NEW YORK – Gargamel Music, Inc. celebrates our 5th year operating in the United States by going green! Originally launched in Kingston by CEO Buju Banton back in the late 90s, the label is proud to do our part for the environment by kicking off a fresh line of recycled products starting with the new Buju Banton album, Rasta Got Soul, which drops in North America on Tuesday, April 21st. The date also marks the 43rd anniversary of the late Emperor Haile Selassie’s historic visit to Jamaica in 1966.
Art Director, Darhil Crooks of Foundation Design Studio, explains his creative vision for the new album. “Now that we’re in a digital age, everything about the CD as we know it has become disposable. Album art has been reduced to a small icon on whatever mp3 player you use,” he explains.
Darhil remembers exploring his parents vinyl collection as a kid and getting absorbed in the artwork. “That tactile feeling has been lost,” he admits, “but I felt it was important that we brought that back with Rasta Got Soul. People throw away jewel cases now and I really wanted to bring back the feeling of vinyl when the music and the imagery were inseparable.”
Working with a striking set of black and white images shot by esteemed celebrity photographer, Jonathan Mannion, the design itself is rather minimal. “My goal was to showcase Mannion’s work and give the album a classic, clean look. Not too busy. Raw and real,” Darhil adds. “I just took it back to basics in the same way Rasta Got Soul is taking it back to the roots.”
