Dazed & Confused September 2012 : Azealia Banks by Sharif Hamza

[LagerfeldBoy]

really? I think this VIBE cover is gorgeous, love both of them and they look stunning there, very sexy.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I love that cover too. Diplo is just fiiiiine

 

[jmrmartinho]

I actualy dont mind the condom.
What kills this cover is the execution. I mean if she was blowing the condom in a playful way dressing casulay in a white background it would´ve look nice but I dont like how glossy and sexual the cover looks like.
I love Azealia regardless.

 

[YoninahAliza]

To be honest, I think that it's a bit silly that everyone's getting all-up in arms about this cover. When I first herd about how the cover was banned, I thought it would be like ten time's worse then it is. I think it's interesting how we can have magazines like Playboy which features women in skimpy clothing, and they don't get banned (maybe they get covered up on the newsstand but so what, people still buy them), but when a women is holding a condom on magazine (and thus, it's probably seen as she's taken control of her own sexuality) people get really angry. And what I find is interesting is that D&C didn't dress Azealia in a skimpy outfit, I think if they had done that then I would have truly been ticked off. I'm curious to know which countries are banning this issue, I do realize that some place's are more strict about what can be published, but still...if it's like parts of America, then they seriously need to get over themselves. I also want to commend D&C for mentioning p****riot, they need all the publicity they can get, and I seriously hope that more people become more aware of this issue. The content for this month sounds really good.

 

[blueorchid]

I don't know, I think this is one of Dazed's better covers this year!

Although it's probably banned in countries that hardly sell it anyway.

I'm so tired of everything having to be "classy" in fashion these days. at the expense of humour and everything else.

 

[TREVOFASHIONISTO]

the only child who will probably see this is Tavi , and she already thinks she is older than most of us on here so that won't be an issue. I love the colors, my only issue is not the condom but how in your face the condom is... it practically takes up the whole cover. I would have rather seen a not as zoomed in image

 

[Wolkfolk]

I love Azealia, I think she's a really beautiful girl and I kinda like her raw approach to things and yes she is very sexual so this cover doesn't shock me at all. Looks like a tribute to 212, Liquorice or Needsumluv ( We all heard the lyrics ...). But I actually wish we could see another side of her. Put her on fashion mag cover and really challenge her image, I know it's Dazed and they like to be bit extravagant but still.

 

[blueorchid]

^ I don't think that artists want to "challenge" their images when they're really just establishing one, if that makes sense.

Honestly, I'm really surprised that this cover didn't do a mermaid theme or something, that would have been the "easy" way out here.

 

[Kite]

Its Crass and cheap and I really dislike it.

 

[thiago:)]

I love Azealia but the cover could've been done in a more tasteful way (if it's possible ).

 

[tigerrouge]

They should have suggested to William Gibson that he could appear on the front of the magazine, holding a turgid pink condom to his mouth, because that would show him in control of his sexuality - and if he has any doubts, tell him that it's just a condom and not some kind of dystopian scenario involving the reiteration of gender roles in a converging world of media desperation. Because he'll believe you.

 

[ForChicSake]

The unashamedly in-your-face shoot with the Harlem songstress has seen the issue banned in Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai, Malta, Switzerland, India and potentially Thailand, a fact the publication wasn't shy to communicate when they tweeted the following statement last week: "Just been told our upcoming @AZEALIABANKS cover has been banned from 7 countries so far. Thank God for the Internet, huh?".

fashion.telegraph.co.uk

 

[blueorchid]

None of those countries surprise me, but Switzerland??? Interesting...

 

[ForChicSake]

None of those countries surprise me, but Switzerland??? Interesting...

that surprised me too

 

[YoninahAliza]

I completely agree with you guys, Switzerland is the odd one out. You know I'd be curious to find out where the magazine sells the best, I can't imagine that the market for D&C is that big in any of the countries which banned it (but hey, you never know). And I think it's interesting how the magazine is handling the news of the issue's ban, that they acknowledge the internet's presence and that if someone really wants to see images from the issue they will be able to find it.

 

[aglamourgirl]

I completely agree with you guys, Switzerland is the odd one out. You know I'd be curious to find out where the magazine sells the best, I can't imagine that the market for D&C is that big in any of the countries which banned it (but hey, you never know). And I think it's interesting how the magazine is handling the news of the issue's ban, that they acknowledge the internet's presence and that if someone really wants to see images from the issue they will be able to find it.

I think Switzerland is more conservative than one might think. Women weren't even allowed to vote there until 1971 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women's_suffrage_in_Switzerland) so i'm not suprised they'd be offended by this...

Anyway I'm happy for the cover, think it's daring but also very Azealia so...

 

[Scott]

well i was just going to ask....

honestly,given that list of countries,i'm not terribly surprised by it. many are extremely conservative and repressive....i'm actually surprised there weren't more but maybe they just don't sell D&C anyway.

but this image is tame compared with the many images in fashion i've seen. have any of us ever seen a terry richardson image? and remember that very explicit ad campaign for i think for stussy some years ago? the gucci shaven pubes advert? all campaigns featured in very prominent(albeit not in the supermarket-type mags)fashion publications. so azelia blowing up a condom is nowhere near as shocking to me.

 

[stellarnostalgia]

Still, those are just ads that people can choose to disregard. Compared to magazines, which are meant for reading purposes and providing entertaining context and visually stimulating editorials. An even greater factor is that their target market is focused on youth so I think this comes off as quite a massive culture shock especially for conservative countries, despite the accessibility of this so called "seapunk" scene thanks to Tumblr.

Dazed, like i-D, has been known to glorify trending subcultures with their features of artists in the music, fashion and art industry who provided a huge influence. Unfortunately the effect of this outrageous cover has proven their lack of creativity to utilize what should have been an impactful cover to present Azealia as both a rapper and as a sort of heroine to a trending scene. I'm sure people already have an idea about her kind, Dazed didn't have to further exacerbate her image with a condom.

 

[ohmycolin]

This is my favourite Dazed cover since Beyonce's last year. It's gritty, controversial, and just utterly epic. The styling looks great, and the concept is Azealia to a T.

LOVE.

 

[Stereo_Flo]

Ava Smith, Franzi Mueller and Ruby Aldridge has eds in this issue

 

[Scott]

but they are still in magazines though. the bottom line is,whether it's a cover or an ad or even editorial piece,it can still get seen. and i don't know anybody who strictly buys these publications just to stare at a cover....most people generally pick them up to look through its pages.