# Sama Frequency — Logo Usage Rules

Applies to the Sama Frequency label logo and every artist logo.
Master manifest: https://samafrequency.com/brand/ai/brand-manifest.json

## Identity separation

Sama Frequency is the parent record label. Each artist (Algerian Vibes, Sawt Layl,
Djams, Ali Raouf, SADA AL-RŪḤ, and any future roster additions listed in the master
manifest) has a separate identity.

- Never substitute one artist's logo for another.
- Never use the Sama Frequency logo as an artist logo.
- Never use an artist logo as the Sama Frequency label logo.
- Never combine artist identities unless the release is officially collaborative.
- On release artwork, the artist identity leads; Sama Frequency appears as the label mark.

## Absolute prohibitions

- Never generate, imitate, redraw, trace, reinterpret, or approximate any official
  logo using AI.
- Do not distort, stretch, crop, or rotate logos.
- Do not add shadows, glows, outlines, or gradients.
- Do not recompose logo elements or change/replace typography within a logo.
- Do not recolor outside approved variants.
- Do not place logos in unapproved containers.
- Do not add national flags or decorative Arabic/Amazigh symbols to logos.
- Do not use AI to create "missing" logo variants — missing variants are owner
  tasks, not generation tasks.

## Official assets and provenance

The only approved logo files are those listed in each identity's manifest with
status `official`, `owner-approved`, or `derived-approved`:

- Label manifest: https://samafrequency.com/brand/ai/sama-frequency.json
- Artist manifests: https://samafrequency.com/brand/ai/artists/{artist-slug}.json
- Directory: https://samafrequency.com/brand/ai/artist-directory.json

Assets with status `unverified`, `legacy`, `deprecated`, `placeholder`, or
`missing` must not be used as approved branding.

Current asset state (2026-07-23): each identity has one official primary logo
(PNG, 1254 × 1254, opaque background) plus an owner-approved SVG vector master, an
owner-approved promotional banner, and an owner-approved visual-direction moodboard.
White/black/gold monochrome variants, transparent-background PNGs, and social
avatars do not exist yet and are recorded as owner tasks in each manifest — the
`logos` object records an empty string for every variant that is not yet available.
Minimum-size and clear-space values are pending owner definition — until then, keep
generous clear space (at least the height of the logo's tallest letterform) and do
not render logos so small they become illegible.

## Placement guidance

See https://samafrequency.com/brand/shared/logo-placement-guide.svg — corner and
bottom-center placements are conventional, but placement is per-release guidance,
not a fixed template. Always preserve aspect ratio and keep logos inside the 10%
safe area of the 3000 × 3000 canvas.

## Compositing over generated artwork

Retrieve the official file, then composite it after the background exists. Never
place a logo by describing it to an image model.

Where a transparent-background master is published, composite it directly.
Where one is not, the official master is an opaque square tile — place it inside a
deliberate solid panel rather than keying, matting, or blend-moding it yourself.
Keying an official master is a modification, and modification is not permitted.

Check the `compositing` block in the identity's manifest to see which case applies.

Last updated: 2026-08-16
