4Q Magazine
4Q is a free national magazine published in the United Kingdom with a readership of 40,000.
Founded by Andrew Jackson and Michael Smith, and later joined by Rob Pearson, the idea for the magazine was initially intended as a university coursework project. After successfully winning a local ‘Dragon’s Den’ style competition hosted by the Manchester universities the duo set up the business for real after Jackson had completed his studies. Two years after the 4Q company was established the team announced the magazine will be going fully national, and brought in one of their writers and event organisers, Rob Pearson, as their third director and also head of strategy.
Content
The physical appearance of the free published magazine is that of a premium, or paid for, magazine, an image that has been a feature of 4Q since their first issue.
The magazine features dedicated sections of content such as music, comedy, fashion, gaming & technology, and film & entertainment. The focus of 4Q is much more on searching for and championing new acts as opposed to their view of ‘the stagnant approach of the old media’ some of whom have been criticised for playing it safe and focusing only on popular acts of the time.
Previously championed acts include Dinosaur Pile-Up, The Virginmarys, Enter Shikari, The Heartbreaks, Beat The Radar, Spartak, The Volantes, Turrentine Jones, Six10repeater, Alexisonfire, Death To The Strange, Vampire Weekend, Nine Black Alps, Delta Maid, Suzuki Method, and The Jessie Rose Trip.
As well as music acts 4Q has also featured both established and up and coming comedians such as Tim Minchin, Jason Manford, and Michael Fielding,
Many of the championed acts have also featured in the magazines Fresh Meat events, sponsored by international sportswear giant Converse, where new up and coming bands are given the chance to play at major gigs around the Manchester area. It is expected that these events will now go national along with the magazine.
4Q Media
There are hints that the new national magazines will also feature a fully integrated augmented reality system that has never been attempted by any other publication. Readers will be able to download an iPhone or Android app and access extra content projected onto the pages of the magazine. Details of this technology are still unknown though as the editors have yet make an official announcement.
The 4Q in-house media team includes photographers such as Luke Fagan and Katie Dervin.
It is also understood that the 4Q media team has been joined by New York TV producer Byron Mansylla who is most famed for his production credit on HBO’s critically acclaimed show ‘Reverb’.