Task 4Research Into Specific Music

Magazine

Initial Research• The genre of music magazine I want to produce is Hip-Hop.• This is because I listen to that music on a regular basis so would feel comfortable creating

something which is visually attractive and appeals to the target audience of around 14-21.• Also, I have personal expectations of what a hip-hop magazine should look like and what

content should be in there which is helpful for drafting ideas.

I have done an internet search here to see different types of hip-hop magazines. This will give me an idea of what layout to use and content to include.

Selection – Front Covers• After looking through the results from my internet search, I have realised that there are a

lot of different types of hip-hop magazines which have different layouts, contents and features.

• I looked through a lot of them and selected a few which I like the look of.

• The selection of these covers are all of males as the main image.• For my magazine, I will use a male model for the cover because after conducting research

I have found that when female models are used for cover magazines of hip-hop magazines, the models are wearing minimal clothing. I feel this would be inappropriate to do for my magazine.

Selection – Contents Pages• Once my selection for the front cover had been done, I went on to selecting different hip-

hop magazine contents pages which I liked the look of.

• I like these contents pages because they have one dominant striking image with text around it.

• They are informative and have a neat, professional finish.

Selection - Articles• The last stage of my selection process is to look at different articles within hip-hop

magazines that I like the look of and could use as a guide for my own article in the magazine I am going to create.

Why I like XXL?• The magazine is a hip-hop magazine and that appeals to me because I

listen to that genre of music on a daily basis• The magazine covers a range of artists (established but also up and

coming ones)• The interviews are mostly exclusive to XXL • The magazines are laid out in a neat and clear way which makes them

easy to follow.• The magazines are packed full of current music news.

Institution

XXL Magazine is a hip-hop magazine, published by Harris Publication, founded in 1997.

In December 2006, XXL took over the struggling hip hop producer and DJ magazine Scratch (another publication owned by Harris Publications), re-branding it as XXL Presents Scratch Magazine.

XXL has released many other special projects including tour programs, mixtapes and exclusive DVDs. XXL also maintains a popular website, which provides daily hip hop news, original content and content from the magazine.

Institution – About XXL & Website

Similar Music Magazines

Possible Ideas For My MagazineFront Cover Contents Page Double Page

Spread• Striking image of

an artist who is dressed as a common hip-hop artist would be dressed (chain, cap, baggy clothing)

• Simple and bright masthead positioned at the top of the page

• Cover lines• Competition

• Big, bold title at the top

• Page split into three columns with one main image in the centre of the page. The other two columns will be filled with text and content information

• An interview with the same artist who featured on the front cover. One page of the double page spread dominated by another striking image of that artist

• Eyecatching masthead

• Magazine logo on the top corner of the page

Summary• After conducting my research, I have got an idea of what I want my

magazine to look like.

I would like to have one dominant image on the front of the magazine with my male model wearing similar items to the ones above. Also, he will have an aggressive pose on his face to reflect the genre of music.

I would like my contents page to look similar to the one above. I want to have a main image, which is taken at a canted angle, of the same artist on the front cover of the magazine but in different clothing with a different pose. Text will surround the main image, with a big bold masthead at the top of the page.

I would like my double spread page to look similar to the one above. One half of the page will be dominated by an image of a ‘hip-hop’ artist. I want to have my model wearing similar clothing and jewellery, but with headphones over his head. Also, I want my model to be posing in an area with graffiti which there is in the image above.I want text to fill the other half of the page with a clean, simple layout.