RAW Feature Article Interview

As we catch up with Scotland’s prodigy, Delilah Rose reveals a little more than she bargained for…

With two number one singles and a debut album selling 300,000 copies in seven days, you would be forgiven for thinking that Delilah Rose has been around for years. But in only three months, the 19-year-old singer has produced a sound which has taken the world by storm.

So Delilah, tell us about your new album THE WRITING ON THE WALL…

 I am really happy with the album. I feel like the rock genre is very dominated by men singing about drugs and shit. With my music, I take the emotion and mix it with the edge of rock.

Well it obviously worked. You were only signed to Domino in September, how have you produced the album so quickly?

I have been writing songs since I was eight years old. Most of these were complete and utter crap, but some mean a lot to me- these ended up on the album. That being said, the last few months have been really tough. I’ve never worked so hard in my life but I’ve enjoyed every second of it.

Your birth name is Brooke Kennedy, why Delilah Rose?

I started performing properly when I was 17, and Brooke Kennedy was such a boring name. It was killing me as an artist. I realised that I needed something that reflected my personality and music- otherwise I would never be remembered. Delilah was my Grandmother’s name. We were very close and she was my biggest fan, but she passed away ten years ago. But then Delilah released her album, and I actually had people turn up to my gigs expecting to see her! I chose Rose because that was the name of my imaginary friend when I was little.

Snog Marry Avoid: Kai Ellis, Jasper James, Tyrel Butcher….

Haha I had a little crush on Jasper James growing up! Didn’t everyone?! But Kai is also signed Domino, and he is such a talented man. So I have to marry him guess!

So you’re avoiding Tyrel….?

Yes. I find his music quite disrespectful. I wouldn’t say I am feminist, but I do think that the music industry can treat women very badly. Men get away with objectifying women because they are rappers. I don’t think that’s right.

Is there a guy in the picture right now?

There might be… [Giggles shyly].

This is an exclusive….

Well I’ll have you know he is a perfect muse! I dreamed up the chorus for Morning Rain after our first date. But right now we are happy, there is not much more to say.

Are all your songs about men you have dated?

Most of them, but I only tend to have serious relationships, so I haven’t actually dated that many guys. This does mean that my songs can be very emotional, but there are a few really fun ones on the album.

What are the best and the worst things about being famous?

Ooh… The freebies! Everybody wants you to wear their clothes, it’s brilliant! Valentino has designed me the most stunning dress for the Grammys in January. [RAW begs for details] You’ll have to wait and see! Now I couldn’t possibly complain about fame, it comes with the job description. The only thing that gets to me is when the paparazzi hassle my family. I have chosen this career, not them. They shouldn’t have to deal with people banging on the door at 5am.

Being photographed all the time, do you feel body conscious? 

No. I have always had a high metabolism and enjoyed sport. I am so happy with my figure, and to be honest I wouldn’t mind if I did put on weight. I will be confident about my image as long as I am eating well. I have lots of young, impressionable fans. I would never want them to see me and decide that they are not skinny enough. »

RAW Feature Article Draft Analysis

RAW Feature Article Draft

RAW Contents Draft Analysis

RAW Contents Draft

RAW Cover Draft Analysis

RAW Cover Draft

RAW Cover Page Inspiration

Delilah Rose Photography Plan- Feature Article

Sunshine Rain Photography Plan- Contents Page

Delilah Rose Photography Plan- Cover and Contents Pages

Model Selection

House Style- Slug

House Style- Colour Scheme

House Style- Font Example

House Style- Font

House Style Research- Q

Masthead Design- Triangle Symbolism

Masthead- Chosen Font

Masthead Design Analysis

Masthead Design- Initial Ideas

Brand Identity

1.   Vine – abbreviation of vinyl represents nature and freedom, closeness with music. The name is also unique and so represents the distinctive style of the target audience. However an alternative connotation of ‘Vine’ is that is symbolises wine. Despite this, I think it could still work because my target audience is 15-30 year old women, the older of whom are stereotypically wine drinkers. Furthermore this reflects the classy, elegant style.

2.   Pure – slight irony in that the magazine is quite rebellious and honest, however it also symbolises the honest style of the magazine and reflects the target audience’s love to feel unique and inspirational.

3.    Choice – this represents the freedom and authenticity of the magazine.

4.    3 – This is short and dramatic. It could represent a triangle, a shape which is strongly associated with the ‘indie’ style.

5.    Mode – This symbolises a strong sense of style, and with my very fashion focused magazine, it does give the reader an idea about the style.

6.    Kick – ‘Kick’ has a somewhat violent connotation and therefore appeals to rebellious readers. Additionally it suggests energy and youth. Furthermore it reflects adrenaline; as in when people get a ‘kick’ out of doing something. This also represents danger and excitement.

7.    Alt – An abbreviation of ‘alternative’. ‘Alt’ clearly portrays the genre of the magazine.

8.    Key – this represents the keys of a musical instrument, but alternatively could be a key to a lock, implying that there is something to open. This suggests to the reader that the magazine is unlocking the secrets of the music industry. Furthermore, key implies necessity, and could infer that the magazine is vital to indie rock music fans.

9.   Raw- this represents the truthfulness of the magazine and the bare, stripped back style. Additionally it has quite a meaty connotation, reflecting the animal inside the reader; who they are deep inside and giving a slightly amoral feel. This uncut vibe seems quite daring, and therefore appeals to the reader, who strives to be individual. Furthermore it makes the reader think of the word “Roar”.

10. Roar - a very loud sound representing power and danger. This indicates the rock style.

Contents Page Artists

Cover Page Appearance

Feature Article Location

Artist Appearance and Feature Article Look

Artist Biography

Delilah Rose was born Brooke Kennedy in June 1994, in Kinghorn, a small town in Fife, Scotland. From a young age she loved music, finding inspiration from her parents’ collection of Cher, Dido and the Beatles but found her true passion listening to Bikini Kill, Arcade Fire and Kate Nash. When she was five she began to learn piano, and had mastered it by the age of ten. After being taught guitar at primary school, Kennedy taught herself how to play her mother’s harp. From the age of six Kennedy performed to her family when they came to dinner every Sunday. After two years Brooke began to perform self-written songs to her oblivious audience, who were used to her different music taste and supposed they were covers.

When she was sixteen, Kennedy started her first job as a waitress in the local pub. After a band pulled out of a small gig while she was working, a nervous Brooke performed to a large audience for the first time, and became a very popular regular over the next year. Despite her amazing tone, a new boss was not thrilled with her indie rock style which attracted a very niche audience, and asked her to perform more mainstream music. Brooke refused and lost her job.

When she was seventeen Kennedy started gigging under the stage name Delilah, but soon changed it to Delilah Rose after confusion with the pop artist of the same name. Delilah was the name of her grandmother who passed away when she was nine, and Rose was her childhood imaginary friend. Even though she thoroughly enjoyed performing, Kennedy was predominantly singing to earn money for university. Weeks before she was due to start studying History of Art in Glasgow, Kennedy was discovered by a talent scout while busking on the beach. After never considering a professional career in music, Kennedy struggled with the decision, but ultimately realised that she would love to be a singer.

She is being interviewed by the magazine in order to promote her music as a new artist and gain a larger fan base.

Relatable Brands

Readership Profile

My music magazine will be targeted at predominantly female indie music fans, aged between fifteen and twenty-eight. They are creative and unique with an eye for fashion. Most are in C1 professions.

Character Profile

India is in her first year studying fashion at university. She prides herself on her individual look and spends most of her student loan on clothes and music. She is a huge fan of indie rock, and loves bands that are unknown because it makes her feel different and special. When India isn’t shopping or at the vinyl store where she works, she enjoys going to very small, intimate gigs with her friends. She hates the idea of ‘pop’ and the monotonous way that most people her age conform to society. She believes that everyone should have their own style and express themselves. This is why she loves artists for their music, personality and style and dislikes the untalented pop stars that are primarily famous for their ordinarily good looks. Although she doesn’t get paid very much India gets a discount on vinyl records, which she finds have a much better sound than her iPod. Her job introduces her to artists new and old, and so she has a very wide range of musical knowledge. Apart from music and shopping, in her spare time India loves reading, gardening and playing her harp.

Music Magazine Initial Ideas

Music Magazine Research

Q Feature Article Analysis November 2013

Q Contents Analysis November 2013

 

Q Front Cover Analysis November 2013

Q Contents Page Analysis October 2013

Kerrang! Feature Article Analysis

NME Contents Page Analysis

 

NME Feature Article Analysis

Functions of a Music Magazine

Music magazines promote bands and artists to readers. They inform readers of the latest music news and gossip, as well as gig and album release dates. The magazines give the reader a chance to feel a connection with the artist, in addition to a sense of belonging to a community or fandom. Most music magazines promote a certain genre and use reviews to guide readers to listen to specific music. Artists use magazines for marketing a certain image of themselves. This helps them to promote their music the way they want and to gain the desired fan base. Finally, music magazines give away freebies to introduce readers to different artists and products.

NME Front Cover Analysis

Q Front Cover Analysis

Conventions of a Problem Page

o   The masthead is large and clear in order to quickly inform the reader on the page topic.

o   A clear image of the agony aunt creates a sense of familiarity between them and the reader, as does the use of a name in the masthead. The agony aunt is always smiling to imply they are friendly, nice and trustworthy.  

o   A distinct difference between question and answer, usually in colour, helps the text to be clear and easy to read.

o   Most columns have bright colours, often including pink, which suggest a female target audience.

o   Key words are emphasised to catch the reader’s attention and curiosity.

o   Contact information allows the reader to get involved with the problem page.

o   Contain slogans, usually to explain why the agony aunt’s advice is reliable.

o   Some problem pages contain images relating to the questions.

Analysis of Problem Page

Evaluation of my Problem Page

Design Choices

Masthead- I named my article ‘Dear Louise’ mostly for the reason that it is from the readers’ point of view, as if they were starting a letter. The use of a name also gives a sense of familiarity between the reader and agony aunt, which in turn makes the reader more likely to trust the advice given. In addition alliteration can be made with “love Louise”, which can be used to end each piece of advice.

Slogan- I invented the slogan ‘Our girl solves your problems’ for many different reasons. Firstly, it gives clear, concise information about the content of the article. In addition, pronouns such as “Our” and “you” involve the reader, and “girl” reminds my teenage girl target audience of the similarities between them and ‘Louise’. This then makes them trust the article even more. Lastly, even though “problems” is quite a negative word, it is strong and powerful and implies that the agony aunt is taking the questions seriously.

Colour Scheme- For my colour scheme I chose pink, teal, orange and white because they are bright and contrasting and so stand out and attract readers. The pinks and oranges are very warm and inviting, and the white stands out as a happier alternative to black. Finally, these colours are youthful and commonly favourable colours amongst my target audience of teenage girls.

Dominant Font- I chose the Rockwell font due to it being smart and professional, yet not dull. It is also clear and bold without being imposing. The mixture of thickness in letters draws the readers’ attention, but isn’t too bold for large text. Finally, the font appeals to my target audience because it is interesting and grown up yet still fun and youthful, just like the sixteen to eighteen year old target audience.

Successfulness of Page

I think that my problem page was a success in that the overall look was bright and attractive. I really like colours and fonts that I used because they suited the article well. I really like that straplines at the top and bottom of the page as they look quite professional and the masthead is clear and exciting. I also like the position of the image in the middle of the page.

Changes to be made

For the main coursework there are a few things I need to work on. Firstly, the quality of image must be improved for a nice overall look. This can be achieved by using a better camera and taking time to edit the image. I also need to make my text more comprehensible by planning my space better. On my problem page the text is very overcrowded and confusing to read. Finally, the article would very much improved if I have been more careful about typos, as InDesign does not have spell check, and so I was not used to checking the text myself. In the main project I will run my text through Microsoft Word to be on the safe side.

Problem Page House Style

My Problem Page Design

Problem Page Target Audience

Age Range

The problem page will be for a sixth form magazine, so the age range will be sixteen to eighteen year olds. Therefor the issues and questions will be very school and relationship focused. Students will be interested because they will be dealing with the same sort of issues.

Gender

I am going to focus on a female target audience, because I think women are generally more likely to be interested in a problems page. I think this is because they look for advice more than men, who usually prefer to deal with any issues in their own ways. In addition women can often find situations much more serious than men do, and will look for help to avoid making a mistake.

Personality

Although I will aim to make an advice column for a wide range of people, I will aim it at people who are interested in gossip. This is because they will probably be interested in embarrassing stories and issues. It is likely that these people will be a little bit nosy, and therefore be intrigued by other people’s issues.

Interests

The problem page will be aimed mostly at people who like to read, but also others who aren’t so good at reading. A clear, concise layout with large images will invite these readers in, because less text will appear less intimidating. I will also aim the article at an audience who are quite serious, and are consequently worried about their own lives.

My Problem Page