MY Music Magazine Article - Draft

2011: the year of new beginnings? Up and coming Hip-Hop artist storms US charts with his revolutionary rapping style.

As many up and coming artists will tell you, it is extremely hard to get recognised on a domestic scale let alone internationally. The hip-hop genre has seen rappers like 'lil wayne' and 'eminem' rise to fortune and fame in recent times however, our very own UK artists has joined the ranks of these A listed superstars. After he hit the UK charts in 2010, D-Gun 18, has rapidly gained the status of 'The Saviour' as his unique rapping ability has brought back the 'hip' into hip-hop. His chart topping number one single, entitled 'Blow Up' has earned him praise from hip-hop legend Dr.dre who claims "the game had lost its lyricism" and that "hip-hop is now safe in the hands of D-Gun". Not only that, the hit has earned him a nomination for the best up and coming rapper of 2010. His undisputed lyrical skill was recognised by jay-z and resulted in him being signed to his record label 'Rock Nation'.  There is much speculation on whether D-Gun will be releasing a debut album sometime early this year. Here we caught up with the up and coming talent as he spoke exclusively to BASe magazine about: The development of his lyrical skill, the status of 'The Saviour', the prospect of an outstanding 2011 and the eagerly awaited debut album.

My Music Magazine - Design Brief

For my coursework I have decided to design and produce a music magazine based on hip-hop/rap. This is due to the fact that I feel I am able to relate best in this type of music because I produce my own music in this genre. I have decided to work on my own as not many people are doing the same genre as me. I have chosen to aim my music magazine at males form the age of 16-21. I will be taking a picture of a solo artist as my front page and main image. I have been influenced by magazines such as ‘Rolling Stones’ and ‘Mass Appeal’ because they both are hip-hop magazines. I will make sure my magazine stands out and appeals to my target audience by maintaining the main characteristics of hip-hop magazines which are the following: Big bold font, urban style colours and controversial cover lines.

Music Magazine analysis - Rolling Stones (Tupac Shakur)

- The magazine I have purchased is produced by 'Rolling Stones'. The style of font used in the masthead reinforces the theme of hip-hop as the colour brown and font resembles that of graffiti on a wall. This symbolises the more traditional element to hip-hop where disobeying the law is seen as a way of expressing deliberate disobedience. The image of ‘Tupac Shakur‘overlaps the masthead. This once again underlines the fact that ‘Tupac’is the focal point of the magazine. This could be down to the fact that his life was hugely controversial and having his image would help the magazine get noticed on the shelves as he was internationally known. The front cover consists of a dark theme, including colours such as Brown and Black. This helps outline Tupac's dark and enigmatic personality, which is generally associated with rappers. He, like ‘baby’ and ‘lil Wayne’, is shown shirtless. This again underlines the fact that the director wanted him to look more masculine, showing off the many tattoos on his body. There is also an element of sex appeal because he is exposing his nakedness to the taste of women and homosexuals.  'Tupac' is not wearing any jewelry and this could suggests that the director also wanted to show a subtle side to the rapper. His poise is key in this image. He looks to have his hands behind his back as if he were being handcuffed. This links to the origin of hip-hop were the genre was developed from young black males in the USA feeling oppressed by the police, also 'Tupac' himself had many problems with law and authority.This could also suggests that he is sticking to the fundamentals of hip-hop culture and this pose helps make him look a victim of society not only that, he appeals to urban society's were it is seen as 'gangster' to oppose the police. The result of this is that it causes 'Tupac' to look more powerful dominant and imposing.

My Quetionnaire

For my media coursework I will be designing and producing a magazine targeted at young people in the UK. In order for me to start designing my magazine it is vital that I undergo research so that I can understand what readers are looking for in a successful music magazine. I would be highly grateful if you could spare a few short minutes of your time completing this questionnaire!

1.      What gender are you?

 Male                Female

[       ]                 [       ]

2.       How old are you?

16-18                 18-21

[      ]                  [      ]

3.      What ethnic background do you come from?

White British/ Irish        Black British/African     Black British/Caribbean      

[      ]                                    [      ]                                [      ]

Black British/Other       Asian British/ Chinese      Asian British/ Indian     

[      ]                                    [      ]                                [      ]

Asian British/Other       Mixed/Black and White     Mixed/Other                Other  

[      ]                                    [      ]                                [      ]                         [      ]

4.       What genre(s) of music best suits you taste?

Hip-hop             R&B                Indie Rock                  Grime              Heavy Metal

[      ]                  [      ]                    [      ]                        [      ]                   [      ]           

Death Metal      Dubstep             Reggae                     Punjabi MC      Classical 

          [      ]                 [      ]                    [      ]                       [     ]                    [      ]

          Instrumental     Other (please state): _________________________

         

          [      ]

5.      Do you read music magazines?

Yes                      No

[      ]                  [      ]

   

If yes, please state which one(s):  ________________________________________

6.      How much money would you spend on a music magazine?

Under £2.oo                  £2.oo-£3.oo                 £3.oo-£4.oo                 £4.oo+

[      ]                              [      ]                             [      ]                          [      ]

7.      What type of freebies would you prefer with a magazine you have purchased?

Headphones                  Posters             Cameras                      Mini Make up Kit

[      ]                              [      ]                [      ]                            [      ]

8.      Do you watch music channels on Television?

Yes                    No

[      ]                  [      ]

If yes, please name the music channel(s):  _________________________________

9.      Do you listen to music on the radio, if so which one(s)?

Kiss 100                        capital FM               Heart               magic                              

[      ]                  [      ]                       [      ]                [      ]      

Platinum            classical FM

[      ]                  [      ]

10.  Have you ever been to a music concert?

Yes                    No

If yes, please state the genre: _________________

11.  Do you produce your own music, if so, which programme do you use? (optional)

Cubase               Fruity loops                 Reason                        Logic               Garageband

          [      ]                  [      ]                            [      ]                [      ]                [      ]   

        

          Other, please specify: ___________________

        

12.  Would you ever take on singing or producing as a career?

Yes                    No

[      ]                  [     ]

13.  Do you play any musical instruments?

Yes                    No

[      ]                  [      ]

If yes, please specify: ______________________________

If there are any issue or questions you would like to ask do not hesitate. Please write in following space below:

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Music Magazine Analysis - XXL (baby and lil wayne) & VIBE (usher)

The XXL Masthead really sets the tone of what genre the magazine is based on. The use of diamonds in the font automatically holds connotations of wealth and money which is prominently mentioned in recent hip-hop/rap music. The number of chains on their necks also compliments the title as it too shows connotations of wealth and money, revealing they have enough money to afford the quantity of chains. 'baby' and 'lil wayne' both are shown shirtless. This reveals their full body tattoos which suggests they are flaunting their masculinity, as tattoos hurt when being done. This appeals to younger teenage boys who tend to look up to rappers. Not only that, the fact that they are showing their bodies means that they are attracting interest from young impressionable teenage girls, in other words the image has sex appeal. 'baby' has his arm around 'lil wayne' and this can be seen as 'baby' protecting him, almost like a older brother to a younger sibling. the poise of both men (tilting head) shows a great degree of arrogance which is linked with hip-hop culture. It is well known that the lyrics used by the latest rappers is to boast about the money they have and the image helps embrace this. The main cover line's font is large so that the reader knows what the main article will be about and the red colour used in this image helps it to stand out as red has connotations of danger which is linked into gangster rap and hip-hop. The background in the image was purposely blurred and the effect of this is that is focuses the attention of the reader to the focal point of the image, 'baby' and 'lil wayne'.

The VIBE magazine's masthead font stands out as R&B style as it is big, bold and stands out in your face. The colour baby blue also helps underline that point as it represents a cool and smooth nature. This also relates to 'usher' because he is an R&B artist,and  they are expected to have this personality. His name 'usher' and the main image of him overshadows the masthead which means he is more important. This could be down to the fact that he is the centre of attention because he is famous and can be identified on a global scale. So in many ways it could be seen as the company VIBE using usher's image to sell more magazines. The front page consists of primary colours which help the cover lines stand out. The use of Yellow, Red and Blue highlights this. The little 'e' in the masthead draws little attention to the name of the magazine. There also was the use of graffiti style font on the word 'swagger' which helps underline the colloquialism in the term 'swagger' to have style. usher is wearing much less jewellery in this image as a pose to 'baby' and 'lil wayne'. This could be down to the fact that R&B in general has a more mellow vibe to it than hip-hop, which is more urban. Likewise with the tattoos, usher is only showing one, which again links to the subtlety of R&B. in this image usher is seen as a metro sexual, this shows that he appeals to both homosexuals and heterosexuals. The ring finger image reinforces the main cover line but also is showing a 'gangster' side to usher in the fact that the finger is provocative. This is because it is being used like a middle finger which is a sign of dislike or discomfort towards someone. the sunglasses that usher wears makes him seem enigmatic, almost saying 'I can see you but you cant see what i'm looking at'. Usher likewise with the arrogance of 'baby' and 'lil wayne' is shown when tiling his head. This shows a strong link in culture between hip-hop and R&B and also reinforces the cover like "(king) is back". the use of the word "sex" is all over the front page, it is mentioned over a staggering 3 times. This could suggest that usher has a great deal of sex appeal because the nature of R&B is generally to talk about making love.