1. Double Page Spread Analysis 2: A$AP Mob XXL Magazine
Main Image: The mainimage of artists A$APMOB
dominate the whole article asthe image spreads
across fromthe lefthandpage to the right,
reinforcingthe factthattheyare a literallyamob,
admiredbyso manythat the magazine hasdedicated
nearlytwoimagesforjustthe image are of them.The
image showsthe groupof sevenall dressedinunique
and noticeablyHipHopoutfits thatlinksthem
togetherasa unitthiscan be shownthroughtheir
bomberjacketsorarmy wear.Theyare wearing
recognizable itemsof clothingthathip-hopartistsare
usuallyseenwearingsuchassnapbacks, beanies and
buckethats,baggy army trousersandjeansand
oversizedbomberjacketand.These all are whatthe
stereotypical HipHopartistwearhowever,especially
withthe A$APmob group theyare specifically
obsessedwiththe oldtime hip-hopclothingattire
fromthe 90s especially, whichtheybroughtback.The
bomberjacketswornbythree of the memberscanbe
relatedtothe notoriouship-hopgroupfromthe 90s
public enemy and howtheyhad almostthe exact
same uniformbecause itrelatedtotheirname asthey
are a unit,whetherbeinga‘mob’or‘publicenemy’.
Headline:The mainheadingonthe article isin a
sans serif fontinwhite blockletterswithaborder
on a blackbanner,stating‘MOB RULES’. The
choicesof coloursof the headingwhichare black
and white create amonochrome effect,whichis
simple and‘clean’looking.Thissuggeststhatthe
magazine don’tneedtobe creative withthe
coloursfor the mainheadingtograb the reader’s
attentionbecause the artistsare soestablishedthat
readerswhoflickthroughthe magazine will know
whotheyare anyway.The connotationbehindthe
headingcouldbe thatthe artistsare so established
that theyare rulinginthe musicindustryrightnow
and if people don’t knowwhothe title will be
ambiguoustoothemcreatingnarrative enigma,
whichwill persuade themtothenreadon.
Colour Scheme:the colourscheme prettymuchcontrastsbetweenthe clothingof the groupandthe background
consistingcoloursof green,black,redandwhite.The colourgreencomesfromthe clothing wornbysome of the
membersandthe style it’sinwhichisarmy styled. Thisshowstheyare readyfor‘war’thislinkstothe heading
‘MOB RULES’ showingtheirstatusinthe industryatthe moment.The redon the checkeredshirtrepresents
dangerthiscan be shownthroughhisbodylanguage inthe wayhe isfoldinghisarms.The white background
allowsthe groupto standout.
2. Layout: The bodytextruns downthe righthand side of
the page ina column,besidesthe partof the picturedthat
has run overontothe page fromthe lefthandside.It’s
onlya single columnonthisdouble page spreadasthe
image dominates,howeveritdoescarryon, overon the
nextdouble page spread.The footerbelowthe bodytext
insmall printstatesthe page number,monthof the issue
and the website forthe magazine;’075
DECEMBER/JANUARY2013 XXLMAG.COM’.The printis so
small sothe readershipmaynotbe able toclearlysee it
whennavigating;howeveritisthere tohelpthe
readershipnavigate throughthe magazine.When
navigatingthe readershipwillsee the XXLmagazine
website URL,thisisgood forthe institutionasitwill keep
the circulationof the magazinespopularitygoing.
At the top of the right handpage a strap line is
presentedby usingthe same fontandstyle
(white fontandblackbanner) toaccompany
the headline ininformingthe readershipa
little bitmore aboutwhatthe article isabout.
It sort of doesthe same job as the leadwhich
isnot presentonthisdouble page spread.The
magazine may not have useda leadas the
readershipwantaquickand effective
introductiontoan article nota long-winded
paragraph,ramblingon,whichwill thenlead
the readershiptolose interestandmove on.
As the strap line isonlyasentence andis
presented inthe same style asthe headlineit
will drawthe readership’sattentionand
informthemwhoandwhat the article is
about.The strapline useschattyand
interactive choicesof lexisthatmake the
readershipthinkalittle bit.
Above the topof the leftside of the picture aby-line runsthroughwhich
the name of the personwhowrote the article anda photocreditto the
photographerwhohascapturedthe image.The wordsand imagesof
articleshave beencreditedthroughoutthe wholemagazinewhichkeeps
a consistentstyle.Howevernotall magazine dothisandfacttheydo it
for thismagazine suggeststhatwell-knownwritersandphotographers
have workedwiththe magazine anditconnotesthattheirworkis of
such a highstandardthat it’sworthcredibility.
A borderof white space runsaround the double page
spread,keepingacleanandprofessionalandlookstothe
pages.It’ssimplisticwhichdrawsattentiontothe content
onlynotthe style.Thisconnotesthe group’spersonality.
They’re all abouttheirmusicnotflashy clothesormoney
whichisusuallythe typical conventionsof hip-hopbutnot
todayas theyrelatingitto the olderhip-hop,onlywhat
theyearna livingof theirmusicwhichrelatestoalotof
talentedmusiciansandartistsinthe past suchas hip hop
MC Eminem,Dr,Dre andNas.
3. Subheading:the subheadingisthe same
as the headingbutinsmallerfontwhich
makesitstill as important.Itisplacedon
the top righthand side centredonthe
double page spreadmakingitlookclean
and simple likethe heading.Thisclever
subheadingcreatesinterestinwhatis
aboutto be saidon the mainarticle.The
wordplayusedin ‘meetthe restof the Big
Apple’s…’will provide the readershipwith
humourand entertainment asthe writer
has labelledtheirsuccessbycallingthem
‘bigapple’s’because theylive inthe big
apple (NewYorkCity).Also,thisisalways
importantinhip-hoprepresentingwhere
youare from whichiswhyit wassaid
twice.Thiscan be a part of Bulmerand
Katzs’gratificationsof identificationof the
rap group’shome area. It alsousesthe
words‘Meetthe rest…’ whichis
interactive andgetsthe readerinvolved.
Camera/Lighting: The camera has capturedthemina
slightlyhighangled,midshot,the lightingishighkey
portrayinga natural environment. Howevereventhough
the lightingdoeslooknaturalisticfeel youcantell ithasa
vintage lookasif it wastakenin the 90s inrap historythis
was the greatesttime of hip-hopwhichcanbe a reason
for thistype of shot andlightingtopay homage orthe
love of that era of hip-hop. All sevenmembersof the
groupare doingsomethingdifferent,whetherit’susinga
directmode of addressand directlyintothe camera,
swearingatthe camera, grittingtheirteethorlooking
downthere isno doubtthat thisphotographclearly
connotesthatall membersof the artistare differentto
one another.It alsoconnotesafreedomandnatural feel
to the image as it doesn’tlookstagedandsomethingthat
isn’trealistic,theylooklike sevenordinarypeople,just
like youandI. Thisall is portrayedthroughtheirclothes
whicharen’texpensive suchashighfashionbrandsGucci,
lookingandtheirstancesinthe photograph.
Position:The compositionof thisdouble page spreadhas
exaggeratedcommonhip-hopmagazineconventionsby sizing
the image largerthan the usual 50:50 ratiobetweentextand
image.Thiscouldhave beendone due totheirmale readers
respondbettertovisualsandsimplisticcomposition.
