From A to Z: The story behind the iconic Amazon Music logo
The Amazon Music logo is one of the most recognizable emblems in the streaming space. Not only does it grab attention with its simple, modern design, but it also leverages components of the larger Amazon brand’s visual identity. This ensures Amazon fans can instantly spot the iconic emblem. But, even the most avid Amazon customer may not know much about Amazon Music logo history…
The Amazon Music logo might not be as well-known as the emblem of the larger Amazon company, but that doesn’t make it any less impressive. Building on the phenomenal visual identity of its parent brand, the Amazon Music icon has an instant emotional impact on anyone who sees it.
The question is, where did this famous emblem come from? How was the design produced, and how has it evolved over the years? Today, we’re going to cover everything you need to know about the iconic Amazon Music logo.
What is the story behind the Amazon Music logo?
Before we take a closer look at the two designs in Amazon Music logo history, let’s discuss the story behind this modern emblem. The Amazon Music platform, previously known as “Amazon MP3”, is a popular online store and music streaming service, owned by the Amazon brand.
Initially launched in “beta” mode in 2007, Amazon Music quickly made waves in the audio industry. By January 2008, it had emerged as the first music store to sell access to audio without digital rights management from the four major labels at the time, Sony, EMI, Warner, and Universal.
After first launching in the United States, Amazon Music became a worldwide phenomenon, rolling out to the UK, Germany, France, Australia, Switzerland and beyond.
Today, Amazon Music offers a variety of different services, including Amazon Music HD, a new marketplace for accessing more than 40 million songs in HD lossless quality.
The first Amazon Music logo was designed following the merger of Amazon MP3, the original Amazon music store, and the Amazon Cloud Player service, offered to customers looking to store and listen to music in the cloud.
Amazon Music logo history: The evolution
As a relatively recent addition to the Amazon service library, Amazon Music hasn’t undergone as many emblem changes as the parent company itself. However, looking back at Amazon Music logo history, we can see one significant change to the design.
Since first emerging in 2014, the Amazon Music icon has grown increasingly more modern, to match the appearance of other Amazon products, such as Amazon Alexa, and Prime Video.
2014
When the first Amazon Music logo was introduced in 2014, it was designed to reflect the company’s branding, with the same iconic colors and typography choices as the larger “Amazon” logo.
The design was developed after a merger of the Amazon MP3 and Amazon Cloud Player platforms, retaining components of both banners.
Both the previous “Amazon MP3”, and “Cloud Player” logos has utilized a similar design in the past, featuring the official Amazon wordmark alongside an additional inscription.
Above both the “Cloud Player” and “MP3” sections of the logo, we saw a series of straight lines, intended to represent audio waves or volume controls.
The newly created Amazon Music logo retained the lines above the “Music” section of the emblem, though their colors were changed from green to orange, reflecting one of the core colors of the Amazon palette.
Similar to other logos in the Amazon service portfolio, the “Music” component was depicted in a thinner, smaller font to the larger “Amazon” inscription.
The primary Amazon logo draws the bulk of the attention in this emblem, with its unique typography, written in all lowercase. We also see the iconic Amazon arrow, pointing from “A” to “Z” to symbolize the diversity of the product offering.
The point of the arrow also causes a curve in the bottom of the “Z”, symbolizing a smile.
2017
In 2017, Amazon updated its logo with a selection of new logos, presented in different colors and formats. A horizontal logo, featuring “Amazon Music”, all on one line, is the primary design for the company.
However, there’s also a stacked variation available, which places the word “Music” underneath the Amazon wordmark.
The primary horizontal logo design features many of the same elements of the previous emblem. However, the letters of the word “Music” have been extended slightly, and the coloured lines above the emblem have been removed, creating a more streamlined aesthetic.
There’s also a third variation of this emblem in circulation, which eliminates the word “Amazon” entirely, but maintains the iconic swooping arrow often associated with the brand. The overall image resembles the designs used for Amazon’s other services, such as Alexa, and Amazon Prime.
Notably, there are various color palettes available for the Amazon Music icon. Although the main colors referenced by the brand are black and white, the emblem has been depicted in a gradient blue, a block turquoise blue, and a bright purple gradient.
How does the Amazon Music logo compare to other music streaming logos?
If we look at some of the most popular music streaming platforms on the market today, and their logos, it’s easy to see some consistent themes. The majority of the top brands utilize a symbol combination of basic wordmarks and imagery to capture the attention of their audience.
Apple uses its iconic Apple icon next to the word “music”, while YouTube leverages the official YouTube logo next to the word “music”, just like Amazon.
Like many other streaming and technology vendors, Amazon has created its logo to match perfectly with the visual identity of the other services in its portfolio.
Perhaps the core thing that makes Apple Music’s logo unique is the variety of color palettes the company offers for the emblem. While most other streaming services use their brand colors (such as red for YouTube), alongside black, Amazon experiments with a number of shades.
The Amazon Music icon: Fonts and colors
The Amazon Music logo is a fantastic example of a powerful sub-brand emblem, which captures the same visual identity and personality of its parent brand. The compelling logo, though simple, is engaging, and versatile.
I reminds us of the joy that Amazon promises its customers, as well as the brand’s commitment to offering a wide range of diverse services.
The flexibility of the Amazon Music icon also makes it a fantastic choice for today’s digital landscape. The emblem can be used in a variety of different styles and colors, to address different needs.
If you want to take a closer look at the Amazon Music logo, you can find some useful resources here:
What color is the Amazon Music logo?
On the Amazon Music website, Amazon showcases the Amazon Music emblem in a simple black and white color palette. However, various other color options are available for the emblem. Primarily, the most common colors used other than black and white are two shades of blue:
Ocean Boat Blue
Hex: #0077C1
RGB: (0, 119, 193)
CMYK: 1, 0.383, 0, 0.243
Spiro Disco Ball
Hex: #0DBFF5
RGB: (13, 191, 245)
CMYK: 0.946, 0.220, 0, 0.039
The Amazon music logo colors usually take advantage of a gradient effect, to create a soothing aesthetic. Notably, there is another Amazon Music logo color you might have seen across the web today, which features the emblem in a shade of bright purple.
What font does the Amazon Music logo use?
The Amazon Music logo font is similar to the typography used for the various other emblems created for different Amazon services.
While the “Amazon” part of the logo is specific to the brand, with its stylized “Z”, used alongside the arrow to depict a smiling face, the “Music” section of the emblem is much simpler. The design is similar to Webnar Medium.
The colorful Amazon Music logo
Although it might seem simplistic at a glance, the Amazon Music logo is an excellent example of a successful emblem. This eye-catching icon matches the visual identity of the Amazon brand perfectly.
Alongside other Amazon product and service logos, the Amazon Music icon helps to create a consistent portfolio of brand assets for the larger brand.
The minimalistic and versatile logo also blends well with the larger streaming market, matching the styles and trends used by various other well-known companies.
Fabrik: A branding agency for our times.
As Fabrik’s creative director, Stephen oversees complex branding programmes. He advises our clients on their tone of voice, creates logos and visual identities and crafts names for companies, products and services. Writing for Brand Fabrik Stephen reflects his love for logo design and visual identity.
