A Nashville concept campaign for Spotify by designer Alfredo Rodriguez. A billboard, bus, social and advertising banner to get Music City following one playlist.
Project Details
Client: Spotify (personal concept)
Role: Creative direction, campaign design, UI design
Deliverables: Key visual, billboard, bus side, Instagram carousel and playlist cover system
The Idea
Nashville doesn’t just play music. It makes it. Some of the biggest songs in the world were written in a Music Row office, recorded down the street, and first played live on a Broadway stage. But most people streaming those songs have no idea where they came from.
I wanted to flip that. What if Spotify gave Nashville its own playlist, a living mix of the songs this city is writing, recording and playing on repeat right now, plus the classics that built it?
Made in Music City became that playlist, and this campaign is how I’d get people to press play.
The Approach
The goal was simple: get people to follow the playlist. Every piece of the campaign points to that one action.
To make it feel local and fun instead of like another ad, I leaned into what makes Nashville, Nashville: neon signs, honky-tonk energy, and a little hometown pride. The copy talks like a local, with lines like “This town wrote your favorite song” and “Next stop: the sound of Nashville.” It’s proud, a little cheeky, and never cheesy.
Visually, I paired Spotify’s signature green and black with the glow of Lower Broadway. The playlist cover became the hero of the system and updates weekly with a featured local artist, so there’s always a reason to come back.
From the Street to the Stream
The campaign follows one simple path:
1. See it: a billboard on Broadway or a WeGo bus rolling through downtown
2. Scan it: every piece carries a Spotify Code that takes you straight to the playlist
3. Follow it: one tap and you’re in
4. Come back: the playlist refreshes every Friday with new music and a new featured artist
5. Share it: an in-app “You’re listening like a local” badge and story card turn listeners into promoters
On social, an Instagram carousel breaks down “Nashville by the numbers,” with fun stats on what the city is streaming, ending with one clear call to action: Follow the playlist.
Why it Works
Great campaigns give people a reason to care, not just something to look at. Made in Music City taps into local pride and the curiosity of the millions of visitors who walk Broadway every year, then gives them an easy way to take the city’s sound home with them. It’s a love letter to Nashville that also grows Spotify’s listeners.