Signs and Signifiers of music magazines

~Kirsty Griffiths~

CLASH magazineWith this magazine, it at first

looks like the woman on the cover (Rita Ora) can be seen as just an iconic sign, as it is in fact just a picture of a woman. However, it can also be looked at as an arbitrary sign, signifying natural beauty as it is made to look like she has little make up on and is dressed in very simple clothing.

Another symbolic sign could be Rita Ora representing power, as she is sitting in a very professional ‘interviewer’ kind of way and is looking straight at the camera, like

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she is of a higher status than the reader of the magazine or waiting for them.

Billboard magazine

On the Billboard front cover, the main feature of musician Miley Cyrus takes up most of the page, possibly a symbolic sign for her importance, her obviously being seen as a role model on this cover.

Her arms being raised could also represent this as it shows that, especially with her wearing little clothing, she is very confident, open and not afraid. The fact she is looking straight at the camera adds to this.

Much like CLASH Magazine, there is a definite symbolic sign of beauty, womanhood and sexual desire, with Miley Cyrus being shown in lingerie and jewellery. This could signify that she is trying to seduce any male readers, symbolised by her position and her eye contact with the camera.

CLASH magazine

This is a very simplistic double page spread taken from CLASH magazine, the main feature being the

female model on the right page. This at first could be an iconic sign, just representing a woman. On the other hand, symbolic signs of the picture include sadness, as the dark blue-grey colour and the serious facial expression of the girl looking up at the camera could be seen to signify depression.

Billboard magazine

Differing quite a lot from CLASH magazine, this article shows 50 cent and Soulja Boy.

The instant symbolic sign seen in the picture is the stance of both men; one behind looking very intimidating and the other in front with arms raised as if asking for a fight. This symbolises that they are not afraid of anything, both looking at the camera to almost challenge the readers themselves. The clothes they are wearing are also symbolic of the

stereotypical ‘gangster’, both sporting dark coloured jumpers and jeans, with trainers, ‘snapbacks’ and gold chains. This symbolises how they fit in -or rather who they fit in with- and what kind of role models they are to the readers.

Blender magazine

Symbolic signs of this contents page include the bright red colour and cute clothing of the model signifying youth and fun. The inflatable toadstool is also an arbitrary sign for the quirky nature of the magazine, also shown by the fake shocked expression on the model.

The woman could also be seen to symbolise natural female beauty/the female body, as unlike other magazines who show pictures of stick thin girls, Blender has instead used a curvier, more voluptuousWoman for their contents page.

SPIN magazineThe main feature of this contents page is the singer Duffy, shown to look as if she isn’t posing and has been caught off guard. This symbolises how fun she is and how she isn’t a celebrity that just stands and poses, possibly signifying that she is a good role model for readers as she is more like them.

This is also shown by the ‘normal’ clothes she is wearing an her effortless looking hair. As she is wearing just an any-day cardigan and not seen in revealing clothes like other female celebrities, she is made to look like

just another girl like one of the readers, a ‘girl next door’. This in turn makes the readers of the magazine look up to her or aspire to be like her as she is so successful but is still just a normal person, showing them that they can also be successful like this.