Kira Mack

The symbolic sign for this front page is the main image of Eminem. It is a mid-shot of him as you can only see half of his body. He is wearing a black vest and a silver chain and watch. He is standing there looking all touch, while the main cover line talks about how he almost cried. This symbolizes that hemay be crossing is arms to look authoritative,but he could be doing it because he is self-conscious, or feels uncomfortable. Showing off the tattoos and pushing out the muscles instantly makes us think he's confident and brave, but the image contradicts the cover line.

The masthead is in bold which grabs the audience’s attention. The colour of the masthead goes from black to , which is a symbolic sign. The black and red are supposed to show darkness from the black and danger from red. However, just like with the picture it could have a lighter meaning. its gets redder the closer to Eminem it is. This could mean that the closer you get to him, the deeper his meaning is, as the colour red could represent love and have an inside meaning. Itstypography is San Serif, which doesn't make it look as formal as Serif would. This makes usas an audience feel more comfortable reading it.

One of the cover lines near the bottom of the pages reads 'Who is the best rapper ever? You decide'. This is a rhetorical answer which doesn't need to be answered, but it is directed at the audience. This makes you want to read the article just so you can decide for yourself. Also it's coloured red and black, this follows the colour scheme of the magazine. The question itself stand out more as it is in red, it signifies that it is an important/urgent question.

I believe that the iconic sign hereis the main cover line of Beyoncé’s name, and the line beneath it. Her name is written clear and is the colour white. This colour is seen as a very angelic colour of purity. This signifies that she wants to be seen as pure. Also the line beneath her name states that she wants to be seen as an icon. It is in black and stands out more than her name. This could signify that she doesn't want to be the main attraction; she just wants to be like everyone else. The fact that it is in a Sans Serif font also adds to this point.

They layout of the magazine also makes Beyoncé look like she's trying to blend in with the crowd. All of the cover lies, and everything else, is layered on top of her image. She's in the background and is letting any other story be on top of/ in front of her. Just like in the first point she's putting others before herself. This signifies that she is actually a really nice person that doesn't like being the centre of attention. Not many people in the industry so it makes her stand out. This adds to her point of being an icon because she's being individual and unique. The fact that the layout has deeper meanings, show it is a symbolic sign. I think that the main image of the magazine stands out a lot although I don't think it’s meant to. Most other aspects of the magazine have colour so the fact that one of the first things you see in a magazine is black and white, is interesting. It signifies that the picture says enough itself and its simplicity makes it look better. The camera angle is a close up as you can see her from the chest upwards. This ignites that she is comfortable with being close up to us, so we as an audience will then comfortable reading about her. The fact that she's letting you in like this and is gesturing her hand on her heart, shows that she is there to talk/help you as an icon.

I, again, think the main sign here is the main image. This time I think it is symbolic. It is a straight on wide shot of her so you can see her whole body, apart from the tips of her fingers. Clara is in the colour white which is seen as pure, but the way she is positioned on the page is not. It almost looks as if she's in a sex position. This signifies that she's not saying she's going to be a perfect, goody two shoes. She may in this position to show her maturity and how mature she and her music has grown over the years.

The fact that it has two sections which you can look at called ‘Features’ and ‘Fashion’ shows that it could have two different target audiences. This means they could have twice as many people buying their magazine than usual. This means that financially they could be better off than other companies. It signifies that they have thought inventively while creating their magazine. This could attract all sorts of different people to read their magazine. This could range from boys, girls, old and young etc.

There is a large V which stands for ‘Vibe’ which is the colour white. It stands out a lot because it is white on a dark background and it matches Clara’s white outfit. I particularly like this as it looks as if the lines from the V are holding her legs into the air. This could show that she is actually quite a good girl but the music and the vibe is manipulating her. This signifies how the music can change a person, and that lots of artists will change themselves for the industry. This should be the way that music works however; sadly, it is in this day and age.

The layout of this page stood out to me a lot. This sign is how the contents is laid out. The part where it actually tells you its departments is really small. There is more writing and descriptions on style than music. This signifies that although they are a music magazine, they want you to take note on the other things they talk about too. It’s to make it all more interesting and give you a range of things to read about, even though it all some way or another revolves around music. On the other hand it contradicts the fact that it actually is a music magazine, not a magazine for gossip. This could put certain people off that won’t want to read it.

The main image in this contents page I think is more of a symbolic sign than an iconic one. The girls are looking up at you but they are standing with a lot of authority. This shows contrast between what they are trying to look like, and what the magazine is making them look like. This signifies that the magazine may have thought that the way the girls were portraying themselves was not right for their look. I believe this also shows that magazines can control exactly what the audience think of you. If it was taken from a lower angle then their authoritive stance would have been more affective. Now that it’s taken from above, all of that is thrown away to make you look down on them. Maybe they did this because personally they look down on them as artists too?

The plain white background is a good idea in my opinion because it makes everything else on the page stand out. This could be the magazines way of showing that what’s in the magazine is important, not the magazine itself. This signifies that the magazine is more about giving out good information to its audience, than making themselves look good. Also the colour white is quite fresh and new so it makes it look like the magazine is quite new. This would make us feel as if the information in the magazine is all new too. This will make the buyers want to buy the magazine whenever it’s out as they could have the latest information.

The symbolic sign for this double page spread is the main image of the band, The Wanted, working out. The picture is a wide shot and looks as if it’s been taken from above, to make them look smaller than what they are. This contradicts the fact they're working out, but not looking bigger. Every single one of the is looking directly at us. They all have some weights and are wearing gym kit, but they all talk about how they don't like working out. This signifies that they don't care much about their image, it’s all just natural. I believe they did this to make their fans think this too. After all, people make music for ears, not eyes.

The mast head of this page is written in two different fonts. The word Workout is in Sans Serif. This makes it stand out a lot. Going to the gym and working out is more of a masculine word. This may be the reason that it’s written so boldly so it looks more masculine. This signifies that the magazine could be quite sexist as they think that working out is just for males. The other word ‘wonders’ sounds quite feminine and is written in a script font. The typography shows that they could be trying to even out the sexism by making it look both feminine and masculine. The word ‘wonders’ is after the word ‘workout’ so it is almost like you are working out for the females. The males are using female persuasion and wonders to make themselves look better.

The theme here is quite girly but it looks as if it’s aimed at boys. They use the colourspink and purple a lot but majority of it is all grey. Grey is quite a neutral colour but it does make the page look masculine. This could be the reason why the pink and purple is in there. However I think the pink and purple will attract girl’s attention. They need to show that working out is not just for girls. This could have been a way for them to try not to look sexist and to cover up how they actually feel. I’m not saying that they are sexist but they come across it from how they act.

The main image is of Justin Bieber, and this is our symbolic sign. It us a wide shot as we can see the whole of his body apart from the ends of his shoes. He is looking directly at us, the readers, which draws you in because it’s as if he's talking to you. The way he is leaning back makes him look comfortable. This signifies that although what he's about to say is negative; he's comfortable with saying it and won’t hold back. This shows he's quite a straight forward guy who will let you know his opinion in a chilled out way, so it’s not blown out of proportion.

The story line of this double page spread is a quote from Justin Bieber himself. It is something he said himself in an interview to the magazine. This could be either a good thing or a bad thing for his views. The fact that he’s saying that girls are annoying, goes against what he does all of the time. Most of his songs are directed at girls and they are therefore his target audience. By talking bad about them this could lose his fans. On the other hand it’s quite a professional thing to do, as it shows people that he’s not afraid to tell us all his opinion, no matter how bad it may be. This signifies that he’s trying to make himself look more mature.The back ground in this picture is the colour white. It is plain and straight forward which makes us focus more on the story and other aspects of the magazine. It’s quite a plain colour too. This signifies that the magazine is nothing without all of the stories they are given. This could be their way for showing their appreciation for all of the people who take part in making their magazine. Just like I mentioned before it also makes it look fresh and new, so everything in the magazine is straight off the market and you won’t find it anywhere else.