First Nation Focus: Record label brand development and thought process
I began with the sacred circle. It shows up again and again both in nature and culture. It symbolises the infinite cycle of life, the shape of our planet and it is the core of hip hop culture in the form of the cypher – a community facing inwards, focusing its energy collectively on the center which can be a dancer or an emcee, while protecting them at the same time. It is a symbiosis. The center is projecting energy equally back outwards to the circle that surrounds them. It is a metaphor in some ways to the universe, the balance of equal and opposing forces, good and evil, darkness and light, the exploding energy of a star and the massive force of gravity that pulls it inwards creating that exploding energy to begin with. I decided to use a simple circle in the form of a physical vinyl record as a unifying and appropriate symbol to connect these abstract concepts to my understanding of the cultural concepts that First Nation Focus represents:
1) To me, a focus on the world’s first nations means simply an acknowledgement by humanity of its direct connection to nature, this planet and the universe through acknowledgment of it’s first nation people and most importantly, tangible actions which end and reverse the injustices committed against those people, as well as actively bringing their voices to the global stage with an equal level of importance to those voices which currently hold the power. I believe in a return to tribal life but within a modern context. Arguably, anyone who is a part of hip hop culture is already doing this on some level.
2) Hip Hop as a culture and force of connection somehow continues to survive, even though it has been completely capitalised upon and colonised at the same time. It connects people across the globe equally, because its cultural identifiers are far more tribal than individual, yet at the same time those identifiers value the individual, their skill-within and their knowledge-of the culture. It acknowledges the ego and the community at the same time. The most universally tangible form of this is probably the music in the form of records, simply because this branch of the culture was first to fit into the mainstream capitalist culture. It could be made into a product to sell. Because of this, any two people on the planet who are at least old enough to remember 1991 will have A Tribe Called Quest’s Low End Theory in common. Hip Hop culture becomes a common ground, and therefore an alternative space for creating new art and new community. The two even become one in the same. Equally important, hip hop is revolutionary at its core. It can be peace and love, but at the same time it can be fearless and speak truth to power. It can be violent and sexist, but then it can acknowledge that, grow, unlearn and re-educate.
First Nation Focus as a hip hop record label and source of support for the world’s first nation youth makes perfect sense because of the above two concepts. This brings us back to the circle, the record, the icon which I based the FNF brand upon.
The core mark
I built the logo on the aforementioned sacred circle and by extension, the record. I also decided that it was important to make the full name of the organisation the logo. It should be clear to anyone who sees it, especially outside of any already-in-the-know context that this is about FIRST NATION FOCUS. Allowing a version to exist that is simplified, such as FNFocus, only serves to weaken its purpose. It shouldn’t be apologetic or bow to any colonial pressures, even if only imagined, because those pressures have power, especially the imagined ones.
The challenge then becomes how to present all three words, FIRST NATION FOCUS, in a compact way that is both easily legible yet appropriately fresh in style. I also didn’t want it to have any weak points, as in parts “sticking out” and exposed, parts that could easily be broken off or attacked (channeling the philosophy of Rammellzee). Like the cypher, I wanted the mark to hold its own ground, protected on all sides. This mark should be able to be thrown into any layout, next to any other logo on the planet, and stand with equal power, dignity and confidence.
Style then becomes the next challenge. As soon as you try to add “native” or “hip hop” sensibilities and references, it becomes instantly cliché, and even offensive to the diverse individual first nation cultures that First Nation Focus is meant to support. To meet that challenge, I tried to apply the knowledge and lessons of graffiti culture for example, but through the purely practical science of graphic design, typography and lettering. The hope is to create a mark that is understood by every human on Earth who can read English, and even those who don’t, yet doesn’t offend the sensibilities of the street, for lack of a better word.
The brand hierarchy
First Nation Focus represents the core. It is the foundation. One step further out is the artist FLEWNT. He has more expression than FNF because he is an individual, but as a father and mentor he must also act as the foundation for his son and the next generation, INKABEE, who is the furthest out moving forward with the most freedom. In this way the brand becomes a metaphor for community. The inner-most support comes from the knowledge of our ancestors. Then comes the elders. After that comes the youth. All of this continues ever outwards for all future generations. Each generation supports the next, and builds on the previous, like the layers of our planet.
The full family of marks
First Nation Focus: The solid foundation. It has the least expression, but all other logos grow from this established style.FLEWNT: More expression than FNF yet remains solid enough as the foundation for INKABEE. FLEWNT is still moving forward and building as an artist, but as an adult he benefits from hindsight. His logo leans left in parts, stands straight in others and leans forward all at the same time.
INKABEE: The most expressive of all three. This logo leans entirely to the right, moving ever forward. It is linked to the other two logos and remains supported by them, but it also has complete freedom.
Sub-branding: FLEWNT’s Boorloo Block Party
The connection to First Nation Focus is communicated solely through the style and form of the lettering. In this way, the entire name of the event, FLEWNT’s Boorloo Block Party, feels like both a part of the First Nation Focus brand as well as an extension of FLEWNT’s identity, even at a quick glance.