Behind the Covers

hip-hop

1 cover story in our archive

Behind the Covers' archive includes 1 album cover documented under the "hip hop" design theme, all from the 1980s. The cover sits within the hip-hop tradition and features work by Beastie Boys. 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.

Licensed to Ill by Beastie Boys — album cover art

Licensed to Ill by Beastie Boys (1986)

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.

Label
Def Jam Recordings
Designer
World B
Genre
Hip-Hop
Decade
1980s
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