The magazine was launched under
United Consumer Magazines in July 1990, intending to be a rival to
Q magazine. Its first cover star was
Prince. Its first issue sold 100,000 copies. In April 1991, Spotlight sold
Select to
EMAP Metro. Under the editorship of
Mark Ellen, the magazine began focusing on the
baggy and
Madchester scenes. featuring
The Auteurs,
Denim,
Saint Etienne,
Pulp and
Suede's
Brett Anderson on the cover in front of a
Union Flag. Several publications have called the April 1993 cover an important impetus in defining the movement's tone and opposition to American genres such as
grunge. Later,
John Harris stepped down as editor, and was replaced by former
Mixmag editor
Alexis Petridis. Under Petridis, the magazine's image moved back towards its coverage of an eclectic array of music, aiming to reach what Petridis described as "a wide range of music fans". Periditis later stated of its closure: "No matter how many features we did on
Destiny's Child, people still thought we were a magazine about
Oasis. We were forever associated with a music [genre] in decline." == Tagline ==