1. Music Magazine Representation Melissa Storey

2. Q, NME and Rolling Stone are all music magazines which portray the genre of Indie music. They all have a target audience between 16-25, and mostly aimed towards influential men interested in this genre of music. Women do buy these magazines, for example there is a ratio of 31:79 to males. But I have experience myself with buying some issues of these magazines. The producers of these three magazines target their specific audience through the typical interest in music, shown through popular musicians and artists on the front covers of all magazines. This interests the audience to read issues with their favourite artists interviews on the front. They choose popular artists to be placed on the front covers, like, Kings Of Leon. More people know them therefore it will appeal to a larger audience and more issues will be sold. 3. Positive Representation Q- Q gives a positive representation of the audience who reads this magazine as being fun and adventurous. They are interested in going to gigs and festivals, in which is shown on the front page with the 16 Page Gig Guide. They are represented as being an independent crowd and no afraid to be different. With the main interview from Florence And The Machine and a quote saying I feel so alone, they can connect to the artist for support and recognition.NME- In this magazine this group is shown to be having fun. They are have an exciting and fun social life, they come across as being popular and interested in mostly English indie bands which represents their proud culture within. V festival is advertised inside the magazine, online and on the front cover. This represents the audience as being independent and adventurous as this is what you get at festivals. Festivals are a great place to socialize and make friends that have the same interest of music as you. The representation of the image on from shows that the Kings of Leon have power in the industry because of the slightly low angle shot. People look up towards them and find them an inspiration to Indie music.Rolling Stone- This is magazine is more popular and known in the USA rather than the UK therefore there may be different representations and connotations due to the different cultures. The interviews are from big celebrities such as Taylor Swift and Rod Stewart; both huge iconic singer/songwriters and even Mitt Romney. This shows the representation of Rolling Stone is that they can incorporate both music and politics together and it will still sell. This suggests that the mind of the readers are wide and they have many interests. 4. Negative Representation Q- Theuse of harsh words such as git and bastard on the front cover gives a rebellious and a violent attitude. This causes the audience to be represented with this sort of attitude and be see as unpleasant people.NME- Knife Fights! were the first words I saw on the front cover of this issue of NME. It shows violets within the genre of Indie and how music can change the perspectives of people. Many Indie/Rock magazines are seen as heavy and are represented in a way of being violent and strong towards others through the words being used, just like Q, the audience will be seen as unpleasant people because of the violent representation on the front cover.Rolling Stone- All the magazines have some sort of festival reference on the covers. Although festivals are a good place to socialize, they often represent violets, alcohol and drugs. The only issue that doesnt mention festivals or gigs on the front cover issue is the Rolling Stone, but they do include it inside. This is because of the culture it is usually published in. The USA are largely religious therefore drugs, alcohol and violets is not tolerated. Although the name of the magazine was from the song Rollin Stone by Muddy Waters which was where The Rolling Stones got their name from which contrasts the whole representation of the USA because The Rolling Stones are a huge rock band around drugs and rebellious. To me when I look at the magazine it reminds me of the Rolling Stones the band with the colours and rough imagery and therefore the same repetitions are seen. 5. Social Groups All three products are mainly aimed at a male audience all between 16-25. Q- Has a medium audience reader age at 30 years old. Q uses more technical and polite language within their issues this gains their 73% ABC1 readership. The male gender is shown through the colours used. In general, all the magazines use the colour red which connotes as being dangerous and shows the rebellious attitude in the male gender. Other main colours used in these magazines are blue and white, both neutral and contrast with the red but both included in male products.NME- Has a target audience of 17-30 years old men and an average reading age of 25. This magazine has the youngest age of them all, this can be shown by the joking headlines, the improper language and the covering of gigs and festivals. NME cover Leeds and Reading festival heavily and create special edition issues to cover the festival. They have their on NME stage at Leeds and Reading. This creates a specific social group who would read this issue; people who went or who wanted to go. The images are all action shots of the festival and this creates something to talk about in social groups and friends who you went to the festival with.Rolling Stone- This is the more mature magazine from the three. You can tell this from the common interest of politics on the front of the issue talking about the American politician Mitt Romney. This is an unusual feature to include in a music magazine for teenagers, therefore it will be aimed specifically for a small audience. Again this magazine is aimed toward men, this can be seen in the common way the issues portray women on the front of their covers. For example Taylor Swift is sat in a productive way, with messy hair and her hand in between her legs, seducing the men. This is the same whenever a women is photographed on the front cover to appeal to men and to get them talking. 6. Social Issues Qand NME- They both advertise alcoholic drinks and drug help lines such a Frank. Both theses issues are bad for the the audience, even though help is still advertised it still suggests that the people who take drugs are more likely to read this magazine.Rolling Stone- One huge controversial issue was printed in August 2013 after the Boston Marathon bombings with a photograph of the bomber as the front cover of Rolling Stone. Many many people had something to say about this. The members of the publics said things like it glamorizes terrorism and people who were hurt in the bombing should be covered more about. I agree with the public, terrorist should not be published and placed on the cover of popular magazines. I understand news stories but people buy music magazine for entertainment, to escape the real world. This is what the editor of this Rolling Stone issue had to say:The fact that DzhokharTsarnaev is young, and in the same age group as many of our readers, makes it all the more important for us to examine the complexities of this issue and gain a more complete understanding of how a tragedy like this happens. (www.rollingstone.com) 7. Cultural As I mentioned before the Rolling Stone magazine is usually published and distributed around the USA, while both NME and Q are mainly distributed around the UK. Both countries rely and have a huge music industry cultures. You can see the cultural difference between the Rolling Stone and the two other English produced magazines by the content within. The USA is very religious and will not tolerate obscene language or actions therefore there is no reference to sex, drugs and alcohol on the front covers of magazines as they see this as advertising to the rest of the population. Yet they do know how to attract their target audience by making women sexualized on the front cover, as long as they dont use offensive words. But in the UK magazines they do this the other way round. We leave indecent images for magazines such as Zoo and Nuts. But the use of improper words and jokes are used a lot in English magazine to bring humor into it and make it light hearted. Therefore the use of words such as bastard can be used on the front cover of Q and NME. Music magazines are very unlikely to be placed in the eye view of a toddler in a shop, therefore they are safe from this language.Different musical artists are portrayed depending if it is published in the UK or the USA. Most of the music is the same but in the indie genre there are lots of small English bands that are talked about in NME and Q. While there are unknown singers mentioned in the Rolling Stone. This makes it personal to the country it is published in and if it was sold somewhere else their culture may be different and not find an interest in the music. Although a lot of English influences are printed inside American magazines and vice versa. For example Adele is on the front cover of Rolling Stone and Lady Gaga on the cover of Q. 8. Codes and Conventions Q- In general, all the magazines use the colour red which connotes as being dangerous and shows the rebellious attitude in the music genre therefore this is seen on each magazine and also in each logo name the colour red is used.NME- The image for the front cover includes a good quality image of the band in a long shot position. This is commonly used in NME as well as other magazines. The way they are stood says a lot about their power in the industry. For example the camera is at a low angle to the Kings of Leon therefore they have more power because the audience has to look up to them. Also the use of guitars with males represents phallic symbolism which suggests the larger the guitar the more power you have.Rolling Stone- Well based interviews and article are a common convention in any print media. You need this to involve and interest your audience. Topics on bands and interests that the similar audience would have, such are festivals, gigs, merchandise, new bands and albums, to interest the audience. They all have a good designed layout so it is easy to read and recognize that the genre of the publication is music magazine. 9. Masthead- Is largestMain Image- Anfont size on the page at the top of the page is a great place to highlight the magazine title so the people buying the product know what they are buying into. Tag Line- This is like a promise of what you will find in the magazine; Discover Great Music. This is what they aim for the audience to guarantee have in each issue. It is therefore printed on each issueextreme close up shot emphases Florences glare into the camera, to make it look like she is looking at you. This is enhanced with the deep blue make up around her eyes. She is an inspirational women towards the women buying the magazine and to the men her facial expression is quite sexual relating to the male gaze theory. Her looks could attract a man walking past this magazine. Although it is not the way in which women are portrayed in Nuts, as a product, she uses her sexual looks to lead people into the magazine to respect her talent.Subheadings- Are printed in a large font to highlight popular bands featured in the magazine that will make people want to buy the magazine. Big names such as Skrillex and Simon Cowell on this page are stood out more than the rest of the text as the names are important to sell the magazine.Plug- This is in a sticker form to make it stand out, also blue contrasts with her red hair drawing your attention to it. Zane Lowe introduces and finds new artists, this links to the indie genre 10. Headline-The headline is bold although it is not large in comparison to the ReviewColumn-The column on the left side of the interview is advertising other artists like Florence and the Machine. This is a great way for the same audience who like Florence's unique voice and for people to expand their music in this specific genre.New Albums, this suggests they would rather sell new albums than Florence and the Machine as an artist herself. The producers are more interested in selling the product therefore they are proud of the music hey have produced.Pull-Quote- A quote in the middle of the page in a sticker box brings it out and is a common convention in the main interview in music magazines.Main Image-The image takes up a whole page, this is effective as it shows who the article is about. Also the colours of the image are warm reds and oranges to link with her signature hair colour. Red= passion, love, fiery and warmth, this shows how Florence is in her personality. This links to intersexuality as her website as the images rolling on her own website are alike, linking together both this article and her website. Q readers treasure the Q photography with 97% saying it has the best interviews and award winning photography, explaining why the image is so large. 11. Subheadings- The sub-Masthead- Is behind the image because it is such a well known Magazine so just the shaping of the Masthead will advertise the magazine It also suggests that the same dedicated audience buy the same magazine each issue. The colour red is to highlight new bands or existing bands, and having the masthead(NME) in the same red shows that you will expect new and existing bands in the NME magazine.heading is close to the Masthead showing how they relate and it is easier for the audience to see what to expect inside. The names of the bands are highlighted in the sam red as the Masthead and Headline, this is to show the link .Headline- This isMain Image- The band is set in a traditional band layout- two in front, two behind. This is to show the will stick together but also to show you who the band members are. The hand reaching out is almost reaching out to you inviting you to joining them; pulling you in. This is making you want to be with them and Will make you buy the magazine so you can read about them.Plug-This relates to the audience in that would be interested in V Festival as these people would be interested in the bands in NME. And it also has an article on the Festival telling you about the bands that will be playing.straight across the middle of the cover to grab attention straight away. It is in a bold red to stand out from the cream and white colour scheme. Also the of is in a different font to the rest of the fonts showing they are not afraid to be different as their music is not like many other bands but can still make it big being different; inspirational. 12. Blobs-The odd rectangle and square shapes placed around, underneath and over the image shows the band is quirky in their style of music and not afraid to be different. Also NME is targeted for a student audience so they need to keep the audience interested by using a unique page design.PullQuotes-Pull quotes are a good way to attract the audience by using an interesting part of the article and highlighting it making the reader want to read about the subject more. These are used a lot in interviews so you can quickly see what the band are saying.Main Image-Is large taking up a whole page and quarter of the next page. This gets straight to the point of who the band is. The way they are holding their guitars near their crotch is a symbol of male power. This can relate to the male audience as they want to be powerful and will look up to them, but it can also attract the female audience using phallic symbolism as women want a power, strong man. Again they are looking straight into the camera, wanting something from you, the audience. But relating to the article it tells us that The Vaccines are the biggest guitar band of 2011 so the object of guitars is shown in the image to strengthen this point. The tone of this image is dirty and dull showing the genre may be garage and rock and reflecting to their gritty sound. 13. Masthead- The masthead is behind Taylor Swifts image, this shows the audience of Rolling Stone are regular buyers and know the recognisable logo, even behind the image. The bright red stands out as it contrasts from the white background making it easier to find in a magazine rack in your local shop.Headline- It is large and placMain Image- Taylor Swift is known as a good, county girl but the provocative pose shows a different side to her. This links to the plug on the other side, Hot Stuff. It relates to the theory, the Male Gaze as she is posing in a way she would not normally. The pose is sexy and the way she has her hand between her legs is a provocative pose. Her make up and hair looks messy and although she is a good girl, this can portray her in the opposite. The county girl looks almost opposite to her county outback songs and lifestyle are. This gets peoples attention because they want to know why she is looking like this. But it relates to the Male Gaze theory that men would want to look at her because she is looking sexy and women aspire to be her.centre, but to the right so it is not taking up the whole of the image. This is because Taylor Swift is a famous and talented artist so lots of people know who she is. Although it is in a different colour to the other fonts on the page, this is only make the main article headline stand out so the audience kno it is about the heart break kid drawing people in with a direc Quote as the strapline. 14. Masthead-The masthead is large and in a theMain Image-The main image takes up a page and quarter of theusual Rolling Stone red to link with the magazine set colours; red, black and white. It is large and at the top of the page to let the reader know what the interview is about; questionnaire interview.previous page, is because imagery of the band is important, also the main feature of this photo is the colours and how it links to their new album. The front cover of their album is the same to this photograph of the whole band linking to the intersexuality of the band advertising their albu through a photo-shoot with Rolling Stone. They look laid-back looking straight into the camera maybe even looking desperate for you to buy their new album linking to the interview on the other side of the page. Linking back to the colours of the album and this image and also link to their tour, Come Around Sundown, whi ch is what their album is called, with the colours looking like a sunset linking to the sundown.Text and Fonts-The introduction is written in a bold red to make it stand out from the main interview, this is so the readers know what the interview is about and know when it is starting. A bold font is used to highlight the questions asked and answers from the band in a smaller font. A drop cap is used at the start of the paragraph to show where the text and interview starts. 15. Changes October 1986 IssueChanges within time can be visible on front covers on magazines. I choose theses two magazines and the earliest issues I could fine to compare it with.Qs layout has changed incredibly. Now it is easier to read and has taken on the more typical magazine front cover style that is used on big glossy magazines rather than the chat style format. The lack of boxes in the 2012 issue makes it look more professional and personally I would pay more money for.March 2012 IssueThe logos for both magazines have not changed in huge amounts but the Rolling Stone magazine has got so big in America it can afford to hide it behind Taylor Swifts head. The colours have been changed to fit with other music magazines and their use of red.January 1997 IssueOctober 2012 issue