TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE FOUNDATION
Amplifying nature.
CHALLENGE
Texas Parks & Wildlife Foundation is the leading advocate for the state’s wild things and wild places. Over the last 30 years, they’ve raised and invested more than $240 million to advance conservation in Texas. If you’re an angler, hunter, park-goer, or generally a nature lover in Texas, you’ve probably heard of or been impacted by their work. But to amplify their impact for future generations, TPWF needed to start engaging new and diverse audiences. Audiences who might not know anything about them or feel disconnected from our lands, waters, and wildlife. They needed a way to connect with this audience and awaken a deeper appreciation for the abundance of natural beauty found throughout Texas.
VALUE
Instead of creating a traditional campaign, we wondered what if we created a benefit album? Music is a great connector, and Texas music is just as diverse as Texas nature. TPWF Executive Director Anne Brown had always wanted to do an album, and this presented the perfect opportunity to do it. We connected them to partners in the music industry and collaborated to help shape the vision for the record. We also led creative for all packaging and promotion. To date the album has received nearly 70 million media impressions, has more than than 1 million streams on Spotify and Apple Music, and was even named one of the best albums of the year by Texas Monthly.
SERVICES
Design
Packaging
Advertising
Digital
THE MUSIC
The goal of the project was to engage a diverse audience of Texans. So the album needed to be as diverse as Texas music itself.
We gave that direction to singer/songwriter and producer Walker Lukens and 7S Management. And they ran with it — assembling a dynamic group of well-known and up-and-coming Texas musicians to reimagine 10 songs from Texas icons like Willie Nelson, Selena and Beyoncé.
The album features performances by Ryan Bingham, Adrian Quesada, Sarah Jaffe, Fat Tony, Paul Wall, Shane Smith & the Saints, Sir Woman, Hayes Carll, Luna Luna and many more. Blending genres from cumbia to country, hip-hop to pop ballads, old-school blues to modern R&B, it’s an album unlike any other and truly worthy of being called Texas Wild. Have a listen below or wherever you stream music.
ALBUM ART
How do you represent all of Texas nature and all of Texas music in a single album cover? We collaborated with talented illustrator and album cover artist Mishka Westell to come up with a fitting cover model — the Northern Mockingbird. It’s not only the state bird of Texas, it’s a songbird that can also perform the songs of many other birds. Mishka’s wood-cut style and beautiful rendering of the mockingbird inspired TPWF to commission three more illustrations. Continuing the bird theme, each additional illustration highlights different native Texas birds and ecosystems.
TPWF also created a series of special edition vinyl versions to sell online, at state park gift shops, and to give as gifts to long-time supporters.
The three additional illustrations were also used as cover art for the album's three single releases, giving each its own unique look.
“Texas Parks & Wildlife Just Released One of the Best Albums of the Year”
PETER BLACKSTOCK, Music Writer at Texas Monthly
GETTING THE BAND TOGETHER
Deciding to make an album took a visionary client led by TPWF’s Executive Director Anne Brown and Director of Philanthropy Phil Lamb. Actually making it took dozens of talented Texas musicians and many people behind-the-scenes helping to produce and promote it — including singer/songwriter and album producer Walker Lukens, Rylan Keturi from 7S Management, illustrator Mishka Westell, photographer/filmmaker Jono Foley, Jennifer Sinski at Giant Noise and Matt Bizer from Luck. We loved getting to collaborate with such a special group of humans and can’t wait for the encore.
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