Charlamagne Tha God, the host of the syndicated “Breakfast Club” radio show and co-host of the “Brilliant Idiots” podcast, is expanding into publishing with a graphic novel deal through the company Artists, Writers, and Artisans.
Charlamagne plans to release his first fantasy thriller graphic novel, “ILLuminati,” later this fall. The longtime comic book enthusiast collaborated with various creatives in the industry to produce the novel, which aims to spotlight the many talented Black artists and writers in the comic and graphic novel fields.
Known for his hip-hop-themed comics at Marvel, he has infused a similar sensibility into “Illuminati.” The comic’s central story revolves around the mysterious death of a young female hip-hop star and the investigation by her psychic twin sister, who travels to Los Angeles to uncover the truth. Additionally, Charlamagne plans to release five custom covers for “ILLuminati” that pay homage to classic hip-hop albums.
“I’ve always been a huge fan of comic books,” Charlamagne told Variety. “Listen to any hip-hop record, man. I’m a huge Wu-Tang fan. They’ve always referenced so many comic books.”
Continuing, “I’ve been involved in the process every, every step of the way because the story is loosely based off the industry,” he says. “We’re playing into the whole Illuminati Secret Society of the music industry, all those rumors and things you might see on pages like Reddit or those YouTube conspiracy theory videos. This fits all of that in comic book form.”
A month-long Kickstarter campaign is set up to roll out ““ILLuminati” and engage fans.
