• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, January 26, 2010

However bad the state of the magazine industry and economy in general may be, there's always room for one more celebrity gossip title. At least that's what Harris Publications is betting with the launch of a brand-new newsstand-only celebrity magazine titled Juicy.

Launching with a circulation of 150,000 and a newsstand cover price of $4.99, Harris touts Juicy as "the first celebrity and lifestyle magazine for African-American women," specifically targeting the 18-34 demo.

The magazine pairs celebrity gossip covering high-interest characters, such as Jay-Z, Beyonce, Rihanna and the Real Housewives of Atlanta, with beauty content emphasizing "the latest and greatest in hairstyles and hair products." It will publish on a quarterly schedule in 2010, but should move to a monthly schedule in 2011, if all goes according to plan.

The news follows the demise and relaunch of King, another Harris title targeting men ages 18-34. King closed last year but was then relaunched as The Women of King.

A number of lifestyle mags targeting the urban market have launched over the last year, defying one of the worst magazine advertising environments in living memory. February 2009 brought the launch of Ceaser Media Group's UrbanMetro, which debuted with a subscription base of 20,000, catering to African-American and Hispanic men ages 18-34.

In June, hip-hop music title Vibe launched a new online magazine, TheMostmag.com, covering entertainment and celebrity news. It has two printed issues a year, replacing issues of Vibe that were sacrificed by cutbacks.