Founded in Atlanta in 1998 by brothers Adam and Matt Wright, ELEMENTAL grew from a free local publication covering underground hip-hop into a major national monthly, later moving its publishing operation to Brooklyn. By 2005, its circulation had reached 112,000. GRAPHIC HAVOC worked closely with the ELEMENTAL crew as the magazine expanded, rebranding, art directing, and redesigning the publication as it transitioned from saddle-stitched to perfect-bound format.
The new identity included a redesigned logo/masthead, Hellemental, a custom typeface developed for the magazine, and a cover system that invited artists to create a unique graffiti-inspired interpretation of the ELEMENTAL name for each issue.
GRAPHIC HAVOC continued collaborating on the magazine for more than 13 issues, helping establish a visual language that carried forward into later releases. During this period, ELEMENTAL featured interviews with artists including Mos Def, KRS-One, Busta Rhymes, Pete Rock, MF DOOM, Chuck D, Gang Starr, Bobbito, Inspectah Deck, Madlib, The Beatnuts, GZA, Jurassic 5, EL-P, CeeLo, Cap, Jest, JazOne, Zephyr, BARNSTORMERS, Seen, Lady Pink, Crash, Dalek, and Ink Heads, among many others.
