The Brag Media has announced a limited edition Rolling Stone Movember Zine with Aussie rock band The Rubens on the cover.
The custom zine is a first for Rolling Stone in Australia since The Brag Media returned the brand to market in 2020.
The Rolling Stone Movember Zine is being distributed on an exclusive run of just 20,000 copies and will be available in cafes, sporting clubs, barber shops and community centres to help raise awareness for Movember and its multiple initiatives. The Brag Media collaborated with illustrator Cass Stevens in order to hark back to the height of the Aussie street press aesthetic.
The cover story sees The Rubens’ frontman Sam Margin open up on the band’s experiences with mental health, diving into strategies for prioritising good mental health on tour. The zine also features artist essays from fellow local acts, including Lime Cordiale, The Buoys and Dune Rats, exploring and tackling the ‘Why’ behind their support for Movember.
The Zine has been designed to honour Movember’s 20-year ‘Order of Mo’ campaign, encouraging a not-so-secret society of movers, growers, and party-throwers to unite to take on mental health and suicide, prostate cancer and testicular cancer. The campaign creative was done in collaboration with UM and Mediabrands Content Studio.
The content created in the zine will also live digitally and be housed in a Movember x Rolling Stone microsite. The site will help punters hit the landing page to sign up or donate when they scan the QR code on the mag. The Brag Media is also supporting Movember with a $10K donation to an employee embarking on a personal Movember journey.
Jessica Hunter, The Brag Media general manager, partnerships, said: “Like a well-groomed ‘stache, all good things take careful shaping. We’re incredibly proud to have partnered with Movember to create this first-of-its-kind limited edition zine in Australia as part of the ‘The Mo is Calling’ campaign. We share an ethos of challenging the status quo with Movember, and that’s exactly what we’ve achieved with this campaign, raising awareness for men’s health and encouraging people to get involved.”
In his Guest Editor’s letter, Movember Co-Founder, Travis Garone, said: “As we embark on this journey through the pages of Rolling Stone magazine, it’s my privilege to introduce you to an iconic alliance between facial hair and music. So, as we dive into a season where music and moustaches unite, answer the call. Together, we can change the face of men’s health. For those about to grow — we salute you.”
As part of the story, The Rubens’ frontman Sam Margin reflected: “It’s important to remember everyone is an individual with their own needs. Will, our bass player, he brings his goggles on tour with him so he can go and swim laps. For me sometimes I just need to go vintage shopping for half the day and be by myself, listen to a podcast, or stay in bed all day and sleep. Everyone needs to be able to take their own individual time to look after their mental health.”
Photographer Giulia Giannini McGauran said: “Getting the call to shoot the Rolling Stone Movember cover was truly special. In just a week we brainstormed and brought to life a concept inspired by the band’s iconic first album cover, Movember’s cause, and Rolling Stone’s legacy. The concept explores the narrative of a flowering desert cover, portraying reliance, growth and strength which then bursts to life in a wholly floral set inside the zine.
“The band’s kindness and genuine support for each other as brothers, friends and as a band was truly at the heart of this cover. With their poses resting and leaning on one another, it aims to reflect upon Movember’s mission. Mental health awareness, particularly within the music industry is absolutely crucial, as it can be a really incredible place, but also a really lonely one, so awareness and connection/support is invaluable.”
The Movember Zine edition, with The Rubens on the cover, hits selected stores in Australia from October 3.
Rolling Stone Australia’s average issue readership is up 14.5% to 229,000 for the 12 months to June 2023, according to the latest Roy Morgan Australian Magazine Readership Report released today. This represents a fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth for the local print edition of Rolling Stone – now ahead of staple titles like Gourmet Traveller, Vogue Living, Harper’s Bazaar, Who, and Money Magazine
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