I have done some analysis of double page spreads from pop magazines, mainly interviews, which are similar to the genre of music magazine that I want to create to help me stick to any codes and conventions when I come to create my own.

2. I will be mainly analysing double page spreads
from pop magazines, as this is the genre that
already exists which is arguably closest to the
genre I am creating (80s style glam pop).
Furthermore, I have chosen articles that are
interviews in the main because I have planned
to do an interview for my double page spread
with the cover girl.

3. Large, bold quote from the interview
doubles as the heading to grab the
audience’s attention. It is a carefully
chosen quote that reveals something
about her that her audience is going
to want to know more about;
something that is intriguing, and it’s
also something that most people will
not know about her, encouraging
people to read on for exclusive
information.
Big image taking up the whole of the right hand page,
completely unrelated to music, even though this double
page spread is taken from ‘ilovepopmag.co.uk’. The
image featured is a full shot, and he body is positioned
in an unusual manner to make the audience look at it.
The magazine doesn’t need to show her in a music
scene, because she is already famous and so the
audience of the magazine will already recognise that she
is a pop star, and therefore the article fits the genre of
the magazine.
The interview questions are written
in a different colour to make them
stand out from Cher’s answers.
They are written in pink to fit with
the colour scheme created.
This article was published on
page 30 of the magazine, even
though it is the cover story. This
works for the magazine because
it is so heavily advertised
elsewhere in the magazine, the
audience knows where to find
the article and their target
audience will probably turn to
page 30 especially to read this
article. This also demonstrates
that this magazine is well
established and has a decent
readership because it must have
a large amount of content to
cover this amount of pages. The
page number styling fits with
the theme of the magazine.
It is made clear that this article is
the same one that it advertised
on the cover using a dynamic
text box. It is placed at the top of
the left hand page, in the centre
so that it is noticeable, but is
relatively small to prevent it from
being overlooked. The
typography is clear and the font
matches the font used in the
heading, helping to create a
style. The colours of pink and
white also match the colour
scheme established elsewhere in
the article.
Cher’s styling matches her
style of music and is
something that the audience
may aspire to look like.
However, the colour of her
outfit does not match the
colour scheme, connoting
that this wasn’t considered
during the photoshoot.
Key parts
of the
text are
highlight
ed to
draw the
audience’
s
attention
to it.
There is also a small image located on the left
hand page, accompanied by a caption. It is also
of Cher Lloyd, but in a different context – she
appears to be at a premier, showcasing her star
quality an d popularity to the audience,
encouraging girls to want to be like her. The
caption provides some context to the image, as
it is needed. Whereas the other, larger image
doesn’t have a caption because it is a shot taken
in the studio of her and it therefore requires no
explanation. Its purpose is solely to represent
Cher’s personality to the audience, making them
feel like they are getting to know her.
Cher’s name is used as an
endorsement throughout the
article, and probably on the
cover too, as it is shown to be
the cover story.
The register of the text fits
its intended audience. It uses
fairly simple and ‘trendy’
lexis which would be used by
their target demographic –
young people. It also uses
imperatives to encourage you
to read the article.

4. Large image taking up the majority
of the two pages is completely
unrelated to music. It is bold, very
posed and is integrated into the
overall colour scheme of the article.
The heading is located in the
middle of the first (left) page. This
is a quirky layout, mixing up
general conventions and helping
to capture the audience’s interest
because it’s different. It also
connotes that Selena Gomez, who
the article is based upon, doesn’t
stick to the rules – she is a
reckless pop star – a stereotype
that young girls (the magazine’s
target audience) lap up.
The article is focused upon something
that the audience will be interested in –
how to be like Selena Gomez, a popular
pop star. This heading connotes that the
reader is getting an insight into Selena’s
life, which is exclusive to the magazine,
encouraging people to buy the magazine
and read what she has to say.
The use of the personal
pronoun “my” connotes that
Selena has written the article
herself, and even if this is not
true, and the article is simply
based on what she has said,
this implication is something
that will greatly appeal to the
audience.
The text boxes used are of an unusual shape,
helping to create an edgy, alternative layout which is
different and exciting for the audience. It contrasts
against the typical layout of double page spreads
which involves columns. They are cleverly formatted
so that they fit within the white areas of the
photograph and make the most of the space.
The register of the text fits its
target audience on this example
too. For example, the lexis
“secrets” connotes that the
audience is getting exclusive
information about Selena that
she doesn’t want to be common
knowledge, implying that
Selena trusts them. This
encourages that audience to
read on.
Much like the previous
example, pink, black and white
form the colour scheme of the
article. This is largely because
the target audience is mainly
girls who will be more
interested in gossip about a
female pop star that they aspire
to be like. Stereotypically, girls
like the colour pink whereas
boys don’t.
The language of the article is informal and
colloquial. For instance, the introduction to the
article uses words such as “fit” – a slang term used
instead of “attractive”. Here, Selena is also referred
to as “Sel” which connotes that the magazine is
friendly with her and therefore that she has let on
some real gossip for the audience to read. There is
also a rhetorical question used in the introduction,
asking the audience “Do you want to know Sel’s
secret?”. It encourages the audience to think ‘yes I
do want to know her secret’ and continue reading.
The page numbers are included on
both pages so that the audience can
find the article using the contents
page, or potentially the cover more
easily. They are fairly large and are
written in clear typography for the
same reason. They are also black and
white to fit the colour scheme.
Another small image is featured
in this article too, helping to put
some text into perspective. The
article is claiming that Selena
has “fab friends”, and so she is
pictured with one of her friends
under the heading “fantastic
friendships”.

5. This image of Rihanna takes up the
majority of the right hand page. It is
a medium to full shot which is
heavily posed. It has nothing to do
with music, again, but is exclusive
and is therefore something the
audience will want to see as she is a
famous pop star, and the target
audience for this magazine is
interested in pop stars.
Rihanna’s name is used as an
endorsement because she is so
famous.
The colour scheme of this
magazine is blue, pink and
white. Although these colours
work well together, they are an
unusual choice for a pop
magazine as the colour blue is
closely associated with boys,
and pop magazines are
generally more aimed at girls.
However, pink – a stereotypically
girly colour – is also
incorporated. This could
suggest that this article in
particular is aimed at both boys
and girls, particularly as Rihanna
is a star admired by both
genders.
The questions of the interview are
written in blue to match the
colour scheme and differentiate
them from Rihanna’s answers,
which are printed in black. The
main body of the text is written in
black because it stands out
against the white background
more and makes the text easier
for the audience to read.
This article uses a quote as its
heading, like the first example.
It is a weird, unusual and
intriguing quote that grabs the
audience’s attention because it
appears to be so out of
context. The reader is
encouraged to read on by this
quote so that they can find out
the context of the quote so
that it makes more sense to
them.
The article begins with
the first letter of the
first sentence
presented in a
different font, and
much larger. This
helps to attract the
audience’s attention
to the typography.
This is the same for
the first example. The
formatting of this
means that it fits in
with the colour
scheme established
elsewhere in the
article.
Underneath the heading, the best
bits of the article are summarised.
This is written in a different font to
the heading and the article,
differentiating it and drawing
attention to it. It encourages the
audience to read on so that they can
find out what “Rihanna rates her
rivals” (which is also written using
alliteration, making the phrase
sound more appealing), and “Katy
Perry’s love of dangly bits” (which is
ambiguous and thus intriguing).
A small image is included in the centre of the left hand
page –a prime location to be noticed by the audience. In
this case it is a selfie, which connotes that it is exclusive
as it was actually taken by one the stars. The fact that it
appears to be exclusive is interesting for the audience
because they feel that they won’t find it anywhere else.
It also features another pp star, Nicki Minaj, making it
even more appealing for the audience. A caption is
included to provide context and let the audience know
who else is in the photo.
The page numbers are located
in the bottom far corners of
the page so that the audience
can find the article, but they
are small so that they don’t
detract from the design of the
spread.

6. This image of Justin Bieber takes
up the whole of the right hand
page. It is a full shot which is
extremely posed. His body
positioning is unusual, drawing
attention to it. He is hanging off a
clear chair, which is completely
unrelated to pop, although the
chair is difficult to see because it
is clear. This is something I need
to be careful of when I take my
own photographs.
The lexis
“exclusive
connotes that
the information
within this
article can’t be
found anywhere
else,
encouraging
people to read
it.
The article’s heading is a quote from the
interview. This appears to be common for
interview articles to grab the audience’s
attention and give a flavour of the
information they will receive if they
continue reading. This quote is aimed
more at attracting girls to read the article,
because they are likely to want to know
why girls give Justin Bieber a headache
because a lot of girls ‘crush’ on him and
this is the last thing they would want.
The small banner underneath
the heading of the article
contains text. It summarises the
article using a rhetorical
question and alliteration. The
rhetorical question makes the
audience consider if Justin has
become a “bad lad” (which also
rhymes and is more catchy) and
the alliteration makes the text
more memorable and it rolls off
the tongue better. The summary
includes all the best bits,
encouraging the audience to
read the article and find out
more about these bits. The
typography is also different here
– a different font, size and
colour. Justin’s name is also in a
different font to make it stand
out from the rest of the text. His
name is turned into an
endorsement.
Justin’s styling fits in
with the colour scheme
of the article – red, white
and red. He is wearing
red and black, and it
makes the article
aesthetically pleasing.
His clothing also
represents the style of
music he is involved with
– pop – because it
represents current pop
fashion trends.
Some of the text is presented in a red text box, rather than on a
white background. This helps the text to stand out, and this is
what the editor of the magazine wanted as the ‘Dressing Room
Demands’ section is designed to really appeal to the audience
because it is inside information that they wouldn’t know if they
didn’t read the article. Young people love knowing what they
consider to be ‘inside information’ because they feel like they know
the pop star on a more personal level, which is why this section is
appealing.
There is also a small
photograph on the left hand
page of Justin and his
girlfriend of the time, Selena
Gomez, and this provides
context to the heading
which states that “girls give
me a headache!”
The language used in the
article is relevant to the
target audience of the
magazine – young
people. They use an
informal tone with
colloquial language,
asking questions by
beginning with “let’s talk
girls”.