Jake Worgan

Music Magazine

Magazine title. This is a masthead; the white Q stands out against the red background.

Strapline

Pull quotes: Used to give an insight into the interview

Bold eye catching title

Banner. This is an unusual banner as instead of going sideways across the page it goes down the page. Banners are used to give detail on what is inside the magazine. For example, this particular magazine would have a ‘question and answer’ with Green Day.

Eye contact to help create a connection between Noel and the reader.

Noel leaning on the amplifier which could suggest a link between him and the voice of music. This idea is supported by the pull quotes being placed on the amplifier as if they are coming out of the amplifier then he is the “voice of the music”

Gold colour way and “Goldmine”

Head is tilted backwards, in a relaxed and ‘cool’ way. This image is backed up by crossed arms.

Jeans and leather jacket. Completely casual wear which suits his image of music and hints towards the style of interview.

Masthead not obstructed at all. Shows importance.

Audience

The audience for Q magazine is predominantly teenagers or young adults. I know this from looking at the ‘media pack’ in which there is a graph which distinctly shows that almost 40% of readers are ages 15-24, a ginormous chunk. The style of magazine and content is aimed at teenagers, we can tell this by the type of bands and musicians interviewed. The style of the magazine is quite adult with a set colour way, this could be to make young readers feel more mature whilst they read the magazine.

Layout

The magazine is laid out in a strong, monolithic structure. Each headline rests on something underneath, for example “NOEL” and the strapline rest on an amplifier creating a well organised and solid looking front cover. The majority of space on the front cover is filled with a long shot of Noel Gallagher and additional space is neatly packed with relevant information on what is inside the magazine. The reasoning behind this could be to provide an adult and mature look to the magazine, this would help drag in the teenage market as they want to look mature whilst reading the magazine.

Language – An extract from the magazine

“Arguably this week’s biggest music new story, Taylor Swift has followed in the footsteps of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and The Black Keys by removing her music from Spotify, just as she released her fifth studio album 1989. Though she wrote a piece in July discussing the value of her art, on this occasion the singer has so far been silent about the reasons behind her boycott, though her pal Ed Sheeran, has defended streaming. The British singer-songwriter explained that the revenue and exposure gained from streaming sites has helped to fund his tours. So stream one of his songs, Sing.”

Language Analysis

The language used in Q magazine is purely informative, providing information to the reader about music and the latest music news. The magazine is not like other music magazine in which the language is informal and concentrate purely on entertainment as oppose to providing knowledgeable content. This extract supports my idea earlier in which I suggest that the magazine is aimed at young adults or older teenagers who are more interested in the content or maturity of the magazine than purely just being entertained. The article will provide the recent information such as Taylor Swift dropping her music from Spotify then continue with relevant information such as “followed in the footsteps of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and The Black Keys.” This provides additional information which is not really necessary but because the magazine wants to provide the readers with cultural capital they add it anyway.