Hirschberg continues, “We don't really look to sign artists, we look to partner with entrepreneurs. So we definitely love to see artists that are focused on the visual as well as the music.” Being an artist in 2016, it's about having a full package. “It's always about the music, but having a strong sense of visual identity is part of being an artist,” says Zeke Hirschberg, A&R at 300 Entertainment (Young Thug, Fetty Wap, more) adds. “At the end of the day, only the music matters, but an artist having good artwork goes a long way in getting me to even get to their music.”

“If an artist doesn't have good artwork/visuals, it certainly deters my interest level,” Complex editor Zach Frydenlund explains. Once they're buying in to you, you have a loyal fan base that's going to stick with you.” They’re going to tell their friends about it. You're giving them an experience and they're going to take that away with them and they're going to keep coming back for more. “Within that world, we have something where fans can feel like they're a part of that community,' he continues. “The whole brand that we built in the last year, it's definitely its own little world,” Andic says about his experience building Lil Yachty’s visual brand in 2016. It's a chance for musicians to create unique worlds for their fans to live in-and become personally invested in. In an era where a rapper like Lil Yachty openly admits to “thinking more like a brand” than an artist, developing a strong visual identity is more important than ever. That cover was about Young Thug pushing the envelope but being himself.' Noting that the music is spread along with the artwork, he adds, 'If the song is shared, the art is shared.” “Young Thug’s album artwork didn't become a meme sensation but everybody was talking about it. “Good work will always be shared,” creative director Steve-O (D.R.A.M. Not only does an album’s art have to compete with other covers in 2017, it has to stand out next to memes, family photos, cat videos, and everything else vying for attention on crowded timelines. Now, that rack has been replaced by social media timelines. With the internet there are more chances where that visual connection can be made.”įor decades, cover artwork's main purpose was to compete for attention with other albums on the same rack at the record store. “In the past a person would go to a record store, see an unknown artist and make a decision whether they would give it a chance.

“A lot of times cover art is the consumer's first interaction with an artist's work,” D.R.A.M.’s creative director Sais tells me. With these questions bouncing around my head, I asked musicians, visual artists, creative directors, writers, and A&Rs around the industry for their opinions on the changing art form-and learned that cover art might actually be more important than ever.

Tell all your friends album art