Magazine genre research

The music genre I will be representing in my magazine will be pop.
About pop music:
 

Pop music comes from the word popular and simply means that the music defined as ‘pop music’ was just the music that was most popular. It ranges back from the 1800s and has a wide spectrum in terms of tones, pitches and styles.

As a genre, pop music is very eclectic, often borrowing elements from other styles including urban, dance, rock, Latin and country; nonetheless, there are core elements which define pop. Such include generally short-to-medium length songs, written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), as well as the common employment of repeated choruses, melodic tunes, and catchy hooks.

So-called "pure pop" music, such as power pop, features all these elements, using electric guitars, drums and bass for instrumentation; in the case of such music, the main goal is usually that of being pleasurable to listen to, rather than having much artistic depth. Pop music is generally thought of as a genre, which is commercially recorded and desires to have a mass audience appeal.

Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. Pop artists include Katy Perry, Rihanna, Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, One Direction, and Bruno Mars. Pop music is often aimed at youth.

According to Simon Frith pop music is produced "as a matter of enterprise not art", is "designed to appeal to everyone" and "doesn't come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste". It is "not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward ... and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative". It is, "provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below ... Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged". Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal “and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry.

My magazine will be influenced by the magazine “classic pop” which focuses on eighties electronic electric. I chose this because of the eccentric make up and the abstract outfits. I also think that pop music is very catchy and makes people feel good because the style is very upbeat. I’d like my magazine to have a feel good feeling to it and for it to influence people.

Sources used: Wikipedia

Magazine evalutation 3

The masthead is big and bold which shows they are targeted towards a certain audience and music genre. The font makes it seem like it has been cracked and this shows the aggressive style to the magazine, along with the use of a question mark; which suits the heavy metal/rock genre it is addressed to.
There is a colour scheme of black, white, yellow and pink. All of these colours contrast with each other and therefore make the entire text stand out. They have also matched Hayley William’s lipstick with the shocking pink background for the text to keep to the scheme. The magazine in white contrast completely with the black background, this is also seen with the feature stories because they have been given a background which contrasts with the text, such as pink background for white text and black backgrounds for yellow texts. The models have been dressed in black to stand out from Hayley’s orange hair and pastel pink top. She is the lead singer and the only female which makes her stand out, and the reason for her positioning and her differentiation between herself and her band members.
The cover line is made to be bigger than any other texts besides the title. This is to make the reader know that this is the main story they are featuring and will have a double page spread inside of the magazine. They have positioned it so that it is slanted with the angle the model is at so that it breaks up the conventions of having the texts coming from the edges towards the centre.  The colours contrast with each other well and stick to only white and pink; this shows that the texts are linked together. This can be seen with the other texts also where the title is in yellow and the description or sub-title is in white.
The fonts differ depending on their position and what they are advertising. The bottom right corner is an example of this because the font is different to that of the plug above it. This is to catch the reader’s eye and show there is something different being advertised. The font sizes are also different to each other. This is due to space consumption and importance. To advertise the extra things and make the reader feel like they’re getting their money’s worth, they have added “PLUS” twice. One of them is in a bigger font to make it stand out against the smaller text around it – this is also applicable to the “WIN!” at the bottom left. These are similar to the plug “7-DAY ROCK GUIDE” to make it contrast with the texts around them; in which case the plug has none so it has a pink ring around it, making it stand out against the black background.
The texts are positioned around the band so that they are still the main feature. This is applied with the cover lines but also the masthead. The magazine is well known and therefore having some of the letters covered up by the band is acceptable because people will still recognise the magazine. Their poses and expressions are representative of the music genre and show they have attitude and are serious about their music. The pictures in the bottom left also represent the music genre and the attitude the music is associated with.
The price and publish date are at the bottom left corner which shows the barcode out of the way of the rest of the magazine. The price suggests that the target audience is for ages 16-27 and those with an interest in live gigs and instruments due to the guitar advertised above it.

Magazine evaluation 2

The masthead “Rolling Stone” is very well known and therefore Lady Gaga, who is featured, is placed in front it. The colour red stands out to the reader as it is contrasted with the background but also the white outline it has. It is made to look chunky and 3D by using a black shadow with the font. Similar to other magazines, the masthead is positioned at the top of the magazine and it covers the entire left to right so that there is no mistake to this being the magazine’s name.
The main colours featured are red, black, peach/orange and white. These colours are very bold but because the background isn’t white, but graduated blue, it doesn’t stand out as much as it would otherwise. The magazine has matched these colours due to the masthead and the models lipstick. The models skin colour also contributes to the main colours also because it’s a peachy white.
The cover line is not as obvious as most, however, the font is bigger and it overlaps her hair which none of the other stories do. By using a bigger font it makes it stand out more and catches the reader’s eye more than the other ones below. The first red text is also the main feature, linking to the cover line, which makes it stand out. The text is all positioned to the right of the magazine due to the fact Lady Gaga is looking towards the left. If there were text on the left, the reader would ignore the text on the right, because the model suggests that the left is more important. This also makes the plug stand out because it’s on its own on the right hand side of the magazine and the colours are very contrasting with the background and the title/hair.
The image of Lady Gaga is positioned centrally and is the entire stretch of the magazine. This shows that she is the main story featured. She is one of the biggest artists in the world and having her on this magazine ensures more readers because of her popularity. She is dressed to match the colour scheme with her skin tone, hair colour, black bra/eye makeup and red lipstick. Her expression is neutral and calm which contrasts with her cover line of “Monster goddess, a wild week with lady gaga”. This makes her image and persona to be laid back and that nothing is too much of a challenge for her.
The fonts are all the same but different sizes which creates simplicity. They have changed the font colour to red on the most important or significant words of the stories, such as “Lady Gaga” and “The voice” which readers are all familiar with. The font for the masthead remains the same because that is the most prominent feature of the magazine and how it is identified.
The price and the publish date are placed at the top right of the magazine above the masthead. This is to keep it out of the way, but still be noticed. Due to the price, this suggests that the target audience is 15-24 and those interested in music.

Magazine evaluation 1

The masthead is big, bright and bold. This will instantly attract the audience’s attention and will make the brand more recognisable. The font used for it is plain and bold which suggests that the magazine is very confident in its success that it doesn’t need to expand it across the whole top section of the magazine. Beneath the masthead is the definition of ‘NME’ for those who are not familiar with the magazine and don’t know what it stands for. It also gives an indication towards which kind of magazine it is i.e. music, gossip, or fashion.

The main cover line is “RIHANNA” which is placed directly in the middle of the magazine and stands out well because the pink contrasts with Rihanna’s black top and the white writing beneath it. The font is a similar height to the title which shows that it is important and the main story inside the magazine. The font is different however; it’s a lot skinnier and more suitable for the positioning of it.

The central image is of Rihanna. She stands out well because her colours are contrasted with the font colours surrounding her.  Her makeup is bold and striking in comparison to what she is wearing and the white background. Her pose shows that she has attitude and confidence. She has a bird positioned on her shoulder which could be symbolising her freedom or simply a fashion statement. She is making direct eye contact with the reader which makes them feel more engaged with the story.  Her body is positioned in the centre yet she’s leaning towards the left and this is where the eye usually goes to first when looking at a magazine. Her face is below the title and this also would make the reader become more interested because they’ll see she is the main feature and will want to purchase it more. She has not been placed in front of the text because she is very well known and the only thing that is being covered is her hair, which isn’t reducing the chances of her being recognised.  The main colours are white, pink, white, black and blue. This particular colour scheme is very modern and is aimed for younger audiences who are interested in music and fashion and aged around 15-25.

Contents page for preliminary task

School magazine draft

Evaluation (preliminary task)