The Reinvention of Raef
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After working behind the recording console for notable producers like Chris Moon and Alan Anderson, Raef realized it was time to strike out on his own. But he’d need help creating a brand that differentiated himself—It would not only need to reflect his South and East Asian spiritual practices and martial arts training, but also his queer vibe.
I used an archetypal analysis for the strategy portion of the rebrand which uncovered three fundamental archetypes Raef identified with: The archetypes of Angel, Visionary, and Shaman. All were spiritual in nature and revealed a deep desire to use music as a means of self-discovery and realization.
After working behind the recording console for notable producers like Chris Moon and Alan Anderson, Raef realized it was time to strike out on his own. But he’d need help creating a brand that differentiated himself—It would not only need to reflect his South and East Asian spiritual practices and martial arts training, but also his queer vibe.
I used an archetypal analysis for the strategy portion of the rebrand which uncovered three fundamental archetypes Raef identified with: The archetypes of Angel, Visionary, and Shaman. All were spiritual in nature and revealed a deep desire to use music as a means of self-discovery and realization.
To establish a visual direction I assembled two moodboards. The first was titled, “Queer Spirit” and incorporated an LGBTQ flag-inspired palette combined with East and South Asian spiritual motifs and textures.
The second titled, ”Urban” reflected Raef’s love of the colors black and gold—offering a more masculine and heavier vibe that leaned more into the palette of his alternative electronic rock (AER) audience.
Wordmark Development
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Because Raef’s name is unusual, short, and memorable we decided to go with a wordmark, arriving at three different directions. From a clean and clearly legible mark (below, far left) to letterforms that were highly abstracted (below, far right). We both liked the solidity of the second (below, middle). It had just enough legibility to be understood but retained a sense of mystery while still managing to feel AER.
For the final mark, we refined the “e” while adding an accompanying seal.
Below are several applications and patterns that were designed.
AER Queerness
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From Little Richard to David Bowie to Boy George, rock music has played with and bent the rules of gender. Raef, wanting to express his queer vibe, saw a photoshoot as the perfect opportunity so we incorporated an androgynous look into many of the pictures. I worked with photographer Brenda Stumpf to produce the shoot and took all the photos myself. Tying them together are his signature yellow and black colors and use of martial arts paraphernalia and poses.
From Little Richard to David Bowie to Boy George, rock music has played with and bent the rules of gender. Raef, wanting to express his queer vibe, saw a photoshoot as the perfect opportunity so we incorporated an androgynous look into many of the pictures. I worked with photographer Brenda Stumpf to produce the shoot and took all the photos myself. Tying them together are his signature yellow and black colors and use of martial arts paraphernalia and poses.
The photos incorporated into Instagram.
The hero image for his upcoming album cover. It represents the amalgamation of his spiritual practices and features a credo he's embraced since his childhood.
