2. The Stereotypical Audience Profile
Who mainly listens to the music: The genre is stereotyped to be listened by males and females;
however Hip-Hop music’s audience is predominantly males.
Gender: Female and Male
Age: 16-28yrs
Social Class: Working class
Ethnicity: The stereotypical ethnicity of R&B/Hip-Hop music is Afro-Caribbean however I would
like my magazine to appeal to all ethnicity.
Interest: Black Culture, Urban Fashion, Music, Going out, Jewellery, DJs, Games, Dancing (Break
dancing, Krumping, Dougie ect.)
Dress Sense: Expressive -Latest Trainers, Baggy Jeans (Males), Chinos, Printed leggings
(Females), Joggers, Funky Jumpers, Snapbacks- work titled up or backwards, T-Shirts
(Males), cool jewellery
Why they listen to R&B/Hip-Hop: This genre of music is very expressive and relatable to certain
people in certain circumstances, therefore people enjoy find it comforting to know there is
someone out there who understand. R&B/Hip-Hop recently become very mainstream with
party songs and listeners enjoy having a good time also.
How often: Everyday, it common that the target audience are owners of mp3 players, stereos and
frequently listen to radio stations that greatly play R&B/Hip-Hop, therefore it around them
daily.
What they would like in magazines: They would enjoy updates on the latest music, artist(s)
movements, the fashion must haves, gossip, interviews and additional technology.
3. My Focus Group
For this task I spoke to five of my 20questionaires who were my target audience and I asked a few
questions about what they would like to see in and on the cover of my magazine which would
appeal to them and others like them. Their detailed responses gave me an insight in what to
include for my magazine and would work well for music magazine’s genre.
Following this are the questions asked and summary of the answers I received.
4. Section 1 – The Front Cover (Questions 1-3)
1)Front cover – what images would you like?
The front cover should contain bold and big image which will automatically attract the audience. The pose and
fashion of the featured artist(s) is what is noticed first and so this sets the tone for the following
content. This image should represent R&B/Hip-Hop music as much as possible therefore the
arrangement should express this as should the artist(s) facial expression which decided what vibe the
audience get (eg. Friendly, sexy, welcoming). This image should relate to the main article found on the
double page spread of this magazine, this gives the audience an idea of what is going to be found and
automatically creates an interest.
2)What would like to see on the front cover e.g. sell lines?
For an R&B/Hip-Hop magazine the sell lines should relate to this genre(s) music including music and famous
R&B/Hip-Hop artists both female and male this will be sure to attract both gender audienc and
interests. Urban fashion, news, culture should also be promoted as it all part of the R&B/Hip-Hop genre
and shows the magazine contains a lot of content of interest to its readers.
3) What colours would be appropriate?
The colours should consist of bold and bright colours, without being too young. The use of bright and bold
colours gives off a serious and fun vibe and is much more appealing, this also represent the magazines
content and gives the audience an insight as to what can expected from the magazine itself. Colours like:
Red, Grey, Blue and Black.
4)What type of language would you expect?
5. SECTION 2 –THE CONTENTS PAGE (QUESTIONS 5-8)
5)Contents page - what type of images would you like and how many?
There should be between 2-3images on the contents page to give the audience something to look at. This
should relate to the upcoming article and other features that can be found in the magazines (eg.
Promotional offers, Concerts, Fashion ect.).
6)What would you want to be contained within the magazine?
A wide variety of things of which must relate to R&B/Hip-Hop music and the urban culture, however the main
feature must be the music. To give the audience additional features of possible interest the magazine can
include fashion tips, interviews, film ratings, celebrity gossip and concerts. There should also be a clear
guide to the page number of each and a small summary.
7)How much images and text would you expect?
There should be a fair amount of text including an editor’s note and the contents list however this must be
designed and spaced efficiently avoiding a crowed look. This will allow the audience to navigate well
across the page and through the magazine. A variety of text and image gives the audience a contrast as to
all the things which will be included in the magazine and gains an interest.
8)What type of language?
The language of this should continue as it was on the front cover and correspond with the genre of the
magazine. The use of phrases such: ‘ Fashion Fixes: Keeping yours swag on point’, keeps the magazine
consistent with the audience and its purpose of being an R&B/Hip-Hop genre magazine.
6. SECTION 3- THE DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD ARTICLE (QUESTIONS 9-12)
9)Double page – what choice of images would you want?
The images should reflect the artist(s) image as an R&B/Hip-hop artists, this will include their style and attitude. It
should attract the audience to read the article and give an impression of what can be expected in the following
article. It is part of the R&B/Hip-Hop genre to be expressive in term of music and clothing therefore, the image
should do this and so they must be identifiable, looking edgy as they are telling the audience who they are.
10)What would you prefer the article to be about?
The most popular of answers was that article is about the artist(s) music (ie. Latest releases and what is to be
expected), their personal life (audience like to know they know their artists on a personal level as this is what
often influence the artist(s) music and creates a fan base), their achievements so far and things to be expected
from them in the future. This coverage of information allows the article to be filled with a variety of information
keeping the audience intrigued from start to finish, and also boots the profile of the artist.
11)How would you expect the language to be?
The language would most definitely reflect the artist(s), however it does tend to be colloquial especially as it is an
interview and it is unnecessary to be too formal as this doesn’t show a personal reflection/relationship of the
artist(s) and magazine. It must be easy for readers to follow avoiding confusion and misunderstanding, whilst
upholding professionalism.
12)Would you prefer more image or text based articles?
The double page should be fairly balanced between images and text; there mustn’t be too much text and little image
as this would create an uncomfortable read to the audience as they would feel it would go on forever. Whilst it
should include a fair amount of image there mustn’t be too much as the audience do not want to feel the article
wasn’t informative enough and that it was small in size. The images used must be as interesting as the text and
directly relate to the text giving them an visual image also of what is being expressed in the interview.
