Trusted Rhythm Records
Creating a digital home for an independent underground record label.
Trusted Rhythm Records is an independent Brighton-based deep-house label, established in 2021. The label works with emerging artists, releases music, hosts events and is beginning to develop merchandise.
The problem Statement: TRR has no dedicated website or fully developed brand guidelines, with information about the label currently spread across multiple platforms. Releases are sold through platforms such as Traxsource and Juno, while music, artists, events and other information are found elsewhere.
As the label continues to grow, there is an opportunity to create a central digital home for TRR. Bringing its growing catalogue, identity and community together in one cohesive experience, with room for more to come.
My goal was to create a cohesive digital experience that makes TRR easier to discover, explore and support, while preserving the authenticity of its underground identity.
Bonus:
“How can I make the website feel like TRR, and not just tell people about TRR?”
Understanding the needs of the business
Rather than jumping straight into the interface, I first worked with my team to understand the business and its ambitions through an interview with the owner of the label.
From the interview, I identified several important areas:
Music
TRR's core activity is discovering and releasing underground deep-house music.
Artists
The label supports emerging artists and connects them with established remixers.
Events
TRR extends its identity beyond releases through live events and DJ culture.
Merchandise
The label is beginning to develop physical products and merchandise.
Community
Perhaps most importantly, TRR is built around the people and culture surrounding the music.
This led me to an important realisation:
TRR isn't just selling records and tickets. The people, artists and culture around the label are part of the brand too.
Research
Affinity Mapping
I worked with my team to group our research findings into three key themes:
Fragmentation
Discovery, purchasing, and event access are spread across multiple external platforms instead of one central label-owned destination.
Community
Relating to presence and strengthening community ties
Value creation
Presentation, merchandise focused, and online exclusivity
User Personas
I developed two primary audience personas to represent different ways people might interact with TRR.
The DJ
A London-based professional or semi-professional DJ looking for new music, emerging artists and quality labels to follow.
Primary motivations:
Discover new music
Find artists
Preview releases
Buy music and vinyl
Stay ahead of trends
The Music Enthusiast
A Brighton-based music enthusiast interested in discovering artists, attending events and becoming part of the local scene.
Primary motivations:
Discover music
Find events
Connect with the community
Support independent labels
Experience the culture
User Journey
I mapped the experience from first discovering TRR through to becoming a more engaged supporter.
Discover → Explore → Evaluate → Support → Stay Connected
The key problems I identified included:
Discovery
Users encounter TRR across multiple platforms.
Exploration
There isn't a single place connecting artists, releases and events.
Purchase
Different products require different purchasing journeys.
Community
The existing community doesn't have a dedicated digital home.
These findings led me towards an opportunity to create:
One coherent experience connecting discovery, music, events, commerce and community.
How Might We?
This research led me to our central design question:
How might we create a unified online experience for Trusted Rhythm Records' existing and new audiences so that they can easily discover, engage with, and support the label's artists, music, events, and merchandise?
This became the north star for the rest of the project.
Visual Direction
A frame around the culture
I benchmarked other independent record labels and found a recurring visual language: restrained, minimal interfaces that allow the music and artwork to take centre stage.
Benchmarking:
I wanted the interface to stay deliberately quiet while TRR's artwork, photography, events and people provided the personality.
The website acts as a frame around the culture.
This also allowed me to create a clear contrast between the dark interface and the more colourful, expressive visual identity already present in TRR's artwork and event posters.
The Experience
One digital home
I designed a responsive experience connecting the label’s music, events, merchandise and community.
See below for desktop and mobile protoypes. (Please note that the filters on the artist page are intended for the developer and are not functional in the protoype)
The outcome
From catalogue to community
The final experience brings TRR’s music, events, commerce and community together while keeping the interface deliberately quiet and letting the label’s visual culture take centre stage.
What I learned
Designing for an independent business meant understanding what made the label valuable beyond its products. For TRR, that was its taste, artists, events and community, and that understanding shaped the experience.