Dreams and Nightmares

The cover of Dreams and Nightmares reduces Meek Mill's debut album to a single wrist. A gold Rolex sits on it, and beside the watch is a handcuff. There is no face and no setting, just the two objects sharing the same arm. Meek shared the artwork in early October 2012, a few weeks before the album came out on Maybach Music Group and Warner Bros.

The idea is stated in the title. The watch stands for the dreams, the money and status of a rapper who had made it out of North Philadelphia, and the cuff stands for the nightmares, the police and courts that had followed him since his teens. Meek told Interview magazine that he wanted the image to carry mixed emotions, "Good times, bad times." The power of the picture is that the two objects are worn together, success and captivity on the same arm. Meek later said he was angry that the handcuffs had to share his wrist with the Rolex.

Complex ranked it 18th among the best album covers of 2012. Days after release, life echoed the image: police pulled Meek over and detained him on his way to the album's release party, before letting him go without charge. Years of legal battles followed, which gave the cover a grim prophetic edge. Dreams and Nightmares was released on 30 October 2012.