It’s amazing how much adding a great background to your Youtube channel can make you look so much more professional – especially if it matches your website and other social networks! Click the image above to view ESQ’s channel design. Want one? Whether it’s just the youtube channel design or creating a look for all your social networks, contact me!

So here it is, my first 329 blog interview. I decided to do some interviews with those I’ve worked with as I wanted to get their view on design, styles and of course, music as many of my clients are recording artists. First up for the 329 interview is a recording artist I’ve been working with for years, right back to when I first started and what an awesome collaboration it has been …so it was only right I asked him to start off these 329 interviews! I tend to try out new things a lot when working with ESQ. as I know he’s open to new looks and doesn’t like to follow the same ‘ol look everyone else has, like with mixtape covers.

329: Please give the readers of my blog an introduction, who are you and what do you get up to?

ESQ: I’m Esquire Mackentyre aka ESQ. A hip hop artist/connoisseur of all things dope from Cleveland, OH., USA

329: How did you originally get into music? Who and/or what inspired you?

ESQ: I was mostly inspired by my late father who introduced me to it, he was a big Run DMC fan. He bought me a record player and my first collection of vinyl records. I think the first hip hop songs I fell in love with were “Cinderfella” by Dana Dane and “Posse on Broadway” by Sir Mix A Lot

329: When your writing a new track, what tends to inspire you?

ESQ: Almost 9 out of 10 times it’s the production that inspires me, certain beats trigger certain feelings, and from that comes great music.

329: Out of all of the tracks you’ve recorded, which is your favorite and why?

ESQ: I don’t have many favorites anymore because I literally put my all into each song, so every current song I make I’m in love with for the moment.

329: Some people don’t notice or appreciate design, others will decide on a product or service based on the way it looks. What is design to you and how important is it in everyday life?

ESQ: Design is key to promotion. The visual is what lures 99% of your viewers to your music. If you don’t take the time to get your pixels together, why should a fan take time to listen to your product? (which should also match your design in quality)

329: Well said! I think we’re all guilty of judging a book by it’s cover. When you’re planning your next project to release in the near future, how important is the look of it to you?

ESQ: Very important, probably why I’ve been working with Three29Design so long. I never really have to go into detail with what I want. I give a basic idea and allow the artist (in most cases being 329) the freedom to create. I ALWAYS like what I get back.

329: Thank you sir =] Okay, now I want to know what’s your favorite album musically and which is your favorite visually?

ESQ: This one was pretty hard, but what I would have to pick for both is Lupe Fiasco’s “Food & Liquor”, everything was on point sonically and visually.

329: I’ve not personally listened to Food & Liquor all the way through but I agree on the cover art, NoPattern did a great job, one of my favorite designers. Moving on, are you into downloading pretty much everything or do you still like to pick up a CD at your local music store so you can flick through the booklet whilst you listen?

ESQ: I can’t lie, I’ve been sucked into the digital age mostly as well. If you’re an artist or band I really respect and i’m literally losing sleep over the impending release of your album, I will definitely go out to a store and cop it.

329: Some artists have a distinct look that they’re known for, e.g. Fred Durst’s red baseball cap, Amy Lee’s gothic dresses and hair, Slick Rick’s eye patch and gold chains, Eminem’s once bleached blond hair and wife beaters and so on. Would you say you have a distinct look when you’re in recording artist mode?

I certainly do. Last year I picked up a pair of frames that you will most likely see me wearing all the time. Kind of reminiscent of the old Run DMC Cazal style frames, thinking of switching it up for 2012 though.

329: I have to say, I have noticed the appearance of the glasses a lot in your recent shoots! Artists like Kanye West and Lady Gaga are always expanding their musical styles or crossing boundaries. Being versatile and controversial gets your name spread but do you think this is a good thing? Do you or will you make moves like this?

ESQ: Over the years due to the evolution of hip hop I also made some changes and left myself open to more things. I’ve been more open to cross culture (i.e. skate board culture with the creation of my skate line “DopeBoardz”) and fine tuning my ear on new sounds (I recently became a big fan of MGMT and Justice). So I eventually want to incorporate more of these things into my music and image.

329: That should be interesting! You should check out dubstep too, not sure if it’s big in the US yet but you may like it. How big of a role does the internet, primarily social media, play with you and your music when it comes to networking, distributing and promoting?

ESQ: It makes up 95% of the whole package. The other 5% is getting out into the street and letting these people on social networking sites see that you actually exist in real life and not just another face behind a screen name.

329: What do you hope to achieve with your music and who would be your dream collaboration?

ESQ: As most artists do, I look to gain a wide fan base, even if not reaching mainstream play, i’d love to rock shows across the globe and become a household name. As far as a dream collab I love and respect so many artists. As of lately I’ve been listening to a little more Big Boi from Outkast and Tabi Bonney, either one of those guys.

329: How do readers of this interview find you?

ESQ: You can tune in on all things Esquire Mackentyre via www.MeetESQ.com

This is the very simple one color version of something I’m working on. I decided to complete it as a piece because I thought the one color version looked pretty cool. Full version coming soon…

I’ve also made wallpaper versions of this personal piece. So if you like it enough for it to grace your computers wallpaper the download links are below. If you’re size isn’t there just contact me and I’ll add your screen size to the list. Click read more for the download links…

1920×1200 • 1024×768 • 1280×1024 • 800×600

All I ask is you don’t claim it as your own and please link people to this source if you choose to share it.

Here’s the A2 poster I did for To The Republics ‘Drown EP’ release show. It was my first A2 poster, plenty of very slow photoshop moments whilst creating this before I gave up and did all the text in illustrator and just did the background, and placing everything else in photoshop. Printed awesome

Read on for two more.

Here’s the unfinished version of ‘There Goes the Neighborhood’. I had it printed to see how it came out before I had some time to go back and finish it off. This is just a personal project I did, my first color vector on Adobe Illustrator, it hangs on the wall to motivate me to try more and more.

And here’s the M-4, another personal piece, which also will stay on the wall to motivate me to try more on illustrator. It took me absolutely hours to finish.

I have asked around 10 people, personally, if they find it violent or offensive. Each one has said no so far, even my gun hating mum believe it or not! Just goes to show what BS some people will throw at you eh? Don’t know what I’m on about? Go here. Next time you don’t like my artwork just grow some balls and tell me instead of inventing a rule which you haven’t stated at the start and still haven’t stated on the site, I’m a big girl I can take the news Boom Boom tish! Yes… people like that are a pet hate of mine. I really wouldn’t mind if the gun was in someones hands, pointing it at someone else, that can be seen as violent and could be definitely offensive if I based it on the current war, that would be fair play.

Right… I think after doing a few finishing touches this piece, my first color vector is a wrap! I ended up doing two versions, ESQ. (the face!) named it There Goes The Neighborhood and I liked it so used that and placed it on the second version, in an old school style font (read more to see the text version). This piece along with the M-4 piece I did have made me want to learn illustrator more. Before I found it very annoying as Photoshop has been my primary since I started, and I only opened illustrator for the odd job but I find it quite relaxing, and even though they’re a long process it’s worth it when you see the end results

This is my first time doing a color vector – as you can see in my blog my others are simple black & white ones with one color to make it pop. I’m no illustrator but I’m trying to get to grips with Ai more. This took me a fair few hours but they were broken up so it wasn’t too bad.

It could do with a clean up but… How did I do?

// Brown Version

// Purple Version

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