The Goal :
Rebrand an artists already existing music campaign, requires the construction of physical deliverables.
Images in Communication (DES321)
Deliverables:
Class:
Role:
Timeline:
Designer + Fabricator
3 Weeks
CD/Record Album Art • CD Jacket/Vinyl Cover • CD/Vinyl Label • Booklet • Poster • Backstage Pass/Ticket
Software Used
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop
Clip Studio.
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Brainstorming
My process of selecting albums consisted of
The current album art
Whether or not the album already has a “Deluxe” edition
(Deluxe editions often already rebrand the original album )
My feelings about the album rollout when it released
(Some albums often have lackluster releases due to branding)
After some deliberation I had decided on Doja Cat's album Scarlet / Scarlet 2 CLAUDE.
I felt it would be best to rebrand this album because:
The original album rollout was lackluster
Great concept to work from
I have passion for the original project
Implementing a Physical Element
The brief for this project requires the inclusion of a physical element into the digital design of at least one deliverable.
However, I wanted a physical element that would be present on ALL deliverables. I landed on doing a linoleum carving of one of my sketches which I would then scan into Illustrator.
From a selection of various sketches I chose one with the most versatility and also differed greatly from the original branding of the album.
Album Cover
Working with preexisting media in order to create new album cover, people often heavily resonate with album covers I personally feel as though they can make or break an album. Having this mindset while designing made me want ot try very experimental things
On the far left is the original photo that I had chose to use on my album cover. I took it into photoshops and immediately solidified the colors I wanted to utilize throughout the project.
From there I took to Clip Studio to make some adjustments manually. This meant directly illustrating on the canvas to make it appear as though her head had split.
This is the design I settled on
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Vinyl Labels
With my album artwork finalized digitally, I began adapting the design into vinyl record labels using a template to ensure proper sizing and bleed for cutting. This process also helped me begin establishing a consistent font direction for the project.
This process involved learning:
How vinyl labels communicate information like record speed,
track lists, and sides
How to adapt artwork into a circular format
How to maintain consistent colors across physical media
How typography contributes to the overall tone of the project
After establishing the visual style of the album, I designed a commemorative concert ticket inspired by real tour memorabilia and existing ticket layouts. I incorporated gothic graphic elements and a spider motif to keep the design aligned with the album’s darker aesthetic.
This process involved learning:
How to adapt an album’s visual identity into promotional artifacts
How to structure information within a ticket layout
How decorative elements can reinforce a theme
How to keep visual consistency across multiple pieces of media
Commemortative Ticket
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Poster
When designing the poster, I challenged myself to keep the layout simple since many vinyl posters rely on a strong central image. I selected an image that matched the project’s tone, edited it in Photoshop, and later incorporated my block print to create a dripping text effect.
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Lyric Booklet
For the lyric booklet, I first needed to understand how booklet binding works since the pages must be arranged in a specific order before printing so they fold and staple correctly along the spine. This meant designing with the final folded structure in mind rather than thinking of the pages sequentially. After understanding the layout system, I selected several songs that represented the album and gathered imagery from their music videos to keep the visuals aligned with the artist’s existing aesthetic.
The main challenge of this process was fitting full song lyrics into a small booklet format while still keeping the text readable. This required carefully adjusting type size, spacing, and layout so that the pages remained visually balanced once assembled.
This process involved learning:
How booklet page imposition works for folded and stapled printing
How to plan page layouts that function correctly once printed and assembled
How to organize lyrics and imagery within a limited booklet format
How to balance readability while fitting large amounts of text into small pages
The Vinyl Jacket
While designing the back of the vinyl jacket, I experimented with several early concepts but intentionally saved the final version for last so it could be informed by the other deliverables in the project. After presenting two initial designs during a small critique, I realized that while they worked, they either felt too minimal or too busy.
After reviewing the feedback, I revisited the rest of my project and focused on creating a back cover that unified the visual language of the entire album package. I pulled elements from several pieces to create a design that felt cohesive with everything else I had made.
This process involved learning:
How critique and feedback can help identify strengths and weaknesses in early concepts
How to refine a design by referencing other assets in the same project
How to combine graphic elements from multiple deliverables into one cohesive layout
How to create a final piece that ties the entire project together
Final Assembly
After completing the design for each deliverable, the final step was producing and assembling the physical vinyl package. This involved printing the materials using the Epson SureColor P800 and the Ricoh printer in the design lab before preparing the jacket for cutting and assembly.
This process involved learning:
How to prepare print files for large format and standard printers
How to set up a vinyl jacket layout with a spine, front, and back
How to cut and assemble printed materials into a final package
How to bring multiple designed assets together into a finished physical product
Construction
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Redesigning a Musical Identity