Album Cover Research

Album Covers

I am going to look at a few album covers so that I can get a feel of what a Hip-Hop album cover should look like and the styles or themes that artists go for. Also I am hoping by analysing and looking at this covers in detail I will be able to pick up ideas for my own album design.

This is Cee-Lo Greens' album 'The Lady Killer' I really like this album cover as it is quite plain but still looks very effective. I also like the use of reflection in his shades which shows what looks like windows and a clear sunny sky. He has obviously chosen to include this and he wants it to look like his life is happy and therefore we might assume his music is quite up beat and happy which it is. This album fits the Hip-Hop conventions because most Hip-Hop artists like to show off what they own as if to say look how much money im worth and you can clearly see Cee-Lo's almost novelty sized ring which he has obviously chosen to wear to show this. Also you can see the album cover fits the title as the title is 'The Lady Killer' and you can see he has his nice shades on, which again he has added to make himself look good and I think it is safe to assume they will be expensive ones not just standard aviators. Also he has a clean white shirt on which makes him look smart and suave and we usually expect womanisers to dress to impress like Cee-Lo has done. Also Cee-Lo hasn't left much room for anything on the cover other than himself, this is typical of Hip-Hop artists as it again shows the message of 'look at me' and we can see him looking quite plain and relaxed and seems to have the cool attitude we associate with most Hip-Hop artists.

This is Kanye West's '808's and Heartbreak' album cover. This album cover is very detailed or complex bit the simple idea behind it is very unique and looks really good. Kanye is quite a controversial Hip-Hop artist and loves to be different and a trend setter. We can see with this album cover he has broken away from the classic style of album cover with the picture of some artist, an effect and some fancy font. Instead of going with the flow Kanye has chosen an album cover with quite a simple design behind it and a simple choice of font. As it is clear to see the album name is about heartbreak so he has represented this visually but instead of      using a picture of a broken heart has has used a picture of a deflated balloon being torn by some cartoon styled hands. It looks as if he was trying to create a visual metaphor by representing the broken heart with a lifeless balloon cut in half. I would say the only thing about this album cover that fits the Hip-Hop conventions is the background colour, he has chosen quite a plain grey and usually Hip-Hop artist try to avoid using too much colour as we normally associate lots of colour with pop. But there is some colour down the side which I think he has added to show that although the album isn't as colourful as pop it is more colourful than rock which tends to be very dark colours such as blacks brown etc.

This is 50 Cents album 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'', Immediately the bulletproof, king of the world, no fear super Hip-Hop style ego shines through with the bullet whole on the front of the cover and the fact 50 is standing there topless showing off his muscles and tattoos. 50 has also chosen a very big bold font for his name again to show how big and powerful he is, also he is looking directly at the camera so it appears as if he is looking at us when we see the front cover. Often most people tend to look straight when 'posing' for an album cover but 50 isn't smiling or showing much signs of emotion in his face so he looks more intimidating than inviting. I think although usually and intimating man wouldn't normally be something you would want to see on a  product you intend to buy, it works quite well as an album cover. I think most people who like Hip-Hop styled music will obviously have a similar attitude to life so instead of feeling intimidated about 50 they look up to him and might even copy him. I think the glass effect works really well and clearly gives of the bulletproof effect he has gone for.

This is Nelly's album 'Brass Knuckles' it is similar to 50 cents album in the way both show the artist topless showing off the muscles with an intent to look all-mighty. So it is clear that this album fits the Hip-Hop genre as it is very similar to other album covers within the genre. Nelly is very proud of creating his own fashion of wearing, bandanna's, headbands and his trade mark band aid, so as we can see he is wearing one in this picture to keep up his image as the trend setter. It is clear to see a link between the title and the picture straight away as the title is 'Brass Knuckles' and we can see Nelly has his hand wrapped up in tame like boxers would do before a fight. Like 50 Cent and Cee-Lo's album covers we can see Nelly has also  made himself the main focus of his album cover so we can see clearly it is his album and we are forced to focus and look at him. He has also stuck to conventional colours like Kanye and Cee-Lo but added some colour again so not to be mistaken for a rock album cover. Also like 50 cent has used a very bold font for his name which I can only assume is for similar reasons to make him look big bold and strong and make sure he is the main focus of the audience.

From these album covers I have learnt that most Hip-Hop artists like to make themselves the main focus of their album in all means necessary and also they tend to stick to colours which are neither to colourful or too dull so they fit well within the genre. My favourite album cover is Kanye's as it is quite original so I will try to make my album cover have a different but intriguing look, whilst trying to stick to most hip hop conventions.