something truly different.

Project type
Illustration, Art Direction, Album Cover Design

Collaborators
Kirani Ayat

Date
2019 - 2022

In late 2019, I was commissioned for a cover art project that would become a defining moment for my growth as an illustrator and art director. The ask was to create something inspired by shounen anime and manga covers like Boku No Hero Academia, an animated series about children growing in a literal school of hard knocks into legends.

Kirani Ayat is a Ghanaian hiphop artist who raps in a compelling mix of Hausa, Pidgin and English over afrotrap style beats. His album Aisha’s Sun is a powerful and refreshing evolution of his already unique sound.

I tapped into a variety of influences for this cover, ranging from the obvious aforementioned manga covers to intricate pattern work inspired by Nsibidi symbols . After a long wait and a few overhauls leading to it's final look, this cover art wasn’t chosen for the release of the project in 2022 but remains one of my favourite mothballed things I’ve ever worked on.