| Categories | Music magazine | 
|---|---|
| Frequency | Monthly | 
| Publisher | Tangible Media | 
| Founded | 1993 | 
| Final issue | October 2010 | 
| Country | New Zealand | 
| Based in | Auckland | 
| Language | English | 
| Website | realgroove.co.nz | 
Real Groove was a New Zealand monthly music and pop culture magazine that operated from 1993 to 2010.
Based in Auckland, Real Groove began in 1993 [1] as a free newsletter distributed through Real Groovy Records. It became a newsstand title in the late 1990s and was subsequently owned by Tangible Media. [2]
In 2003, a survey by Nielsen Media Research showed a monthly readership comparable to Rip It Up , New Zealand's leading music magazine. [3]
The 196th and final issue of Real Groove, dated October 2010, featured Leonard Cohen on the cover. [2] The magazine had tried to focus on its online presence and, according to Wicks, the closure was due to "the lack of demand for physical publications". [4] Among local media, its demise coincided with that of Pulp magazine, MTV's withdrawal from New Zealand, and Back2Basics merging with Rip It Up. [5]
Real Groove was amalgamated into The Groove Guide, a free weekly magazine owned by Tangible Media. [2] [4] That title was similarly closed down, in May 2011. [6]
Real Groove was first edited by music historian John Dix, author of Stranded in Paradise: New Zealand Rock'n'Roll, 1955–1988 . [7] Subsequent editors included Nick Bollinger, [7] John Russell, Brock Oliver, [8] Duncan Greive, and Sam Wicks. [9]
Among the other writers whose work appeared in the magazine are Adrian Osman, [10] Chris Bourke, [1] Gary Steel, [5] Graham Reid, [11] former Creem music critic Richard Riegel, [12] and Russell Brown, [13] .