Task Two: Front Page Analysis - XXL

Since I have chosen R&B / Hip Hop as my genre, the second magazine is have chosen is XXL.

XXL is a Hip Hop magazine made in America in 1997 and it is published by Town square Media. XXL is made for people who like Hip Hop music.

Conventions of page layout:
There is a masthead in the top left hand corner of the magazine and it is in red and white, even though it is big and bold, some of the masthead is covered by the people on the cover. The font has remained constant throughout the cover and it looks like it has been drawn on. The font is all over the cover and it attracts attention since it looks more unique and noticeable. There are cover lines, some on the right side and there is a cover line written in big white font which is placed on top of the image of the 10 people. They don't look like normal cover lines since they are placed quite messily however this makes the magazine unique and links with the Hip Hip theme since Hip Hop is quite crazy and loud. There is no pull quotes but there is a slight margin on the cover page since everything is straight however the splattered colours seem to go over it. The 10 people are new up and coming artists and this creates a relationship with the text and the image since it states below "2015's XXL freshman class built to win". In America, Freshman's are seen as the beginner and the young newbies.

Image:
There is a 3 colour scheme of white, red and blue however black is used for one of the cover lines. The image is of 10 people and the photographer has used a long shot so you can see all 10 peoples' bodies. They are the main focus of the picture and the photographer has framed them well. High key lighting is used to see everyone's faces clearly however artificial lighting could be used since they seem to look like they are in a studio. There is no set costumes in this photo, it looks like everyone is wearing clothes that matches their personality and who they are. What they're wearing are the norms in our modern society and this can be used as a representation of how some people dress nowadays, particularly in America. There are no props used in this photograph however since people appear to be standing and sitting and looking higher up; benches and chairs could have been used to make them look like this although they could just be PhotoShopped in. No one seems to be wearing make up however they could be wearing make up although no one would notice since it is not a close-up.

Genre  & Language:
Hip Hop and R&B are portrayed in the front cover and you can notice this by the way they are dressed and the way they are posing. The cover is structured differently which is unique and it seems like the editor is trying to create a relationship with the reader and the magazine. The font is messy hand-writing/graffiti which represents the Hip Hop genre quite well since graffiti is linked with going against authority, making statements and illegal unless you have permission. The font is all over the place however it manages to look well placed and thought out since it is spaced out.