This was also the second time Future used a stock image as artwork, which lead to a couple using the DS2 colorway as the theme for their wedding. You can’t change the music but if you still use iTunes, there was plenty of art options available. The album became a group project, graphic artists making artwork, Future Hive’s best gif makers worked their magic, the diamonds became like a hash tag, Drake just gave the location and the internet brought the party. For those that were unsatisfied with the cover, more custom artwork flooded the internet. The diamond emoji became a part of the branding, Meek Mill’s Instagram comments were full of them. There seemed to be a general disappointment with their selection but the internet reacted in a way I didn’t expect. The pictures of diamonds used didn’t measure up in creativity or flair of the fan artwork, it was later discovered that the artwork is a simple stock image that can be found on Shuttershock. Sadly, the album’s official artwork was a far cry from the false one that was championed by the people. Drake might’ve been the one to announce the album days before its release but it wasn’t necessary, the purple owl did all the marketing and promoting. What should be considered an obvious hoax is viewed with eyes of promise.

A visual rumor is more effective than a verbal one, which is why the faux-website with the countdown timer was equally as convincing. It was perfect, combining Drake’s odd infatuation with owls and Future’s obsession with the purple drank, the cover was a representation of the two becoming one.

Once the artwork began to trail blaze across timelines, without a single source of confirmation, as far as the world was concerned the tape was confirmed and this was the artwork. What kept the rumors alive, what truly excited the internet, was a lean-dripping purple owl. Social media was a game of telephone, filled with “he said” and “she said,” every lead only generating more speculation and conspiracies. The weeks of rumors leading up to the collaboration between Future and Drake was like returning to the halls of high school where the whispers of lies and truth spread without a source to cite.

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