Friday, 1 February 2013

MUSIC MAGAZINE FRONT COVERS


This is an example of a R&B magazine. VIBE is a very well known american music magazine. The image dominates the page; it represents what stereotypically R&B music is about. The artist (Usher) is shown to look serious, but at the same time he has an element of cool and 'swagger' about him. He is wearing expensive jewellery and R&B artists wear a lot of 'bling' as they would refer to it. The sunshades are also an accessoire which you associate with male R&B artists, therefore these elements are something which i should contribute in to my final images for my magazine. The hand gesture as well is something which you see R&B artists do frequentley on magazines, music videos and general photos. It's something ,which again, is associated with that genre.

The font suggests that it's aimed at a younger audience. They have used a microsoft sans-serif type font, which is bold, but simple. This particular front cover has used 4 main colours for the font(yellow,black, blue and white). Having four consistant colours keeps it fairly simple, but i personally think 3 is the limit, as it creates less complication. Although, they're not contrasting colours- which is perhaps quite unsual, but it works well as Usher is wearing basic coloured clothing, which allows the font colour to work well. The word 'Swagger' across the page is the only word which is red, which makes it vibrant, therefore it stands out. The font is fairly askew, which relates to how 'swagger' is quite cool and edgy. The barcode is also on the front which is common for a magazine to have. I can't tell if the price is at the bottom, but usually that is situated around the barcode or on the top right hand corner.



This is another example of a music magazine called XXL. The name of the magazine stands out as it's the only part which has red in it. The artist 'Ludacris', is covering part of the name, which suggests that it is popular enough that people can easily establish the magazine. It allows the main image to stand out. I prefer the close up/ medium shot as it covers more space, therefore the image looks bold and impressive, which catches your eye. The layout is simple, but looks well structured. They have used a bold font, which fits in nicely with the layout. The colours are simple, with only black and white being used, which again emphasies more on the image.
They have used a 'sell line'' 'Rapper ternt actor'. This draws in people's attention as it's changing the agenda. The magazine uses formal language, but as he is a rapper, they have linked in american 'slang' in what you could call another sell line. 'Ludacris will shoot yo' a$$'. They have used dollar signs for the 's' which contrasts well with the genre he is in. It's also the only font which is yellow, which makes it significant.
For my festival ,R&B magazine, these components will make it easy to establish the genre, although, there will need to be an element in it which makes it obvious that it is based on festivals. There will need to be particular elements which establish that.


This music magazine is called NME. The name of the magazine and the artists name, 'Mia' stand out compared to to the rest of the magazine. It's a good technique to use as they've used a quote from the content inside, which shows that she is making a statement. Consumers feel more attracted to buy the product when you show subtly the artist has an interesting interview. The font is similar to the magazine above. They have used 3 consistent colours again,(Red, white and black). They have matched the font colours with her outfit(Union jack colours). This could be emphasising on her british roots.  The characteristics of the magazine are fairly similar to the other magazines, with the barcode at the bottom right hand corner. Although, the price is in the opposite top hand corner. I think it keeps it simple and less crowded. Personally, i prefer that layout.
They have used a medium shot, which also looks as good as a close up/medium shot. As my magazine is based on festivals, i'm starting to think that a medium shot would be the best option. It establishes the clothing, therefore it will elaborate on the festival theme. 
Her eyes are slanted down slightly, which makes it seem as if she's looking down at you. She's smoking as well- contrasted with the baggy clothing, and messy hair, this image links together well, showing a care-free attitude. I've noticed that with each magazine cover, everything has a connection, whether it being the font matching the colour of the artists clothing, or the props used, which relates to the pose and attitude the artist has.

SURVEY MONKEY

My questionnaire/Results


The link below will lead you to my questionnaire. Would be really helpful if you could answer my questions.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HCVC983

These were the results I obtained. I only analysed certain questions, as I felt they were most important.


This clearly shows me that the audience my Music Magazine will attract will be 16-20 years. They were the overall majority, gaining a percentage of 52%.  That's over half of the people who took the questionnaire.                                                                              


As we can see, the concept of a festival magazine is very popular. 83% have chosen yes, which suggests that there is an ideal market for festival magazines. It clearly shows that there is a market out there for a 'festival music magazine'.



From these results, I know that performance(costumes and production) is the type of content which will interest consumers. Although, the next popular option was to incorporate an element of all 3, therefore I shall focus mainly on the performance, although I will consider adding in there feelings towards it, as consumers like to respond to the artist they are reading about.

  I chose the words which were listed most often, as well as the ones which related most to how I think festivals are perceived. From this, it's easy to analyse the perception that people have or feel when they think of a festival. I've decided that the name of my magazine will be called 'Chaos'. I think it sums up the atmosphere and the general feel that people get when they go to festivals. It can be chaotic in such good ways, sometimes bad, but that generally forms in to the crazy memories, which make the expierence worth it.



 
I've only analysed a few of the results, as these were the main results I needed to help me create my music magazine.

Thursday, 31 January 2013

QUESTIONNAIRE

This is part of the questionnaire I have created. There will be a link to survey monkey, which will allow you to answer my questions.

Wednesday, 30 January 2013

MAGAZINE RESEARCH

In order for me to achieve the type of magazine I would like to create, I will need to research other R&B magazines. I need to focus on the way they present their material. For example, the way they present their images: clothing, poses(facial expressions, body positioning),background. The image of the magazine is very important!
Also, I will need to look at font and colour. These are elements which will portray the type of genre i am focusing on.
As it will be based on festivals that R&B artists have gone too, I will also need to reasearch how to incorporate that concept in to my magazine to make it recognisable that's what the magazine is about. The imagery and colours will also need to represent a festival theme. I feel the font type and colour of the name of the magazine needs to represent this, as well as having a symbol or piece of writing that refers to festivals.

QUESTIONNAIRE

My questionnaire will be up tomorrow! It would be really good if you could answer the questions so I can get some feedback and collect more ideas.

FESTIVAL MAGAZINE

I personally feel that R&B is the genre that I will pick. This is purely because I have a bigger interest in the music, therefore I am more engaged with the artists in the genre and feel I know more about it. I am still using my questionnare as a way of understanding the specific requirements that should be included in my magazine. I've decided that I am doing a festival magazine. Festivals have become more mainstream recently. They used to aim mainly at rock genres, where as now many R&B, Pop artists have entered that scene and it has become very successful. I think the concept of the magazine will be interesting to do and I think it will work really well.

Thursday, 24 January 2013

DECIDING ON GENRE

I'm still deciding what genre to pick, but I have narrowed it down to 3 options. It includes: R&B, Rock and Pop. I need to do some research in to each genre and find out the audience and market for them. Once I have analysed this, it will become easier for me to understand the genre that I feel is most appropriate for the magazine I want to produce. I have also created a questionnaire to support my ideas and directly find out what people prefer.