Behind the Curtain: KEVIN TUCKER
Branding Consultant; A.K.A. “Director of Momentum”
All fields of industry have those people who are in the background; those who make things work smoothly. Without the man behind the curtain, the wizard tends to fall flat on his face. In the entertainment industry, these people are the backstage crews, the studio engineers, the cameramen, the editors, directors, producers, voice-over talent; the list goes on.
The purpose of this series, “Behind the Curtain,” is to showcase the talent behind the faces; not merely as a means to praise these people, but to help those who might feel led to follow in their footsteps.
This profile showcases a man who designs brands that reflect the goals and reputation of individuals and organizations.
Meet Kevin Tucker
Kevin Tucker is the founder/creative director of Collide: A Creative Studio, a boutique design and creative consulting company in the Nashville, TN area. Although he is the owner and Creative Director, he likes to be known as the Director of Momentum.
Kevin has over fourteen years of experience creating powerful visual communications, working with a variety of clients in diverse industries. Kevin oversees an array of freelance talent and seasonal design interns to create print, web/interactive, and brand identity work for a variety of clients and projects in the entertainment, publishing, consumer products, healthcare, Christian ministry, and tourism industries, among other small businesses and organizations. The goal of Collide Creative falls under the philosophy of bringing “The Moment Of Impact” to the intended audience through effective, strategic use of design, and bringing a sense of personality and character that is unique to each brand.
When asked who he worked with, Kevin – a humble man – directs people to his website. Past clients and projects that Kevin and Collide Creative have worked with include Pepsi, Warner Bros. Records, Sony Music Nashville, EMI Christian Music, Word Entertainment, The Village Chapel, Healthspring, Austin Peay State University, Shoney’s, Prevent Child Abuse Tennessee, Billy Graham Evangelical Association, FiveStone Studios, Cabedge, VF Imagewear, Dye VanMol & Lawrence, Larry the Cable Guy, Amy Grant, Big & Rich, Sandi Patty, Bill Engvall, Phil Keaggy, Mark Schultz, and Jaci Velasquez.
When you talk business with Kevin, you’ll often hear him refer to ‘branding.’ For those who do not have a clear idea of what that is, Kevin explained.
KEVIN TUCKER: The origin of the term ‘branding’ goes back to cattle ranchers. They wanted to make sure they were not herding someone else’s cow. They made a painful, indelible mark into the hide of a cow.
In the same way, when you brand yourself, your book, film, etc., you want to make an indelible mark, something that is quickly identifiable and unique to what you are trying to promote.
Since humans are more complex than cattle – although some might argue with you – branding in essence comes down to reputation. It’s a reputation, an impression that people have of a product or service. Outside of making a quality product, the process of ‘branding’ include photo, an image, a cover, a symbol, a logo; all of those things are components of the brand.
The whole process of branding is a systematic effort; to get that first impression and make that last; to communicate to people what you want them to know and what you want them to remember about your product or service.
Paula K. Parker: How did you get started in this field?
KEVIN TUCKER: I went to college to study graphic design. I got an internship at a record label, where I expanded what I learned in college in the real world. I learned a whole lot there. As I developed, I continued to find people who mentored me, who were willing to show me the ropes. That was valuable.
PKP: What are the ‘pros’ of what you do?
KEVIN TUCKER: What makes it worthwhile to me is that I love seeing something I’ve done on a shelf or in a magazine or win an award. Seeing the physical result of, “I did that!” I’ve designed more CD packages than I can count, but I love every time I see one I’ve done in the bin at the record store. It’s exciting to me.
I enjoy the process too. I’m always doing something creative. Doing that and being able to make a living at it is – as hard as it is sometimes – but all of that makes it worthwhile.
PKP: What are the challenges?
KEVIN TUCKER: One of the main challenges is navigating through people’s personal opinions as opposed to their objectives. Trying to separate those and accomplish communication goals without compromising something that is going to make an impact.
PKP: Do you have any suggestions for those who might want to do what you do?
KEVIN TUCKER: The first thing is to get a foundational education in whatever field you want to pursue. If you don’t know what that is, find somebody who does what you want to do and ask them how they got there. Ask them what school they went to and where they’ve worked. Find somebody who can mentor you along the way.
[Head shot photo credit: Eric May]
