WTF Is Key-Sprung?
Well - I guess you can say that it all started senior year back in 2011. I realized that there is a difference between high school football and college football.
If you asked me back then I would have bet my mom’s house on the fact that I would be in the NFL. Surprise - I’m not. And honestly couldn’t even cut it in JUCO football. Just a few months after my college football career had started, I decided to quit so I could make beats all day and go to school for marketing and music at JCCC in Overland Park. Probably not the best move in hindsight. So I decided to hang up the football cleats and dropped out of college at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas to pursue a music career.
The Beat Drops: From JCCC to Photoshop (2012-2014)
In 2012 I enrolled at JCCC for marketing and music. During this time I was really trying to sell my music online. I realized that producers that would attach pictures of artists would get more clicks and listens. So I downloaded Photoshop so I could edit photos and upload them with my beats to sell online. By 2014, I was making absolute dogshit cover art for all the music I was uploading to the internet under the name Key-Sprung....ta daaaaa.
Miami Heat: The Grind (2016-2021)
In 2016 I moved to west Miami with a complete stranger to work at a studio that a mutual friend had been engineering at. And that was a complete shit show. Ended up going to the studio like three times, went with no car, served tables until midnight....but I did have a fun time. I got a lot better at making music, made some cool connections, but more importantly, I started to get really good at making cover art. So good, that when I ended up back in Lawrence, KS just 6 months after what I consider one of the biggest "L's" I've ever taken, I sold my first graphic design related service...and holy shit. What a feeling that was. Between 2016 and 2021, I would serve tables and work at a logistics company to pay for my apartment in northeast Olathe. After every shift I would do freelance work for some local musicians and small businesses and really enjoyed just making art. It felt really good to not only express myself sonically, but now I have the ability to do it visually.
Taking Flight: Key-Sprung Unleashed (2021-2023)
I had a ton of people help convince me to start taking a career in graphic design seriously. My Miami roommate, who I consider to be one of the best producers in the KC area, had started a digital agency, Create Uplift, as soon as we got back to Kansas. He found a lot of success in Topeka and started utilizing Key-Sprung to do some contract web design. Between 2021 and 2023 I feel like we just crushed these projects. We were turning out really well designed websites and I had built up a nice retainer of freelance clients. During this time I ended up quitting my day job - really randomly too. I emptied out my 401K, started focusing on web design, ditched Squarespace for Webflow and decided to go all in on Key-Sprung.
Here and Now: The Key-Sprung Era (2024)
So here we are in 2024. I've been in business for three years and have been building websites for ten years. I've worked with hundreds of clients, both big and small and have really enjoyed working with businesses in the Kansas City area. So what’s next for Key-Sprung? What do we want? Well, we want to help businesses make an absolute come-up. From the initial logo and branding design, to a full blown website, and all the way to your daily marketing tactics, consider us your one-on-one guide on what will hopefully be one long-ass-never-ending-journey.
The Future Beats: Vision for Key-Sprung
You see, there are a ton of corporate agencies that essentially lose the magic, excitement, and details, when it comes to working with start-ups and smaller companies - so you pretty much get lost in the corporate sauce. This is not to say that these agencies don’t do great work. And on the flip side there are probably more mid-twenty-something designers with three web design tutorials under their belt, a Canva template logo they found on Pintrest, one previous project that they did for their shady uncle that sells furniture, and a concerning addiction to coffee, who is literally begging you to make a full blown high performing website for fifty bucks - yea…unlikely.
The solution? Us. This is what we thrive in. We’ve worked with huge corporations and we have worked with tiny mom-and-pop shops and we have found that we love the energy of a start-up. There is simply nothing like it. And obviously having the ability to have a blank canvas to craft visuals, narratives, and feelings is much more ideal for everyone involved as we are always on the same page as we grow from Day One to day-ones. If ya feel what I’m saying.
A Unique Harmony: Beyond Design
Here we stand in 2024—Key-Sprung, a name that started on a road from a hopeful beat-maker to a digital maestro wasn't paved with gold—it was a mosaic of late nights, early mornings, and the kind of hustle that doesn't always make it into success stories. But here's the kicker: every single step, stumble, and leap has been worth it. Key-Sprung isn't just another agency in a sea of digital sameness. We're the rhythm to your brand, the melody to your online presence. If there's one thing we've learned, it's that every brand, big or small, has a story that's waiting to be sung.
Our mission? To amplify those stories. To take your vision from a hum to a harmony. To create designs that don't just speak but sing. We're here to make sure that when your audience sees your brand, they don't just look—they listen. And as for the future? Well, let's just say we're tuning up for some dope shit. We're looking to collaborate with dreamers and doers, visionaries and moguls. Whether you're just sketching out your first logo or you're ready to revolutionize your web presence, we're here to jam.
So, to every startup feeling stifled, to every small business ready for the big stage, and to everyone in between: Key-Sprung is more than just design; it's a declaration that your brand has something to say, and we're here to help you sing it loud and clear.
