Analysis of front covers

The masthead (the name of the magazine) is adapted to the colour white, In keeping with the style and colour scheme of the magazine. The colour of the masthead changes frequently and so does the colour scheme, although NME is most famous for the red, white and black house style. The masthead on this cover is overlapping the main artist image slightly, in many other of NME’s magazines it would be the artist that overlaps the masthead, the fact that ‘Lana Del Rey’ is not overlapping the masthead could be because the house style isn’t present and the audience may not be familiar with the colours used.

The date line and issue number are usually positioned underneath or to the side of the masthead. The colour scheme links in with the American flag used as the background. Blue and White are the two main colours used, there is red featured within the flag however that has not been continued. The text is either black or white, the majority of the font is written in capitals. The pull quote “I’M A PHSYCHO” intentionally has drawn a lot of attention. We can therefore relate this statement with the artist’s expressions. The model credit is large as she is the centre of attention for the issue. The colour of the text is a very feminine blue; the use of this colour may have derived from the colour of the artist’s nails. The Pug is offering free posters, with supporting images of what’s inside. Lana Del Rey is the main artist image, dominating the middle third. Her appearance is one that the average young woman would idolise. Her facial expressions are very playful and edgy as she sticks her tongue out. Her hands are on her hips which may connote that she is very confident. She is wearing white, the opposite of black which may infer that the artist is successful and holds a bright future. Her hair is very sleek in perfect curls; this may have been styled intentionally to show the smooth and modern nature of her work. However with not a strand of hair out of place is she presented as a realistic role model for young women? Her appearance is idealised and most probably photo shopped, this creates an image that women stride for which they will never be able to achieve.The strap line gives further clues as to what is featured inside the magazine. These draw subtle attention for the audience. Information such as artist names and short conclusions of gossip are seen here. A bar code is always seen on the front cover of a selling magazine, this is just for purchasing purposes. The bar code is always positioned at the bottom of the page. 

  

Strap line ‘The UK’s biggest music magazine’, a superlative has been used to put the success of the magazine in the spot light. This adds a lot of interest and it is something that would make this music magazine a priority choice over another that does not share this success or that has not made their success obvious.The masthead is large, dominating a fraction of the left third. The colour red is very striking therefore the colour of ‘Q’ also stands out because of the contrast. The house colours are red black and white; this is also reflected in the main artist image.
The bar code for this magazine is positioned in an odd place compared to the magazine ‘NME’. I think this was not a thoughtful way of positioning the bar code as more interesting and alluring cover lines could have been used as the left hand side of the magazine is usually what is shown when sold on a news stand as other magazines overlap. The ‘John Lennon’ puff circled in silver gains further attraction from the target audience. The cover lines are small, stating the subject of the magazine content, being popular artists of the genre such as ‘vampire weekend’. They’re positioned on the left third of the page to ensure relevant information catches the eye of the consumers. Cheryl Cole is the centre of visual interest for this magazine; her image overfills the middle third. A very provocative expression is presented which draws appeal from men. Her red lips connote danger and link with the sexual nature of the image. The lighting and makeup makes her skin look pale and ghastly which in this case does not infer her purity as is juxtapositioned with the vivid, intense red on her lips and the blackness surrounding her eyes. In this case it simply draws attention to the other features, her eyes which may disguise her secrets and also her devil inside. 

The masthead takes up a large part of the top third of the page; part of it is hidden as the magazine is easily identified due to popularity. The colour theme varies with each issue; there are not set house colours. The vibrant blue masthead, linked with the title may reflect the feeling the type of music gives the listeners.  The pink and blue are relatively light and uplifting colours, used to create positivity and attraction to the page; the blue also links with the colour of the collar on the jacket of the main artist.The centre of visual interest is the image of Kanye West. The shadow effect creates the impression of him coming out of the page. The image dominates the middle third and more, which makes a statement, giving little space for text. His eyes are looking directly out of the page to the readers, alluring them to buy the magazine. The definition on the image is also making him appear more realistic. The cover lines are bold, simple, clear and striking. They assure that much about Kanye West and his work will be featured. This has been done intentionally so the most important content reaches the target audience when placed on a news-stand etc. The image may represent the ideal reader. The added cover lines to promote other artists featured inside are merely for further interest. The strap line is instantly grabbing attention with words like ‘EXCLUSIVE’, ‘NOTORIOUS’, and ‘SECRETS’. The magazine has clearly identified their audience and how VIBE is going to apply conventions to appeal to them. It is likely that the consumer type is rebellious and mischevious due to the huge feature of Kanye West. The consumers of his music are stereotypically dangerous and therefore marvel in the challenging attitude of Kanye, which is reflected in his work. His use of language also attracts this type; they enjoy challenging authority. This audience clearly look up to Kanye and aspire to be like him, although he isn’t sticking to pretty expectations he has huge success with his music, which is inspirational for his consumers. Apart from being simply entertained by the magazine and his music the consumer want to identify with Kanye, this may also lead to personal identity, the realisation of similarities may provoke even change.