1. Initial Idea
The type of article I want to write is an interview with a new artist. This is because
the target audience is interested in finding new bands and music. The writing wonāt
be as formal as a newspaper for example. It will be clear and simple to understand
so the reader doesnāt have to focus too hard on the article.
Angle of Image
The article will be the first magazine interview with the artist as he is new and up
coming. I will use questions from people who are intrigued by the new artist by using
social media sites such as twitter to get readers to send in their questions.
Headline
As my article is an interview with a new artist the head line will be āThe Next Best
Thing- Josh Newellā this is because it clearly states the name of the artist and also
suggests that he is a new artist so readers will know what the article is about by
reading the headline.
First Paragraph
āMusic has not always been what I wanted to doā says British boy Josh Newell āitās
only been in the last two years that I decided thatās what I wanted to do.ā Josh 20, is
an upcoming artist from Manchester who has been playing guitar drums and piano
from a young age. In this article he tells us how he got into the music industry and
explains what his music is like and his writing style.
Main Body
Despite playing many interments from the age of about six Josh tells us that music
was never what he wanted to do and that he had always been interested in
geography and only ever saw music as a hobby. āI used to gig a lot when I was in
secondary school but only if someone needed me to stand in on guitar or drums or
something. I was never in a band or gigged on my own. So I guess music has
always been there but I didnāt think that is what Iād be doing a few years on.ā He told
us. āIt was only when I started at Manchester Metropolitan University studying
geography that I really found music. I started when a friend of mine was putting on
an open mic event at a local and asked if I would play at that which I did. I few other
gigs after that just singing a few covers and the occasional original not hoping it
would go anywhere. Then after a gig someone approached me and said would you
mind doing a gig in London that weekend as some had dropped out and they needed
someone to fill the gap so I said yes. When I got to London I found out that a talent
scout for Moshi Records would be there. This did not bother me as I had no intention
of becoming a recording artist. After my set a man came and spoke to me about my
music and how I had got to play there. Just as the last act finished he asked for my
email address and gave me his business card and it turns out he was the talent
2. scout. I went back to Manchester and did think anything of it then about a week later
I got an email saying that the record company would like to meet with me to discuss
more about my music. It took a lot of thought but after discussing this with my family I
finally decided that I would meet with them as I loved performing and opportunities
like this donāt happen all the time. But if I decide that isnāt what I want then I still have
the degree Iām doing as a backup. The meeting went well and I signed a contract to
start making a demo with them that if went well I would turn into a 3 year contract
where I would write and produce an album with them. Which has got me to here.ā
After telling us about how he got in to the industry he talked to us about his new
album āTrappedā. We asked what inspired the album and who his musical influences
were. For what inspired the writing of the album and the meanings behind the song
he said how most of the songs are observations on other peopleās lives and things
he had noticed through life. For example he said āI wrote āDrunk Loveā which is the
fourth track on the album after a party where I hadnāt been drinking and so itās just
observations of what happened at the party.ā He then explained how he had grown
up listening to things like The Cure and Joy Division as thatās what his parents
listened to. Josh also mentioned how a big influence for him was The Vaccines as he
really liked there music and felt he could ārelate to their music.ā We also asked about
the difficulty of writing the album and what was the hardest part to which he
responded with āIt was defiantly a challenge to write as I had only written four songs
out of the ten that I needed to create the album and so I spent a lot of time trying to
find inspiration which is how I wrote my favourite song on the album, track six which
is called āWriters Blockā which is self explanatory as itās about running out of ideas.ā
Many people were intrigued by this interview with Josh Newell and had tweeted in
questions for him so we picked the three that occurred the most to ask him. One
common question was, Will there be tour to follow the release o your album? To
which Josh responded ā Yes defiantly we are currently looking at dates and venues
so a tour will be happening in the next year.ā Another question asked was, Do you
wish to go back to uni to finish you degree or are you just focusing on your music? āI
would love to go back to uni to finish my degree I was really enjoying it and so for
now it is on hold but maybe in a few years Iāll go back and finish it.ā The last question
we asked him was do you plan on bringing out any more music after this album?
āYes for sure. The last 2 years have been phenomenal and I canāt wait to get back to
writing and recording more tracks.ā
Conclusion
You can get Josh Newellās Album Trapped in stores and on ITunes from June 8th this
year. He will also be playing at Reading /Leeds this year along side Lower Than
Atlantis and The Vaccines so make sure you have your tickets. So look out for that
and keep your eye out for more from Josh as he is sure to be the next big thing.