The ultimate band graphic designer

Brandon Rike himself
Photo: Brandon Rike

There's a very talented freelance designer out there, Brandon Rike, who creates graphics for bands -- shirts, logos, album art, posters. As he says, "I live and breathe this stuff." It's not just about the end design, but the meaning, the concept behind the artwork. And it's important that what he designs is good -- timeless -- enough that years later, when he looks back on his artwork, it's still fully appreciated.

Brandon has designed several t-shirts for the band Jack's Mannequin
Photo: Brandon Rike

He has an interesting background -- ever since he was born, practically, he's loved art. It's his constant. When he was thirteen he and his friends started up a band and started going on the road after he graduated from high school. He loved designing his own band's graphics, and when he built relationships with other bands they toured with, he was able to design graphics for them as well. His band's last tour year was the same year he turned his graphic design into a full-time occupation. And he loves it.

In his words, "I had moments of feeling completely lost, I've had moments of feeling completely alone. I've been excited out of my mind, and I've wanted to run my head through a wall. But looking back on all of it, it all just feels like it's been a complete blast."

Recently, Brandon designed the album cover for Twenty One Pilot's "Blurryface." As always, he strove to capture the character of Blurryface's music in his graphics. For Brandon's in-depth explanation of the thought process that's behind this album's design (it's fascinating), check out his blog.

Blurryface album cover
Photo: Twenty One Pilots

So why is Brandon Rike featured in my first post? Because his work is inspiring for anybody who is interested in a career in graphic design. Exactly what he does is what fascinates me and many other aspiring graphic designers, and he throws himself into every aspect of what goes into his work. Plus, isn't his art super awesome to look at and think about?

Anyway, thanks for reading -- I'll (hopefully) be back next week with another fun fact day about graphic design for the music industry!