Action Bronson’s Album Art Is as Insane as His Lyrics



Action Bronson has an active imagination. With each new collection of music he releases, with each dab hit he inhales, with each Eataly meal he consumes, his visions get more vivid. The Queens-born rapper is hip-hop’s Hunter S. Thompson—and Mr. Wonderful, his major-label debut LP out today through VICE/Atlantic, is his Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. To wit: “Twisted off the jenkem, watching Iron Chef/The secret ingredient was lion’s neck.” To double wit: “We took acid for ten days straight up in the mountains/Started running with the stallions/Playing Frisbee in the West Indies, did the tango with my kidneys.”


The bugged-out pictures Bronson describes in his lyrics are matched only by his bizarre cover art, which he takes a lead role in putting together. Since his first release, the mixtape Dr. Lecter, Bronson has guided the visual artists he chooses to execute his ideas. To celebrate the new album, Bronsolino talked us through some selections from his discography, explaining his concept for each release’s cover art and how he tried to pull it off.


Dr. Lecter Mr. Kiji

Dr. Lecter (mixtape, 2011)


Artist: Mr. Kiji

“I’m not one of those guys who likes to take weirdo pictures of myself, like looking off into the distance-type shit. I felt that since art is my background—I come from a graffiti writer background—why not use art in the best way possible to get my ideas and views across?


I want to be hands on with everything, period. Every aspect of my career is important to me. I’ve been doing everything myself from the beginning. You got people that help you out, but after that, you’re the one that has to say “yes” or “no.” I don’t leave my shit up to anybody, because nobody knows me like I know me, that’s just the way it has to be.


Mr. Kiji is a dope artist out of New York. He’s done a lot of digital shit, he did a lot of work for the New York Times. He was just one of the homies that my producer at the time, Tommy Mas, knew. He killed it. I gave him all the ideas—Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal, where Anthony Hopkins is eating Ray Liotta’s brain.”


Artist: Dust La Rock Artist: Dust La Rock Fool's Gold/Reebok

Blue Chips (Fools Gold/Reebok, 2012)


Artist: Dust La Rock

“Rest in peace to my bro [Former Fool’s Gold art director and co-founder] Dust La Rock. We were mutual fans of each other—[producer] Party Supplies is signed to Fool’s Gold, so I was around them for a minute. I’d always run into [Dust] and talk. That’s really how that came about. It’s just an ode to the movie. You’ve got me in the background and Party Supplies dunking on it. Party Supplies dunking the sampler was all Dust. He put his little twist on everything. It’s done classy. It’s a classy cover.”


Rare Chandeliers Johnny Sampson

Rare Chandeliers (mixtape, 2012)


Artist: Johnny Sampson

“Johnny Sampson was brought to my attention by the VICE people. I told him exactly what I wanted and he put exactly what I wanted on the cover in an incredible manner. It’s a beautiful painting. Everything was specific: Alligators with the lasers on their heads, the car, the wizard… It came to me while I was talking to him. It’s like a textbook blaxploitation movie to have a lot of scenes and to have a very eye-catching poster. I felt I had to put some ill shit on the poster to get people to watch this movie.”


Artist: Honkey Kong Artist: Honkey Kong VICE/Atlantic

“Easy Rider” single (VICE/Atlantic, 2014)


Artist: Honkey Kong

“That was my man Honkey Kong from San Diego, he’s an incredible tattoo artist who tattooed me two years ago. He did the one on my left arm, the fighting rooster. He was the perfect guy for it. I told him to make it a skeleton and he just made it happen. He had his own live style to it. That’s one of my favorites. I’m actually going to have that tattooed on me when I go out west soon.”


All of FRKO's handiwork together. All of FRKO’s handiwork together. VICE/Atlantic

Mr. Wonderful/”Actin Crazy” single/”Terry” single/”Baby Blue” single (VICE/Atlantic, 2014-2015)


Artist: FRKO

“FRKO made all these pictures online and he was illustrating my raps. He just got me. And I love his illustrations—very minimalist, almost King of the Hill-esque. I caught a good vibe from the kid. I’ve never met him in person. We’re either going to meet up the next time I’m in Atlanta or at South by Southwest. A lot of [artists] I find on Instagram. People just decide to draw me. There’s ill paintings and ill illustrations of me. They post them and I post them back up when I see them. I just go to the hashtags for my name and I look at the pictures.


For Mr. Wonderful I sent him a picture of Jean Claude Van Damme from Bloodsport in that exact pose and he just did it. I give [artists] a concept and I let it go. If it comes back and it doesn’t need notes, it just comes out. It’s hard sometimes to nail something when someone tells you exactly what it is that they want. You have to give them credit for at least getting in the ballpark. You gotta sometimes turn down some things. You gotta go back to the drawing board and give suggestions instead of just shooting it down. Maybe they didn’t grasp it exactly like I explained it.


Aside from Honkey Kong, who I know, everything has just been a wild card and it’s just worked out. All of them blow my mind every single time. And I’m a tough critic.”



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