The Source has had unparalleled achievements in its 20-year history. While the magazine was undoubtedly the foundation, The Source has created 20 years of content and its accomplishments stretch far beyond the pages of the magazine. Since the inception as a newsletter back in ‘88, The Source has documented everything Hip Hop like none other, including exclusive interviews in print, on television and online. It has consistently extended the reach beyond traditional realms of media with special Source music initiatives such as the Hip-Hop Hits compilation.
The font used for the main head is bold and in a san-serif font. This makes the main head stand out and also very easily recognisable. Furthermore, they have combined the music element into the main head by having a picture of a microphone in the 'O' of the word The Source. On the cover of the magazine, there is a mixture of different fonts used. The font stating what the main article will be in the magazine is done in the style of metal being compressed together, which could represent the toughness of the thing is talking about. In this case Ice Cube. Whereas if we look below this font, we can see that the words Original Gangster are written in a very formal and elegant style. This could show that persona is unique and the first of his kind. There is a very clear contrast.
The colours used on the cover are mainly black and gold. The colour gold is used for the border and for main head. This could suggest that these parts of the magazine cover are quite important as gold is usually represented with things that are important. This is an important cover as it is celebrating 20 years of success. The colour black may symbolize Hip Hop's routes to black culture as Hip Hop is a cultural movement which was developed in New York City in the 1970s primarily among African Americans.
The language used on the cover suggests that the magazine assumes knowledge of the subject area as the main article just states 'Ice Cube, original gangster' without any information about who Ice Cube actually is.
The target audience for this Magazine in my opinion would be mainly Male's aged 16 - 22 as this is the typical age and gender that is most common for this type of music. The nation the magazine is aimed at would mainly be America as it has a very large population of people that like Hip Hop music and can relate to the Hip Hop culture. I also think that the people who buy this magazine would be middle class citizens because the price of the magazine is £4.00 (around $8.00).
The main image on the magazine suggests that its from the streets, as most of the artists featured in this magazine are icons from rough parts of America. They have chosen the image of Ice Cube of the front cover as it is the 20 year anniversary issue, they want someone who can reflect the magazines long term success. The image depicted on the cover is a posed shot of Ice Cube looking very aggressively through the top of his sun-glasses. This could represent his toughness though growing up in rough areas of America.
I think that the main selling point for this magazine would be due to the fact that it's a special edition (20 year anniversary issue). Also, another selling point for this magazine could be that it's one of the longest running Hip Hop magazine's of all time.
As far as the information on the cover goes, it has a bar-code in the bottom right corner along with the price, issue number and the date. The date is in months as this magazine is released every month.
The stories that are in the main flash differ each time a new issue is released (each month). For this months issue, their were four different covers as it's the 20 year anniversary. This could appeal to collectors of the magazine as it is a special event. However, the main stories on this particular issue include articles on Ice Cube, 50 Cent, Michael Eric and Cornel West. Ice Cube is the main story as he has alot of relevance to the anniversary of the magazine because he has been in the public eye for around 20 years.
Here is the contents page for The Source magazine:
First of all, I think the font use on the contents page is bold. This has been done possibly to grab the readers attention. The headings on this page are also in bold, followed by a small synopsis about what each heading is going to be about. The colour of the writing is white and positioned to the right of the page along with a transparent red, blending in with the image of Ice Cube (one side of his face). This could also symbolize another side to Ice Cube's persona. The only colours used on this contents page are black, white and red which creates a very simple by effective layout. Furthermore, the colour red is seen as being the colour of anger, which is what Ice Cube facial expression is showing the reader.
The language use on this page is informal due to the 'street' vibe and short sub-titles.
They have chosen the image of Ice Cube to maintain the street look as he is also used on the front cover of the magazine. Another reason for choosing this image, is that one of the main articles is about Ice Cube.
Here is the double page spread for the magazine:
The purpose of a double page spread in advertising, is that double-page spreads are usually used only when the magazine is making a special announcement, such as the introduction of a new artist, or a new brand promotion. This is the case for this magazine as this piece on Ice Cube is one of the main articles.
The font used on double page spread is very bold like the rest of the magazine's main titles, and is also quite thick. However the text is positioned along the centre of the page, unlike the rest of the magazine, allowing it to stand out. Maybe this has been done because this page is important? Also, the text that reads ' True to the Game' is in a large sized font as this hints to the reader what this double page spread will be about.
The colours used on these two pages stays true to colour scheme used on the front cover. The smaller text is written in gold, and the title is written in black. These are to of main colours used throughout the magazine.
The image on the double page spread is of the artist Ice Cube holding a playing card. The card is a king. This suggests that Ice Cube is the king of Hip/Hop and is the most respected and appreciated artist that ever existed. In the image we can see him looking angry due to his facial expression, and also he has his hood up. This tells the reader that although he wants to be known as a 'king like' figure, he still remembers where he came from, his roots.
The next Magazine cover I have chosen to annotate, is Vibe.
The title of this magazine is Vibe. I think they have given the magazine this title as it sounds like quite a modern word as appose to The Source which has more of an 'old school' feel to it. It also gives the impression of a relaxed atmosphere as 'vibe' means,a distinctive emotional aura experienced instinctively.
Here is some information on Vibe:
Vibe was launched in 1993 by founder Quincy Jones and funded by Time Inc. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. Issued monthly, the magazine's target audience is predominantly young, urban followers of hip hop culture.
The font on the cover represents the modern feel of the magazine due to aspects such as san-serif font used for the main head. The main head is positioned across the whole of the top section of the cover making it easily recognizable. Being a special addition issue, (15th anniversary issue) the main head has the roman numerals "XV" as the start of the main head, which means 15. It's a play on words as the title read "XVIBE". The font size of the main head is big as this allows the magazine to stand out. The colour of the font yet again gives the impression of the magazine being modern. These colours are also used throughout the cover. The main sales points for this magazine, are written in bold to attract the reader. For example, the things written in bold are either role-models, important news stories, or someone who people can relate to (e.g Diddy, Eminem, Dr Dre, Shaq, Jay Z and the American election between McCain and Obama).
The language used on this magazine is informal, and also includes the use of a pun ("Jay-Z cakin' up"). Another similarity between this magazine and The Source is that this one also assumes knowledge of the subject area. It also includes numbers to show how many different things are incorporated into this magazine. For example, "15 exclusive interviews" and "474 songs reviewed!". It gives the impression that theirs alot on offer.
The target audience for this magazine would be primarily young males aged 18-30. My reasons for having such a wide range, is that it has alot of articles that would appeal to young people through music, culture, role models, back-rounds, etc. However, this issue also contains information about the American Presidential candidates, so for that reason I think it would attract a wider range of people. Furthermore, I think that this magazine is predominantly aimed at the American public as a large majority of the celebrities featured in the magazine are American themselves. In spite of this, it would still be popular world-wide as plenty of the people included in the magazine have a sizable fan base all over the world.
The image on the cover of Vibe, (strangely similar to The Source) emphasizes the point of this magazine issue being special as it's the "15th anniversary juice issue". The image itself includes a posed shot of arguably the greatest rapper of his generation Jay z, cutting a birthday cake dedicated to the Vibe. I think they have chosen Jay Z for this cover as it is a special occasion, they wanted someone who could reflect there success in the past 15 years. The person on the cover is usually male, maybe this is due to the fact that the target audience is largely male based and they want to see someone they can relate to or aspire to be like.
The main sells for this magazine would be due to it being the 15th anniversary issue. This would make the magazine appeal to more people as it's a special addition, and also collectors of the magazine.
The information present on the cover would be the bar-code which is positioned in the bottom left corner along with the price of the magazine and the date this particular issue was released. These bits of information have been placed in the bottom corner so it doesn't take your focus and lets you look at the more important parts of the cover.
The types of stories that are in the main flash include, mainly it being a special addition, 15 exclusive interviews, Jay Z, Jesse vs Obama, 474 songs reviewed, video vixens and street style. These types of stories would make the magazine more popular as it includes a wide range of topics.
Flat plans:
Here are my initial ideas for my magazines front cover, double page spread and contents page.Initial front cover designs:
Throughout all of my flat plans for the front cover, I went with the idea of having the text based around the main picture. This would allow the picture to stand out and be the main focus. The image on my front cover will look quite menacing by not smiling, as this will reinforce the idea of coming from the street. I have also decided to take the image in black and white as I feel this will make the cover stand out by adding a contrast to the coloured text. I have also used a font that gives the impression of street culture, as this will keep to the theme of what hip hop is generally about. The layout of the front cover will be; the main image positioned as the back round but easily seen as this is the main focus. The main head will be placed in the top left corner of the page and will be in a slightly different font as this will make it stand out from the rest of the text. It needs to stand out as the main head is one of the most important features. Along with the main head, the text will be positioned along left hand-side of the page as this will allow the image to be seen clearly.
Initial double page spread designs:
For the double page spread, I went with the idea having the image taking up the majority of the chosen page as I found this was very popular in other hip hop magazine's. The font of the main head on the double page spread will be consistent with the main head on the front cover as this will make my magazine look professional. The font will be laid out in three columns due to the fact that it gives a clean finish and it looks well presented. I have included things such as pull quotes, facts about the persona and bullet points to give a variation to the text, so it's not just constant paragraphs. The main head for these two pages will be placed in a black rectangular box, at a slight tilt and positioned at the top of the first page. This will add a different dimension to the page making it look more interesting.
Initial contents page designs:
For the contents page, I linked the idea of having the text down the left-hand side, just like the front cover because this would make the magazine flow better. Firstly, I will cut around the persona of my picture using Adobe PhotoShop as I think the image would look better without it's given back round. I will then place the edited image on the right hand-side of the page to allow easy reading for what will be in the magazine. The back round of the contents page will have the magazines name (MVP magazine) written transparently all over it. This will yet again give the impression of being street as it will look like graffiti, a street form of painting. Once more, I have kept the theme going by having the main heading in the same font as the front cover and double page spread, as it will create a sense consistency.
Final design:
For my final magazine cover I used Graffiti stylized font for the main head and sub headings as it reflects the street image of the potential readers of my magazine. I chose to have the font in red as it made the text stand out against the black and white background. Furthermore when doing my research i found that red was a popular colour used in other Hip Hop magazines. However it was rarely used on the front cover and I thought by incorporating it on my front cover would give my magazine some degree of individuality. For the main head I decided to make the font colour black with a red outline just to show the importance of the magazine name and to give it defintion, but still incorporating the use of the red theme. For the layout of my front cover I descided to have all the text running along the left handside of the page as this would not interfere with the main image too much and also would make the text easier to read. The main image for my front cover has been produced in black and white colour to represent the rawness of the streets where Hip Hop originated. The use of the brick wall in the background again depicts and reinforces the concept of being from the streets.
Double Page Spread
For the contents page I again continued using the graffiti font for the main head to demonstrate the "street" appeal. Yet again I have kept the font to the lefthand side to keep with the same style of format and therefore make it easier to read. The image on this page is faded into the background to reinforce the importance of the text as this tells the reader what features will be included in the magazine. Again the expressions of the person in the image reinforce the Hip Hop culture by showing the street "peace" sign, and use of facial expression again demonstrates the "no fear" attitude. In the image you can see the person wearing a big watch. It is very common amongst the Hip Hop culture to show off your jewellery (bling) as this is a sign of success and populartiy.
Evaluation:
Firstly, I chose to use a specific font for my Main head as it looked like graffiti you would find on the streets which is associated with Hip Hop.This is likely to grab the attention of the age group it is intended for. I continued with this font on each of the main headings for the double page spread and also the contents page, to carry on the theme. My reasons for choosing the image for the front cover would be that the persona in the picture looks meanacing just like in the other hip hop magazines I researched. I found that it was a very popular choice of expression because this represents the culture of this genre. I also decided to make my image black and white as I felt it was unique to all the other hip hop magazines and therefore would stand out. By choosing to have the cover black and white, it symbolizes the coming together of both black and white Hip Hop artists.
The image used on the front cover suggests that Hip Hop fans arn't affraid to show there true indentity and are not worried about what other people think of them. The image of the brick wall in the backround again gives the impression of being from the streets which could represent Hip Hop fans inderpendance.
The kind of media institution that might distribute my magazine would be newsagents or record stores. Newsagents e.g WHSmith would be the ideal place to stock my magazine as they are one of the main distribution agents in the country. This would be an advantage for my magazine as WHSmith already has a large customer base. Also, record stores would be a good place to stock my magazine as the majority of people who visit record stores are very keen in the music industry and therefore would be interested in my magazine. These two distributers would be interested in stocking my magazine because it is aimed at the target auidence for their shops and my choosen genre, (Hip Hop) that are mainly teenagers. Therefore my magazine would be of interest to a large proportion of their existing customers.Furthermore, the target auidence of my magazine would be teenagers around the age of 17 as they are the ones who are most attracted to Hip Hop music and therefore want to know more about it by buying my magazine. The race of the target auidence woul be prodominatly african americans as they have grown up with Hip Hop music and it has become part of their culture. Similar to the magazines I researched (Vibe and The Source) my magazine appeals to the same type of social-economic group which would be lower to middle class. This is because Hip Hop as a culture started out and remains to be from 'the streets'.
My magazine attracts its target audience by the type of language used eg "street slang" and abreviation. This is demonstrated on my magazine front cover as the title " MVP" stands for "most valuable player". The target aidience can relate to this as it is used in Hip Hop culture quite a lot. Furthermore the phrase MVP is associated with basket ball which has very close links wih Hip Hop as it is a sport that is mainly dominated by african americans. The image on my front cover is appealing to my target audience as it represents street culture and followers of Hip Hop music can easily identify with this.
The technology I used to create my magazine was Adobe InDesign. This allowed me to do such things as crop and alter images, move text , and format the page . This enabled me to view all the different possible layouts and therefore which format would be best and what would work the best.Another example of new technology that I used was Adobe PhotoShop. This allowed me to
adjust the images that I used eg to change colour, texture, size etc. I found this particulary useful on my contents page where the image that I used looks like it has been sketched on. This enabled me to give priority to the words on this page as they were the most important item and also to create an effect which I felt was unique.
Looking back at my preliminary task i can clearly see that i have progressed my ideas and developed my thoughts to achive this end product through carrying out research of diffrent types of magazines and using the software to create, change, and update my ideas. Also, the improvements I have made to this main project are mainly due to planning more thoroughly. Unlike the preliminary task, I researched more types of magazines relevant to my chosen genre.
