There's that common cliche that there is a beautiful daughter and the ugly stepsister. As much as it pains me to say it, NPR News is that ugly stepsister and NPR Music is that beautiful sister. Normally, I would think the exact opposite, but NPR's music page's is quite the sight. I had no idea where I was because it was so different than the main webpage, which is dominated by news stories.
That difference was for the better though. While NPR's main page is categorized by broad topics, their music section is ornately organized, breaking down into concerts, interviews, news and then by genre. This categorization might send the hipsters into a psychological tailspin, but once they emerge from their state, they will be thoroughly impressed. It will make their hunt for their favorite artists much easier.
That difference was for the better though. While NPR's main page is categorized by broad topics, their music section is ornately organized, breaking down into concerts, interviews, news and then by genre. This categorization might send the hipsters into a psychological tailspin, but once they emerge from their state, they will be thoroughly impressed. It will make their hunt for their favorite artists much easier.
I was also a fan of their Favorite Sessions page. It had some of their concerts online that fans could listen to again. By featuring these favorite sessions, the listeners got to relive their favorite concerts that aired live on NPR. Even if you missed that specific concert, it was really easy to find. It had everyone from crooner Jason Mraz to rockers The Black Keys and even some older artists like legendary saxophone player, Benny Golson.
NPR also adjusted the homepage to look a little darker than the stark NPR home page. It gave the music section more of an underground feel, which caters to their music target audience. By incorporating that into the web design of the music page, NPR really shows that they are making an attempt at keeping the hipsters around. Something that is very difficult to do for a mainstream site. From their content and feedback, it seems like they are doing a pretty good job of it too.