Apple Music has a new look, feel…and sound. The new brand identity includes a logo mnemonic, a visual identity created with a transducer — a device that converts an audio signal into physical vibration — set in a shallow bath of mineral oil in motion. The resulting waves, ripples and refractions were filmed to create the final mark: a physical record of the music rather than just an illustration of it.
Behind all that is the idea, made by sound.
The new wordmark pairs the familiar Apple symbol with a custom version of SF Pro, Apple’s typeface. It takes a design rooted in consistency across Apple’s products and gives it a more individual expression for Apple Music. Bold, lowercase letterforms give the logo a vibrant personality, reflecting the energy of music while remaining unmistakably Apple. The approach also blends sound with Apple’s incredible Liquid Glass design through a lens unique to music. Waves and vibrations unite with the optical qualities of glass, creating a visual language that carries through the wider identity.
“We really wanted sound to create the visuals – to take the idea of music and distill it into something visually beautiful. Essentially the idea was to create the perfect sound wave. We take a frequency and we play it through a rig. This rig then moves a large amount of liquid at the frequency of the notes,” explained agency TBWA\Media Arts Lab.
“We partnered with Fred again.., one of the world’s very best music producers, and his collaborator NEST Acoustics, to break down the individual notes and create the final mnemonic. We then used that sound to create the visuals. The new audio language builds on that idea, giving Apple Music a distinctive sound of its own. When we say that everything we do is about music and artists we mean it. Now even our logo represents that core value.”
Apple Music teased the new word mark late last month as part of the marketing for its new live music venue Apple Music Hall based in London.
A companion film follows the journey from the original composition to the finished identity, experimentation and craft behind the work.
Credits:
Creative and Design Agency: TBWA\Media Arts Lab
Production Company: Optical Arts
Director: Joe Jackson
Music: Fred again..
Music Collaborator: NEST Acoustics
VFX: Time Based Arts
Color & Finishing: Trafik
Music Mix: Model Citizen
Retouching (Stills): Optical Arts
Post-Production (Stills) + Color Conversion: Epilogue Inc
Type Design Consultation and Vector Logo Illustration + Reconstruction: Plau
A companion film follows the journey from the original composition to the finished identity, experimentation and craft behind the work.
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