As urban and hip-hop celebrities, we Xpose team members are often faced with a wide variety of questions pertaining to our magazine, so it’s impossible for us to answer all of them. Since the release of our first issue in 2016, one question that always comes up is: “What is Xpose magazine ?” We ask, what was the point of beginning this publication? And while some people believe that we should stick to publishing content on popular sites like Backsplash and SOHH, others think that instead we should focus more on publishing interviews with artists like Jay Z and Gorilla Zoe. Xpose magazine is our answer to all of these questions and more.
At the time, our mission was to create a platform that would gradually shift the focus of urban music’s narrative from Atlanta to Philadelphia. We wanted to share our own experiences, perspectives, and feelings about hip-hop and what it meant to be an artist in our city. Of course, we also wanted to encourage artists here on the East Coast not only by showing off their talent but also by creating an opportunity for interaction in the form of interviews and community collaboration portals like “The Tip Jar” (a place where artists can freely interact with their fans). We weren’t sure if people would like what we had created until one day when the magazine went live for free on the Internet.
Doubts You Should Clarify About Xpose Magazine :
1. What is Xpose Magazine?
There are many magazines out there, with countless websites dedicated to urban music. But at the core of all these media platforms, what is the common purpose? In other words, what’s the reason for their existence? Take us for example. We’re an online magazine that focuses on hip-hop and R&B music for the Philadelphia region.
Some say that we should only publish our content on urban sites like Backsplash and SOHH, while others think we should just focus on interviewing artists like Jay Z and Gorilla Zoe to get more traffic from Facebook and Instagram. Over time, people have questioned our motive behind creating this publication. With all these ins and outs, it’s hard for us to figure out what we’re supposed to do.
But, as we’ve always said, Xpose is more than a business—it’s an experience. It’s something that we created and continue producing as artists who produce music on the West Coast that the rest of the world can understand. We want EVERYONE to be part of our journey like how fellow artists Nipsey Hussle and Fat Tony have paved their paths into the mainstream with Xpose magazines.
2. How will Xpose Magazine be used?
There are many ways that the Xpose team can use the Xpose magazine. Some members of our tight-knit editorial staff believe that if we focus only on interviews, people will think of our publication as some sort of business magazine. However, in order to truly evolve our platform into a community platform, it’s important to provide different types of content. That’s where “The Tip Jar” comes into play because it’s a place for the artists and fans to interact with one another and offer their own services or products instead of just relying on Facebook ads and Instagram hashtags.
3. What is our business model?
While some people may think that we’re just a Backsplash magazine, it’s actually more than that. It’s a platform created by artists that support other artists here in Philly. We believe in building up our own local community before trying to go global so we’re not looking for outside investments at the moment. We want to first take care of all the members of our crew and make sure they’re going hard for their careers as well as Xpose magazine before reaching out to anyone else. After all, we control everything—from the interviews, to the reviews and album releases we feature on our site every month.
4. Is Xpose Magazine associated with the Xpose Music Group?
No, Xpose magazine is not associated with Xpose Music Group. We’ve been writing and producing our own music for almost ten years now, and many of us now teach and pass on our experiences to those who want to be apart of the urban music scene. However, the majority of our team members were hired by the founders of XLR8R, so even though we’re independent writers and editors, we still have a lot of respect for what they have built up over these past years since 2010.
5. Who runs Xpose Magazine?
We’ve always been a team effort at Xpose magazine. From the beginning, we’ve had amazing writers, photographers, graphic designers and videographers who have helped us produce content for the site. However, the founder still has final say on all of this because he is simply an artist himself. Our founder, Da Phresher (who goes by “Phresher” or “Flow.”) is a writer and producer from Philly and has been around since the early days of X-Clan in 1995. He’s produced for many popular artists—from Silkk The Shocker to Chamillionaire to Soulja Slim and now he’s on his own path with Xpose magazine.
