Front Cover of Music Magazine

This is the front cover of my music magazine. The music magazine I am doing is rap. This photo shows the stereotype for rap/hip-hop music which is generally a young black male who shows violence. This image shows these stereotypes due to there been a gun and sunglasses which is seen as violent. The male used for the image is opening his shirt and showing off the gun, giving the impression he is violent and isn't afraid to use the gun. This is stereotypical of rap artists and rap fans.

I have put the masthead big and clear at the top of the page so that the audience can easily see the name of the magazine.
The image is centred on the cover of the magazine making it clear and it spreads over most of the page.
I have put a number of story title's on either side of the magazine cover meaning that the reader can see what the magazine has inside just by looking at the front cover making the reader aware of what's inside this issue of  the magazine.
I have also put the price of £2.00 in the corner to show how much the magazine is.

mock up of Contents page

1.

2.

3.

These are ideas of how I could layout my contents page. By putting The 'Story Title, Introduction and page number' together it means that the reader will be able to read a little bit about the story to get them interested and then they will see the page number of what the full story is on. The image related to the story is to give the reader that slight bit of entertainment and to give them a bit of recognition towards the story.

I am most likely going to use a layout like number 3 for my contents page as the image dominates the page meaning that I could include one main image of the artist involved in the main story which gives the impression that the magazine is focused on that specific artist. Whereas 1&2 are balanced out between image and text which means that there will be too much text on the page. The context page should just include an image, story title with the page number of the story and a brief introduction to each of the main stories. 

Front Cover Image

This is going to be the image I am going to use as the front cover of my music magazine. The music magazine I am doing is rap. This photo shows the stereotype for rap/hip-hop music which is generally a young black male who shows violence. This image shows these stereotypes due to there been a gun and sunglasses which is seen as 'urban' and violent. The male used for the image is opening his shirt and showing off the gun, giving the impression he is violent and isn't afraid to use the gun. This is stereotypical of rap artists and rap fans.

Front cover photo ideas

The problem with this photo is that the lighting is bad as the shadow covers half of the shot and this is a medium shot rather than a close up

This photo could be used as the lighting is good, however there is a slight shadow to the left of the shot. 

The problem with this photo is that it is a medium shot and the model is not facing the camera  

This photo is a bad photo for the front cover because it is a long shot as you can see the full body of the model used.

The problem with this image is that the shot is a medium shot and not a close up. Also the lighting is bad as you can see a number of shadows that are easily noticeable.

This photo has bad lighting and it also is not a close up, therefore showing the top of the models legs. Also the model isn't looking down the camera.

This photo is a good photo as the shot is a close up and the model is looking down the camera. However there is a shadow in the background which is fairly noticeable. 

This photo is a bad photo because the lighting is bad as there is a shadow on the right side of the shot and the model isn't looking down the camera.

This photo is a bad photo because the lighting is bad as there is a shadow on the both sides of the shot and the model isn't looking down the camera.

Despite there been a shadow on the sides of the shot, this is a good image as it is a close up and the model is looking down the camera. Also the shot is in focus on the model, this then made the shot clear and it isn't blurry. 

This shot will not be used as the model is laughing and the lighting is also bad as there is a number of shadows 

The good thing about this shot is that the body language of the model is showing aggression which is stereotypical for rap music. However the lighting is bad as there is a big shadow taking up most of the shot.

This shot has bad lighting and the model isn't looking down the camera.

This shot has bad lighting which then caused a shadow at either side of the shot however the shot is in focus and 

The problem with this image is that the model is looking above the camera and isn't pulling a serious face.

This image has bad lighting, causing the shadow on the right of the shot which is highly noticeable, also the shot is a medium shot, rather than a preferred close up.

This image is a medium shot and has a shadow at either side of the shot, however the stance the model is in is showing aggression through body language. 

Google mock up

These are the mock ups I have made so far. This is my progress on Google mock ups so far.

I changed the mock up so that the text of 'Tyler The Creator' is in the middle of the magazine and has no background so that there isn't a white background covering the top Tyler is wearing. This still needs 'More Inside' adding to it

This is the final Google mock-up of Tyler The Creator, I added 'More Inside' since the last progress screenshot.

This is an example of how I would layout my magazine.

Target Audience

Audience research is important because...
It allows you to design the magazine to the target audiences general taste which in turn, increases sales.
It gives you a better understanding on what stories to include and who to base them on.

Questions I need to ask

How much you willing to pay (ask this to 5 people)

What artists would you like to see in the magazine

What kind of stories would interest you

What kind of colours would attract you

What kind of clothes would you expect to see from the models

How frequently would you like the magazine to be published (daily, weekly monthly)

Paper copy or electronic copy and why

What props do you associate with the genre

What do you want to see more in music magazines (mise-en-scene)

Demographics are set out into a table for target audience. There are six groups for the target audience. They are named group A, group B, group C1, group C2,group D and group E. 
In group A the target audience is towards your upper class people, such as Higher management in business, bankers, lawyers, doctors and other professionals that are in a high class.
Group B: is Middle management, this includes workers suck as teachers, creative and media people such as graphic designers.
Group C1: is Office supervisors, junior managers, nurses and specialist clerical staff. This is known as white collar.
Group C2: is skilled manual workers, this includes plumbers and builders. This is known as blue collar. 
Group D: is Semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers, more of working class citizens.
Group E: is unemployed people, which includes students, pensioners casual workers.


Target Audience response 
What artists would you like to see in the magazine?
The audience responded with very similar answers which included artists such as: Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Kid Ink and chance the rapper 
What kind of stories would interest you?
The audience would like to see stories about the artists childhood, before they were famous and also what it's like going up on stage in front of thousands of fans. The audience would also like to know what motivates the artists to carry on with their career in music. 
What kind of clothes would you expect to see from the models?
When asked this question the audience responded with the same answers, in the magazine they would expect the males to wear baggy clothes and for women they would expect them to wear tight clothes.
How frequently would you like the magazine to be published? 
The audience answered with a number of different answers, some said daily, some said weekly and some also said monthly
Paper copy or electronic copy and why?
An even number of answers were given to this question, some would like an electronic copy because then the magazine can't be damaged as it will be seen on a tablet or computer etc. However people would prefer it as a paper copy as they would like to hold the magazine and be able to take it anywhere they would like.

LIIAR analysis Contents page

Vibe magazine is now an online only magazine owned by SpinMedia. Vibe is a music and entertainment magazine founded by producer Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip-hop music artists, actors and other entertainers.

A grey colour scheme is used for the background and the image of Kanye, the background has a 'V' spread over the full page to show it is from 'Vibe' magazine but the only colour used is the mysterious hand coming from behind Kanye West placing the red heart on Kanye's chest. Due to the heart been the only colour it instantly draws the audiences attention. This shows Kanye's love and passion for music. Not just passion for music but the clothes Kanye is wearing is seen as fashionable in today's world and shows that 'Vibe' isn't just about music it is also about fashionable clothes.

The reason for using such a famous artist such as Kanye West is because the readers will instantly recognise the artist due to him been so famous and will instantly recognise that this magazine is a Hip-Hop/Rap magazine as this is what genre Kanye represents with his music. 

On this contents page you can clearly see the heading as 'contents' on the top right side of the page, underneath this also to the right you can see the sub heading 'features'. This 'features' section briefly gives the reader an idea of what is inside the magazine and what the main stories are about. Further down the right hand side of the page you can see the sub heading 'fashion'. This is used to separate story headings and fashion news. On both lists you can see page numbers next to the relevant story title, this is so that the reader can easily get to the story they want without having to look through the full magazine. 

L.I.I.A.R analysis Front Cover

On the front cover of the Vibe music magazine there is a medium close-up of the rapper Lil Wayne. The masthead which says 'Vibe' is in bold white writing and is partly covered by the image of Lil Wayne which is centered on the magazine cover. Above the masthead is names of various artists which are in this issue of the magazine such as 'Meek Mill, J. Cole' and 'Pusha T' as well as above the masthead there is also artists down both sides of the masthead and image is names of other rapper artists such as 'Tupac' and the headings to the main stories inside the magazine, the artist names are in bold black writing which stand out against the grey background, and the heading to the story title is underneath in white writing 'menace to Hollywood'. In the bottom left corner is the bar-code.
Vibe magazine is now an online only magazine owned by SpinMedia. Vibe is a music and entertainment magazine founded by producer Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip-hop music artists, actors and other entertainers.
Lil Wayne is on the cover of the magazine, his music is mainly hip-hop, due to him been on the front it suggests that this magazine will also be a hip-hop magazine.
This magazine is aimed towards fans of hip-hop and rap music, mainly aimed towards teens and young adults as this is seen as the typical age for this genre of music listeners.
Lil Wayne is wearing a red jacket and nothing underneath, he is also wearing black sunglasses, on the sunglasses you can see an American flag, showing that Lil Wayne is an American rapper. Due to the American flag been on the glasses and the fact Lil Wayne is wearing a red jacket suggests he is passionate about his rapping and especially about America. 

Double Page Spread Analysis

For each of these magazines in the double page spread there is a main image of who the main article is about and along-side the image is the main article which relates to the artist in the main image. In all 3 there is a quote of what the artist has said and the article is either about that quote or relates to the quote on another topic but is still mainly focused on the artist in the main image. All 3 of the magazines have a very similar lay out on the double page spread because there is a main image which takes up one page and the main story takes up the other page. In the stories the artist on the opposite page is identified and it tells them about who they are. Depending on who is on the double page spread you can tell which genre of music magazine it is, for example the Rick Ross and Jay-Z double page spread is most likely from a hip-hop magazine whereas the magazine with the story about Florence and the machine is most likely in an indie/pop magazine. This shows different magazines use a very similar layout on a double page spread.

contents page - Market research

On each of these contents page there is a main image centered in the page. Along the side of the magazine you can see what stories are in the magazine and what page they are on. The reason for the main stories been at the side is so that when the reader first opens the magazine and turns to the contents page they can chose whichever story they want to read first and they already know what page it is on rather than looking through the whole magazine to find it. All 3 of the magazines i chose do this. This makes it easier for the reader to find the story what they want to read. Also on all 3 magazine contents page at the top it shows the title of the magazine. Each of the magazines also have an image of an artist. From the pictures of the artists on the contents page you can tell what the main genre of the music magazine is.

Magazine conventions

Main feature headline is of the person on the main image (Kanye West). This shows that he is the main talking point of this magazine.

The masthead is central of the magazine front cover and the image is overlapping the title. The title of the magazine isn't visible because the image overlaps the title text.

Subheadings advertise and give an insight of the main stories in the magazine To show what else is in the magazine which is worth talking about.

Bar code is visible on the front cover

 The masthead is central and in front of the image so it is not covered up. This makes it clear to read and it is visible.

 Subheadings of the inside stories down the side give information of what is inside the magazine. Other artists are down the side such as 'Prince'. This will catch peoples attention if they are fans of this specific artist.

Magazine title is to the left of the cover and easily visible it isn't blocked by any image or other text

Bar code is down the side which is out of the way of the text and image

Sub-headings and ‘Plus’ what’s inside the magazine down the side means that readers already know what's in it before they have even opened it. This is because the main stories are advertised on the front.

The genre of my Music Magazine

The genre of my music magazine is going to be focused on Hip-Hop/Rap.
Some history of Hip Hop:
Hip Hop/Rap first started in the 1970's and spread along thee main are of the south Bronx, New York. Years later it spread along the whole of New York, DJ Kool Herc is credited as being highly influential in the pioneering stage of hip hop music
An example magazine of this is 'Vibe' magazine which is also a R&B/Hip-Hop magazine. The reason I have chosen to do this genre of music is because i enjoy listening to this type of music and i spend most of the day listening to music from artists such as these listed below.
Some example of Rap/Hip-Hop artists are:

Kanye West

is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, film director, entrepreneur, and fashion designer. West first gained prominence as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records; he achieved recognition for his work on rapper Jay-Z's The Blueprint (2001), as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and Janet Jackson. His style of production originally used high-pitched vocal samples from soul songs incorporated with his own drums and instruments. He later broadened his influences to include 1970s R&B and later became big in the Hip Hop and Rap scene.

Drake -

 who records under the mononym Drake, is a Canadian rapper, songwriter, and actor. He was born in Toronto, Ontario. He first garnered recognition for his role as Jimmy Brooks on the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation. He later rose to prominence as a rapper, releasing several mixtapes like Room for Improvement before signing to Lil Wayne's Young Money Entertainment in June 2009.

Kendrick Lamar - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF8aaTu2kg0












known simply as Kendrick Lamar, is an American hip hoprecording artist from Compton, California. In 2004, Lamar signed to the Carson-based indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment and in 2012, Lamar and the label signed a joint venture deal with Aftermath and Interscope Records. Lamar is also a member of West Coast hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, alongside his label-mates and fellow California-based rappers Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock, and Ab-Soul.

Wiz Khalifa - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UX6K7waag5Q

better known by the stage name Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapperand singer-songwriter. He released his debut album, Show and Prove, in 2006, and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 2007. His Eurodance-influenced single, "Say Yeah", received urban radio airplay, charting on the Rhythmic Top 40 andHot Rap Tracks charts in 2008.

Khalifa parted with Warner Bros. and released his second album, Deal or No Deal, in November 2009. He released the mixtape Kush and Orange Juice as a free download in April 2010; he then signed with Atlantic Records. He is also well known for his debut single for Atlantic, "Black and Yellow", which peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. His debut album for the label, Rolling Papers, was released on March 29, 2011. He followed that album with O.N.I.F.C. on December 4, 2012 which was backed by the singles "Work Hard, Play Hard" and "Remember You".

Lupe Fiasco - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GQjYPWDcmg
















 better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco, is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor. He also performs as the frontman of rock band Japanese Cartoon under his real name. As an entrepreneur, Fiasco is the chief executive officer of 1st and 15th Entertainment.

Raised in Chicago, Fiasco developed an interest in hip hop after initially disliking the genre for its use of vulgarity and misogyny. After adopting the name Lupe Fiasco and recording songs in his father's basement, 19-year-old Fiasco joined a group called Da Pak. The group disbanded shortly after its inception, and Fiasco soon met rapper Jay-Z who helped him sign a record deal with Atlantic Records. In September 2006, Fiasco released his debut album Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor on the label, which received three Grammy nominations.

Childish Gambino - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG35R8F2j8k













After several self-released albums and mixtapes, Glover signed to Glassnote Records in 2011 as Childish Gambino. He released Camp on Glassnote on November 15, 2011. His second studio album, Because the Internet, was released on December 10, 2013.

Hoodie Allen - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYhC8IdXP94





















Steven Adam Markowitz better known by his stage name Hoodie Allen, is an independent American rapper.
In July 2011, Hoodie released his third mixtape, Leap Year. It reached 250,000 SoundCloud plays in its first week of release. On the title for his mixtape, Hoodie explained it is "basically just talks to the leap of faith I took this year leaving everything else behind to be an artist.

Jake Miller - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FgqY_x56fE

Jacob Harris "Jake" Miller (born November 28, 1992) is an American rapper and songwriter from Weston, Florida. He is signed to Warner Bros. Records.^[1] On November 5, 2013, Miller released his debut album Us Against Them, which was promoted with a national concert tour.

Us Against Them debuted at #1 on the iTunes charts. On May 7, 2014, Miller was labeled as the #1 'Artist To Watch' by Fox Weekly, predicting Miller will be a huge artist by mid-2015. In 2014, Miller was also placed on MTV's Artist To Watch column.

Chiddy Bang - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uavNUg0tRgw














Chidera Anamege, better known by his stage name Chiddy Bang is an American hip hop recording artist. Prior to their break up, Chiddy Bang was an American pop-rap group consisting of Chidera "Chiddy" Anamege & Noah "Xaphoon Jones" Beresin. The duo was introduced through former band member Zachary Sewall in late 2008 while they were studying at Drexel University, in Noah's hometown of Philadelphia, PA. Their sound is based on the fusion of hip hop 

Tyler the Creator - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSbZidsgMfw





















Tyler Gregory Okonma , better known by his stage name Tyler, The Creator, is an Americanrapper and record producer from California. Born in Ladera Heights, he rose to prominence as the leader and co-founder of the alternative hip hop collective Odd Future, and has rapped on and produced songs for nearly every Odd Future release. Okonma also creates all the artwork for the group's releases and said in an interview with radio presenter DJ Semtex, that he designs all the group's clothing and other merchandise as well. After releasing his debut album Goblin under XL Recordings, in April 2011, he signed a joint venture deal for him and his label Odd Future Records, with RED Distribution and Sony Music Entertainment. Following that he released his second studio albumWolf, which was met with generally positive reviews and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 selling 90,000 copies in its first week.