Research into how the Music Industry works

History-

·         Recorded Sound first began in 1878 when Thomas Edison’s created the phonograph. His first recording used tin foiled drums as instruments

·         Recorded music however, was only made to help sell the equipment at first, after such a successful profit, recorded music became a sensation

·         Some of the biggest music companies were set up as early music and equipment producers, these included

§  RCA Victor

§  HMV (His Masters Voice)

Organizations-

·         A record label is a brand, and many major recording companies own or control many labels, which have contracts with performers and their managers

·         Music publishers however, are in control of the rights to music compositions, their role includes

§  Producing the music

§  Marketing it

§  Controls copyright/ licensing

·         Independent labels are the companies outside of all the music groups mentioned above. They are still big companies; however they have their own rights. They are considered as producing music far from the mainstream style.

·         Musicians and the industry produce music for different ages, music styles and cultures. Since late 1950’s the youth culture has been the biggest influence to the industry. Music styles are associated with fashion as well as other media like magazines and radio stations.

Promoting-

·         The internet and MySpace can also provide another alternate way to market and distribute music from bands trying to produce their own label. Despite this, a record deal is the best way to get heard.

·         Record companies will sign performers with a contract for a certain number of albums or releases. The company is then responsible for promotion, marketing and distribution; for example TV and Radio appearances to develop a fan base.

·         The music video accompanying the track is just as important in promoting, as used firstly by The Beatles. The first music video was the locomotion in 1962, which was played on a few visual juke boxes.

·         Top of the Pops then MTV have made pop videos essential for promotion. The music press and TV chat shows are another leading way to promote and publicise performers.

Marketing-

·         The image of a performer is key when marketing. Companies look for a performer’s unique selling point. This may be:

§  The performer is good looking

§  Have a new or unusual fashion sense

§  Appeal to young rebellious record byers

§  Have stage presence

§  Have a new musical sound

Money-

·         The music industry is worldwide, with 67% of sales being in Europe and the USA.

·         When purchasing a record, 33% goes to retailer or shop, 5% to the distributor, 19.5% to taxes inc. VAT, approximately 11% to performing (depending on their contract), 5% to the songwriter and 26.5% to record company for manufacture, promotion and administration.

Analysis of Music Magazine Font Cover

Research into current Magazines

Research into Top of the Pops Magazine

History

Top of the Pops magazine was first published in February 1995 by Immediate Media Company due to the hit TV show Top of the Pops. It is most famous for giving the Spice Girls their nicknames; Baby Spice, Ginger Spice, Sporty Spice, Scary Spice and Posh Spice.  The format of the magazine has gradually changed over the years, with less and less music content to more demographic appeal to young girls; boys, fashion, real life stories etc. Even though the TV show was cancelled in 2006, the magazine is still published monthly despite this.

Target Audience:

With the bright, colourful colour scheme such as yellow, pink and purple (as shown in the front cover above) instantly appealing to young girls. With the content of fashion, ‘terrifying true-life’ stories and young popular bands and singers, it draws any young girl in to want to read the magazine.

Ideology:

The main focus on this magazine is interviews with ‘hot’ artists and fashion tips and advice for their target audience. By using large images of famous celebrities grabs the audiences’ attention, the contents of the puffs assisting these images using language such as ‘unlocked- just for you’, shows a direct mode of address making the audience want to read as they feel it is personal to them, giving more sales of the magazine to the company; which is their intention.

Research into Q Music Magazine

History:

First published in 1986 by the Media Group EMAP, founded by Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, originally called ‘cue’ with the subtitle ‘The modern guide to music and more’. However the name was later changed so it wasn’t mistaken for a snooker magazine. It was changed to ‘Q’ so it would stand out and be more prominent when on newsstands.

January 2008 EMAP sold its consumer magazine titles, including ‘Q’, to the Bauer Media Group.

Target Audience:

As the main focus of the magazine is of the hottest things at the time, the target audience is teens and young adults.

However as there is a special edition of ‘Mojo’ magazine including classic great musicians and songs, it also appeals to older adults who have a great interest in music themselves.

Ideology: 

The magazines main focus is on interviews with popular and ‘hot’ artists of the time featuring the biggest stars on the cover and other major artists inside.

With an extensive focus on reviews of music, radio, film, television and live concerts and new releases for the public to look out for.

Another well-known focus of the magazine is on ‘100 greatest’ things of the moment and of all time.

Q has a follow-up magazine called ‘Mojo’ which is a special edition including reviews of classics of all time and the greatest and most influential musicians- also helping the company earn more money with this limited edition extra magazine on the side.

History of Music Magazines

Introduction to Main Task

In preperation to create a Music Magazine front cover, contents page and double page spread, I am completeing research into the History of the Music Industry, how it works and current popular Music Magazines around today, to know what I need to include to make my magazine appealing to my target audience.

Final Front Cover Design

This is the final design I created for my school magazine front cover aimed at years 7 to 9. I decided to use a purple, white and pale lilac colour scheme as these colours connote feminity and are fun and quirky colours. I also decided to name the magazine 'Fun Sized Gossip' as it is a mnemonic of the 'Folkestone School for Girls' so it relates specifically to young girls from that school making it more personal. I named it this as I created an A5 size magazine so it is handbag sized and would fit in the students school bags for them to read throughout the day.

Contents Page Template

After analysing contents pages which are aimed at my target audience to find out the most and least effective ones, I created the template for my contents page in a way in which is clear and easy to read with a clear collumn layout, yet still fun and interesting by including lots of images to keep my readers entertained and informed.

Research into Contents Pages for Target Audience