Spin magazine, the music title that once amused young readers with its irreverence, will soon be back on the stands. The first print edition since 2012 will appear on Aug. 29. And it will be edited by the founder and original editor of Spin, Bob Guccione, Jr.
The return issue, featuring 50-lb. paper and a 100-lb. cover, will be available at higher-end retailers like Whole Foods, Barnes & Noble, Books A million, Kroger’s, Walmart and Smiths in Canada, and at airports and independent record stories – some 50,000 copies in all.
This will be followed by regularly quarterly editions and a 40th anniversary issue next March.
Why now?
advertisement
advertisement
“Why not now?” Guccione says. “It’s a great time to manifest Spin physically again.”
That also means an improved online experience. When he started consulting with new Spin owner Next Management Partners three years ago, “the site was in terrible shape,” Guccione says. “They had let it go fallow.”
Gioccione saw that Spin had to return to quality journalism, ”not cheerleading for every artist that has a press agent.” That meant editing, fact-checking, polishing, and a holistic vision towards subject matter.
Case in point: one article slated for August is an interview with a most-wanted person. Such articles have “nothing to do with music, but everything to do with the kind of person who likes music,” Guccione says.
Guccione founded Spin in 1985, and sold it to Vibe Ventures in 1997. Since then, it has gone through “a descending order of inappropriate owners,” he laughs.
That is, until 2020, when Next Management Partners acquired Spin from Billboard.
“We are bringing journalism back to music and culture,” says Jimmy Hutcheson, CEO, Next Management Partners and CEO of Spin. “Our intention is to be the greatest music magazine in the world, covering what matters most in culture, as well as featuring the musicians you know and those you have never heard of.”
Granted, the audience may not be exactly the same as the one in the 1980s. Some of those Gen Xers will probably return – they’ve grown up with the magazine. But Gen Z is also a target.
Gen Z? Aren’t they more into social media?
“I was just talking to Barnes & Noble – they say younger people are picking up music magazines,” Guccione answers.
Of course, the Spin brand includes more than magazines. Next Management Partners also operates Spin Records, Spin Films, Spin Podcasts and Spin Labs. It also produces events.
How long does Guccione plan to hang in there? At least a year, enough time to set the tone and get things rolling. Meanwhile, he is thrilled to be back in the battle despite the late nights and hard work. It is part of his DNA. He is bringing some of the old writers back, and engaging new ones.
This version of Spin will not be “a fashion accessory,” he exults. “It’s a real magazine.”