Hip-Hop WeeklyAn Analysis Of Hip-Hop Weekly Magazine

CoverColour- Lots of black, black clothes are common in hip hop culture. The yellow on black shows that it is an important story, yellow and black usually have connotations of an emergency or danger. Blue, shows that there is some calm stories in the magazine.

Design-Images clearly linked to the stories that they are for. Lots of different stories on the cover, quite overwhelming. Main image overlaps title. Sans-serif cover lines, serif masthead. All words are in capital letters, this looks quite amateur. There are lots of images of famous people.

Images- The images are all previously taken images, they were not taken by the magazine. The images link clearly to the stories and there are some very famous people who would attract a huge range of fans, for example Dr.Dre is very iconic and would attract a lot of male fans of all ages whereas Rihanna would mainly attract younger women. 50 Cent would attract lots of people as he is very well known.

Pose, style, hair, make-up-The images on the cover are normal images that were not taken by a photographer for the magazine showing that they are for news stories and not for interviews with the people involved. The main image of 50 Cent and Diddy uses direct address making it seem that the story is important as well as drawing people in, there are many smaller images which means that there will probably be something to attract most people interested in the genre but it looks less professional.

How are words used?- The masthead is slightly covered because it is easy to work out that it says Hip-Hop. Large headline attracts people to the story and makes it seem important, “Shots Fired” makes it seem like the story could become violent which would attract people. Yellow and white text on black background draws attention.

Language-Quite informal language for example ‘trashes’ makes the magazine seem more suitable for teenagers and young adults which are the largest audiences for Hip-Hop and Rap music. Has a lot of gossip showing that the magazine is for younger people.

Overall impression - I think the cover is quite effective and shows a lot of stories but it is quite hectic and doesn’t seem very mature. There are lots of images of very famous people, this will attract lots of people as these people have lots of fans.

Institution/distribution- This magazine is sold in shops like WH Smith as it wouldn’t have a large fan base in England. The magazine is published by David Mays who also publishes The Source, another hip hop magazine.

Cover

Contents

Colour- Red and black, easy to distinguish and makes the stories seem important. Small amounts of yellow make those stories stand out and seem important. Different colour logos signify sections, oink is a stereotypical colour for style as fashion is often linked to women.

Design- It is clear which pages the images are linked to and who is in the images because it says where they’re from and who they are at the bottom of the images. The folios are clearly stated next to the contents. The contents are neatly arranged and have borders so that you can clearly read them.

Images- There is an image of Jamie Foxx this would attract fans of his music but also fans of his movies. The image of Quent wouldn’t attract as many people as he is less well known, this is why the image is lower on the page. The image of Quent seems more professional than the other images, this suggests that the magazine is quite low budget as they cannot get hold of well-known people.

Pose, style, hair, make-up-The image of Jaime Foxx seems very relaxed and he seems very natural. The image of Foxx is an action shot of him playing the drums which could attract fans by suggesting the story will be about his music. In the image of Quent seems a lot like a professionally taken image that is specifically for the magazine, this suggests that he will be interviewed as they would have actually had to be with him. The fact that Quent was actually interviewed and it isn’t just a story would attract his fans.

How are words used?- Lots of red and black text which links to the Eazy-E story. The sections on the left have alternating colours for titles making them easy to distinguish between. White background makes all the text easy to read. Large titles making the stories easy to find and then small descriptions further explaining the story.

Language- Still some informal text but overall seems more mature, this is so people can take the magazine seriously when they are reading it. An informal cover is okay as you don’t have to read much but reading a lot of informal text is distracting and isn’t engaging.

Overall impression- The contents are laid out well and show clearly what the stories are and where to find them. The sections Style etc. are very good. Flannel panel used to fill space so the page looks less empty.

Contents

Double Page SpreadColour- Mainly black and white, relates to the fact that Eazy-E is from the past and also links to the fact that NWA have a black and white logo. The names of Eazy E and Little Eazy are in red so they stand out when you look through the magazine. Blue is used for the questions, so they are easy to separate from the replies.

Design- There is a large and very iconic image of Eazy-E at the top of the first page, this will be instantly recognisable to fans, and his son is on the other page. The text is clear and organised well. The headline is very attractive to fans of Eazy and NWA as it is about Eazy’s legacy.

Images- The iconic image of Eazy would attract his large fan base to the story. The image of Eazy is in black and white linking it to the fact he is dead as well as the black and white NWA logo. The image of Little Eazy is similar to the image of his father because he is wearing the extremely iconic Compton hate that Eazy-E made famous and is easily linked to the classic NWA album Straight Outta Compton. The image of Little Eazy uses direct address.

Pose, style, hair, make-up- The image of Eazy-E is just his face and therefore is very personal but his eyes are covered meaning he also seems quite intimidating which links well to his music which is often violent and about the drugs, sex and violence associated with his hometown Compton. The image of Little Eazy uses direct gaze which will attract people, he is also pointing at the camera which suggests that the interview is very personal to him and that he is connecting to the reader. He is smoking which links to the music Eazy-E made particularly songs like Dope Man which is about drugs.

How are words used?- Black and white text is similar to the iconic NWA logo as well as Eazy’s famous Compton hat. Q and A section has Little Eazy talking about his father, would attract fans of both artists. Red text for the word Eazy relates to Eazy’s violent lyrics which were especially prominent in his iconic Dr.Dre ‘diss tracks’. Text simply laid out and easy to read. Sans-serif titles so they stand out and seem modern but serif typeface for main text so it is easy to read.

Language- The main text is formal so that it is easy to read and is engaging. The text for the interview is less formal because it says what Little Eazy said meaning the reader can understand what he is like and the interview seems more authentic.

Overall impression- The double page spread is quite effective because the interview seems very personal and because of the colour scene which is simple but very effective. It would be very appealing to fans of the genre because Eazy-E is one of the legends of Rap music.

Double Page Spread