It’s summer time and with that comes many ways to enjoy country music in the great outdoors, from backyard barbecues to lakeside bonfires to countryside hikes. To pay homage to one of the Heartland’s great summer outdoor traditions in a truly unexpected and unique way, Spotify Hot Country has produced four exclusive custom-designed crop circles featuring three superstar country artists as well as the Hot Country logo.
Jason Aldean
The spectacular crop circles were created by the Nashville-based renowned crop circles artist Stan Herd, known for creating visual masterpieces using fields as his canvas. He skillfully recreated the faces of music stars Luke Bryan, Kelsea Ballerini, Jason Aldean and the Spotify Hot Country logo in fields outside Lawrence. Each crop circle took approximately one week to create and will last for approximately three weeks.
Kelsea Ballerini
“I usually begin with a simple concept that speaks to something I believe in and a statement that I think is important to make with my art,” said Stan of his artistic process. “When I get to the point that I decide to actually take the drawing to a field, I create a gridded drawing to the site and try to gauge how it might fit the field or terrain. I work with crews to lay out the grid, maybe one inch equaling 20 feet, and begin the simple outline with a weedeater or other tools into existing crops or vegetation. Then we begin to gauge the work through aerial recon or drone shots.”
Luke Bryan
According to Brittany Schaffer, Head of Artist and Label Marketing at Spotify’s Nashville office, “This year Spotify is making a concentrated effort to shine a spotlight on country music and to find truly unexpected ways to celebrate all things country. To give our fans something special we decided to work with artist Stan Herd to bring to life three of the world’s biggest country artists on a beautiful Kansas landscape to pay homage to the Heartland and country music today.”
To Stan, the tie between country music and the crop circle art is all in the roots. “Country music grew out of the experience of working men and woman with a true connection to the land and to United States history as it relates to and informs that cultural essence,” he explained. “It is called ‘Country Music’ because it is about a ‘country’ or rural lifestyle that includes that agrarian connection.”
Following the April re-launch of Spotify’s flagship Hot Country playlist as a newly enhanced video playlist, Spotify Hot Country’s high-profile events at CMA Fest in Nashville in June and the Hot Country Live concert series launch in NYC on July 4th, Spotify is continuing to roll out dynamic new content, playlists, artist takeovers, Fans First activations and live events that appeal to country music fans as well as a broader fanbase. These crop circles are the next step in Spotify’s country journey and show a truly creative spirit to highlight culturally-unique elements of the country music landscape.
