Vibe Magazine Folds

NEW YORK — Vibe, the popular hip-hop and urban culture magazine founded by legendary producer Quincy Jones, is shutting down.

Vibe Media Group Chief Financial Officer Angela Zucconi confirmed the closing and said most of the company's 50 or so employees will be laid off.

The closing comes amid a historic decline in ad revenue across all media that has left many categories of magazines struggling. Among recent casualties have been Portfolio, Conde Nast's high-end business monthly, the style and home decorating magazine Domino, and Blender, another music magazine.

Founded in 1993, Vibe had a paid circulation of roughly 800,000 during the last six months of 2008. The magazine was acquired by The Wicks Group, a New York private equity firm, in 2006.

Comments

[Mercedes1981]

10:21 AM on 07/01/2009

Hip Hop is folding!

[Avanti2]

12:24 AM on 07/01/2009

Never seen it on the shelves and I live in a highly integrated area.

[Ohioan730]

06:59 PM on 06/30/2009

I forgot all about Vibe, to tell you the truth. It will be sad to see it go because I remember when it started. It was the anti-Ebony/Essence. Ebony/Essence seemed like the elitist mags but Vibe and Source were for the emerging influence of young generation X, new jack swing and hip-hop. My friends and I would sit around and flip through it for the articles about Brandy and Mary J. Blige etc--people that Ebony magazine sometimes forgot.. Good times.

[Iamawinelover]

07:24 AM on 07/01/2009

I was not a reader of Vibe at all although this is sad to hear.
Ebony/Essence an elistist magazine? LOL...are you kidding me? Good grief.
First off, Essence is no longer black owned. Essence Communications sold it to Time Warner, Inc. in 2005 and as an African American woman and montly buyer, I saw the difference in Essence within months. I was so tired of seeing the same ole celebrities on the cover, Beyonce, Halle Berry, Mary J. Blige etc...how much more of their stories to do we need to read and seeing the question of infidelties being asked on the front cover of the magazine, not trusting men. Essence lost it's essence the moment the ink was dry on the dotted line at Time, Inc. I barely purchse the magazine now. Not to mention the section to purchase clothes and jewerly went from prices everyday working women can afford to advertising a dress that cost $1,200. Sorry to hear about Vibe but I am sure someone is thinking of something else to replace it.

[Mercedes1981]

10:17 AM on 07/01/2009

Wow! I use to read Essence, but now I can't even pick it up. Its so fake and has nothing to do with Black women anymore. Thanks for explaining why.

[AlligatorShuz]

06:36 PM on 06/30/2009

Ebony and Jet Magazine is next have you seen those two magazines? They truly have no substance and they are smaller.

[Solja]

11:52 PM on 06/30/2009

Wow. Maybe a white person would think either Ebony or Jet have no substance, but blacks have been supporting their magazines since their inception.

Once upon a time, these were the ONLY magazines that would put blacks in them, let alone on the cover. There are still mags that have never had a person of color on the cover. Ebony and Jet both have great stories in them.

Recently, Google put all of the old Jet Magazines on that new Google reader, or whatever its called.

[damilitantone]

12:31 AM on 07/01/2009

Funny you should post this comment because its very true. Back in the day we had two magazines on our table: Ebony and Jet. They kept the black community informed about what was happening within our own communities. The mainstream press and media would only focus on black social ills, but Ebony and Jet made sure to represent us as three-dimensional human beings just like everybody else.

[the964kid]

06:09 PM on 06/30/2009

Vibe wasn't good since that company bought it in 2006. This is no surprise.

[factsoldja]

05:42 PM on 06/30/2009

There will be a replacement. I hate to see Vibe go but the downfall or this one will be the rise of another. Let's just hope whatever replaces it can actually have article's like this one did and not fall into the (since we can't write a decent article let's throw in as many model and rim pictures as we possibly can magazines).

[HarlemFreeThought]

05:34 PM on 06/30/2009

Private Equity firms are the next big threat to the working class.
The private equity firm, The Wicks Group, bought a profitable company and extremely viable product, only to do an about face and determine it not viable any more. Wicks reduced circulation, then proceeded to cut staff.
Stella D'oro workers have been on strike for over year after the private equity firm Brynwoods Partners. Workers have lost paid vacations, cut hours, and the threat fully automated production.

[Raiderfan0524]

05:29 PM on 06/30/2009

Geez! I'm sorry to hear that if for no other reason but there will be more writers on the unemployment line. Sad!

[obamaluv]

04:39 PM on 06/30/2009

So sad. The goverment should not have allowed them to fail. Now more people out of work and Where will I get my information on - what did they write about?- Anyway they will be missed.

[jonjon66]

04:32 PM on 06/30/2009

Wowzer, the nations only mainstream black entertainment magazine folds and you show Eminem, really?

[Solja]

11:54 PM on 06/30/2009

I get your point but it isn't the only mainstream black entertainment magazine. I grew up with "Right On" magazine and my own kids now read it.

[jonjon66]

08:11 PM on 07/01/2009

No adults read Right On are you kidding, thats a pin-up mag for pre-teens.

[lukebenward]

04:22 PM on 06/30/2009

They lie when they said they weren't a niche market. If you weren't Black, you simply weren't in it.

[avenue]

04:32 PM on 06/30/2009

*scrolls pass Eminem cover at top of page*

[platanoman]

03:54 PM on 06/30/2009

that's too b ad

[peachykeen]

03:53 PM on 06/30/2009

Never heard of it.

[barackobama4prez]

03:31 PM on 06/30/2009

too many pages of fluff...why i could never subscribe.

[JakeMontero]

02:53 PM on 06/30/2009

Vibe lost's it groove.