Championing the best in independent music and creativity with Spotify Fresh Finds

The next set of playlist covers were more genre-focused. We commissioned ten creatives from around the world, and each artist developed a playlist template visualising the characteristics of their given genre. Across the Fresh Finds playlists, this included interpretations of Hip Hop, The Wave, Basement, Rock, Pop, Indie, Country, Latin and Experimental genres. These genre-focused playlist covers offered us an opportunity to collaborate with a broad range of creative styles, as well as locations.

Uruguayan artist Antonio Carrau, a creative who predominantly uses collage in his practice, used his style to represent the diversity and boldness of Latin music, for example. Helsinki-based Robin Clifford Ellis used his felt-tip-like style to portray the hazy feel of the Indie genre, while London-based Alfie Kungu used his character-filled illustration style to draw out the qualities of Hip Hop.

Elsewhere, creatives took approaches from their genre to fuel their creative practice. Paris-based Thamil Nabil’s interpretation of Experimental music is purposefully fluid – given the wide-ranging nature of the genre – choosing to work by hand to offer a raw look to each cover. Whereas Brazilian illustrator Paola Saliby referenced the nostalgic feel of Pop music in her illustrations. “Pop music takes me right back to my pre-teenager years, when I used to carry my discman everywhere and would listen to Spice Girls, Alanis Morissette and Britney, repeatedly,” she told It’s Nice That. Paola’s visual interpretation of Pop ignites this feeling through illustration, with an artwork which presents the pure joy pop music evokes.