Mojo Magazine

Mojo Magazine case study

Mojo is the world's largest UK music magazine. David Crosby of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young says "Mojo is the only real music magazine left in the world."

Mojo is a monthly magazine which brings you a "definitive cover feature on an iconic act". In fact, the first issue of Mojo had Bob Dylan and John Lennon as its first cover stars, which highlights how successful the magazine is as many wouldn't expect to have such an iconic figure on the first issue of a magazine. With each issue, a custom made CD is attached which is especially put together by either the editorial team or a major musician.

 

Since its launch 22 years ago, Mojo has been under two different publishing companies; Emap, and since January 2008, Bauer.

Its masthead was chosen as a reminder of the magic at the core of music and as a demonstration of respect to Delta blues mythology. "Mojo" is also a word that relates to middle-aged people as it was a common phrase used in the 1980s.

Many people criticise the magazine for its frequent coverage of classic rock acts such as Bob Dylan and The Beatles. However, it has featured many newer and "left-field" acts. It was the first mainstream magazine in the UK to focus on The White Stripes, whom it has covered as enthusiastically as many older acts.

Mojo is well known for its many "Top 100" lists. To celebrate 150 issues, the magazine published a "Top 100 Albums of Mojo's Lifetime" list. The top five for this list were:

1. Grace – Jeff Buckley (1994)
2. American Recordings – Johnny Cash (1994)
3. OK Computer – Radiohead (1997)
4. Time Out of Mind – Bob Dylan (1997)
5. Definitely Maybe – Oasis (1994)

In 2007, the magazine determined "The Top 100 Records That Changed The World".
The top ten on Mojo's 100 Records That Changed the World list are:

1. Tutti Frutti - Little Richard (1957)
2. I Want to Hold Your Hand - The Beatles (1964)
3. Heartbreak Hotel -  Elvis Presley (1972)
4. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan -  Bob Dylan (1963)
5. Autobahn - Kraftwerk (1974)
6. King of the Delta Blues Singers -  Robert Johnson (1961)
7. The Velvet Underground & Nico -  The Velvet Underground and Nico (1967)
8. Anthology of American Folk Music (various artists) (1952)
9. What'd I Say -  Ray Charles (1959)

The average age of a Mojo Magazine reader is 41 years old and it has an ABC1 profile of 70%. The magazine is loved by its readers and artists alike because it engages them on the subject they love the most: music itself. Mojo targets its audience by concentrating on classic rock artists like Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The White Stripes etc. Both females and males are targeted which is highlighted through the general colour of the masthead: white or black, which are neutral colours.

Front cover

The masthead on this front cover is large, bold and has  3D effect behind it to make it look different and more superior to the rest of the cover. It is in white to contrast the dark background and it has been slightly covered by the slogan and puffs which connote that is has been branded and therefore the audience already know of the magazine and do not need to see the whole masthead. The main image is the singer from Soiuxe and the Banshees, the main image is linked to the main cover line. It is a medium close up of her and the masthead covers her which suggests that the masthead is more important, however the cover lines don't overlap her which shows how significant she is. She has heavy makeup on and as the genre of the magazine is music and the subgenre is indie/classic rock, the stereotype of indie singers is their originality which is expressed through her makeup. It has been placed in the centre of the front cover so it will be one of the first things that the reader will notice - this is a common code and convention of magazines. The cover lines have been placed around the main image so that they don't cover any details, this is a common code and convention of magazines. They follow the colour scheme - which is red, white, black and blue - and are all written in the same font except some are in bold and some are bigger than others. Everything in the cover lines refer to something important inside the magazine and give slight details about it as well to make it more appealing to the target audience. Every cover line links to the genre/sub genre of the magazine.

 

Contents Page

Mojo is very clear and bold at the top of the page to make sure that the reader can easily recognise it . Names of cities have also been included underneath the masthead, telling us where the magazine is iconic for music;  which is in London, Memphis and Okemah. The house style of black, gold and grey has been used which is very simple and neutral -  the neutrality of the colour highlights that this magazine is both for males and females. As Mojo is aimed at an older audience these colours would appeal to them as they are not too bright or vibrant for their eyes, meaning it can easily be read. Stories have been separated by using bold writing and putting information about the story below it. Mojo has made the cover story stand out by separating it from the rest of the text by placing gold lines around it. Also, they have included a lot of information underneath the band name so this makes it look more important to the other features on the contents and it shows that it is the mains story. The image of the subject is at a head shot angle. Also, as he is looking straight at the camera, this makes the reader feel more involved in the magazine and it creates intimacy, pulling the reader in to buy and read the magazine.