- Analyse the media language of MOJO and the BBC magazine.
- Make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the media language is use differently to fit different
- kinds of music. (15)
The two genres shown in the images above are a 'classic rock' for MOJO and a more natural classical
music theme for BBC music magazine. The two different magazines contrast dramatically because of their genre
style, font choice, photo shot, colours and more. This can first be noticed by the shot of the featured artist and how
they are presented. In MOJO, we see a member of 'The Cure' pictured with highly saturated colours as well as
highlighted moments of lighting. The harsh tones of where the light hit his face and then the bold red lip, blue eyes
and dark eyebrows shows an edgy man who is dedicated to upholding this rocker look. This immediately connotes
a certain informality and a fun feel. The shot type used shows him being at our eyeline but he is shown looking up
at us perhaps connoting that he is below us meaning that we look down on him for his look and aura and that he is
a hardcore rocker. I would not say that he looks particularly sane which adds to his stage presence and act he puts
on for his job. His makeup and hair also adds into the alternative, dramatic artist. This fuels the genre of the
magazine as being a more old fashioned rock magazine. I would expect this picture to be on the cover of MOJO
because it shows an older band for an older audience.
Another aspect of media language used to convey the music genre is the font and layout. The font used when
showing the 'The Cure' and 'Robert Smith' is a broken, crumbling sans serif font. This connotes many things,
e.g: the crumbling career of a forgotten rocker, the informality of their 'look', the breaking down of his life as said in
the main article: 'The inside story'. The layout is filled and busy showing to the reader the craziness of the rock
industry and the uncertainty of their careers. The pictures overlapping and the big subtexts here show this and the
many layers to rock music that can be covered. The MOJO in big bold letters is normally placed behind the artist to
show respect for them and their music. Only in this instance, the MOJO is placed behind the artist. This conveys to
the reader that again, because he is a traditional rocker, he is seen to be rebellious and unrespectable because he
is so outrageously alternative. This again adds to the rocker genre.
Whereas in the BBC music magazine we get a clear idea of the contrast. In this magazine Sheku is pictures who is
a teenager, is not the stereotypical older man normally pictured on the cover of this magazine which shows that the
magazine is willing to present younger generations to draw different readers in. He is a rising star which He is
dressed in a casual, typical teenage manner which one would expect my friends to wear. His expression isn't one
of that with a lot of experience but one of a lively and 'normal' manner. You can see his youthful vibe which will
resonate with the older target audience showing them the new talent and modernising their taste. The lighter here
is very natural with a blur background effect so we can truly see and get to know Sheku. He is posing in a casual
manner showing his relatability. The organisation of the cover is very simple and the fact there is not much writing
on it shows that the main focus of this issue is Sheku. The font used here is serif throughout showing the
traditional style of the magazine which adds to the genre of classical music. This type of music is normally seen to
be a traditional formal style hence the font choice reflects this.
In conclusion, I can clearly see the different genres of music - being classic rock and classical- through the variation
of media language used throughout the front covers. This can be seen in many ways, some being the difference in
lighting which is naturalistic and then harsh and focused, the positioning of the stars, one being full on and a slight
anger look and the other being a simple pose showing their angles and their instrument which shows the reader
the formality versus the informality of rock and classical music. I can judge that the organisation also reflects the
genre of music as the more cluttered style presents the messiness of rock music and the organised cover of BBC
music shows the traditionality of the genre and the magazine. Therefore I conclude that the media language used
in these magazines reflects their genres.
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