David Hodges approached me to create the artwork for his 2013 mixtape release, a showcase of his vocals over Apollo Brown beats.
The initial concept was to feature David in a boat at night, cast away on the waves with him supplying some of the images below as inspiration:
![David Hodges Lifeboat Mixtape Initial Inspiration](https://nikhandson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/David-Hodges-Lifeboat-Mixtape-1170x900-Initial-Inspiration-1024x788.jpg)
I would go onto work up the concept below as an initial design:
![David Hodges Lifeboat Mixtape Initial Concept](https://nikhandson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/David-Hodges-Lifeboat-Mixtape-1170x900-Initial-Concept-1024x788.jpg)
This however would end up getting scrapped as it wasn’t felt this direction fit the feel and narrative of the music. He asked if I could sketch out some ideas, including that of a wooden raft… similar to something that might be crafted if trying to leave a deserted island…
![David Hodges Lifeboat Mixtape Sketch](https://nikhandson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/David-Hodges-Lifeboat-Mixtape-1170x900-Sketch-1024x788.jpg)
He loved this hand-drawn image, which I took forward to create the final artwork, applying a brown paper texture over the top and adding the typography to produce the finished front and back cover:
![David Hodges Lifeboat Mixtape Cover](https://nikhandson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/David-Hodges-Lifeboat-Mixtape-1170x900-Cover-1024x788.jpg)
![David Hodges Lifeboat Mixtape Back](https://nikhandson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/David-Hodges-Lifeboat-Mixtape-1170x900-Back-1024x788.jpg)
“The LifeBoat Mixtape Volume 1” is part of a free mixtape series originally hosted exclusively by HipHopCanada. All beats produced by Apollo Brown. You can check out the mixtape here.