter, this is the sequence where Harry struggles with the dangers of being a popular or well-known student.
The next plot point is redemption and growth. So here the hero learns, grows, and faces their flaws or different challenges. They become stronger or wiser through struggle. So for our examples, in the face of confrontation, Cinderella stays kind and true. And then in Harry Potter, Harry fights back. And through fighting back, he matures.
So then the last part of the plot in Rags to Riches is the triumphant success. This is where the hero reaches true success. This could be love, respect, wealth, or inner peace. It lasts because they've earned it. So for our examples, it ends with Cinderella marrying the prince and then Harry defeats his enemies and finds a new life.
So now let's look at this from a music brand perspective. There's a lot of artists out there that run the plot of starting from nothing and I'm trying to make my way to the top. One that followed this plot structure exactly was Post Malone. He made it very known with his brand story that he came from a meager, humble background of growing up in Texas. He didn't have a lot of money and he got interested in making music from Guitar Hero and he made music in his bedroom using free software and a cheap mic. As he rose, he made sure to keep this plot intact. His image evolved from a scrappy underdog to a genredefying star with massive appeal. but he still carries the outsider that made it type vibe. And recently he's been very vocal about the new mountain that he's trying to climb, which is striving for inner peace and happiness.
So another example is Eminem, another artist that follows the same plot structure from humble beginnings in Detroit to now being a household name artist. He battles fame, haters, drugs, and inner demons to try to reach the top. If you choose this plot line for your own brand, it will be important to show your humble backgrounds and make sure the audience knows the mountain that you're trying to climb. So, an example of this would be somebody like Gary Vee. And with Gary Vee, he's telling his audience that one day he wants to buy the New York Jets. There's a lot that goes into buying the New York Jets. And that's its own mountain to climb. He's letting them know exactly what the endgame of the movie is, and he will continue to work, grind, and grow until he does this.
So, with this plot structure, you want the audience to see themselves in you. And when you win and you climb, they feel like the same thing is happening for them.
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Plot structure number three, the quest. For this plot structure, it's all about a character who must go on a journey to obtain a significant goal and faces trials along the way. So, here's the structure breakdown, and I'll use Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring as the movie example for this one.
So, the first thing that happens is there's a call to the quest. So, the hero is given a goal or task, and often it's to retrieve something or reach a destination. So, for Lord of the Rings, the call to the quest is Froto must destroy the one ring.
So the next plot point is that the quest or journey begins and the hero sets off often with companions traveling through unfamiliar worlds or lands. Froto travels a long distance with the other members of his Middleear entourage.
So the next plot point is a series of trials and temptations. This is where the hero faces challenges, enemies, and distractions along his journey. So in Lord of the Rings, this is where Froto faces the different ring rats, betrayal from the people he trusts, and then he has his own internal temptation with the ring.
So then the next plot point is the final ordeal. This is where the hero faces one of the biggest challenges, often a villain, monster or internal struggle. In Lord of the Rings, this was the battle with the orcs and then the fall of Gandalf.
So then the next part of the story is that the goal is achieved. The hero obtains the prize, the object, knowledge or personal growth. And so then in Lord of the Rings, this is where they win the battle with the orcs and then the rest of the fellowship heads towards Mount Doom. So it is a continuation, but the original goal for this plot was achieved.
So then the last plot point in the story is the return home. Froto returns home and is now changed forever. Okay.
So how could you apply this plot to your music project? So let's look at a creator brand type artist. Somebody like Donald Glover, Childish Gambino. So he's a creator brand because his primary motivation is to make and create things born from his taste and his perspective. He's talked about in interviews and different content pieces about wanting to work across different mediums, be it music, television, film, comedy, or even fashion. and him being a multimedium artist has always been a core goal for him. He's quoted in an interview in 2017 with the New Yorker, I just want to be able to do anything. I want to be like Prince or Bowie. I want to do what I want to do when I want to do it. And even by making the statement in the interview, he's setting up the plot for his story. There's only three sentences in that quote, but it sets up the whole universe of the quest that he's on.
Now, just because it's a quest, it doesn't mean that you need to go a far distance or work in a bunch of different mediums. Another example is Porter Robinson, whose brand is a literal quest. It's a quest through depression, creative rediscovery, and personal storytelling. So Porter's quest is to go far, but it's going far within himself. What's great about this plot style also is it can be never ending. As the storyteller, you can create a destination that you may never actually get to, but it's very entertaining to the audience to watch you try. And the question that comes up here a lot as you start to see how these different plot structures play out is about mixing the plot structures, but I'll be sure to address that towards the end.
Plot structure number four, voyage and return. So the main idea for this plot structure is a character leaves their familiar world, enters a new unfamiliar world, faces challenges and threats, and then returns home changed by the experience. This plot structure is a great structure for creating universes and places that the audience has never seen before. And this can be a great pairing for an explorer brand personality.
So for the plot structure for Voyage and Return, we'll use Alice in Wonderland as the movie example. So first, it's the call and the character entering the other world. So the hero enters a strange new place physically, emotionally, or mentally, and finds their way there, often accidentally, or out of curiosity. So for our example, Alice follows a white rabbit and falls down a rabbit hole into Wonderland, a bizarre dreamlike world.
The next plot point is initial fascination. So the new world seems exciting, mysterious or magical. So in Alice in Wonderland, she explores the strange new world, meeting talking animals, growing and shrinking, and attending a mad tea party.
So then the next plot point is some sort of challenge arises. The hero starts to encounter problems, dangers, or a darker side of this new world. So in Alice in Wonderland, she journeys deeper, but Wonderland becomes more confusing and chaotic. Then she meets the Queen of Hearts, who's unpredictable and dangerous.
So then the next plot point is some kind of nightmare or crisis. So here things go really bad. The hero might be trapped or in danger or facing some sort of emotional or existential struggle. So here in Alice in Wonderland, this is where the queen threatens to behead her.
So then the last plot point is escape and return. This is where the hero finds their way out and returns to the original world, often wiser, more mature, and changed. Alice wakes up back in her own world, realizing it was all a dream. She's changed, more curious, thoughtful, and aware of herself.
Okay, so now let's look at how you could apply this to your music brand, and let's use an example of a band like the Gorillas. So, in the Gorilla Stories, they're constantly entering and exiting these new fantastical places. They explore, they face obstacles, and they always return in a way transformed by the experience. And then another example of something that's maybe more reality-based is someone like Diplo. He's exploring all these new places that he's curious about and maybe never been. and he's also exploring where he can go sonically and these explorations and experiences transform and change him.
Plot structure number five, comedy. So for this plot structure, instead of giving you a comedy plot structure and a corresponding movie, I think what's important to highlight is that the entire brand is based around jokes, skits, characters, and punchlines. What you're trying to do is you're trying to entertain the audience through comedy and comedic characters. Artists like Dylan Francis, Tenacious D, or the Lonely Island are different jester brand archetypes with comedy plots. I feel like this one is more simple to understand and doesn't require an in-depth explanation of the different plot points and structure.
Plot structure number six, tragedy. So, same for this plot structure instead of a tragedy structure in a movie example. I think what's important to understand is if you choose this style of plot that many of the themes that you'll tackle in the art will be tragic themes. So bands like Lincoln Park or artists like The Weekend explore topics of self-destruction, emotional detachment, judgment from society, and mental health struggles. And then an example of a purely visual artist, somebody like Edward Munch, known for his painting, The Scream. His work focuses on the themes of anxiety, death, lost love, isolation, and madness.
Plot structure number seven, rebirth. So for a rebirth plot structure, it's all about being trapped by something, but then emerging from this and being reborn. So to help explain this structure, I'll use the Joker movie as the comparison. And although it's a dark rebirth story, it's still a rebirth plot.
So here's the structure of this plot type. First, a hero falls under a shadow. The main character is somehow trapped or oppressed. This could be emotional, so depression, arrogance, bitterness. It could be physical, like captivity or sickness, or even supernatural, something like a literal curse or spell. So for Joker, in the beginning, Arthur Fleck is trapped in poverty, mental illness, and a society that constantly dehumanizes him.
The second plot point is that the threat worsens, and this can be where the enttrapment deepens, so the situation becomes more severe over time. The hero may become more isolated, corrupted, or homeless. So in Joker, Arthur is rejected by the system, mocked publicly, loses access to medication, and discovers painful truths about his childhood.
So then the third plot point is that the dark threat seems to win. It seems like there's no escape and the hero is completely overcome and all hope is lost. So in Joker, Arthur symbolically dies when he kills for the first time. His identity as Arthur begins to disappear.
So then the fourth plot point is a miraculous redemption. This is the part where there's some kind of rescuing or awakening. A sudden event sometimes brought on by the love or sacrifice of another sparks the hero's transformation or rebirth. So in the case of the Joker, his rebirth is a twisted one. He fully embraces the Joker persona. He's finally free to be his true self.
So then the last plot point is renewal or rebirth. So here the hero is freed, often now a better or more enlightened person, and they re-enter the world in a new vibrant state. So in Joker, he becomes the face of a movement. He's reborn, but not into a hero, but more into a symbol of chaos.
So now, how could this plot structure be used for your artist project? So a good example here is maybe Britney Spears post-conservatorship. She was trapped. The situation became worse. her fans rallied for her and then she was free and reborn. Or another example is Demi Lovado's story and her journey with addiction and sobriety. A big part of her new brand is a rebirth story of the beautiful life she now gets to live after going through the darkness. She makes it a big part of her brand narrative to speak about her dark past and how it brought her to the place that she's in now. Many people will identify and see themselves or someone they care about in a story like this. If you went through a dark period, but now you've been freed or reborn and want to share that with the audience, this could be a great plot structure for you.
So, those are the seven plots, and these plots were taken from stories all throughout history, mythologies, biblical stories, Shakespeare, and are now used in all modern storytelling with movies and TV shows. By having this included and highlighting in your brand story, you have a much better chance at connecting the story with someone in the audience. These structures have been proven to work over thousands of years because again all of these plot structures are tied to our basic human needs and our genetic predispositions to survive.
Now I mentioned earlier that I would talk about mixing the different plot structures and can you do this? So the simple answer is yes. You can absolutely do this and some of the most interesting stories out there will layer the different plot structures together. A movie like the dark knight is overcoming the monster meets tragedy. Everything Everywhere all at once is Voyage and Return meets comedy with a splash of rebirth. Barbie is Voyage and Return meets comedy. And then for music, The Weekend is rags to riches meets tragedy. Alenium is a rebirth story. His logo is actually a phoenix rising meets tragedy with some of his early stuff exploring heartbreak, relapse, and an emotional collapse. Skrillex is Quest and overcoming the monster. He's constantly innovating and pushing boundaries. And he even had an album called Quest for Fire. And his quest meets overcoming the monster, which his monster is the music industry, genre stigma, and gatekeeping. It is important to note though that similar to the brand personality archetype, which I've talked about in a previous video, that if you're mixing, you'll want to have one plot structure that leads so the audience can clearly understand consciously or subconsciously what they're watching.
So, I hope today's discussion was helpful and it makes sense how including this in the building process of creating your brand story can have a major impact on your brand as a whole and would absolutely influence how you would tell the story, the content strategy, and it might even inspire where you go with the soundtrack for your brand's movie. And if you want to collaborate on writing your brand story or creating developing your brand with the cult creatives, you know where we are. All things the cult creatives, the cultreatives.com. But thanks for hanging. Hope this helps. Good luck with your art and until next time, peace.