Front Cover

I have decided to add more text and cover lines to my front cover and change the background colour to grey so that it matches with my contents page and doesn't look too different. this is also because the previous background colour was too  light.

Front Cover Draft

Artist for my music magazine

Over the weekend, I have created an artist for my magazine Record.

I name her Stella Martino- a 18 year old girl from England. Her music is based on Pop and Alternative. She plays the guitar and has become very famous over a few weeks and is becoming a pop icon and is idolized by many teenagers.I also created draft interview which will go in the magazine.

Exclusive interview with  Stella !! Find out how she became famous and what she is planning ahead.

How do you feel, knowing that you are becoming Englands new Pop Star?

I feel really happy that people enjoy and can relate to my music and I’m really proud to represent England and I hope that one day I’ll become international.

How do you plan to accomplish that?

As my background is Italian I’m hoping some of the Italian artist would be interested in working with me and also I would really want to work with big stars like Katy Perry.

What do your parents think about this?

They are very supportive and happy for me, but also worried as this is happening so quicky and none of us are used to this kind of life.

We also heard that there was a rumor that you worked with Lady Gaga… Is it true?

Yes it is true and it was really exiting and inspiring, as I used some of her music as an influence to my song ‘Lets kick it’. We are also planning to make a video shoot in Miami.

So how did you get in contact with her?

As I was discovered from MySpace, and my music became more known in England, her manager showed my songs to her and she contacted me saying she believes I have the potential to be successful in America, so I’m hoping it works out.

Is this song going to be included in your new album?

 Yes it will be first track on the album, and I can tell you it’s a catchy song. HAHA.

What about the other songs in the album?

Well, you are going to have to find out yourself. But it will be soon, as my album come out in a few weeks.

So what about your current song?  What is it about?

Just In Case is a song about a girl who likes a boy but is insecure about his feelings toward him, so she wants to let him know that if he leaves her, she won't be heartbroken but stay strong.

Why did you make this song?

I made this song becuase I wanted my girl fans to relate to my songs, as my previous songs were related and addressed to boys. So now I wanted to make something for both.

Why did you name your album No Ordinary?

Because some of the songs are really different and ever since I was discovered, my life has been no ordinary.

When and where are you planning to go on stage for the first time?

I’ve already planned for it in February in London as it is my favorite place, so let’s hope no one asks for a refund.HAHAHAHA.

These are pictures which  I might use for the front cover and double page spread.

Magazine interview

Over the weekend I have read an interview from a pop magazine.
Firstly the interview started of with a small introduction of who the magazine is interviewing, and then ask the first question which is usually about the stars previous life or how they managed to get to 'the top'.
If the pop star is young the next question is usually : "What do you parents say about this?"or "How did your parents react?", and if not then a popular question is about new albums and song, how the stars manage on tours and what happens to them at concerts or video shoots, and frequently stars are questioned about rumors made about them, so that the magazine can deliver reliable information to their readers, to become more popular.
If the pop star has a relationship they are also asked questions such as  : " How did you find each other?"
"When did it start?".
Lastly, the magazine would also tried to get as much information from the stars as possible, so they tend to ask questions about what they plan for future or questions that the interviewed may not want to answer such as : "What is your new video going to be about?"

Planning and Research - DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD

As done for front cover and contents page I have also researched the conventions of double page spreads.

Typical conventions are : Headline, short introduction, large image usually spread across the two pages - sometimes just one, each beginning of an article starts with a big letter, captions and pull quotes and most importantly - article written in columns.

Some double page spreads include a lot of smaller pictures , usually on the right side, as the large image is always the focal point of the double page. These images have captions on them explain the picture for the readers e.g. : "At concert in France."

Also, some magazine tend to include page title - which is a the top left corner, which looks like a label letting the the reader know what is on the page.
Furthermore, some pull quotes have a fixed angle, larger font and in a color which differs from the article so that its stands out and attracts reader into reading the whole article.

Most double page spreads have one dominant color used in the layout e.g. green, red, black, white. These colors are picked so that they contrast with the picture and the color of the text - so that is it easy to read and appears professional.

Rihanna

Aside from school, me and my friends had gone to Westfield shopping centre where we got the chance to take our own pictures of Rihanna, which I might use in my contents page.

Flat Plan for Front cover and Contents page

Here are my flat plans for my front cover and also for contents page. As I gather appropriate images, I will decide which flat plan is more succsesful and which I will use as my final design by doing a survey.




front cover 1



Front cover 2

  I have asked my classmates which one of the front cover design is more approprite,appealing and looks more conventional. The results were:

   front cover draft 1 = 6 people thought it was better designed as it also included cover lines for other stories in the magazine 

   front cover draft 2 = 8 people thought this layout was more succsful as the cover story was placed in the centre,however some suggested that the captions should be placed on the bottom.

Therefore, I will use the flat plan 2.





Contents page 1



Contents page 2

I have done the same survey for my contents page flat plans, and found out the second flat plan was much more conventional for everyone i have asked - as it is easier to follow and understand. This was also because the first layout wouldn't suit the rock/pop genre.
Considering my classmates views, I will use the second layout for my contents page.