Mission statement

I began by writing a mission statement. This helped me to think of ideas for my magazine. I decided to do a rock magazine as i listen to that genre of music and i have the most knowledge of the sorts of bands which fall into that category. Also i buy Kerrang monthly so i know how a rock magazine is laid out and which sorts of colours to use and what sorts of articles will feature.
 

Mission statement from jemmalaurenxx

Target audience profile

I then made a target audience profile. I was able to use myself to base my magazine around as i am the age my magazine is aimed at and i also enjoy rock genre of music. My magazine is based atstudents which i also am.

Target audience profile from jemmalaurenxx

Codes and conventions of the rock genre

Stereotypes are created by the way something or someone is precieved in the media, whether that be;

• Televison
• Internet
• Films
• Newspapers/magazines
• Music videos

Rock music is no exception to sterotypes. Rock music especially the artists of this genre are associated with sex and drug use and being very rebelious and distruptive, this is the classic view which was formed during the rock and roll era late 1940s-early 1950s.

What is associated with rock music?

• Tattoos
• Piercings
• Guitars
• Drums
• Bands
• Funky clothing
• Dark themes and colours
• Loudness

Conventions of rock music videos


Camera shots
Most general music videos use a very large variety of different camera shots in them this is to give the audience a clear idea of the storyline, setting, theme and artists message.In rock videos these shots are used to emphasise the importance of the band and their message. Shots most commonly used are close ups and extreme close ups, these are used to show the lead vocalist and to show the different emotion. Long shots are also used however this is only used to show the full band. Camera movement in rock music videos is often used to a higher extent in music videos that tell a story with actors rather than band performance videos. Often in band performance videos there is a very large variety of shot types but sometimes lacking in actual camera movement

Mise en scene
Mise-en-scene includes;

• Props
• Sets
• Costumes
• Make up
• Lighting

The mise en scene for rock music are;

• Microphones
• plain clothing
• Instruments

The lead vocal usually gets very close up to the camera, this engages the audience and makes it more personal. singer screams into the microphone and either pulling it close or leaning into the camera. The way in which the music video is presented and what message it gives then shows the audience what the music is like and therefore gives them more of an idea of rock music usually adding to its steretype.

  Here are two screen shots from the music video Hollywood Whore by Papa Roach. The first image is of the lead vocalist. The lighting is very dark and miserable. One half of himself is shadowed, this shows he has a dark side to him. This may be a reference to his personal life as he has a drug problem which would be represented by the darkside where as he has a loving and caring wife and children which is represented by the light side. The darker colour may also represent death and mourning as the video is about a woman who become self obsessed and craving fame which lead to her eventually dying from failure and rejection.
The second image is of the entire band. This is different to the usual types of shots of the entire band as it is a medium shot. Here there are some typical conventions of the rock music genre. the guitar is bright coloured and stands out showing it is a very important iconography of the rock genre of music.

Questionnaire

I created a questionaire for my target audience so i could get an idea of what they like to see in a music magazine. Giving out a questionnaire to my target audience is very useful as it helps me to decide upon the content to include within my magazine.

Questionnaire from jemmalaurenxx

After giving out my questionnaire i collected in the results. I analyses all the feedback and came to a conclusion that most of the respondants had similar opinions on bands and what makes a good music magazine. I then put all the results from the respondants into graphs and analysed them, this was helpful as it enabled me to see what my target audience like and dislike, this also helped me to choose which features i will include on the front cover of my magazine.

To view my results please press the play button then use the arrows in the bottom right corner to change between each slide.
 

questionaire analysis 1

More PowerPoint presentations from jemma

Focus group interview

I sat down with Kerrie and James harper and did a focus group interview with them. I asked them various questions to learn further about what they would like to see in my magazine as they listen to rock music and also but Kerrang and NME.
I showed them these three magazine covers, each a different magazine.
 
 I decided to use three different brands of magazines because the brand identity is different and this may change the viewers point of view. Also there is different fonts and images.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Questions i asked

• Which genre of music do you think these magazines promote?
• Which features suggest this to you?
• Which is the most appealing feature for you on these front covers?
• Which of these covers would you be most attracted to? Why?
• Do you like the look of any of the artists featured on the front?
• What bands/artists would you like to see featured on the front?
• Do you think the content of these magazines truely reflect the tastes, personality and interests of a rock fan like yourself?
• DO you prefer lts of images on the front like kerrang? Or do you prefer one main image like on NME?
• Picking one magazine tell me the one thing more than anything else that makes you want to open up the magazine?

I think doing this focus group because it was a lot more direct than a questionaire. I was more of a discussion and i realised although rock is a category everyone has different opinions and specific likes and preferences.
Speaking to a male and female way very helpful as i was able to see the point of view from both genders. I found out images are important for a front cover as they attract the audience and bright colours are very useful.




Unfortunatly this focus group was not as succesful as i hoped it would be as it did not generate as much feedback as id hoped and the responses were quite limmited so i decided to do another one and get some more feedback and some information. The second time i asked three females the age of my target audience who were a lot more opinionated and shared similar views.

Kerrang case study

By doing a case study i was able to gain much more of an understanding of my target audience and also the magazine industry. I was able to find out information about who publishes Kerrang magazine and the styles and content the magazine consists of. This will help me a lot when making my own magazine.

case study

More PowerPoint presentations from jemma

Different interpretations of Hayley Williams

Hayley williams is one of Kerrangs most featured artists. She is the main image of a lot of their issues. I decided to analyse three of these identifying differences in colour schemes and poses and also the common features used when she is focused on.

Different interpretations of hayley williams from jemmalaurenxx