DETAILED CLASS ANALYSIS OF MUSIC MAGAZINE ON NME.SIMRAN KAUR

MASTHEAD – The masthead of this magazine is placed in the first horizontal third. It is placed conventionally so it’ll be the first thing to catch the audience’s eye. ‘NME’ is written in a bold serif font of capitalised letters, again contributing to the readers initial impression as the see it on the shelf, the use of the colour red and the black outlining also contributes to this marketing technique of grabbing the readers attention. ‘NME’ stands for ‘New Musical Express’ this indicates its content of a variety of music which intertextualises fans of all genres.

COVER LINES – The cover lines on this magazine are placed in the third vertical third and wrap around the model image in the hotspot areas allowing individual focus on the text. They’re in bold fonts and in a contrasting colour to the background. The cover lines allow the audience to get an insight on the magazine’s content which NME does. It does well to entice the target audience as the cover lines depict the artists to be mentioned in the magazine, as all the artists listed branch from a multitude of genres it shows the targeted audience doesn’t consist of one type of person – but many.

MAIN COVER LINE – The main cover line is anchored to the main image and reads “I’m spreading joy around the world, man!”. The use of direct address here connotes a sense of informality between the artist and the audience. This makes audience members feel equal to the artist making them want to pick up the magazine as its not making them feel any less of themselves only what they are.

BARCODE – The barcode, issue number and edition conventionally remain in the bottom right hand corner – the dead area. This information is quite irrelevant to the audience after purchase so is on a much smaller scale.

MODEL/MAIN IMAGE - Alongside the masthead, the main image is what the audience first pay attention to. It is conventionally located in the hotspot areas acting as the focal point of interest and acts as the home to the ‘selling point’ – the main article. NME is no different, the main image denotes well known UK rapper Dizzee Rascal – this automatically engages one of the many different members of the magazine’s target audience – Rap. The placement and scale of the image is also something to notice, the image is what I’d say is medium long shot, filling the page and drawing attention. It is also in the foreground of the cover indicating importance and status of the cover model. The cover model is also using direct address by looking straight into the camera lense, this is commonly done to engage the audience and add a sense of connection from them to you. Also for those who know of Dizzee Rascal’s career know he started out very small and went on to having a fair few hits in his industry. For this he acts as an icon to audience members not only in the Rap genre but many more

COLOUR SCHEME – The colour scheme (also known as the house style) of a magazine is used depending on the audience targeted and their overall branding. In NME, red, white and black is used consistently all across the cover. All of these colours have different connotations to the audience which may be the reason for their use as well as the different psychographics they entail. Red connotes power and determination, black connotes authority and control and white connotes perspective and freedom. All these colours possess connotations that fans of music commonly seek not just in themselves but in their music.

TARGET AUDIENCE PROFILE – NME’s target audience consists of 69% males and 31% females with the average age of 24. Majority of readers are in full time work at 52%, part time at 7% and 27% are still studying. In my opinion, the readership enjoy investing in themselves and are quite controlled financially as most of them fall into social classes ABC1. As I mentioned previously NME covers a wide range of music genres so addresses quite a mass target audience. I do however think they specialise more so in the rock genre. The magazines audience is mainly made up of individuals passionate about music and pop culture. I think they take pride in being one step ahead and on top of current affairs. They’d be quite into technology especially audio equipment – some may even enjoy making music as well as listening.

MISE-EN-SCENE – The mise-en-scene of this cover contributes to the selling of it. The use of colour, font, imagery and scale ultimately adds to the audience it attracts. Everything of the cover is quite simplistic but is arranged in such a way it attracts a variety of people.

MASTHEAD/TITLE – the masthead and title ‘contents’ uses the same serif font that is used on the cover. This shows uniform throughout the publication giving it a brand identity, a sense of status and establishment.MAIN IMAGE – the main image used in the contents is used to grab the audiences attention as the picture is linked to articles featured acting as a further selling point. The use of a canted angle here also gives the impression of the magazines alternate perspective on music again acting as a selling point to the target audience.

ARTICLE TITLE – The articles title is anchored to the main image used here. Both this and the main image are placed within the second vertical third in the hotspot areas of the page being the primary focus of the audience, drawing them in.

HOUSE STYLE – The house style is consistent throughout both the cover and contents page using black, red and white. This shows uniform and brand identity towards the audience members making them want to be a part of the establishment created.

MODE OF ADDRESS – the mode of address is quite direct and informal, for example “eh?” The use of short language and rhetorical questioning gives the audience the impression they are being spoken to, that they are being addressed individually making them feel somewhat important.

CONTENT – The actual contents section of the page is located in the third vertical third, this isn’t particularly conventional for a magazine but non the less very effective. As the audience tends to view a page from left to right the contents will be the last thing they see before turning the page. This allows easy access to the articles of preference but also gives them a lasting impression of the content. Also the page numbers are in a different colour to the actual content titles furthering the easy access to the pages.

MISE- EN – SCENE – The overall mise-en-scene of the contents page is quite unconventional. For example, the layout; the use of main imagery unrelated to the main article listed on the cover in the hotspot areas, the sub- headings located in on the rightmost are of the page and finally the index on the leftmost of the page. Not only is this quite unusual for a magazine to have but it is quite unusual for it to be on the contents page. However, I do believe this is all intentional – in ways it adds to the connotation of an alternate, unique perspective on music which I think massively appeals to the audience.

TARGET AUDIENCE – As I mentioned before the audience I believe NME is trying to target here are individuals whom show an interest deeper than the norm in music. They offer a unique perspective and an open mind to the industry on a whole. They want to know the inner workings of music and the work that goes into it. This may be because they are naturally inquisitive but more so because they take an interest beyond listening to music – the making of it.

LAYOUT – As this is a double page spread it is two single pages put together. On the left page there is a clear ‘grid’ where the model used is located in the hotspot areas. This allows clear focus on the articles content and whom it focuses on. On the right page there is no visible conventional grid but it is conveniently laid out for the audiences viewing, i.e. the subheading/title at the uppermost of the page with the article placed below. This all adds to the way the spread is designed to be viewed – the main focal model on one page with the structured article placed alongside it giving ample space and equal importance of both.

COLUMNS – the article itself is in a much smaller font than the title. Its conventionally sound as its separated into columns all fairly compact making them easy to read. The use of a drop cap at the start of the article also makes it easier to read as it’s a clear indication of where the article starts.

FONT – The bold, serif font used has been consistent throughout showing uniform amongst the magazines branding as well as focus on the important sections. Its also clear that a larger size of font has been used for the title to engage readers as soon as they turn onto the page.

MAIN IMAGE – The main image of Dizzee Rascal used denotes him spray painting on graffitied wall of multiple colours. However this connotes to a lot more. The use of different colours could represent the different personalities his audience. As it is located in the centre of the page and on its own page shows status and importance which may act as aspirational to audience members.

ADDRESS/LANGUAGE – The title reads “From tags to riches” the use of play on words here gives it kind of an informal vibe connecting with the audience. The phrase could also be quite aspirational to the target audience as it acts as the motivation they may require to pursue their wants. Which based on the target audience could be something involved in the music industry.

OVERALL IMPRESSION – The overall impression given by the design of the spread is quite informal and really open for perception by the audience.

WHAT CONNECTIONS CAN BE IDENTIFIED

BETWEEN THE THREE?COLOUR SCHEME/HOUSE STYLE – The colour scheme of red, black and white is consistent throughout the entire publication of the magazine. This reoccurring use of colours shows uniform amongst the three pages giving the magazine brand identity and making it recognisable when on the shelves. This shows the magazines establishment and that they are reputable.

FONT – The font used throughout is bold and serif. This also gives uniformity that adds to the magazines branding. As well as that it makes the text stand out to the audience making the content of importance known.