Music Magazine

Article Idea Development

Who am I writing for?

My target audience are young adults interested in the most current and upcoming music, as well as being well-versed in current affairs and public issues such as the fight for gender equality and the awareness of mental health. This is why my article is about two new, young, female artists. This will interest my audience because it includes promises of brand-new releases and tours, as well as some more in-depth information on the artists themselves, with a feminist theme of independence throughout the story.

Article Development

Click here to view my article development document in full

Language Analysis

In order to write my own article, I need to analyse an existing magazine article which I’ve chosen as ‘Billboard, (June 15),Dance Power Players ‘.

This article is structured as a biography to introduce a new band, with the reporter narrating the interview in third person and present tense. This makes it seem as if the reader is the reporter, placing them inside the story and making them continue to read.It only becomes apparent that the journalist is present after most of the story when they begin asking the artists questions. There is a clear introduction which is written aligned with the title of the article, giving the audience a taster of what and who the article is about. However, there isn’t a clear-cut conclusion which makes this particular article seem a bit less structured.

The scene for the article is set immediately, with the first sentence for the piece describing the location. The location itself is described positively as a “sunny Memorial Day afternoon on a patio” which connotes the feeling that this interview is casual and relatively informal because it’s taking place outdoors rather than in a studio or conference room. As for the musicians, the journalist introduces them each separately with an impressive fact about each of them. For example, Martin Garrix is named as achieving “viral stardom” and Steve Angello’s ex-band is referred to as a “supergroup”; these introductions give these artists a sense of importance and impressiveness to the reader.

The overall style of writing of the article involves long sentences made up of multiple lists of imagery and hyperboles, for example ” nothing less than a redefinition of success in EDM, emphasizing original music and brand-name, pop-style superstardom”. This style fits the dance music genre because the genre itself is very energetic which does come through in the article through the vocabulary mentioned above. In relation to quotes from the artists, there aren’t many but towards the end of the article there are a couple from Scooter Braun which centre around the new artists he’s managing. These quotes are utilised to promote the artists in question’s new endeavours, naming one “a legend” and the other a “rising star”. This means that through reading this piece the reader becomes invested and interested in these artists’ future careers and music because their manager is so complimentary to them, showing the confidence he has in their success. This also shows that the writer enjoys the artists’ music, showing this article is written by the fans for the fans.

Overall, the journalist represents these artists as the ‘next big thing’  and people to look out for in the future by the way they are described. They are also shown as one unit by wearing the same “all-black” ensemble and being described as sharing a vape as they sit together. Both of these points give the reader the impression that these artists are down to earth by the way they speak and the relaxed/informal environment the article is set in.

 

 

PMA For 2nd Photo Shoot and Risk Assessment

Before going on my location shoot I need to organise what I want to achieve from it in terms of setting, lighting and the styling of my models. Click here to view my PMA document for the shoot.

Another important thing that needs to be done before going on location is an assessment of potential risks, this is done in order to keep both the models and photographers safe during the shoot. Click here to view my risk assessment for the day.

 

 

A New Improved Front Page

Original Draft

Draft 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In response to the targets from my first draft I’ve moved my cover line downwards to show my model’s face and also changed the colouring of the typeface to make it pop more. I’ve also retouched my cover image to make her look more vibrant and healthy, this also makes the cover a bit more exciting. Some changes I made were re-colouring her eyes and hair to give them more impact; I also saturated the whole image to get the brightest colours I could out of the image. Another piece of criticism I responded to was changing my masthead colour however this could still be deliberated depending on the feedback I get on this draft.

Draft of Front Page

My First Draft

Peer Assessment

I really like the writing as it’s catchy and exciting. Have you tried adding a pink background and having white writing it may make your front cover look more colourful  (just a suggestion) maybe move the Jess lane in huge writing a little more down so you can see her whole face? I’m happy with the amount of writing you have done as it’s not too much but it’s enough. “

Targets:

  • try a different coloured masthead
  • move the cover line downwards
  • retouch the model’s colouring
  • add a sense of urgency

First Shoot Contact Sheets

Contact Sheets

My Favourite Images

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve short-listed all of my favourite photos to a list of four but I think the last photo will be the last one because it fits what I set out to get the most.

Overall I achieved most of my aims from my PMA but I had some trouble with the lighting equipment being compatible with my camera so I didn’t have enough time to experiment with any other poses. This is something that I would like to do in my next shoot when I have more time and I am more prepared with the equipment. Apart from this mistake I’m happy with the images that I did get because they’re all in focus and good to use for my cover because I wanted a close-up for it, however in my next shoot I’d like to use a different camera which is compatible to I can experiment with lighting more. Another thing I’d like to do is change up the distances and angles I shoot from to get more variety throughout my images.

Masthead Designs

The masthead of a magazine is really important because it’s the first text that’s read, this means that in order for a magazine to be successful it needs to have a impactful  masthead. However, it needs to also fit the magazine’s brand and genre. In order to do this I’ve made multiple mock-ups of my masthead to see what kind of typeface would fit my magazine the best.

I’ve concluded that I want a typeface with very sleek look and so I thought a serif font would be best because it adds a touch of elegant formality to an otherwise more informal genre. Because of this I decided that the second typeface on the list would be best because it’s reminiscent of ‘ELLE’ which is also seen as a elegant and stylish magazine however I experimented with different styles to make sure I’ve seen all my options.

Masthead drafts

Click here

Production Meeting Agenda for 1st Photo Shoot

Meeting Minutes

In order for my initial photo shoot to run smoothly I had to compose an agenda of my exact plans for the shoot. This helps to ensure the shoot is successful and produces the photos I need for my magazine cover.

Click here to view my  PMA which includes all my plans for my initial cover shoot including my costume choices and direction for my model.

My aims for shoot one:

-put my initial ideas into practice to see if they work

-convey my brand through the model

-adapt my ideas to the set I’m working on to see which ideas work best

These are the goals which I hope to achieve in my first shoot, even though some ideas may have to be compromised because they may work better theoretically rather than practically.

 

So, what am I up against?

Competition Voicethread

 

Unlike in past years, the competition for a published magazine now spans onto other media platforms, especially online music magazines. These magazines are the biggest competition for me because they can embed videos and audio into their articles so the reader can hear the music the article is talking about. However, by looking through published pop magazines I found commonalities that I can adapt to my magazine in order to keep up with the competition. Some similarities throughout all the magazines I looked at were the featuring of bright colours in their design (mostly pink) and also interviews with young, new pop stars. Another feature used was the singles chart for the week which I think is a good idea because pop music is such a changing genre that it’s important to show what it consists of at the time of publishing.

I can beat this competition by using attention-grabbing colours and a clean, modern design because this fits in with my audience demographic of late teens and millenials and bright colours will make my magazine stand out. In terms of content, I plan to have an interview with my cover star and also features in the contents such as the top charts for the week in order to make sure my magazine is as up-to-date as it can be. As a way to combat the issue of not having online interaction I can add in opportunities for a website in my articles.

Star Image- Theirs and Mine

Prezi Presentation of a Music Artist

In order to create my own cover star I needed to familiarise myself with an existing star who fits my magazine style. I chose Billie Eilish for this because she is a very current and innovative pop artist with the same style in which I would like to produce my magazine and cover star.

This exercise helped me understand how an artist’s entire meta narrative shapes how they are represented, and thus how the magazines they feature on are represented.  For example, Eilish is constantly in bright, neon colours which presents her as youthful and outgoing, and so advertising the covers she appears on as such.

Creating My Cover Star

I drew inspiration from my existing cover star of Eilish when choosing costume by picking a neon streetwear style, I chose this style because it connotes views of being current and contemporary whilst also drawing attention to the star. I also chose the prop of a microphone to more clearly display that my star is a musician. For hair and makeup I decided to use very sleek and straight hair because this makes it far easier to cut out in photoshop without making the background look unnatural, for makeup I would like to use a very minimal and natural look to represent the youthful attitude of the pop genre and of my magazine.

I also considered poses to use for my cover, I really like the idea of recreating something similar to the picture in the slideshow of Rihanna blowing a bubble because I thought this would present my motives of making my magazine youthful and fun; my only concern is that this will hide my star’s face. Alternatively, my other ideas were to use very relaxed positions or place my model on a chair to further show the nonchalant attitude of a music celebrity. A dismissive attitude also has connotations with being “cool”, an idea I would definitely like to display my star as.

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