detailed reasearch into forms and conventions.

For my main task i am going to produce a music magazine cover, contents page and a double page spread. I have chosen the hiphop/RnB/urban/reggae musical genre. I searched for 3 magazines similar to the one i will be creating. These are 'the source', 'XXL' and 'Vibe'. I have chosen all covers with Lil Wayne on the cover, so i can get a true comparison. On all front covers, the three main colours used were red, black and white, this shows quite a basic layout, with not very much variety. However it gives the cover a sophisticated look. other than magazines such as 'popstar' which have bright colours to grab attention in a more childish way.

For my main research i will only use two magazines, which will be 'vibe' and 'XXL' as these are the most popular. i will use these as inspiration for creating my magazine, as they are from my genre.


Here is a cover of Vibe magazine. The rapper 'Lil wayne' is the main feature. Vibe in the english dictionary means 'a distinctive emotional atmosphere; sensed intuitively'. However vibe is a very common slang word, used regualrly by people of an urban nature and younger people. I went on the urban dictionary (searched by Google) and it states that Vibe means 'rhythm', 'signals or messages sent out to someone' and 'chill'. This then links to the genre of the magazine, as it's a music magazine so 'rhythm' suits perfectly, and you normally 'chill' with a magazine. It is also used frequently by the audience of the magazine, so therefore has a less formal approach to it's readers, as it can have various meanings. The cover uses red, white, black and yellow fonts, which arent sexist colours, so therefore the magazine is for both males and females. Some fonts are in bold, italic and outlined, this is so certain text stands out and it doesn't all look the same. The main feature is rap star Lil Wayne, who is pictured in a medium close up, wearing a black suit. Text along side him says 'I'm more afraid of life than death' which may relate to the suit (funeral, judgement day). Lil wayne bleeds into the title of the magazine, which suggests he's the main appeal and the magazine doesnt need to show the title for readers to want to buy it. It also suggests that he may be more important than the magazine or that the readers dont need to beable to see the magazine title to know what magazine it is. The magazine contains music reviews, celebrity gossip column, up-coming artists and several photo spreads with the latest fashions. This links to the fact it's a music magazine as legendary hip hop artists such as Sean Combs (P Diddy), Nelly and 5O cent have all created urban clothing labels. Vibe usually shoots artists, rather than bands, seeing as there aren't many bands in the hiphop/RnB genre. Most other features within the magazine, are displayed along the right hand side, with some on the left hand side, which appears to break up the amount of text. The text 'Lil Wayne' is the only other font in red apart from the masthead, which immediately attracts your eyes. This shows that Lil Wayne is very important and this is what they want the reader to see first. He's the only picture featured, which shows he is the main sell for this issue. The cover features alot of straplines, but does feature two screamers, 'Yeah!' and 'Bowlin'!' which are both quite informally spelt, as most young people and some older people spell yes as 'yeah' (and also say it like 'yeah') so its then connecting with the readers. Also many people of an urban nature and alot of young people, drop the g's on the end of 'ing' words when they speak. 'Bowlin'' is a perfect example of this, and therefore gives a laid-back approach.






As you can see, XXL magazine is very similar to Vibe as the colours selected are almost identical and they both use a Sans Serif font in bold and italic. However, the title this time is a red filled square, with the letters XXL in white. XXL means extra extra large, which can be in collosal/mass, or in clothes size. This doesnt relate to the genre of the magazine, as this has nothing to do with music, however it may relate to how popular and big the magazine is, as they may think its very popular and well-known. This gives an 'ignorant' approach as they may feel the magazine is 'extra extra large'. This time Lil Wayne isn't shot in a medium close up, but in a medium long shot. Once again he is covering the masthead, just like Vibe, which shows the magazine doesn't need to show it's name to sell. This magazine doesn't have any screamers, but does have one strapline. 'Lil wayne' is written as a reversed out coverline in black, italic font, with a white background. It's the largest text on the cover, which therefore immediately draws the readers attention. He is wearing a black t-shirt with 'I am hip-hop' written on in white, which immediately gives away that he is a legend in the industry, or so he thinks he is. He is posing with both thumbs facing towards him, with a smug expression on his face, as if to say 'look at me'. This matches Lil Wayne's personality as in many of his lyrics he states he's the 'best rapper alive' and that he 'is it'. The magazine contains nearly identical features to 'Vibe'. XXL features music reviews, celebrity interviews, and the latest fashions. Fashion is a crucial part of the magazine, as the one of the most important things to the urban lifestyle, is their 'swagger', this involves looking the part, and wearing the latest clothes. XXL is focused more towards rap and hip-hop, whereas Vibe is more RnB. XXL is more male orientated as there isnt many female rap artists, with only featuring a female on the cover once. However, this does not make it sexist, as if there was more female rap artists out there, I'm sure they'd be featured. It IS a unisex magazine, but just features male artists. Underneath the masthead there is a puff, which says 'Hiphop on a higher level'. The cover looks a lot more bare than the Vibe cover, as there's not a lot of text, which gives it a less professional look.

Here is the cover of Lil Waynes, new unrealeased album 'Rebirth'. He is pictured slouching on an old fashioned sofa, which gives the effect, he doesn't care and is laid-back. He has an electric guitar on his lap, but isn't touching it at all, which connotes he's not bothered about it, and that he's done using it. He has a mean expression on his face, but even though hes wearing sunglasses, you can still tell exactly what his facial expression is. The album title 'Rebirth' suggests that he has been born again, which may indicate that it's a fresh start, or a new beginning. There is very little font on the cover, with the only words situated along the middle of the cover saying 'Lil Wayne Rebirth'. Lil Wayne is wrote in bold, white font, which makes it stand out against the beige background. Rebirth is then wrote in red, which doesnt stand out as much as the white font. This may be because his face is far away from the camera, and he has sunglasses on, so people may not know who he is, and at a quick glance, all they see is the words 'Lil Wayne' which will sell it its self. The album cover is different to the magazines as it has neutral tones, and no bright colours, where as the magazines, have white, black and red, which are all quite in-your-face colours. This is something to consider when creating my magazine.