Adobe on Its Collaboration with ‘abcdefu’ Artist GAYLE

Musician and TikTok sensation, GAYLE, singer of the top 10 Billboard Global hit ‘abcdefu,’ is kicking off a new campaign in partnership with Adobe that invites fans to use and share stunning visual templates created with Adobe Express. Fans of the singer can share their creations, made with either of the two templates designed by GAYLE, using the hashtag #GAYLExAdobe on social media platforms.

In a press release for the campaign, GAYLE says, “When I'm able to express myself and get it out, it's very relieving. And it's nice to have a community of people that are able to look at it and feel like they have the ability to express themselves with that as well. Using Adobe products helps me express the world I’ve created in my head. We’re showing my thoughts through visuals using Adobe apps.”

To kick off the campaign, GAYLE has shared a sneak-peak video into her creative process and how she uses Adobe Express as a part of that - remixing everything from cheese fries, album art, and some of her favourite photos with the exclusive templates. GAYLE has a condition called ‘chromesthesia’ which means that hearing sounds evokes a colour for the artist - essentially ‘seeing music’ in colour. Both the templates and the sneak-peak video are designed to incorporate elements that are inspired by this rare form of synaesthesia, which has influenced her musical career to date - recently culminating in the release of her debut EP ‘a study of the human experience volume one’. 

To discuss how this collaboration came about, incorporating GAYLE’s personality and chromesthesia into the campaign and to hear an exclusive comment from the artist herself, LBB’s Ben Conway spoke with Amit Singh, director of global brand marketing at Adobe.

LBB> When and how did you get involved with GAYLE - was she already an Adobe user/fan?

Amit> Through our ongoing partnership with Live Nation, we were presented with the opportunity to work with GAYLE for an Adobe Express community activation. It was such an easy ‘yes’ and a natural fit because not only is GAYLE incredibly creative, but was already using and excited about Adobe products, including Adobe Express. We couldn’t wait to dive into her fun creative process with her.

LBB> Could you briefly describe the features of Adobe Express? How does it compare to the creative suite and other products? 

Amit> Adobe Express is perfect for people with no creative training and draws on our decades of experience working with the creative community. Whether your goal is to make a flyer, edit an image or produce marketing assets, you don’t have to start from scratch – Adobe Express gives consumers access to thousands of beautiful templates, millions of images from Adobe Stock, thousands of fonts and many more assets that users can personalise to tell their story. Available with just a few clicks and no learning curve,  it takes full advantage to make the act of expression available anywhere, anytime, and to facilitate easy collaboration. 

Adobe Express is also a great addition to the toolkit of creative professionals. If you just want to make a social media post, produce a simple flyer, resize an image, or craft a quick thumbnail image, it’s the fast and easy way to go. Plus, Creative Cloud and Adobe Express are connected through Libraries, Shared Templates and Shared Brands, which makes it easy for creative pros to share work with people with less formal training.

LBB> Why is GAYLE an ideal ambassador/figure for Adobe Express? Is there a crossover between  her audience and people who would enjoy the features of Adobe Express?

Amit> We were really excited about this partnership because there was such a natural fit when it came to how GAYLE creatively celebrates self-expression and encourages her fans to do the same. Adobe Express too aims to promote individuality and we knew her community would have fun not only remixing and sharing GAYLE’s templates on socials but checking out the other templates and design options it offers. Whether they want to use the templates to add fun graphics to their reels from Coachella weekend or use it to ‘green screen’ themselves singing along to their favourite GAYLE song on TikTok, it  allows for unique creative expression.

LBB> How was the process of creating the templates with GAYLE - how much creative freedom did she have on this?

Amit> Because GAYLE was already a fan of Adobe products and more recently an Adobe Express user, it was really important to her and us as well, that she was involved from the start to finish with creating her templates. We designed in close collaboration with her , and she wanted to make sure that both templates drew inspiration from her debut EP, ‘a study of the human experience volume one’. Everything from the colours to the patterns and iconography (house plants included), were made to tie back to her songs and music videos from the EP. 

LBB> What did you want the video to show, in terms of GAYLE’s art and personality, and with regard to the Adobe Express features?

Amit> We wanted to make sure we captured the importance of GAYLE feeling comfortable when she’s able to express herself. We did this through colour and stylistic treatments and showing GAYLE behind-the-scenes while she’s on tour currently. Regarding Adobe Express specifically, we wanted to show GAYLE using and designing with her templates on screen and showing fans how easy and fun it can be to do. Including incorporating her favourite ‘cheese fries’ directly into the templates.

LBB> How did you want to incorporate and represent GAYLE’s chromesthesia into the campaign?

Amit> It was important to us and GAYLE that we were incorporating and representing her chromesthesia throughout the campaign. This was such a natural integration though because of how much of her creativity is influenced and inspired by her chromesthesia. Whether it was the campaign video, artwork or the templates, each was incorporated with colours and designs that she was inspired by throughout the process. GAYLE hopes that giving her fans a sneak-peek into having chromesthesia will really inspire them to remix their Adobe Express templates based on what colours they hear when listening to her music, just like what she experiences. 

GAYLE> I always like to visualise my single and EP covers, and I like to do that with Adobe Express. What's nice is that I can discover colours within seconds and execute my ideas easily – whether I’m making a colour a little lighter, a little darker, or changing it completely, I enjoy the freedom of discovery Adobe Express allows. Most of all, I love the feeling of being able to express my ideas, and Adobe has helped me with that consistently. The fact that these ideas can come from my brain, and I can personalise them and bring them to life in any way I want is super exciting! 

LBB> Should we expect more content and templates from GAYLE in an ongoing partnership with Adobe? Do you have plans to collaborate with more artists on this campaign?

Amit> Fans can expect to see some more updates from our partnership with GAYLE in the next few weeks and throughout the year with other collaborations. We couldn’t do any of this without our longstanding partnership with Live Nation, which helps to fuel our ongoing commitment to the Adobe Creativity Tour. 

LBB> How important to the campaign was it that the audience could use templates that GAYLE had made, rather than just showcase the features through a video with her? 

Amit> We always strive to make our partnerships as authentic as possible. Especially with GAYLE because she uses Adobe products personally and professionally, it was important to make sure that came across in the campaign. It was also important to GAYLE that both she and her fans felt like they were creating something together, so that was definitely a key focus for both parties from the start. 

LBB> In terms of socialising the campaign - how is the campaign designed to be shared and spread online?

Amit> Fans are encouraged to start remixing their GAYLE x Adobe templates (one and two) today and show off their take on GAYLE’s designs using #GAYLExAdobe when sharing across all social platforms. We can’t wait to see what fans create!