It may have taken SZA more than five years to release her second studio album, but for Jas Bell — a.k.a. Leonardo Chop, her design lead and art director as well as the founder of streetwear brand Hazelwood — the work never stopped.

There’s no denying that the gap between Ctrl, SZA’s debut album, and the recently-released SOS is lengthy, but Bell doesn’t see it that way. Instead, they utilized the TDE stalwart’s unique artistry to build “massive moments” sprinkled across that five-year interlude. “‘Good Days’ was a moment. ‘I Hate U’ was a moment. When we released the Ctrl five-year anniversary stuff, that was a moment,” Bell explains. “SZA’s a gem in a way that these moments she’s created carry us through eras. There’s always inspiration flowing, and we’re always creating.”

Through Bell’s stories, it’s evident that there is a great deal of chemistry and faith shared between him, SZA and her label, so much so that they entrusted him with the single art for her December 2020 track “Good Days” — though it was only his second time creating cover art. Discussing ideas and artwork concepts with SZA, MeLisa Heath and label president Terrence “Punch” Henderson until 4 in the morning would make anyone nervous, but Bell’s confidence moved the conversations along to deliver one of the most memorable rollouts in recent music history. “SZA poured so much into me that my creative mind was comfortable to explore with hers, and we came up with a historic piece of cover art for the ‘Good Days’ single. That energy flowed into the merch, and we dropped one of the best capsules an artist has ever released,” he recalls.

“I think the one thing that really helped me is knowing that the faster you fail, the faster you’ll have time to pick yourself back up and be even better and figure it out.”

Being an art director wasn’t exactly on Bell’s mind in the beginning, however. He initially wanted to be a musical artist, but eventually he had an honest conversation with himself and realized that making music wasn’t creatively fulfilling. However, he remained in close proximity with music during his time of soul-searching, and eventually found himself getting more and more enamored with the creation of art, merch and visuals during a music rollout. It wasn’t until his stint as N.E.R.D.’s roadie for their 2008 “Glow in the Dark” tour — which featured Ye, Rihanna, Lupe Fiasco, Santigold and Nas — did he begin to slowly accept that a career change may be in order, greatly crediting Pharrell’s ingenuity. “I was always greatly inspired by everything that was going on in fashion at the time. I was able to see Pharrell up close and all the things he had his hand in, and that inspired me man,” he recalls. “It allowed me to be okay with taking a different route, and that’s how I ended up here.” Bell then went on to study audio engineering and ended up working as Drake’s roadie for four more years before bringing things full circle.

After his stint with The Boy, Bell moved back to Atlanta and linked up with then-budding rapper Smino to design his merch collection. Smino and Bell joined SZA on her Ctrl tour, where Bell and SZA “clicked instantly on a creative level.” He began designing custom pieces for her and Sustainability Gang — her initiative that sends 100% of its proceeds to efforts protecting our oceans — and their friendship grew from there. “It was scary to take a completely different path that I had no formal training in,” he admits of joining SZA’s creative team. “I just knew I had the vibe and the eye, and I had to trust that I could figure it out.” He tells Hypebeast ahead of SOS’ release, “The only way to overcome that is to just do it. I think the one thing that really helped me is knowing that the faster you fail, the faster you’ll have time to pick yourself back up and be even better and figure it out.”

In three words, how would you describe your job to someone who isn’t familiar with the music industry?

Creative. Storyteller. Through garments. That was four, but it was too fitting to pass up. [laughs]

Can you run us through a day in your work life?

It changes; no two days are alike. Right now, we’re in the final stages of this masterpiece of an album called SOS, so for me that looks like finalizing certain pieces for our merch launch and coming back to touch up on whatever creative assets we may need for the album roll out. We had over 30 pieces for the collection, so we’re narrowing it down to the best pieces, as well as considering which pieces we may hold for a later date or possible second merch release!

Along with that, I have my own brand, Hazelwood, that I run on a daily basis, so there’s moving parts that must keep going on that side as well. That may look like making sure orders for the week are shipped out by my team and creating new pieces for this new drop. That there’s never a dull moment.

“Sometimes the things we think are the ‘thing’ aren’t, but they lead us to what is. Don’t be afraid to listen to that nudge your intuition is giving you.”

Can you guide us through your regular process and timeline of creating something that is significant and memorable, whether it’s merch or any other visual aspects?

This question is interesting, because as I said before, we’re always creating. But there are often times where I have deadlines and sometimes you have to create at the spur of the moment.

For example, when we released “I Hate U” on Soundcloud, none of us had any idea that it would blow up as fast as it did. It went viral and we needed artwork for the single in a matter of days. I think in moments like those, having ultimate trust in our team is what gets us through. SZA had a concept of what she wanted to do when we started creating the artwork together. We started off creating that art on the concept of writing a letter stating “I Hate U,” but then we all were like, “No one sends letters anymore.” So I suggested a voicemail, and showed it as a visual voicemail on the cover. Then it hit SZA, who suggested a text message.

When I went to execute it, I wanted the art to almost feel like you were really reading a text from her. So I incorporated a super authentic camera phone picture of her for the contact photo, and I wanted it to be to the point. Like, if you read this from a girl, this is it. She hates you, it’s over. We did it, and it was amazing. People started creating their own replies to the message and everything. It was awesome.

What would you say is the most exciting project you’ve worked on so far?

If we’re talking excitement, then I have to say the moment we’re in now which is SOS. That’s what I’m about right now. This new era!

What are the necessary first steps a young person should take to enter a career in music as an art director?

The first step I would tell a young person jumping into anything is that don’t be afraid to know yourself. Your journey is your journey. Learn to love it, embrace it, and don’t compare it to anyone else’s. Sometimes the things we think are the “thing” aren’t, but they lead us to what is. Don’t be afraid to listen to that nudge your intuition is giving you. The possibilities are endless.

What is one thing about your job that most people would find unexpected or surprising?

Half of the time, the stuff that ends up as the best art is the stuff we almost throw away. It’s so ironic, it catches me off guard every time.

Is there a secret to career longevity in this industry?

I’m not sure if there’s a secret, I’m still learning. I just know that if you’re on the right path, and you put everything into it, it will show.

What are some habits you follow regularly to always maintain a good headspace for work?

I pray and take time to myself. Learning from the ones before me helps, and I’m an interview and documentary buff as well. I think interviews and documentaries help me maintain a good head space, while putting info in my head too. Best of both worlds.

What does a day off look like for you?

I haven’t seen one in a while [laughs]. You never really want a day off when you’re doing what you love. It’s rare when I’m not working on something, whether it be with SZA or on my brand; the machine is always going. But there’s short breaks in between when I like to catch up on sports and eat an oatmeal pancake from Flying Biscuit. All is right with the world in those moments.

“If you look at Tyler, the Creator and Travis Scott, they’re making this thing a lifestyle.. Things are shifting to more quality-based and well thought out merch pieces, not just two-dollar screenprinted shirts with an artist’s face on it.”

How do you see your job evolving with the music industry in the next five years?

That’s a good question. I see it evolving quality wise and lifestyle wise. I think merch is becoming more like a statement. It’s becoming more like a piece to have in your closet, not just something from your favorite artist. If you look at Tyler, the Creator and Travis Scott, they’re making this thing a lifestyle.. Things are shifting to more quality-based and well thought out merch pieces, not just two-dollar screenprinted shirts with an artist’s face on it.

On the visual asset side, I’m not sure. Everyone has their own taste level. We have this thing we do really well that I call complex simplicity. I think we do that really well, so I’m just worried about us and how we get down in that regard. [laughs]

If not working in music, what would you be doing?

I’m not sure I’m at the point where I want to even think about that … We’ve still got stuff to make happen.