South Australian publisher HWR Media has launched Teen Spirit, a national quarterly print magazine focused on Australian music targeting 14 to 18-year-olds, following the youth social media ban.
The magazine is an extension of three-year-old title The Note, which has tapped a niche youth audience in South Australia.
Teen Spirit will produce eight state and territory-specific editions, with each issue including a hyper-local section sourced by writers who are experts in their hometown's music scene.
Each quarter, 45,000 copies of the free print magazine will be distributed directly to high schools around Australia, reaching 100,000 14 to 18-year-olds, in addition to a dedicated Teen Spirit online portal housed on thenote.com.au.
Following a localised ad-free pilot edition created with support from the South Australian government and youth arts organisation Carclew, government bodies Creative Australia and Music Australia have come on board for the national iteration. Teen Spirit is now seeking brand partners.
"Post under-16 social media ban, print is the perfect platform to access this notoriously hard-to-reach audience," said HWR Media director Olly Raggatt.
“With studies consistently finding ads in print are more trusted and better remembered, Teen Spirit offers a brand safe – but not sterile – environment, allowing advertisers to reach teenagers early and influence confident, informed decisions on choices from the university they should go to, to the telco that best suits their needs and everything in between."
The magazine launches as research finds Australian artists are doing it tougher than ever, with a decline in representation in the charts.
The percentage of local artists in the top 100 singles dropped from 16% in 2018 to just 2.5% in 2023. A Creative Australia report found that, for the first time, 18 to 24-year-olds are no longer the biggest festival ticket purchasing demographic.
Teen Spirit editor Millah Hansberry said the magazine serves an important purpose in future-proofing the Australian music scene.
"This is a huge opportunity to champion Australian music to young people across the country and build a lasting appetite for live music and the arts among the next generation of gig goers," she said.
Teen Spirit joins HWR Media's stable of publications including South Australian Style, Monty, The Note, and a suite of tourism publications and visitor guides. The first national editions of Teen Spirit drop in March.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.