RSJ alumnus launches magazine for experimental art and music
RSJ alumnus Daniel Melfi (external link) will be launching 20 Seconds Magazine in Feb. 20 2020. The issue, which contains stories surrounding experimental music and art, will be set to publish content twice per year.
He said the purpose of keeping the publication print-only was so that readers could enjoy the writing and photography on a personal level. He wants people to invest their time with the magazine; to have an experience interacting with the stories and photography in real life. Hence, the name 20 Second Magazine refers to the idea that online content in this digital age is being read and appreciated for only a short amount of time, and that this magazine is meant to make a long lasting impression on readers.
“I feel like everything that we read, everything that we see, videos and sounds are all crafted to be digested in less than 20 seconds. Or a lot of things that you might see, don't last even 20 seconds,” he said.
The magazine will feature 10 musicians and artists from around the world. One story in the debut issue will touch on an Italian composer’s art of drumming that fuses jazz, and North African rhythms with experimental electronics. Another piece follows a Dutch-based artist who uses dancers to document and archive human body movements.
“Creating a print magazine that's only published twice a year kind of forces you to think and approach stories, characters, and ideas in a completely different way. [It’s] something that has to last a year, something that might not have to be tied by the latest news headline,” he said.
Melfi, a freelance cultural journalist who has written about a variety of forms of art, music and sound, believes that in the age of the internet, story choices are often dictated by metrics and other measurements of click-bait-y nature, resulting in a lack of long-lasting and interesting content.
“We want to focus on trying to get off the screen, to get offline, and back into reality…back to what it feels like to touch; to smell a page, and to get ink on your fingers,” he said.
As a way for the magazine to get off the ground without advertisers and sponsors, Melfi and his team have taken to crowdfunding through kickstarter.com (external link) .
Melfi’s first years of J-school involved freelancing for the Ryersonian and the Eyeopener. As a student he wrote for a variety of music websites based in Toronto, focusing on underground dance music and clubbing communities, and doing concert reviews as well as artist interviews. He went on to intern for VICE’s electronic music channel Thump, and at the National Post.
As an independent magazine, he hopes that 20 Seconds will resonate with readers and have an impact in contributing to the culture of revealing artists and their work.
“I hope that we can bring interesting art, music, poetry, and other forms of creative work to new eyes and new ears…[if we do that] then what we're doing is a success in my opinion.”
