Music Magazine Genre

What is the chosen music genre, which your magazine will focus upon?

The chosen music genre which my magazine will focus upon is Dance & R&B. I think I will be able to take more original images with this genre.

What are the key features of this genre?

Dance and R&B music is mainly up tempo songs which are played in nightclubs and get people on the dance-floor. The lyrics are usually based on love, breakup, nightlife and crime. There are many key features of this genre such as; rappers, dancers, half naked women, sports cars, drugs, bling, ear piercings, black people, sunglasses, different fashions, baggy jeans, mainly British or American artists, male and female, good-looking, headphones, tattoos, sex and money.

What magazines, currently in publication, cover this genre?

I haven’t found a magazine that mixes both dance and R&B, but there are magazines currently in publication that cover R&B, the main one would be XXL and VIBE is also popular. There are also magazines that cover Dance the most popular are DJ magazine and Mixmag.

What features do they have in their magazines and how do these features tie in with their target audience’s expectations of representation?

In both XXL and VIBE the front cover is very simple, a plain white background with one main image of a popular artist. Both mastheads are red and the main image slightly covers them. In both magazines the main image is surrounded by very clear easily readable text. Both main images are very serious and both artists are wearing a vest, showing off their tattoos, this is expected in an R&B magazine. In the dance magazines, DJ and Mixmag, the main image is very bright and wild, they are both very colourful and represent dance music in a positive way as they all look as though they are enjoying themselves. Their target audience would expect these magazines to look like that and they can distinguish them straight away by looking at them.

What additional features could you put in your magazine to make it stand out and appeal to an audience that is not already being marketed to?

 My magazine will be a mixture of both Dance and R&B magazines, that means that some images will be serious and others will be fun. My magazine will be quirky and colourful making it eye-catching.