Audience Quesionnaire

1.  What gender are you?
• Male
• Female
2. How old are you?
• 14 - 16
• 17 -19
3. What is your preferred genre of music to listen to?
• Pop
• Rock
• Indie
• RnB
• Hip Hop
• Metal
• Pop Punk
• Dubstep
• Other (please specify)
4. What interests you most in a music magazine?
• Interviews
• Reviews
• Posters / pictures
• Celebrity gossip
• Up & coming artists
• Concerts and gigs
• Question and answer
• Events
• Other (please specify)
5. How much money would you be willing to pay for a music magazine?
• £1 - £2
• £2 - £3
• £3 - £4
• £4 +
6. What appeals you most about the front cover of a music magazine?
• The name
• The cover photo
• The music featured
• The coverlines (stories)
7. Who are some of your favourite celebrities (artists)?
• _______________________________________

Billboard Cover Analysis

Billboard magazine is named after the billboard charts in the US. The magazine is focused on current music and features celebrities that are at the top of the charts. It appeals to people who like all music genres as, inside the magazine, there is a chart list from lots of different genres.

The colours used in this cover of Billboard magazine are very mature colours as this issue features Eminem's comeback after going through a rough time. He wants to seem more mature and serious about his music. In his picture, he has his hand over his heart, a gesture people usually do when they are grateful for something. This is probably aimed at his fans, and even God, as he's a Christian. His facial expression is serious and he looks very clean indicating a fresh start to his life. The lighting causes the picture to be of high contrast, adding to the serious feel. This clothing is dark and causal, unlike his previous clothing style that made him look very immature.

Billboard's logo is used on every magazine as the masthead, to keep it consistent for the reader and easily recognisable. The coverlines stay off of Eminem's face to show him to be of high importance and the main feature in the magazine. The colour scheme is lime green, white and black, which make the magazine look mature but not boring. The fonts are all very similar as the article about Eminem will be a serious article, and the cover needs to give of that impression. If there are too many different types of fonts, the focus is taken away from the seriousness of this issue.

The magazine mentions lots of different artists such as Drake, Tom Petty, Mike Posner, Enrique Iglesias and others, making it appeal to a lot of readers. Billboard is a magazine that appeals to lots of music producers, DJs, record labels, artists, etc. So articles abnout the Emi's are very much appealling.

Q Magazine Analysis

Q magazine a popular music magazine and has a wide target audience range because many different genres of music is mentioned in the magazine. Q magazine is well known for their review section where the review different music, films, television shows and lots of other things.

Using colours such as pink and yellow make this issue of the magazine appeal to women as these are girly colours. There are also colours such as black, white and red making the magazine not just specific for women, as Q magazine appeals to a lot of males too. There are also a variety of fonts so the front cover looks more interesting. As the cover photo is a picture of Lana Del Rey, her name is the biggest on the cover of the magazine, showing that she is the featured article in the magazine. Lots of magazines like to use fonts that look like handwriting, such as what Q have done with Lana Del Rey's name. This makes the cover look more exciting . It also helps with Lana Del Rey's image of rebellion. As there are other artists mentioned such as Jay-Z, Kanye West and Kings of Leon, it shows that Q tries to feature a large range of music genres so that their magazine can appeal to a lot of people.

In the picture of Lana Del Rey, she has blood dripping down her face. This very much reflects her image of being unique and quite hostile. Her songs can be quite dark, and she is not smiling in this photo. This photo has been particularly chosen because she would like to give off an image to her fans and the viewer of this magazine of being quite weird and different. This is not casual like the pictures from Kerrang! magazine, as you would probably not see Lana Del Rey going out with fake blood on her face and a tiara. The photo also shows what she's wearing. White is usually a colour that signifies purity, and this contrasts with the fact that she has blood on her face with isn't seen as pure. The white and red also fits in with the colour scheme as you can see coverlines around her that are white and red. The coverline at the bottom says 'So What's So Bloody Good?' referring to the blood going down her face in this picture. This shows that magazine to have a sense of humour (even if that was a terrible joke) and that the article will be enjoyable and not a completely serious read.

The strapline at the top is in a zigzag pattern and it very colourful, showing that the magazine is fun. All the coverlines are around the magazine and do not overlap the cover photo too much. Her face is completely clear from any text, which shows it to be of most importance. The fonts used, the sizez and colours are relevant to what it says. Such as the '26 festivals to blow your minds' is written in a fun, festival styled font. It is prioritised by putting it in it's own graphic, made bright yellow and the writing is capitalised, this shows that that article is a main feature in the magazine.

 

It is likely that this is one of 2 or 3 contents  pages from this particular issue.

The contents page is very similar to the one from Kerrang!, except the colours are much more simple, sticking to just black, red and white. The pages and page numbers are on the left side of the page. The title of the pages are capitalised to indicate that that's the page name, and there is a description underneath of what's on the page, but this is in lower case so the reader can easily pick out the title. The page number is next to the title, it uses the same graphics in each magazine when numbering the pages to keep it consistent and memorable for the reader.

 

At the top, the headline clearly shows it's a contents page and it has the Q magazine logo and slogan underneath. The 'Q' logo is on every page in the magazine, this makes the logo memorable for the reader without them even noticing.

 

There are pictures on the contents page to make it more appealing. The pictures are relevent to the article they are from, and it states on the picture the page number in which they can find the article. The picture of Lana Del Rey is similar to the one on the cover, except it is an extreme close up. The magazine have done this to look as if they have cropped the photo straight from the article to make it look as if there is a lot more to see and reader. This makes the reader interested to see more as it makes Lana Del Rey look mysterious. The other pictures are more casual, they are less glamourous asthey are not featured so much in the magazine. They are smaller to make Lana's article seem more important. 

 

 

In this double page spread, a picture of Lana Del Rey is covering the whole of the left page and the article is on the right. Lana has her eyes closed, the picture is very staged and the colours are very unatural. This makes her seem more glamourous and this is not how you would see her in her everyday life. It's a very dark and sinister looking photo, which reflects a lot of her songs. This is how she would like to be portrayed to the media. The lighting causes a lot of contrast to add to the sinister feel. You cannot see much detail making her seem more mysterious.

 

The layout is very simple, the big lettering clearly indicates where the main article starts. In most of Q magazine's featured articles, they have a background graphic of a large letter from the start of the article, which makes it easily recognisable that it's Q magazine. There is a short introduction before the article actually starts about how she got on during the photoshoot. To differentiate this from the main article, the text is bigger and not part of a column. The introduction is quite dark and deep, using words like 'demonic', describing her as 'bruised and broken', making the reader want to read on.

 

The writing style is not too serious to make it boring, but the language is informative and not too informal or taboo. This makes the article seem more truthful as it gives off the impression of facts to the reader instead of chatty, informal language that sounds like casual gossip. We cannot see the questions asked by the interview themselves, but we can see direct quotes from Lana in the article, making it more interesting and personal for the reader. Especially the quote where she states the picture of her being 'bruised and broken' is her life, this intrigues the readers from the start.

Kerrang! Analysis

Kerrang! magazine is based to an audience that listen to the bands and musicians that are featured in this magazine. The magazine is based mostly around the rock/metal and pop punk genre. This music is usually loud consisting mainly of electric guitars and drums.

This is a cover or Kerrang! magazine. At the very top there is a strapline stating what the magazine features inside. They are other bands that are regularly mentioned in the magazine. The masthead is behind the cover photo. The magazine is called 'Kerrang!' because it resembles the noise a guitar makes when you strum it. There is an exclamation mark to show that the music is loud. The writing is also in capitals to show this. The mashead has an effect to look like it's cracked, as glass cracks through the vibrations of loud noises.

 

The cover photo is of a band called 'You Me At Six' which has been featured on the front of many Kerrang! issues. The lead singer is at the front and the rest of the band members are behind him. They are all wearing casual outfits as their image is about keeping it real for their fans and not falling into the 'glamourous' celebrity catergory. The lead singer's facial expression isn't serious and it looks like he's having fun and showing off his personality. The rest of the band members look casual, like they're not trying to hard, emphasising their image of keeping it real. The banner goes across the magazine to give a cluttered feel as the magazine is about music that is different and not mainstream.

 

Inside every Kerrang! magazine, there are posters inside where readers like to collect and stick on their walls. The cover usually shows what posters are in the magazine on the front of the cover to make the reader interested in buying the magazine if they see one of their favourite bands or artists on the cover.

 

There is another strapline on the bottom of the magazine to mention all the other bands and artists that are featured in the magazine.

 

All the writing written on the magazine is written in capital letters and there is no variation in fonts used. However, there is a difference in colours and sizes, showing what writing is of most importance and what the magazine wants the reader to look at first.

 

The contents page also uses the same type of font for most of its text. The heading at the top uses Kerrang!'s logo and indicates that this is the contents page. There is also mention of the issue number and the cover date which is on the front of the magazine but not of high importance.

 

The pages are split into individual sections called 'feedback', 'news', 'win!', 'live reviews', 'posters', 'features', 'reviews', 'gig guide' and 'the K! quiz' which is the same with every issue of the magazine. This makes it easy for the reader to locate what they are most interested in in the magazine. 

 

Most of the page is covered with pictures from articals in the magazine. It clearly states what page you can find the featured pictures on and you can read additional information about certain pages on the contents page list. The main picture on this page is of Tay Jardine from the band 'We Are The In Crowd'. She is also not a 'glamourous' celebrity as her outside is very casual, she is not wearing makeup any different to what she would wear on a casual day out and her pose is showing off her care-free personality. She is smiling and not taking herself too seriously. There are other images taken from inside the magazine to show the reader what the page looks like inside to make the reader want to read the featured articles.

 

At the bottom of the page there is a letter from the editor where he can talk to the readers, this makes the reader able to see the person who make the magazine on a more personal level.The editor also includes a picture that is not so serious to make him seem more real to the reader.

 

The main colours used on the contents page are blue, yellow and black. Black and yellow is used a lot in Kerrang! magazine as they are colours that are normally assosicated with warning signs. As Kerrang! is about being different and loud and doing your own thing, this is highly appropriate.  

 

 

The title of this double page spread bleeds over both pages. The picture is well professionally edited as the main focus of the page (the picture) is brought to the front and the sofa in the background is at the back. The article is split into 3 columns which is common, making it easy for the reader to read as it is not all just one block of words, it's sectioned.

 

The language used is colloquial and friendly, the writer mentions lots of sarcastic jokes, even making fun of Ville Valo (band member of HIM). This makes the article enjoyable for the reader as well as being informative.

 

It is common for double spread pages to have all their information on one page and a picture on the other. The picture has a quote from the article that makes the reader want to read the full article. As the quote mentions a part in the interviewees life where things were difficult, the reader would be interested in this sort of information. There is also additional information that is not fit into the interview in an orange box on the right page next to the picture, which differentiates from the main article, making it easy to read for the reader because it in small chunks.

 

The colour scheme is orange, black and white. This is probably the only page in the magazine that has this colour scheme so the reader will not be bored through reading the magazine with the same colours showing up. It differs the article from the other articles making it memorable to the reader.

 

The picture used is not as casual as the other pictures in the magazine, as it looks very staged. It shows off his tattoos and his facial expression is serious. At the time of this interview, his band was going through a rough time and had not produced music in a long time, and had been dropped from Warner Brothers, which is what the article is interviewing Ville Valo about. His facial expression reflects this.

Magazine Comparison

Billboard Magazine:



 

Mojo Magazine:

 

Kerrang! Magazine:

Notes On Magazine Textbook

I looked at a book called ‘Exploring The Media’ which helped me gain an understanding for how magazines are made and published, what magazines need to think about whilst they are being made, such as their target audience, and how I can improve my music magazine. Unfortunately, this book doesn’t specify music magazines, but it does look at film and fashion/lifestyle magazines which have also been of help to me.

Magazines comes in a wide range of sub-genres, such as lifestyle magazine, comics, online editions. Virtual magazines have become more popular as more magazines are selling online editions and subscriptions online.

Magazines are different to newspapers, as they are more detailed, have less timely information, they feature more than just hard news and day-to-day stories. Magazines explore profile issues and there are usually only issues weekly/fortnightly/monthly, whereas newspapers are daily. Magazines are also more permanent, people like to keep them for longer and collecting magazine issues is very common. The content is also much more specialised, as the target audience is more precise.  

Magazine consumers appreciate information that is specifically aimed at their needs, they look for a magazine with content they would personally be interested in. Most magazines have a contents and an editor’s section. The editor’s section is a good feature to have, so the reader can have a personal insight to who’s behind the magazine.  

The cover is the face of the magazine, this is very important as it’s always on display. Readers must be able to tell by a glance if the magazine is for them. So magazine producers must make a stereotypical assumption about their audience by creating content the audience is likely to agree with.

The cover of a magazine usually consists of:

-          A masthead – title

-          Taglines/straplines – captions

-          Lure – free items offered by magazine

-          Cover photo

-          Celebrity endorsement – so the readers are interested in their favourite celebrities.

-          Bar code

-          Date

-          Price

Unfortunately, there is a decrease in circulation figures with many magazines nowadays and the competition is fierce. Magazines much keep up to date with new technology by creating their own websites and offering online services to their readers, such as e-mail updates, online subscriptions, etc.

Circulation/Readership Figures

Every year, there is usually a decrease in the number of magazines people buy as most of the information put into magazines can equally be found online. Most magazines also have a website in which they are able to interact with their audience virtually using online bulletin boards, newsletters, email subscriptions, advertising, online surverys and much more.

The magazines I've chosen to compare are Q magazine, Kerrang! magazine and Mojo magazine.

 

Q Magazine

Most of Q magazine's audience are male, aged 15-24. For 2012, their ABC profile was 70%. From 2003 to 2012, the readership has dropped by 567,000. In the same time period, the circularion has dropped 87,000.   

Kerrang! Magazine

Most of Kerrang! magazine's audience are also male 15-24 year olds. For 2012, their ABC profile was 51%, much less than Q's. From 2003 to 2012, the readership has dropped by 123,000. The circulation has dropped by 31,000.

Mojo Magazine

 

Significantly, most of Mojo magazine readers are males, aged 45-54. For 2012, the ABC profile was 59.5%. From 2003 to 2012, the readership dropped by 18,000. The circulation dropped by 16,000. These figures are much less than those of Q magazine and Kerrang! magazine. This is probably because Q and Kerrang! are made for a younger audience who have no resorted to looking up most of their information online instead of reading it in a magazine. Becacuse Mojo magazine's readers are mainly 45-54 year olds, they are less likely to go online as that may not appeal to them.