Designer for Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Damn.’ Album Defends His “Loud and Abrasive” Approach

Kendrick Lamar's new album cover has already inspired a cavalcade of memes. Although many people are enjoying the cover, some have criticized its minimalist approach. This criticism prompted graphic designer Vlad Sepetov, who helped create the artwork, to defend his work.

"Already seeing a lot of discussion about the cover. and I’m really excited about it, It’s interesting to see people talk about 'bad' design," Sepetov wrote on Twitter yesterday (April 11). "But I’m incredibly proud of this cover. I sort of bucked a lot of what my teachers taught me. I wanted to make something loud and abrasive. And maybe some won’t see that, but I’m glad that Dave and Dot saw the value in making something that didn’t fit the mold. Just given the bare bones we fleshed something out that has a lot of people talking. It’s not uber political like TPAB but it has energy IMO."

Sepetov was also behind the covers for Kendrick's untitled. unmastered. and To Pimp a Butterfly, so the TDE family clearly enjoys his work. While the DAMN. cover is not as much of a statement as TPAB's cover, it certainly evokes a reaction.

Kendrick's much-anticipated album will be released this Friday (April 14). Pre-order the LP now on iTunes and check out the tracklist below.

Kendrick Lamar's DAMN. Tracklist

1. “Blood”
2. “DNA”
3. “Yah”
4. “Element”
5. “Feel”
6. “Loyalty” Feat. Rihanna
7. “Pride”
8. “Humble”
9. “Lust”
10. “Love”
11. “xxx” Feat. U2
12. “Fear”
13. “God”
14. “Duckworth”

See Designer Vlad Sepetov's Reaction to Criticism Over His Approach to Kendrick Lamar's Damn. Album Cover