Hip hop spelled with a K
The Korean wave is gaining more and more presence in the Western world and one of the best examples can be seen in its music. That's why Spotify launched a while ago the playlist K-Hip-Hop +82, where it gathers "the best rhymes and rhythms from Korea". This playlist already has more than 400,000 "likes" and now that it has been reborn as KrOWN, Spotify reached out to us to design the new covers.
We wanted to attract international hip hop fans and bring them closer to what Korea has to offer, following the genre's own codes and showing that the high quality of the Korean scene is the same as hip hop from any other part of the world.
K-hip hop artists are constantly referencing thrones, crowns, gold and jewels so we rely on bling bling and symbols of royalty to symbolize power and kingship.
We created a series of five crowns in shapes similar to tribal tattoos. We gave both the crowns and the lock-up a metallic, three-dimensional aesthetic, to make them part of the jewelry that "crowns" the artists. We created these elements in five different colors, to be combined with the styles of the protagonists of each cover.
We brought these crowns to life so that they could be implemented in a greater number of visual elements.
And finally we created a merchandising collection with accessories most worn by artists and fans of this music style.
As a result, we’ve given KrOWN its own identity which allows followers to see everything they love about its music reflected in its image.
