Comic book hub Marvel have revealed another wave of hip-hop-honouring alternate covers hitting newsstands this fall, with the latest round merging their deep catalogue of heroes and villains with the back catalogues of MF DOOM, GZA, and Bay Area Based God, Lil B.
The comic book company's latest leaks, which come as part of a company-wide promotion, have artists incorporating elements of classic hip-hop LPs into their artwork, though they've subbed out rappers for caped crusaders. As you can see up above, the cover to MF DOOM and Madlib's 2004 LP Madvillainy has artist Mike Deodato Jr. swapping out the original's shadowy photo of the metal-faced DOOM for an illustration of Thor.
An upcoming issue of Contest of Champions twists the already comic-styled chess battle pictured on GZA's 1995 LP Liquid Swords into a fight between Doctor Doom and the Maestro. Additionally, a tribute to Lil B's Black Flame mixtape replaces the Based God with a Greek god: Hercules. You'll find both covers down below.
Apparently, the crossover between the two worlds has been a match made in Marvel heaven.
"The outpouring of love from hip-hop fans, global music-centric websites, as well as musical luminaries like Nas, Run the Jewels, Posdnuos, Questlove, DMC, and Pete Rock speaks volumes about the ongoing cross-cultural dialog that prompted these homage covers," Marvel Comics Editor in Chief Axel Alonso told Billboard.
There will apparently be even more to-be-detailed crossovers in the future, with Alonso adding: "That dialog will only increase as readers get the full picture of Marvel's offerings in the coming year, and see what lurks beneath the covers."
The Contest of Champions variant lands in October, while the other two comic books hit stands in November.
Earlier reveals in the forthcoming fall crossover merged Howard the Duck with Ol' Dirty Bastard, Ms. Marvel with Lauryn Hill, and the X-Men with De La Soul.
As previously reported, Run the Jewels were saluted with variant covers for Howard the Duck and Deadpool last spring. Rappers Rae Sremmurd had likewise appeared on a Captain America cover in 2014.
Pre-order GZA's Liquid Swords: The Singles Collection art box edition now.
The comic book company's latest leaks, which come as part of a company-wide promotion, have artists incorporating elements of classic hip-hop LPs into their artwork, though they've subbed out rappers for caped crusaders. As you can see up above, the cover to MF DOOM and Madlib's 2004 LP Madvillainy has artist Mike Deodato Jr. swapping out the original's shadowy photo of the metal-faced DOOM for an illustration of Thor.
An upcoming issue of Contest of Champions twists the already comic-styled chess battle pictured on GZA's 1995 LP Liquid Swords into a fight between Doctor Doom and the Maestro. Additionally, a tribute to Lil B's Black Flame mixtape replaces the Based God with a Greek god: Hercules. You'll find both covers down below.
Apparently, the crossover between the two worlds has been a match made in Marvel heaven.
"The outpouring of love from hip-hop fans, global music-centric websites, as well as musical luminaries like Nas, Run the Jewels, Posdnuos, Questlove, DMC, and Pete Rock speaks volumes about the ongoing cross-cultural dialog that prompted these homage covers," Marvel Comics Editor in Chief Axel Alonso told Billboard.
There will apparently be even more to-be-detailed crossovers in the future, with Alonso adding: "That dialog will only increase as readers get the full picture of Marvel's offerings in the coming year, and see what lurks beneath the covers."
The Contest of Champions variant lands in October, while the other two comic books hit stands in November.
Earlier reveals in the forthcoming fall crossover merged Howard the Duck with Ol' Dirty Bastard, Ms. Marvel with Lauryn Hill, and the X-Men with De La Soul.
As previously reported, Run the Jewels were saluted with variant covers for Howard the Duck and Deadpool last spring. Rappers Rae Sremmurd had likewise appeared on a Captain America cover in 2014.
Pre-order GZA's Liquid Swords: The Singles Collection art box edition now.
