DJ Magazine Front Cover Analysis

Competitor Magazine Evaluation

 

DJ Front Cover

 

September 2015 Issue 549  

Alex Sherman DJ Front Cover Evaluation  

The Title of the magazine is very simple for the reader to grasp the content of the magazine and the genre that is enclosed. Using 'DJ' instead of Disc Jockey tells us that the target reader is the type of person who wants to read a simple yet exciting magazine as the abbreviation is short and snappy. This connotes that the target reader is young and enjoys a fast pace of life. 'DJ' also suggests that the reader is likely to listen to Dance music, but also enjoy the clubbing experience where there are DJ's. The Masthead is small for a conventional magazine however the boldness of the red captures the reader in the same way a plain and large masthead would. The font is also bold which connotes that the genre of music is very exciting and outgoing. The masthead could also be smaller due to the fact that it is a well identified magazine brand. The Masthead has a black outline, making it stand out from the feature article photo, suggesting that the genre of music is different and contrasting to other types of music, which dance music is supposed to be. There is a disc above the J in the masthead which creates the link between the genre and the magazine. Inside the D there is small piece of horizontal yellow text that reads DJ MAG. This creates a more exiting, fun and different look for the masthead and allows the reader to become adventurous.  The font used is a bubbly font that connotes that the target reader is likely to be quirky, adventurous and be the type of person to stray from normality, otherwise the font would have straight edges.   The feature article photo is extremely bold and exciting for the reader to look at and captures the attention of the reader very quickly. The cover star is wearing a large green hooded jacket, with sunglass. The photo is using low key lighting as the darkness covers parts of this face and all of his neck. The lighting of the photo is most likely coming from one light that is above and behind him. The background is made up from an explosion giving off sparks. This image connotes that he is a mysterious and different artist who is in a way intimidating however is an artist who readers aspire to be like. The explosion connotes that this is an explosive music genre and that the magazine holds an exciting article inside. This shot is a conventional mid shot however below the upper waist, the picture fades into darkness. This sets a mysterious yet intriguing tone for the magazine. The cover start is an artist called Paul Woolford. The feature article photo shows a mysterious character with some sort of dominance. He is a really interesting person who makes you want to buy the magazine.   This particular magazine brand uses a Puff on its front cover: "LIVING AND BREATHING DANCE MUSIC". This enhances the brands identity as it allows the target reader to quickly and easily learn that the magazine is very professional and is fully dedicated to the music genre. The Puff allows a more personal approach to the reader as it is small and easy on the eye creating the right Mode of Address allows that connection between the magazine and the reader as is it a simple feature for an audience who wants to read something simple yet interesting.   The Cover line is extremely bold and captures the readers attention instantly with this use of typography as the yellow and white text stands out on its black background. This connotes that this music genre stands out. The cover line takes up around 40% of the page which is very large however this makes the reader feel as though this article needs to be read so they buy the magazine. The word 'DETONATES' links into the background of the feature article photo which connects the look of the magazine together.  The font of the cover line is different to the plugs and other text however they are the same colours. This creates more of an interest for the feature article while also having a link to the rest of the magazine. The rough effect on the font gives the text an edgy look and a less sophisticated tone. This is because the target reader would be a young, outgoing person who enjoys clubbing and dance music.   The Plugs are of alternating colours of yellow and white (like the cover line) and different boldness make the cover easier to read yet more interesting. This also connotes that Dance music is different and individual which the target audience aspire to be. There are small boxes underneath each bit of text that creates a separation between the background of black and orange to make it easier for the reader to read. The plugs are flush left and flush right creating a more organized look.   From looking at this front cover I have made an estimated judgement on the demographic audience:   Gender - 70% Male    30% Female (the dark colours create a more masculine tone however the genre of music is for both genders) Age -  16-25 (the this the age group in which are part of the clubbing, dance lifestyle and therefore this is who is likely to read the magazine) Class -  Lower Middle and Skilled Working Class (the reason I have suggested that this magazine is for these class brackets is that the members of these classes earn a certain amount of money which they will need in order to fund sophisticated but has a certain classiness about it.) Sexuality - All (the genre of music attracts all sexualities as it appeals to them all. The bright colours, but dark club night mis en scene of the magazine really brings this across) Ethnicity- White (Dance music is traditionally aimed at the white ethnicity) Education-  Average Income - Middle (Although younger people don't have very large incomes they need enough money to fund some of the activities inside this magazine such as club nights, festival tickets etc.

 

 

 

 
 
The Title of the magazine is very simple for the reader to grasp the content of the magazine and the genre that is enclosed. Using 'DJ' instead of Disc Jockey tells us that the target reader is the type of person who wants to read a simple yet exciting magazine as the abbreviation is short and snappy. This connotes that the target reader is young and enjoys a fast pace of life. 'DJ' also suggests that the reader is likely to listen to Dance music, but also enjoy the clubbing experience where there are DJ's.

The Masthead is small for a conventional magazine however the boldness of the red captures the reader in the same way a plain and large masthead would. The font is also bold which connotes that the genre of music is very exciting and outgoing. The masthead could also be smaller due to the fact that it is a well identified magazine brand. The Masthead has a black outline, making it stand out from the feature article photo, suggesting that the genre of music is different and contrasting to other types of music, which dance music is supposed to be. There is a disc above the J in the masthead which creates the link between the genre and the magazine. Inside the D there is small piece of horizontal yellow text that reads DJ MAG. This creates a more exiting, fun and different look for the masthead and allows the reader to become adventurous.  The font used is a bubbly font that connotes that the target reader is likely to be quirky, adventurous and be the type of person to stray from normality, otherwise the font would have straight edges.

 

The feature article photo is extremely bold and exciting for the reader to look at and captures the attention of the reader very quickly. The cover star is wearing a large green hooded jacket, with sunglass. The photo is using low key lighting as the darkness covers parts of this face and all of his neck. The lighting of the photo is most likely coming from one light that is above and behind him. The background is made up from an explosion giving off sparks. This image connotes that he is a mysterious and different artist who is in a way intimidating however is an artist who readers aspire to be like. The explosion connotes that this is an explosive music genre and that the magazine holds an exciting article inside. This shot is a conventional mid shot however below the upper waist, the picture fades into darkness. This sets a mysterious yet intriguing tone for the magazine. The cover start is an artist called Paul Woolford. The feature article photo shows a mysterious character with some sort of dominance. He is a really interesting person who makes you want to buy the magazine.

 

This particular magazine brand uses a Puff on its front cover: "LIVING AND BREATHING DANCE MUSIC". This enhances the brands identity as it allows the target reader to quickly and easily learn that the magazine is very professional and is fully dedicated to the music genre. The Puff allows a more personal approach to the reader as it is small and easy on the eye creating the right Mode of Address allows that connection between the magazine and the reader as is it a simple feature for an audience who wants to read something simple yet interesting.

 

The Cover line is extremely bold and captures the readers attention instantly with this use of typography as the yellow and white text stands out on its black background. This connotes that this music genre stands out. The cover line takes up around 40% of the page which is very large however this makes the reader feel as though this article needs to be read so they buy the magazine. The word 'DETONATES' links into the background of the feature article photo which connects the look of the magazine together.  The font of the cover line is different to the plugs and other text however they are the same colours. This creates more of an interest for the feature article while also having a link to the rest of the magazine. The rough effect on the font gives the text an edgy look and a less sophisticated tone. This is because the target reader would be a young, outgoing person who enjoys clubbing and dance music.

 

The Plugs are of alternating colours of yellow and white (like the cover line) and different boldness make the cover easier to read yet more interesting. This also connotes that Dance music is different and individual which the target audience aspire to be. There are small boxes underneath each bit of text that creates a separation between the background of black and orange to make it easier for the reader to read. The plugs are flush left and flush right creating a more organized look.

 

From looking at this front cover I have made an estimated judgement on the demographic audience:
 

Gender - 70% Male    30% Female (the dark colours create a more masculine tone however the genre of music is for both genders)

Age -  16-25 (the this the age group in which are part of the clubbing, dance lifestyle and therefore this is who is likely to read the magazine)

Class -  Lower Middle and Skilled Working Class (the reason I have suggested that this magazine is for these class brackets is that the members of these classes earn a certain amount of money which they will need in order to fund sophisticated but has a certain classiness about it.)

Sexuality - All (the genre of music attracts all sexualities as it appeals to them all. The bright colours, but dark club night mis en scene of the magazine really brings this across)

Ethnicity- White (Dance music is traditionally aimed at the white ethnicity)

Education-  Average

Income - Middle (Although younger people don't have very large incomes they need enough money to fund some of the activities inside this magazine such as club nights, festival tickets etc.