Billboard Magazine Beyonce Double Page Spread

2. Main image- The main image of the magazine takes up the whole of the right hand side of the DPS and is a
close up of Beyoncé's face. It is a common convention of music magazines to dedicate half of the page to a
close up of the artist. This is to emphasise their importance and show that the article will be based on them.
She is shown looking directly at the camera with a stern and uncompromising facial expression which relates
to how she is described in the headline as ‘fiercely’. This represents Beyoncé a strong and powerful which
could also represent her dominant position in the music industry. This would appeal to fans who look up to
and admire Beyoncé for her well known strong and independent representation that’s presented in the media
and through her songs, for example hit single ‘Single ladies’. She is shown with ‘flawless’ skin and perfected
hair and dark eye make-up. This represents Beyoncé as being in control of every aspect of her life, even looks.
This would appeal to the audience, especially female, as they’d admire and envy Beyoncé at the same time,
which would make them want to read the article to find out how she achieves this. She is also shown wearing
a gold metal frame with crystals on as a necklace/headpiece. This represents the ‘creative’ side in the headline
‘fiercely creative’. It shows Beyoncé's extravagance and how she doesn’t fail to live up to her reputation. The
gold colour of the headpiece gives connotations of awards and success which emphasises Beyoncé's global
triumph and the many music awards she has received. The headpiece is very strange looking which could
suggest the representation Beyoncé's fans see her as a ‘superhuman’.

3. Colour scheme-On the left hand side of the DPS the background is purple, whilst on the right
hand side with the main image of Beyoncé, the background is grey. Purple has connotations of
mystery, creativity and luxury which reinforces the headline ‘fiercely creative’. It also suggests that
the article will reveal some of Beyoncé's mysteries and allow the audience to feel as if they know
what it’s like to live a luxurious life lie Beyoncé. The purple background has a ‘bottom top’
gradient which is light at the top and gets darker at the bottom. This could suggest that the
further in to the article the more that ‘s revealed which would further entice the audience. It
could also be done so that background is lighter behind the headline so that the headline is the
main focus. The grey background behind Beyoncé is quite plain and boring which allows emphasis
to be kept on Beyoncé. It suggests that everything around Beyoncé seems ‘normal’ which shows
the powerful she has.
Font- The font used in the headline reinforces the text. The font used for the word ‘fiercely’ is in
bold capital letters which makes it look ‘fierce’. Whereas the font used for the word ‘creative’ is
more decorative making it seem ‘creative’. The text in the article uses a white sans serif font. This
is simple and easy to read which would appeal to the audience as it is clear and easy to follow.
The font in the article is in columns and aligned to the right, this is unusual as most music
magazines have their article columns aligned evenly between margins.

4. Challenging convention- Instead of opening the text with a drop cap (a usual convention for music
magazine double page spreads), the text opens with the first three words in bold capital letters,
making them stand out from the rest of the text. The first three words are in the sentence ‘Fans are
still getting to know Sasha Fierce, Beyoncé's musical alter ego’ By having ‘fans are still’ in bold it
attracts the audience, who as fans or people who are interested in Beyoncé would be intrigued into
the reason why fans don’t even know the real Beyoncé.
The stand first- The stand first summarises in the article in the short sentence ‘Beyoncé's honoured
women of the year’. ‘Women of the year’ is in a black font, different to the rest of the text which is in
a white font. This makes it stand out and enhances Beyoncé's success, it also emphasises how it is an
‘honour’ to receive this important award from the magazine and shows that Beyoncé is deserved of
the double page spread.
The byline- The byline of the article is in a bigger font than the stand first, this shows that the
magazine take pride in their articles and it also allows the audience to know who has written it which
makes them feel more involved with the magazine. The byline is in a white font which contrasts
against the purple background which allows it to stand out.
Caption of the main image- At the top of the right hand side of the DPS it says ‘women of the year’ in
capita letters. This is to remind the audience of the topic of the article their reading and keep the
focus on Beyoncé and her success.