Since launching Black Privilege Publishing, Charlamagne Tha God has been working diligently to highlight Black stories that wake up the community and aren’t typically told in mainstream culture. In 2021, the multimedia mogul spoke with AfroTech about his imprint publishing its first fiction novel, “Shallow Waters” by Anita Kopacz. Now, he’s taking a new step of diving into graphic fiction.
Charlamagne has announced that he’s expanding his media empire with new projects in the genre, according to a press release shared with AfroTech. For the imprint’s first graphic novel — “Darkstorm” — it’s written by seasoned screenwriter and comic book writer Kevin Grevioux, who’s most known for the “Underworld” film franchise.
“If you know anything about me, then you know how much I love comics. I’m the guy who got Wolverine holding a microphone tattooed on his arm when he was 17 because of my love of comics. Partnering with Kevin Grevioux to present this new universe, filled with Black and Brown GOD Level superheroes is a dream come true. A lot of the black superheroes I loved growing up were street level and that’s cool but I want to see Omega Level superheroes that look like me and people around me and that’s exactly what we are giving you with Darkstorm and The Vindicators,” said Charlamagne, according to the press release.
He continued, “I am blessed and excited to continue the important work with my Black Privilege imprint on Simon & Schuster, and begin partnerships with comic book veterans like Bill Jemas, Axel Alonso and the whole team at AWA Studios. It’s collaborations like this that help to build an empire and I’m grateful to have found good ones.”
Through Charlamagne and Grevioux’s new partnership, their first released project aims to be just the beginning of the “Signature Superhero Epic Series.”
“I feel blessed to be working with a guy that is as successful as Charlamagne, a one-of-a-kind cultural icon with global reach,” Grevioux said. “He also has an incredible genre IQ for science fiction, comics, and fantasy. So, I truly believe that he is the absolute perfect partner for these ventures. The world’s really not ready for what we have in store.”
AWA Studios Partnership
The two have also partnered with AWA Studios to work on original comic book series, the press release shares.
“Charlamagne Tha God is one of the most compelling voices in culture today,” AWA CEO Bill Jemas shared. “His passion for comics was abundantly clear when we met him. But what truly blew us away was his handle on comic storytelling. We look forward to working with him and bringing his amazing concepts and vision to life starting with The Vindicators.”
