The 'New Music Express' (more known as NME) is a popular music magazine in the United Kingdom which has been published weekly since March 1952. It was the first British paper to include a singles chart which first appeared in the 14th November 1952 edition. In the 1970's NME became the best selling British music magazine. The paper's first issue was published on 7th March 1952 after the 'Musical Express' and 'Accordion Weekly' was bought by London music promoter Maurice Kinn, and relaunched as the 'New Musical Express'. It was initially published in a non-glossy tabloid format on standard newsprint. NME features agenda-setting news, the UK's most comprehensive gig guide, definitive reviews of the week's hottest gigs, tracks and albums, and fiery comment from the nation's most opinionated writers, it's the essential guide to the week in music. NME comes out every Wednesday, is priced £2.20 and is available in all news-agents. From the issue of March 21, 1998 onwards, the paper has no longer been printed on newsprint, and more recently it has shifted to tabloid size: it has full, glossy, colour covers and has developed into more of a magazine format closer to the weekly teen-pop magazines it may be seen to have more in common with.
Launched in 1996, the award-winning NME.com has grown to become Europe's most successful music website, with 16 million page impressions each month and 1.6 million unique users from across the globe. Famous for its ground-breaking music news, breadth of reviews and in-depth features, NME.com is the digital archive of the NME with over 15,000 news stories, reviews and features in its database.
NME is published by IPC Media. IPC Media is a leading UK consumer magazine publisher and digital publisher, with a large portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year. Almost two in every three UK women and over 45% of UK men read an IPC magazine. Almost 27 million UK adults. IPC was formed as International Publishing Company in 1963 from the rationalization of the holdings of three companies; George Newnes, Odhams Press and Fleetway Publications. IPC Media groups titles under fives magazine divisions: Connect (Women's weeklies such as Now Magazine), Insprire (leisure and specialist), Ignite! (men's lifestyle and entertainment), SouthBank ( women's lifestyle and home interest) and TX (portfolio of television titles). In addition, there is Marketforce, the UK's leading magazine distribution business.
NME's reader profile is predominantly male with a 65% male audience, at an average age of 23. The target reader is described as an 'active music purchaser, particularly single tracks' and is also a 'music completist, must have live versions and B sides'. Therefore suggesting that the 'enthusiast' label is applicable to the NME purchaser, in keeping with the historical image as a 'serious' music publication. According to market research the NME reader regularly downloads music, whilst also purchasing from high street music retailers. An enthusiasm for live gigs is highlighted in the profile, again dictating the editorial coverage of gig reviews, tour dates etc. This however is also apparent in NME's own presence at renowned festivals like Reading and Glastonbury ( with their own stage) and NME sponsored tours and events across the country.
The cover of the magazine as shown above consists of a main image accompanied sometimes by smaller photos an and array of content headings. Featured artists and articles illustrate the publication's approach to music and references to gigs, festival and related competitions are designed to appeal to the specific target audience of the magazine. On some occasions free posters and CD's are given out in particular issues. This is an effective promotional device that introduces the reader to new music, rare and live tracks and often offer a combination of current and also sometimes older tracks. All of which have an outcome of reinforcing the profile of a reader interested in developing their enthusiasm for new music.
The image used on this particular issue shown above is of a new band that has recently released tracks in the UK. The facial expressions shown on the faces of the artists are extremely serious, and each individual has direct eye contact with the camera which adds effect to the negative glare they appear to be giving off. This particular shot I feel was staged due to the fact that the magazine is advertising a negative article with the band. This is suggested by the negative quote shown just below the image "People think we're on the gravy train?Give a f***!"By showing a new band on the front cover of the issue suggest to us that they are trying to attract the target audience to listening, buying and downloading new music in particular. This is also made clear by the idea that the title of the magazine NME stands for 'New Music Express'. The use of colour is contrasted through the background of the magazine, as the background colour chosen is black, in contrast with the bright coloured fonts that have been used to create an eye catching effect. NME continually uses red and white as font colours, creating a ongoing feature of the magazine. Therefore allowing you to instantly recognize those particular colours as an NME colour scheme. Use of slang and sometimes expletives are shown throughout the pages, and genre-specific terminology like 'emo' speaks directly to a familiar teen/20-something music fan.
The NME is associated with less mainstream pop music. It is created for the music enthusiast who listens to contemporary music, attends gigs and festivals and wishes to keep up-to-date with established bands and new artists. Profiles and reviews of singles available to buy on CD or downloaded off the net reflect a youth market who consume new material in different formats. The reader profile also suggest that 91% attend gigs on a regular basis and that is reflected in a weekly gig diary and substantial advertising of tour dates. The NME is attractive also to music fans who are musicians themselves with Free Ads full of artists of the future.
