3 cover stories in our archive
Behind the Covers' archive includes 3 album covers documented under the "black and white" design theme, spanning the 1980s, 1990s. These covers sit within the metal, hip-hop tradition and feature work by Metallica, Beastie Boys, Jay-Z. Each entry below includes the cover artwork, the designers and photographers behind it, and a short story about the visual choices that defined the release.
Metallica's electric chair artwork was created by band members themselves after their record label couldn't afford professional designers. The stark, hand-drawn imagery became one of metal's most recognizable covers despite being born from budget constraints.
The Beastie Boys' debut features a deliberately generic black background with simple white text, designed by World B. Omes as an anti-cover statement that perfectly captured hip-hop's raw, no-frills aesthetic in 1986.
Jonathan Mannion's stark black-and-white portrait of a young Jay-Z became hip-hop's most iconic debut cover, shot in a single session that would define rap album photography for decades to come.