Music magazine cover research




This image taken from google is the front cover of Vibe magazine. The colours on this magazine have been used very cleverly. The main colours are yellow, white and balck, which represents power. Drakes top appears to be balck and the colour balck has been used quite a lot on this front cover, this gets the magazine front cover flowing smoothly. The colours yellow and black are used oftenly toegther as these are opposties and allows a strong contrast betweeen the tetxts, the yellow also helps to grab the readers attention and it appears to be popping out of the page.
The main object that the readers will see on this front cover is the artsies, Drake. A close-up shot has been taken of him which allows us to see his facial expressions. This allows the audience to see the artistst instantly, as he is the main focus. His facial expressions say a lot about the magazine without even having to read into it. He appears to have his head titlted and has a smirk on his face which shows that he is `chilled` and shows the `classy` side of him. This image is a great way of showing power and importance as he has been placed slap bang on the middle of the front cover, which shos hat he is the centre of attention. Drake also appears to be looking directly into the camera, this has been done so that, no matter what angle you look at him from, his eyes will be focused on you, this will make the readers feel as if they self concious and confused.
The masthead appears to be largest text on the page, this has innitially been done to grab the readers attention to the magazine. The amusic artist appears to be standing infront of the masthead which makes the mastehead harder to read, this usually shows how successfull that magazine company is that it can be recognised even with a few letters missing. The masthead has also been written in sans-serif, which tells us that it's an informal, chatty magazine that is aimed at a younger audience. 
All of the cover lines have been written in the same font as the masthead which helps the magazine flow together quite effectively. The cover lines also appear to be positioned either side of the artist. I think they have been placed very well and they don't interfere with the main image. The cover lines also appear to be in a range of different sizes. This has been done as the larger the font the more important the story will be, and vice versa.
This magazine lacks in conventions as it doesn't have any dates. However there is a barcode, positioned in the bottom left hand corner. There is also a website alongside with the barcode but it is quite difficult to make it out.

 



The image that has been taken for this magazine is a mid-shot of T.I, a well known music artist. This has been done to allow the readers to see what he is wearing. He appears to be wearing casual clothing which tells us that this magazine is going to be informal and have a chatty tone. The image appears to be positioned in the centre of the page so that it is  the first thing that the readers can see when they look at the magazine. The masthead seems to be placed behind T.I which suggests that he is superior, making him look like he's in charge. You can't see the letter `p` on the word `rap` as his head is covering it up, this tells us that this magazine is very well known and even if the masthead i difficult to read people will recognize it straight away as it is such a successful magazine. The masthead also appears to be in sans-serif which shows that this magazine again is going to be quite informal. I like the way the letter `U` on the magazine has been designed. It appears to look like and arrow pointing up, this goes very well with the word `up` makes the masthead look more fun. `Rap Up` also has been written in the largest font on the front cover, this is has been done to grab the readers attention to the name of the magazine. However This magazine lacks in key conventions. It doesn't have a barcode or a sell-line. I believe that the sell line is one of the most important features of any magazine as it is the one that will actually sell the magazine and make readers want to purchase it. The cover lines appear to be placed on either side of the main image and are kept well away from T.I. They have also been written in different fonts, the larger the front the more important that particular story will be and the smaller the font the less important the story will be. By looking at this cover we can see that T.I is going to be the main feature. The 3 main colours that have been used on this front cover are pink, black and white. This has been used throughout the whole of the front cover which allows the cover to flow smoothly. When i first looked at this magazine cover i was surprised to see the colour pink along with a male artist, i was expecting to see blue or maybe red. This colour has probably been used to show that this magazine isn't just aimed at males but its targeting females too.





This image is of the front cover of Billboard magazine. The main colours used on this front cover black and white. These two colours can never go wrong together. A close-up shot has been taken of Rihanna which fills up the whole front page. This has been done to allows readers to see her what she is wearing. Her body language looks as if shes daring people to read the magazine. She is looking directly into the camera, which means that whatever angle we look at her from, her eye will still continue to be focused on us. This will make readers feel nervous. She appears to be wearing a a mini dress, this suggests that she's not just any women, she looks very dangerous and that she wants her own way wherever she goes. Yet again the masthead has been placed behind her which shows that she has more power. The letters `B` and `D` appear to be coloured in red and green and Rihannas face has been placed in between these two coloured in letters. I think that this looks like a set of traffic lights, the red representing stop and Rihannas head representing get ready (amber), this tells us that this magazine is probably bursting with news about Rihanna, so it's warning readers to get ready for a rollercoaster ride. In most cases the masthead appears to be in the largest font, but by looking at this Billboard magazine it looks as if this has been done the opposite way round. Riahnnas name that has been placed on the bottom of the page appears ot be in a much alrger font in comparison with the masthead. This has most likely been done to show that she is more superior in this case. The word `Riahnna` appears to be streched accross the front cover, this tells us that she is never ending and we will continue to hear about her and her career. The cover lines have been placed on the left hand side of this magazine, keeping them well away from the main image. The coverline titles have been written in a black fotn but have also been highlighted in white. This has been done to help grab the readers attention. By highlighting the it helps them  to stand out on the dark background. This magazine cover does not have a sell line, however there has been a quote placed below Rihannas name which says; "My fans don't really knwo who is am". This has been written in capital letters whcih suggests that its quite important. The quite is more like a cliffhanger, in which the only way they will fond out who the real Rihanna is, is to buy a copy of this magazine.



   

The name of the magazine has been wrtitten in a very unique style compared to other magazines. The `Q` is very different but very effective. In the case of this cover there is just one single image of the artist Madonna. The close up Shot fills the whole magazine front cover, with the artist making full eye contact with the purchaser. Her facial expressions allows is very important as this is what is seen by everyone, her expressions suggest that there is another side to her, but you will  only find out if you read the mazgine itself, so it is a good way of persuading perople to buy the magazine.

 This magazine uses many cover lines, which are spaced out around the main image, making sure it does not draw its attention from the main shot. The cover lines are in either white or red, the same as the colour of the mast head, this allows a sense of flow. The colours stand out and helps to grab the readers attention and it also gives it  a fresh bold look as the background is very dark. The main cover line, takes up to a quarter of the front cover. This Q magzine uses two font sizes to create there main coverline, using the largest font for the Madonnnas name as it is the most important feature of the magazine. The size in which they use there main cover line attracts the audience because they are bold, the main cover line appeals to the audience through the use of sans serif, it creates a professional look to the witting and keeps it informal.

The sell line is the one of the most important features of any magazine as it is one of the ways to try and sell any magazine. Q's sell line is `Britains biggest music magazine` this will make anyone want to buy it and find out for themselves how big it really is.

Other conventions include a barcode, this is situated in the top right hand corner, which is easy to find and not stuck down in the bottom right like other magazines normally place them.

There is a freebie inside of the magazine which helps to sell the magazine as most of the time people believe that they are getting their money's worth by paying for one magazine but they actually get two.