Magazine Advert Analysis

The purpose of a magazine advert or tour poster that features an artist is to advertise. This is shown through conveying the artist in a certain way in order to appeal to a large audience and raise peoples knowledge of there work as a musician and make people want to go and listen to them. These functions allow the artist to be promoted in order to produce revenue for their record label through adverts boosting record sales and in this particular advert the sale of gig tickets.

This adverts shows the artist promoting her 'apple tree tour' which was taking place following the release of her EP in 2012. The advert comes before the release of her most well known song 'stay out' which reached number 21 in the mainstream charts in february 2013. This is reflective in the tour poster as we can see the typography of the words NINA NESBITT in big bold lettering to highlight to a mainstream audience who she is, as they may not be able to recognise her face. The use of diverse iconography is evident in this poster as she is holding an apple this is typical of the indie music genre and makes the advert appear different and unique, this also ties in with the visual song links which according to media theorist Goodwin are key attributes of a successful musician. 

The typography also reflects her genre further advertising the price of the gig which is very low therefore encouraging people to go. The small venue also is typical for an underground artist and the fact she plays there shows she is yet to be globally successful and is still undiscovered by the mainstream world.

The typography further demonstrates an understanding of the artist and her music as the letter 'N' appears in a large fairy tale font, much like the start of her 'apple tree song' where the lyrics are 'once once upon a time...' these connotations relate from the lyrics to the visual of the poster hence the reason the lyrics of 'the apple tree' play a part in advertising the tour. The motif colour red has conations of being seductive and bold this also ties in with the artists red lipstick, this makes her appear different and unique with a rebellious attitude, this appeals to the target audience of 13 - 25 year olds with both the mainstream and indie audience with many wishing to copy her trends and see her as an icon.

This advert promotes the music genre further as it shows the indie nature of the artist through the diverse iconography and the passive facial expressions which show Nina to be mysterious and iconic, this is conventional of alternative music magazine articles where the artist is portrayed as artistic and the audience who read the magazine can see she cares deeply about her music and are intrigued by her individual style. The fact she is advertising a gig is again conventional of the indie genre as live performance is vital and a conventional way of engaging with indie music.

The tour poster shows nina at the top of the poster taking up around 40% of the advert, the name of the artist appears much larger therefore conveying that the general audience wont recognise her face as she is new on the scene. However the price makes her gig seem attractive and advertises the gig to her audience who the majority of which are students therefore wont be able to afford tickets to big tours of mainstream artists. The purpose of this is to then show new audiences in the field of mainstream music that Nina is a diverse artist and can appeal to a variety of genres therefore attract a bigger audience and making her more successful.

The next textual piece from a music artist I looked at was a article a tour poster that actually featured in the classic British indie music magazine NME The magazine featured a female indie artist similar to the style and works of Nina Nesbitt. Laura marling appears young and care free in this poster, with low key lighting and dark colours being conventional of alternative music and making her appear mysterious. This shows the target audience which consists of indie music lovers that as an artist she is just beginning and is a new face on the music industry, because of her bohemian image on the poster. Laura fills 75% of the page which promotes her as an ordinary artist, as she appears young and talented. She is also playing guitar which means she is serious amount her perfomance and that installs the audience that she is an indie artist as she is using a guitar as iconography. This is a very strong conventional of all indie artists such as the kings of leon, and the arctic monkies who all are pictured with guitars and other instruments in order to promote the idea of live music which an indie audience is interested in.

Laura shows her folk roots by playing her guitar whilst being pictured, this is very conventional of an alternative indie artist and attracts a folk audience as they will see her as a young new face who is talented at both singing and playing her instruments therefore will boost Laura's record sales as people become interested in her as an artist after seeing her picture in the poster as it advertises when she will next be playing. The typography is big and bold. This is placed in a key place which catches the eye of the reader as it appears in contrasting colours and as if it has been written in chalk. The writing is typical of the indie genre as it is artistic and simplistic yet also eye catching. The writing is both feminine and sophisticated which advertises the style of the artist, and also portrays her as a sexy female which is one of the conventions of Goodwin's theory regarding the appeal of an artist to the audience. The design of the poster advertises the artist to the audience by conveying her as fun and interesting with an intense passion for music. This shows she's fun and likes a laugh displaying her as an ordinary artist to her target audience. The article gives the artist a likeability factor meaning she appeals to the target audience of younger 13 to 22 year olds.

The advert promotes the music genre by displaying her with her instruments which makes her seem talented and typical of the indie genre. The audience are drawn in by this, and if they read into the article can see that she is a fun and lively character which means she can appeal to a wide genre of people including the mainstream who may want to research the artist based on her appearance and come and see her on a cheap low cost venue which is advertised on the poster. This could further appeal to students as with little money they could easily and go and see a small time indie artist as tickets too see large mainstream bands and artists at the 02 is expensive.