Analysis into three different types of music magazine covers

Here i have analysed three different types of music magazines front covers. 

R&B/HipHop

Classical

Rock/Indie

Completing this research has allowed me to see the difference in colours and layout between different genres of music magazine. This will help me in the future to see how my Rock/Indie magazine should look like and what not to make it look like using the two examples of a Classical and R&B/HipHop music above. I will need to make further research into the double page spread and contents page of my chosen music genre. 

Research into similar products (magazine Influences)

As i have now decided on my chosen genre of music, i am now able to start researching other music magazines to influence me when completing my main task. Two indie rock magazines that I will aim to influence me with my magazine are Kerrang and Q magazine. 
When completing my main task of my own music magazine, i will start to look at how the front covers, contents pages and double page spreads are all layed out in these two magazines and possibly others.  

Drafting/Planning of magazine (My chosen genre!)

Based on the research into the two different types of music, Pop and Indie/rock, I was able to decide on which genre of music I am going to base my main task on. 

I have decided that i will base my own music magazine on Indie/Rock music. I have chosen this genre as i think i will be able to give my magazine a more specific target audience and Indie/Rock music is also a more recognizable genre of music. Another reason for this is there are more magazines that are based on this genre of music then there are Pop so i can use these magazines to help me gain ideas and know what look i should be aiming for my magazine to have. 

I will now begin to make research into magazines that provide me with influences for my main task, codes and conventions of that particular type of magazine and begin to create bands/artists for my music magazine!

Research into my magazine genre of music, potential target audience and similar products

Now that i have completed my preliminary task, I am starting to gather ideas into my genre of music I am going to base my main task of a music magazine on. I am either going to chose my genre to be Rock/Indie or Pop music.

Rock/Indie

Background information
Indie/rock music were both genres of music that started off as 'rock and roll' around the 1980's in the from of Grunge, indie rock and britpop. Ever since rock/indie music has made its way through many cultural and social movements such as the Mods and Rockers in the UK. Rock music has also had an influence on changes on social attitudes such as drug use, sex and race. This now may be portrayed through their images in modern day society.

Target audience
Based on an online survey, I was able to see that the main target audience for Indie rock music is between the age of 16-25. This survey also showed me that the main gender that listen to the music is males, however a large amount of females also listen to this genre of music. 

To make sure this information was correct, i completed some research into magazines which supported this genre of music. One of these magazines was NME. It is published by IPC and i was able to research its target audience via the IPC website. 
The IPC website said that Indie/rock music 'intensely engaged audiences of 16-24 year olds'. This successfully supported the data that i had researched from the online survey. The website also showed me that the target audience was from '66% male and 34% female'. This suggested to me that the online surveys data wasn't entirely accurately for me to base my target audience on. 
From this research completed I now know that if i was to make indie rock my chosen genre of music for my main task, I would have to base it on  a target audience of mainly men and some women between the age group of 16-25. 

Based on my target audience age range, I am able to make a judgement that most people are;
- Students
- Spend a lot of time with friends
- Listen to music on the go (ipod/phone) 
- Shop in high street shops such as Urban outfitters/Topshop/HMV/Vintage

Again, based on this imformation i am able to know what my type of audience is going to look like...

Knowing what my likely target audience will look like will allow me to know whether my magazines appearance looks as though it will fit my target audience or not. 

Similar magazines

If I to chose Indie rock as my chosen genre, it is important that i know what sort of magazines do a similar genre of music as mine. Due to my research i was able to find out that magazines such as NME, Kerrang, Rock and Q magazines are similar/the same as my chosen genre.

If i chose indie rock as my chosen genre of music, then I will need to make research into these magazines and gain ideas for my main task. 

Pop

Background information

Pop music is a term that originates from the word 'popular' music. This genre of music originates from the 1950's and has became even more popular ever since. Pop music borrows elements of music from urban, dance, rock and even latin music. Pop music is seen as a genre of music that has a mass market and makes music to appeal to most people. 

Target audience

Even though pop music is seen as a genre of music that appeals to a large mass market, it is mainly targeted at young teens from age a age range of around 13-17. From my research, i also found out that pop music is also more popular within the gender of girls rather then boys. 

Based on this i am also able to make a judgement on what my target audience will be like;

- Students

- Spend alot of time with friends

- Listen to music on the go

- Into girly subjects 

- Shop in high street stores such as Newlook, Miss selfridge and Forever 21

Again based on this i can properly predict what my target audience for my magazine will look like...

Similar magazines

If i chose Pop as my genre, it is important that i know what similar magazines to my genre of music look like. From my research i found that magazines such as Top of the pops, glamour,seventeen and glamour are all magazines which suit my genre of pop music. If i choose Pop as my genre of music, i will need to do more research into this genre so that i know how my magazine should look and begin to gain ideas for my main task.

Completing this research task has enabled me to gain knowledge into different types of music and help me decide what genre i will use. 

Preliminary Task!

For my preliminary task, I had to create a school magazine. This included a front cover and contents page as shown.

As i wanted to base my school magazine on sixth from, i chose to use a student from the sixth form in a medium close up for my main image on the front cover. I did this as it would make it clear to my target audience (the sixth form) that it would appeal to them and had topics which they would be able to relate to. 

I also chose my main cover 'New Sixth Form Head Boy', as it related directly to the main image of my front cover. I knew that this was a good thing to do as when completing my research  i found of that the main image and main headline always link together. 

Based on my questionnaire  I was able to gather information about what the sixth form wanted to read about and what would interest them. One of the questions asked on my questionnaire was 'would you like it to be information based or have actives '. My feedback on this question as that 50% of the sixth form wanted a mixture of both.  Because of this, I decided that i would include information pages such as 'Upcoming events' and 'Message from Mr Foley'. However to achieve the balance of what people wanted, I also included activities such as 'Win a brand new laptop' and 'Weekly maths quiz'. 

Based on the codes and conventions task i had already completed, I was able to use it to help me complete this magazine.I used my knowledge of what went wrong and tried to correctly apply it this time round. An example of this was how i tried to keep my front cover quite plain so that my main cover line wouldn't be mistaken for any of the other cover lines - it was clear. I also used what went well on my codes and conventions task to help me complete this. An example of this would be the colour consistency of red and black. I did this so that looked professional, but also so that it matched the genre of magazine being a 'STACS' magazine. 

My typography used was one that was bold, but also very smart so that it again matched my genre of music chosen being a sixth form magazine. This would also appeal to my chosen target audience and was very appropriate. 

I chose for my contents page to be kept quite plain and simple as i didn't want it to be too busy and take the audiences focus off what was inside of the magazine. I also did this as generally, for genres like sixth form magazines, the contents pages are kept quite simple. 

Completing this task has again allowed me to improve my skills on how to make a magazine which will help me when completing my main task. Also, it will be beneficial for me to look back on and take inspiration from the good aspects of my magazine, and improve upon the things that weren't as good. 

Self assessment of codes and conventions task

Looking back at this completed task i am now able to assess my work and see what went well but also what i could have improved. 

For each of my magazine covers, i tried to make sure that all the typography used, chosen articles etc have been used so that they reflect the genre of the magazine. I tried to make sure that the colours of the fonts used were all co-notated well and complemented each other  I did this so that the magazine looked professional and could show that thought was put into my magazine covers.Although i did all of this to try and make my magazine look professional and fit all the codes and conventions, there are elements of it that i could definitely improve. 

An example of this would be my 'M' jazz cover magazine. 

Although i have tried to make the magazines main headline clear by putting it in the center of the page along with the biggest font used, the main headline may not have been successfully recognized as the front cover is too 'busy' with a lot of headlines used. Although there are aspects of this magazine i could improve, i can also use the good aspects of my magazine in the future when coming to create my own music magazine. 

An example of this on this particular magazine cover would be how the colours all con notate and fit the specific genre of music. Yellow and white are very bright colours which could be accosicated with the jazz music as it is lively and upbeat not dull accosiating with a colour such as black. 

To enhance my codes and conventions task blog post, i could have changed the layout of my blog post. By this i could have posted the magazine covers with a description individually instead of putting it into one post. My reasoning for this is because when looking back on my posts in the future it will be easier for me to use and apply similar ideas when creating my own magazine. 

Another improvement i could have made was reducing the amount of text that i chose to add onto the magazine cover. My reasoning for this is most music magazine covers are quite plain and don't have too much text. This is so that the main image and headline are clear for the audience to engage their interests. 

Even though i can make a few improvements on this task, it was worth while completing and beneficial for me as i can now refer back to these and see where i went wrong. Highlighting to me where i went wrong on my magazines will make sure that i don't make the same mistakes when i come to completing my main task. I can also use this to gain inspiration from the positive things i have managed to achieve in making my magazine cover to try and make my main task the best possible music magazine i can create. Finally this has also allowed me to improve my ICT skills with making magazine covers. I now have more knowledge on how to create these but also have got better at making them due to the practice. 

Codes and Conventions of a magazine task

For this task, I have put together 5 magazine covers which suit the codes and conventions of the music genre. I have tried to use suitable typography and language techniques which will suit the genre. I have completed this task so that i can practice my skills and refer back to my planning when i come to designing my own music magazine. 

1) M - Drake - Here I identified the the genre of music to be predominately R&B/HipHop. As this is the genre of music for the magazine, I aimed to make the magazine fit these codes and conventions using the right typography and actually language of the headers relating to topics within this genre. Generally, this genre of music appeals to a younger target market such as teens and young adults. To attract this target market, i made reference to similar artists that would appeal to this target market such as Rihanna and Nicki-Minaj. I decided to base articles about these artists on the left third of my magazine as it is the vital selling point of the magazine and will attract the attention of my target market. I also linked the main image of Drake to the main cover line, this is so that it shows links between the image and whats inside of the magazine informing my target audience of whats inside without completely taking the focus off my main image. I also tried to keep the colours of my font consistent  so that the magazine looks professional. I also tried to make links between promotions and topics within the magazine. An example of this would be 'Drake started from the bottom, now his album hits top spot'. This links the the promotion of winning Drakes new Album as his album is called 'Started from the bottom'.

2) M - Jazz - Based on the picture used, i decided to give the magazine a genre of Jazz. To fulfill this genre of music, i have used a 'jazzy' font to make it clear to my target audience. I aimed to keep the colours bright and vibrant also to portray the genre of music, but also kept the colours consistent so that the magazine looks professional.  I decided to put the name of the band clearly on the left third along with the mast head and promotion so that it attracts the main target audience. I centered my main cover line and put in the biggest font out of all the cover lines so that it was clear it was the main cover line. However, my magazine cover may be seen to look a bit too busy and this could be distracted by the other cover lines on the magazine cover. Despite this, i can still use it when i am completing my own music magazine cover so that it gives me guidance on what to do and what not to do. 

3) Pitch - Marilyn Manson - This genre i decided to make a Gothic/Rock magazine based on the main image. I decided to use Gothic blood like font on the magazine to try and suit this genre of music. The red font colour is used to con notate blood and death which is what the main image of Marilyn Manson tries to portray, i did this to link the main image to my typography used. This would also then appeal to the target audience of the magazine. Again, i have put the name of the artist in the left third of my magazine along with the masthead as this will further attract my target audience to the magazine. 

4) Music_x - Bjork - This genre of music could possible appeal to a sort of Cult genre, so I had chosen for this to be my genre of music. As i thought that the background was quite boring on the music magazine, i tried to make the cover more interesting. I have included promotions and band names on the left third of my magazine to again attract the target audience to my magazine. I have also kept the colours consistent on the cover to make it look professional but also so that they all go together well. I have chosen to place my main cover line above the main image of Bjork as i wanted to make it one of my main focuses and not take the focus off the main image. However, this may be seen as a negative as its not visual when looking at the left third of the magazine. This could be used as usual feedback when creating my magazine cover. The typography used was plain but also bold which i thought suited the cult genre and also mysterious look of the main image. 

5) Sound - Kings Of Leon - I decided that the genre of this magazine was quite indie/rock based on the main image of The Kings Of Leon. The font used was quite edgy being in bold but mainly suited the rock/indie theme. As the main image takes up a lot the the cover i decided to try and keep the cover simple so that the attention wasn't taken off the band. The left third shows topic of interviews with bands which the target audience would be attracted to. My main cover line is in the middle of the page. I decided to keep this simple, however at the bottom of the page go into a bit more detail to insure i engage the target audiences interests. The fonts used were kept consistent on the magazine to achieve more of a professional look for my magazine. The white font was able to symbolize the bands reborn stardom as they have now joined back after their split, but also the passion that they may have for their music. 

On all of my magazine covers i included a price, date line and URL address. This is because these are vital selling points of a magazine cover and will always be used on magazine covers. 

This task enabled me to  experiment making with making magazine covers and improve my skill in making them. This will also help me to make a good magazine cover myself as i can refer back to this which will help me to know what to do and what not do when making my own. 

Typography task!

During this task, we had to identify what cover best suited the magazine 'Vibes' based on the main image, cover line font and masthead. We did this by learning what the term 'typography' was, 'The art and technique of arranging movable type'. Using this knowledge, it helped us to see if the texts font represented the correct meaning that the magazine wanted to get across. 

My least cover was magazine C. My reason being for that was because the font used for the cover line is in 'comic sans' font. This would not be suitable for the magazine cover as this font generally, is used for children's book and may come across as the magazine being very childish. Another reason being is that the main image is a contrast between glamorous and mechanic. This font however doesn't portray this type of typography to the target audience of the magazine and may give off the wrong impression. 

Another magazine i cover i was not fond of was cover A. My reason being for this, is the font used usually associated with news papers and more serious topics as a pose to a music magazine. This typography therefore makes the magazine seem as though it is more serious which would completely go against the codes and conventions of a music magazine and have to potential not to appeal to the target audience. 

One of my more favorable magazine covers was cover B. My reasoning for this is because i think that the font used definitely suits the main image. The font is bold and stands out at the target audience. The bold first letters makes an impact on the audience and draws their attention to the magazine. 

My favorite cover out of all of them however is definitely cover E. My reason for this is that the font that is used links to the main image of Lady Gaga showing the right side of her face covered in machinery. The font choice reflects this machinery look as it looks as though it has been typed by some sort of old machinery and givers the whole magazine a robotic sort of look. This has successfully shown the infereal meaning of the magazine, trying to portray Gaga as being a 'machine mutha', as it shows successful links between the main image and the cover line. The font used also suits the actual masthead which shows consistency throughout the magazine making it portray more of a 'professional' look.  

This task will help me when I come to completing my main task of a music magazine as i will be able to refer back to this to give me guidance on the particular types of fonts used for different magazines. It shows me how important it is to show consistency throughout my magazine in order for it to be successful  but also shows me the importance of typography so that my magazine really engages with the audience when i come to producing it.