Hip hop has become an undeniably large influence on pop culture; the same can be said for comics, especially in light of Marvel Studios’ takeover of Hollywood over the last decade. With the level of artistry behind the hip hop’s lyricism and comic books’ increasing level of illustrative talent, it was only a matter of time before one of the Big Two (Marvel and DC) paid homage to hip hop in an official capacity. While Ed Piskor’s Hip Hop Family Tree has been nominated for the Eisner Award and was named one of New York Times‘ Graphic Books Best Seller, it doesn’t have the same level of visibility as Marvel.
Beginning this October, Marvel will be paying homage to hip hop with its line of Marvel’s Hip Hop Variants. Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso had this to say about the line of variant covers:
“For years, Marvel Comics and Hip-Hop culture have been engaged in an ongoing dialog. Beginning this October, we will shine a spotlight on the seamless relationship between those two unique forces in when we unveil the first of more than fifty variant covers, each of which pays tribute to an iconic album cover from the past 30 years that shaped pop-culture over the past three decades.”
You can find 12 of the hip hop variant covers in the gallery below. Can you name them all?
The first wave of Marvel’s Hip Hop Variants will be released in October:
Amazing Spider-Man # 1- HIP-HOP Variant by Mike Del Mundo
Angela: Queen of Hel #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Annie Wu
The Astonishing Ant-Man #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Mark Brooks
Contest of Champions #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Denys Cowan
Doctor Strange #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Juan Doe
Extraordinary X-Men #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Sanford Greene
Guardians of the Galaxy #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Shawn Crystal
Invincible Iron Man #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Brian Stelfreeze
The Mighty Thor #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Mike Deodato
Sam Wilson, Captain America #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Mahmud Asrar
Spider-Gwen #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Humberto Ramos
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Phil Noto
Uncanny Inhumans #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Damian Scott
Uncanny Avengers #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Jason Pearson
Another wave of Marvel’s Hip Hop Variants will be released later in the fall:
All-New All-Different Avengers #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Jim Cheung
All-New Wolverine #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Keron Grant
Carnage #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Ariel Olivetti
Howard the Duck #1 – HIP-HOP Variant Juan Doe
Ms. Marvel #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Jenny Frisson
Old Man Logan #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Tim Bradstreet
Spider-Man #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Adi Granov
Spider-Man/Deadpool #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Dave Johnson
Squadron Supreme #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Mike Del Mundo
Star-Lord #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Tradd Moore
The Totally Awesome Hulk #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Mahmud Asrar
Web Warriors #1 – HIP-HOP Variant by Damian Scott