Music Magazine Analysis www.nme.com

Masthead. The font is simple and plain Masthead. The font is simple and plain. It’s not associated with a particular genre, which suggests that magazine contains articles about different styles of music. A range of musical genres supposed to attract wider audience. In this issue the masthead is written in white colour which refers to freshness. Abbreviation NME stands New Musical Express, this name refers to the musical content of the magazine. However, the pun (NME - enemy) sets the antagonistic mood and suggests the rebellious non-standard content. Date of issue On the pictures without tags (see the next slide) we can see, that there are no actual text on Justin’s shirt, which means it’s a main cover line. White letters stand out against the black background. They used the colloquial language and unusual placement of the main cover line, so it doesn’t look like a banal attempt to get audience’s attention. It feels like the authoritative teenager recommends you to read this magazine. It supposed to attract independent people who don’t like to be pushed (or like to think they can’t be pushed). The text on the t-shirt can also be considered as Justin’s description of himself which suggests his confidence. It means that he expresses himself through his clothes and reminds the audience, that now NME features articles about style. Cover line. The name of the artist. Since Justin Bieber is one of the most influential artists nowadays his name can attract a wide audience (mostly teenage girls). Black letters are clearly visible against the white background. The cover line explains magazine’s content. NME is famous for the music articles. The fact that they now write about films and style shows us that they want to attract more readers (especially young female). Yellow colour stands out and attracts attention.

THE CENTRAL IMAGE The fake knife is used as a prop to create the ironic effect. Justin has a certain reputation because of his childish behavior. This joke is a message to the haters. Possibly, it suggests that he had learned from his mistakes and ready to become more mature. The studio setting is typical for the NME magazine. It’s a common ground between formality and simpleness, which means that the magazine is suitable for adults as well as for teenagers. The monophonic background allows the audience focus on the featured artist. The body language compliments the tone of the whole image. The direct gaze creates intimacy with the reader. Playfully raised eyebrows increase the comic effect created by the fake knife. Open posture suggests friendly and positive mood and invites the audience to read the magazine. This careless look, tattoos and reckless actions create the sense of danger that attracts younger audience. Clothes. Simple black t-shirt creates casual look. Young people like to copy outfits of famous people, and almost everyone can copy this one. The lack of the unusual clothes creates ‘down-to-earth’ look and makes Justin equal with most of the teenagers.

TARget audience Mass audience, because the magazine focuses on every aspect of the popular culture (music, fashion, tv etc.) Age: 16-24, magazine uses a lot of slang and writes mostly about modern music and films. The magazine writes about concerts, so people who have energy to attend concerts are the main audience. Gender: 80% - male, 20% - female. Originally, NME is associated with rock music; this music genre is usually prefered by the male audience. However, by putting Justin Bieber, the idol of the teenage girls, on the front cover, they might attract female audience. The most famous music magazine in the world – international audience. But since it’s the UK publication, British audience prevails. Mostly fans of rock, alternative and indie music since it’s the original content of the magazine. Although, in early 2000s they started to include articles about R’n’B, electro and pop music. Also fans of films and computer games are attracted to NME since they started to publish articles on those topics. Friendly, youthful, rebellious and fun people. People who associate themselves with rock stars and want to find out more about their style of life and maybe copy them. Since the magazine became free publication every social class can afford it.

representation of the featured artist Justin Bieber’s image is built on his music and fashion sense. At the beginning of Justin’s career his hairstyle was his most recognizable feature. The NME’s front cover presents his new blonde hairstyle. This detail is meant to attract people who like to copy his fashion style (mainly his fans, teenagers and young adults). Bieber is popular among girls; his appearance on the front cover suggests that NME attempts to attract female audience. Bieber promotes certain ideologies and beliefs. He actively uses social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram to share his news with the audience. His personality has changed since his first appearance. He was caught smoking weed and hitting paparazzi. Those kind of actions are usually associated with the lifestyle of rockstars, Justin Bieber represents: pop-musicians, R’n’B musicians, teen celebrities, fun-loving people, Canadians, young male audience, young adults.