Task: Develop Keyart and visual identity for the client.
Project Type: Visual Identity/Branding
Medium(s): Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Dimension, Adobe Premier Pro
Project Type: Visual Identity/Branding
Medium(s): Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Dimension, Adobe Premier Pro
Over the course of the pandemic, I released an ad to the university music department. The ad discussed my interest in working with a music student looking for an artist to help design and develop artwork for their upcoming single or album, FOR FREE. A student named Andrew Iglesias that expressed his interest in working together. He happens to also be friends with an acquaintance of mine, Jasper Low, who is a Music Industry and Management Major in Canada. This then became a team project consisting of Andrew (Musician), Jasper (Business & Management), and myself (Visuals).
The Logo
The logo was something by accident. I noticed Andrew’s original logo during a virtual meeting when he was sharing his screen over zoom. There was this drawing of a heart with music note earphones. Inside the shape was his label name: MUZIC N’ LUV. I asked him about it and then he proceeded to talk about his design choices and his trouble in figuring out how to make it more “cool” in his words. He invited me to take a crack at it and I agreed. When I presented him my concept, Jasper and Andrew were automatically sold.
I wanted the logo to be memorable. From our visual research, we noticed that a majority of the bands we listed used imagery as their logo. The Rolling Stones; the mouth, The Velvet Underground; the banana, Nirvana; the intoxicated smiley face, Wu-Tang Clan; the W shape.
Andrew is very experimental with audio levels giving the music depth and a pulsating form. The heart imagery is inspired by synth waves. In my prior meetings, Andrew expressed to me that the heart shape means a lot to him because it is the symbol of love. I took it a step further and rephrased the meaning of the heart to be the true origin of all rhythm. He is passionate about music and that passion is born from his heart.
Early variations of logo silhouette
The Key Art
When I listened to Andrew's sample tracks, I noticed that his sound has a lot of textural elements. These include echos, very syncopated rhythms, and layers of digital and analog sounds. I developed visual representations of what I hear and experimented in creating a visual identity for the album.
Mock Merch
Sample merchandise with the logo
Andrew and Jasper requested me to design a cover for Andrew's single "Hero In You." This song was released during the week of Memorial Week. The song was more of a ballad than an anthem with focus on the moody lyrics. I thought using a muted patriotic palette seemed the best fit for this cover. This song is available for you to stream on Spotify!
Link: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5QehCM7KYKL9uwK31yE20w?si=NKB2vCRITRWgLjGklZ1p9w
Variations of the logo for Memorial Day
Originally, I was set on designing a cover that can be used across various music streaming platforms. However, the project went beyond my expectations! We developed an entire visual identity for Andrew. While this concept is still being explored, I’m very excited to see how far we can push this with our three man team. You can listen to Andrew’s single “My Apology” on Spotify using the following link:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5QehCM7KYKL9uwK31yE20w?si=rv2AcmxqQz6io848XQSUyw
The Music Video
Jasper and Andrew requested that I provided a music or lyric video to promote the release for Andrew’s single
“My Apology.”
“My Apology.”
The music video highlights Andrew’s art, his lyrics. A lot of music videos I see focus a lot on the musician and use obscure themes that do not pertain to the song or it’s meaning. I feel in love with Andrew’s work because his lyrics are really meaningful. So, I thought a lyric video would be more appropriate for his upcoming release.
Each lyric was hand drawn and rendered through Photoshop and Illustrator. You can view the full video through the hyperlink and QR code on the right of this page.
Each lyric was hand drawn and rendered through Photoshop and Illustrator. You can view the full video through the hyperlink and QR code on the right of this page.
This was the advertisement I released to the Cal Poly Pomona music department.
I received a lot of controversy for making this project free. I understood where they were coming from, but I felt that it was important for me to do something good during this period of uncertainty and isolation. Andrew and Jasper surprised me with a payment at the end of the project! They called me in on a meeting and offered to pay me for my services. I was not interested in making money for this pro-bono project. I just wanted to help someone create the best version of themselves. I'm glad that I was able to make two great friends from this project. And yes, I did deposit the check they issued to me.