My Music Magazine Draft

 First draft of my music magazine cover page. To improve I need to add more 'Buzz words' and 'Puffs' in order to attract the audience.

 First draft of my Music Magazine Contents Page which in order to improve I will need to add more images and more information, as it can be seen some details are missing, however the main idea and house style of the magazine can be seen in this draft.

First Draft of my Article Page for my Music Magazine which unfortunately is not finished due to lack of space available, which means I will have to consider adding an extra page in order to fit the full interview and this means I will have to add more images of the main star.

Image editing (Cover Page)

Original image

First I had to remove the background and making it transparent in order for it to fit with my magazine background. Also I thought about leaving the original shadows of the image, but they did not match the magazine black background which meants it had to be removed and other editing would have to be made to the image.

Finally after experimenting with different editing techniques, I have decided to make the image bright in order for it to stand out from the black background of the cover of the magazine.

This is roughly how the cover page will look with the central image.
However it is subject to change.

Title block Ideas

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Which colour scheme would you prefer for a rock genre magazine?

My Music Magazine Layout

 

 

My music Magazine planning

Target audience of my music magazine would be teenager and young adults ranging from age of 16 to 22 which would be interested in rock genre magazines, additionally due to lack of people that buy music magazines (as shown from my questionnaire results) I will have to consider all possible ways of attracting the audience. Possible things which would attract the audience would be freebies seeing as this option got the most votes in my questionnaire or CD’s would be another option seeing as it got the second highest votes, however the dilemma with this is that the CD would have to be relevant to the magazine which would require allowance from the owner of the song. I am planning on making a hybrid of genres for my music magazine in order to attract the audience’s attention and the genres will be gathered from my questionnaire results seeing as I got a variety of genre choices. Furthermore my magazine is planned to be released two times a month which would mean the price of the magazine would have to be around £4.99 in order to get the best profit. This would mean that I will have time to prepare my articles. Additionally my magazine will use bold, contrasting colours in order for the audience to be able to read through the whole magazine with ease. Possible colours I will use would be red and black or blue and yellow etc. In addition I will also have to consider the background of my images, if they are relevant to the genre of the magazine or even match the whole house style of the magazine, the main idea would be to remove the original background and place the images in a white (or other colour) background in order for the audience to see the image clearly.

Audiences and Institutions

The ‘Bauer Media’ publishes a range of different genre magazines aimed at different type of audience. The website even sorts the magazines it publishes in different categories in order to make it easier for the audience to find a specific genre they are after and do further research of the magazine. For example ‘Men’s Entertainment’ category has a list of different magazines which follow this category, allowing the target audience to make further research of the magazines like ‘Empire’ ‘Kerrang’ and ‘Mojo’ which however can also be read by the female audience which would be interested in the genre of music the magazines may provide. Furthermore the website lists gossip magazines under the ‘Women’s’ section which is stereotypical suggesting that all females are interested in magazines like ‘heat’ and ‘more!’, however there is a range of magazines this institution provides giving the audience a variety of choice which is always good. Furthermore the simple layout of the website provides the audience with information of what type of entertainment the magazine has to offer for example TV or radio broadcasting. Brand image gives an impression to the audience of being a bold and serious company seeing as its mainstream and represent different types of media not only magazines.

IPC Mede publishes a huge range of magazines and websites across many different sectors. This institution provides a large variety of different genre magazines suitable for different target audience and the website provides a search engine available for the audience to look for specific type of magazines. In addition to this clear information is given to the audience on the website along with the price of the magazine which is helpful seeing as that is the most important factor which will either result in the audience buying the magazine or not buying it. Furthermore IPC Media produces over 60 iconic media brands which make this institution very well known and it has gained a reputation of producing good magazines which please the target audience. Also the music magazines would usually feature advertisement of other magazines which are published by this institution and vice versa and that give other magazines more popularity. The brand image is very bold and simple; suggesting to the audience that the institution is serious about what it does and presents the magazines to the best standard.

BBC Magazines

The following institution produces well known magazines like 'Top Gear', 'Radio Times', 'BBC music' etc  and is a mainstream company in the UK with a wide range of target audience seeing as they don't only specialise in magazines but also in media like the radio and TV shows, for example 'Top Gear' is a TV show in itself and that gives the company a very well known name and popularity between a more mature target audience age of which range between 5 to even 40, seeing as the media it provides is suitable for different ages, 'CBeebies Weekly' would be an example of media provided for the younger audience and 'Top Gear' is an example of media provided for the much older audience.  In addition to this the website does not have a brand image, this could be due to its familiarity with the audience and it being well known across the UK.

Development Hell is an independent niche institution with main focus of three magazines which have their own websites, this allows them to put more effort into those magazines and make them to the best standard which is a benefit of being a niche company which is based only in the UK. However the drawback of this would be a lack of variety in choice for the target audience meaning the institution will only have a certain amount of target audience which are interested in the magazine which they publish. Also on the website for different magazines each one promotes the different magazine which is release by this institution, providing the audience with information about other magazines the institution has to offer.  Each magazine which they have to offer has its own website with a wide range of information and other options like listening to an interview online and this makes the magazines internet friendly. The Brand image 'Development Hell' written in bold red letters suggests that the magazines they produce are more of mature and 'grown up' type target audience of which would be people ranging from 24 to 35.

Title block analysis

NME (New Musical Express) is a music magazine with a rock/RNB genre which from the title suggests how it gives the latest news to the audience about the music industry. Furthermore from the use of colour we can tell that this music magazine has a formal layout and the house style would be the colour present on the title. Colour use of the title block makes it stand out due to use of contrasting colours, in addition to this the title block is never covered by the central image in order for the audience to see the title straight away and the colours used help it stand out from the magazines house style. Use of font for this title block is bold and straight forward which helps the colour contrast in addition to this the title looks like a channel title for example MTV or such which the audience would be familiar with. The title itself when spoken out sounds like ‘Enemy’ which evokes that the magazine is different from other music magazines and offers something entirely different in addition to this the word ‘Express’ suggests how the magazine delivers the latest news in short time seeing as most news papers would be called ‘Express’. Furthermore ‘New Musical Express’ sounds like a news paper which evokes how the magazine delivers the latest news like a news paper would do every morning. Target audience of the magazine would be people which are interested in the latest music news aging from 16 to 25, however even older audience could be interested in this music magazine if it suits their interests.

From the title of the magazine we can see that the genre would be rock based due to the use of dark colours and affect of shattered glass, in addition to this the sound ‘KERRANG’ evokes a noise caused from a guitar being smashed which also suggests how the magazine is non-formal meaning the audience would be of the same type. Use of colour in the title block makes the title very easy to read and the shattered glass effect makes it more interesting and standing out from other music magazine titles in addition to this the title look original due to its non-formality. The font used for the title block is different from other fonts you would see on music magazines and from it we can see that the main focus of the magazine is rock music where as other magazines like NME or Q have more range of genre to offer. The title itself suggests ‘rebellion’ or even violence due to the shattered glass effect and how the noise ‘KERRANG’ sounds like a smashed guitar, implying that rock is an expressive type of music. Target audience of the magazine would be people that are mainly interested in rock music aging from 16-25.

Due to simplicity of the title it is unclear of the genre of music it would provide, however the use of bright and contrasting colours best guess would be pop/RnB music or any relevant genre. Furthermore use of colours makes the title stand out and very eye catching compared to other music magazine titles, this would be the main target of the title to catch the audience’s eye. The font use is very simple and straight forward and very easy to read using a simple letter ‘Q’ which could stand for ‘question’ suggesting how this is a ‘question and answer’ type of magazine, providing the audience with interviews of their favourite music stars, the title itself does not tell a lot to the audience due to its simplicity meaning that the main focus of the magazine would be on the articles themselves and other information it may provide to the audience. Furthermore the title would suggest that the possible target audience of this magazine would be people that are interested in latest news in the music industry and raging from 16-25 years.

Article Page Analysis

The following magazine uses images throughout the two pages. Which have been constructed very carefully and kept to the whole house style of the magazine. Also the fact that Jay-Z covers the word ‘Content’ implies his importance for the magazine or even his dominance in world of music by this day. In addition to this we can see that on the left side there are celebrities present who were on the cover page along with another celebrity which indicates importance of these stars or their status over the celebrities on the right, being more popular or talked about at the time being. House style remains the same throughout the whole magazine and this helps keep attention of the audience which could be a different type of groups due to what was mentioned before the variety of celebrities the magazine has to offer. Main colours used for this music magazine are red, black and white only exception would be the images of celebrities which have different backgrounds however they are presented in front of the white background of the magazine in order to make them stand out.

Main information about a certain article is presented to the audience in black font colour however names of the articles are in bold and larger letters which help the audience keep focus of what is going on in the magazine. Additionally to this the contents page has images of featuring articles which are present in the magazine itself which gives the audience a taste of what they are going to read. Also the numbers indicating pages vary in size, this could have been used to indicate importance or excitement certain celebrities have over the others and even suggest exclusivity of the articles. The information is presented neatly and sharp in order for the audience to be able to keep up with the information the magazine has to offer in addition to this each image is labelled with a number for the audience to see which page their main interest is on. Use of contrast colours make it easy for the audience to follow what is going on in what may seem as a complex contents page however as the audience familiarises with the house style and design of the magazine it is very easy to follow.

Different sections of the magazine show us how compact and straight forward the information is presented in order to give all the information possible and nothing more or less. What the audience may gather from these sections is that the magazine has a high budget and can give the best information about the celebrities of most interest in addition to this the magazine does not have any promotional features which suggests how they simply don’t rely on it to make a profit but make most of their profit from the information they provide and existing audience which they have gained over the past years. Furthermore the following pages do not have a logo but instead has the title of the magazine on top left, this has been done because of how short and simple the title is which allows it to be placed as a logo in addition to this the contrasting colours of the logo allows it to be seen straight away even when ‘hovering’ over the whole page it would be one of the first things which would catch an audiences eye. 

Contents Page Analysis

The following magazine uses images throughout the two pages. Which have been constructed very carefully and kept to the whole house style of the magazine. Also the fact that Jay-Z covers the word ‘Content’ implies his importance for the magazine or even his dominance in world of music by this day. In addition to this we can see that on the left side there are celebrities present who were on the cover page along with another celebrity which indicates importance of these stars or their status over the celebrities on the right, being more popular or talked about at the time being. House style remains the same throughout the whole magazine and this helps keep attention of the audience which could be a different type of groups due to what was mentioned before the variety of celebrities the magazine has to offer. Main colours used for this music magazine are red, black and white only exception would be the images of celebrities which have different backgrounds however they are presented in front of the white background of the magazine in order to make them stand out.

Main information about a certain article is presented to the audience in black font colour however names of the articles are in bold and larger letters which help the audience keep focus of what is going on in the magazine. Additionally to this the contents page has images of featuring articles which are present in the magazine itself which gives the audience a taste of what they are going to read. Also the numbers indicating pages vary in size, this could have been used to indicate importance or excitement certain celebrities have over the others and even suggest exclusivity of the articles. The information is presented neatly and sharp in order for the audience to be able to keep up with the information the magazine has to offer in addition to this each image is labelled with a number for the audience to see which page their main interest is on. Use of contrast colours make it easy for the audience to follow what is going on in what may seem as a complex contents page however as the audience familiarises with the house style and design of the magazine it is very easy to follow.

Different sections of the magazine show us how compact and straight forward the information is presented in order to give all the information possible and nothing more or less. What the audience may gather from these sections is that the magazine has a high budget and can give the best information about the celebrities of most interest in addition to this the magazine does not have any promotional features which suggests how they simply don’t rely on it to make a profit but make most of their profit from the information they provide and existing audience which they have gained over the past years. Furthermore the following pages do not have a logo but instead has the title of the magazine on top left, this has been done because of how short and simple the title is which allows it to be placed as a logo in addition to this the contrasting colours of the logo allows it to be seen straight away even when ‘hovering’ over the whole page it would be one of the first things which would catch an audiences eye. 

Music Magazine Cover Page Analysis

The following image is a front cover of a music magazine from which we can get a basic idea of what ‘Exclusive’ and ‘Exciting’ is going to be featured in this magazine. For example ’10 Exclusive Interviews’ with the most known and famous music stars which are presented in red, standing out and largest font in bright red colour in order to attract the audience’s attention if they are interested in any of the following music stars. From this the audience can gather that the magazine features ten articles which give them a variety of choice if they had dislike for other music stars. Target audience for the magazine would be teenagers or people aged from 18 to 26 which are interested in music fashion. This impression can be gathered from the house style of the magazine, the use of contrast colours make the writing stand out in order to enlighten the audience of what is going to be present in the magazine. Furthermore the choice of main articles to place on the cover page are a range from new music stars to older which means that the target audience would get lured in by the music stars which they are more familiar in their age group.

Direct mode of address in order to engage with the reader, to gain an informal relationship with the audience seeing as they are wearing casual clothes meaning they are not looking for business but possibly just for a chat. On the front cover we have three different music stars which represent different genre of music, which could indicate the variety of genre this magazine has to offer for the audience. Additionally because there are ’10 exclusive interviews’ the central image shows the music stars from which the interviews have been take which makes it easier for the audience to who will be in the magazine without even reading the ‘buzz words’. Due to few artists being on the cover page we have 3 anchorage texts to go with the central image in addition to this the magazine relies on the audience to be familiar with the celebrities seeing as the text does not go in order with the position of the singers. However this could also have been done to show which celebrity is more popular compared to others which could explain why Jay-Z is in front of the ‘crew’.

Overall impression the artists are giving could be that they are the one of the best in the show and the fact that they are on the cover page instead of other 7 artists with featuring articles further reinforces that they are one of the best. There is a variety of groups being represented in this magazine seeing as there is a variety of music genre celebrities. This is represented by how on the cover page there are three celebrities who have their own article in the magazine furthermore each celebrity is part of a different music genre. The cover page has a few buzz words which would attract attention of the audience for example ‘Exciting People’ which is written in contrasting colours to make it stand out. Furthermore same goes for the names of celebrities which are featured in this magazine, they are written in bold letters to inform the audience what is featured in the magazine and also attract their attention. Additionally the fact that the title of the magazine is a bit covered shows that the magazine is popular and familiar to the audience also it’s only one letter which shows its simplicity and the magazine can afford to cover the title.

Title of the magazine is simple to read due to its simplicity and contrast of colours it is using, despite being covered by the central image it does not lose any audience due to its popularity and the featuring articles because the audience would mainly buy the magazine for the articles. Style of the title is simple and straight forward which means the audience would recognise it and memorise it straight away. Puffs used in this magazine ’10 exclusive interviews’ does not specialise on a certain target audience but on a variety of audience giving them a choice of celebrities best suited for their taste of music. Slogan of the magazine being ’10 most exciting people in music now’ would attract the audience’s attention by how ‘exciting people’ is outlined so the magazine is expecting different type of audience to buy their magazine due to variety of genre it has to offer. House style of the magazine mainly uses black, red and white colours in order to make it more eyes catching and not put too much pressure on the eyes for the audience, making the text stand out and simple to read. In addition I think the main strategy to attract the audience would be the variety of featuring articles it has to offer.

Questionnaire Results

1. Do you buy music magazines?
This question will allow me to see how many people actually buy music magazines and see if there is actually a point in producing one.

2. How much do/would you spend on a music magazine?
I have found out that on average the audience would pay around £2.99 for a music magazine.

3. What promotional features would you like to see?
This question will allow me to consider what I could include with my magazine.

4. What genre of music do you mostly listen to?
I have found out what audience listens to and this would help me find a genre for my music magazine.

5. Who is your favourite music artist? State genre in brackets.
This question has been asked mainly to gather ideas about what to base my featuring article page and genre.

6. What may influence you to buy a music magazine?
In order to get the audiences attention I need to know what actually makes them buy a music magazine.

7. Do you buy music CD's?
I have found out how many people actually buy CD's in order to consider having a CD as a freebie.

8. How do you access a music magazine?
This question would help me consider if I should post my magazine online or make actual copies.

9. Suggest possible title for a music magazine.
Seeing as I was low on ideas about the title for my magazine I have asked people to give me ideas about what a music magazine could be called which is helpful because I can actually find out about people thoughts.

10. How often would you like a music magazine to come out?
Main idea was to release the magazine once a month however as I have found out people prefer their music magazines to be released once a week.





The following research has been carried out in order to gather information from my target audience about what they expect to find in a music magazine and would prefer to see in my music magazine, additionally I have asked them to give suggestions about a name for a magazine one of which turned out to be 'Echo' so the survey has helped me greatly in production of my music magazine. Additionally the results have helped me develop my magazine to appeal to the target audience as much as possible.

Music Magazine Survey.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PWK6C7Q
Please make sure to answer all of the questions.

Britney Spears Magazine Cover Page Analysis.

Britney Spears Analysis

I have analysed the following music magazines in order to see the importance of the central image and how the text has to be placed around the image to make the image or the text stand out. Additionally familiarise with the type of shots which can be used for my music magazine and how meanings can be created with a use of a different shot used with different props.

The central image of Britney Spears is cropped into a mid shot however taken from a high angle shot. Furthermore the mise-en-scene being the Teletubie toy which represents her being young and the phone which represents her talking to her boyfriend this is typical of an ‘adult magazine’.  Britney costume is much sexualised which also represents her first music video and the fact that the shirt is open also conveys her  ‘none-innocence’ seeing as the audience would expect a school girl to be innocent. This front cover is appealing to the male audience due to her erotic appeal.

Setting used is rather provocative seeing as we get a high angle shot of Britney laying on the bed also the connotations of this is Lust seeing as she is laying on pink silk and the colour further represents Lust and makes Britney appear more erotic.

There are a few intertextual references for example the shirt she is wearing refers to her first music video and the fact that is it open implies her emerging sexuality. Also the teletubie refers to her still being in her childhood however the phone in her other hand implies Britney flirting with her boyfriend.

The image has been taken with a mid shot in order to capture her booty and body physique. Furthermore the fact that she is only wearing underwear and covers her breast with a shirt which may relate to her previous magazine giving the impression of ‘good gone bad’. However in the previous magazine she was in a stage of going bad and in this magazine she ‘broke all the rules’.  Furthermore the relationship she is after with the reader could be of intimate one, as in the previous magazine this central image is typical of an 'adult magazine' due to its exposing features.

Setting used is not clear however it is possible to be a narrow alley way, suggesting that Britney is in a rush and took the shortest way possible despite its lack comfort.

The lighting is very bright, this is used to make Britney stand out more and outline her body which would attract the male audience. There are no dark colours used also the clothing is white along with the background with Britney being the main focus of this image.

The close up shot used for this image along with the use of black and white colour may signify a dramatic and dreadful story of her life. This impression is evolved from Britneys facial expression and the close up shot is used to outline her emotions rather than anything else.

Also this image could have been cropped from a mid-shot into a close up shot in order to put the emphasis on her facial expression. Furthermore this image is used to imply that Britney wants sympathy and support from the audience and this is evident from the anchorage text "Inside an American tragedy" which clearly states that something horrible occurred in Britneys young life.



I have carried out this research task of magazines which feature Britney Spears in order to analyse the different types of camera shots which can be used for a central image and how effective they can be to either outline the image or the text. This will help me think about how to take my images in order to create meanings behind them. Also the use of mise-en-scene as shown from the research task can further create possible subtle or straight forward meanings behind a central image.

Conventions of a Magazine Cover

This task has been carried out in order to help me familiarise with the terminology used in magazines. Which would greatly help me in production of my music magazine seeing as I would know how a music magazine should look like and produce my magazine to the same standard.

Magazine Contents Page. Take 1.

This is a basic contents page which shows the main design and house style used. From this example I can now produce an improved Contents Page for my future music magazine.

Magazine Cover Page. Take 1.

This is the first attempt of producing a magazine cover page. From this example I can now analyse my mistakes and produce a better, more detailed magazine cover for my future music magazine.