ghettoManga

we need FOOD!

Los Angelses hip hop comix maestro Jim Mahfood just dropped a new artbook! Mixtape Vol 2: FOOD ONE is in stores nationwide homey! so roll up on one o' them bookstoristas and demand that joint! if they spray you with mace or somethin', just dry your eye and cop it from 40ozComics.com instead, sonny!!

Asher Millie is on this Mixtape...

yeah, get down wit' that!
-gM

Does Governor Palin have America drinking the GOP Kool-Aid?

everywhere i look, people are talkin' about how smart it was for crotchety old fuddy-duddy John McCain to tap neophyte Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin as the Republican Vice Presidential candidate to give his campaign some youth and star power. Plus, Barack Obama had a helluva time putting away Hillary Clinton, and analysts argue that a big chunk of Hil's female voters really want to support a woman (so as to put more "cracks in the glass ceiling") badly enough that they'd be willing to ignore McCain's policies long enough to cast a vote for Palin for Veep.

while i'm happy to concede that this was an answer to the "Rock Star" status of Barack Obama (according to fine folks at AP, 40 million viewers tuned in to hear Palin's speech at the convention Wednesday night), i doubt that this will turn out to be the stroke of genius analysts are making it out to be.

in fact, i would go so far as to say that it won't mean much in raw votes. sure, if the election was held today, Palin's surprise addition to the GOP ticket would help a ton. but a lot can happen between now and November... a poor showing at the Veep debate or a possible background scandal, leaked at just the right time, and Palin could actually HURT McBush... er um McCain's chances at the Oval Office. the selection of Palin, after working hard to make experience an important bullet point in McCain's campaign, is an example of another half-assed strategy that talks down to the public, who largely fall for it. but we will see how long it'll be till it backfires...
uno.
-gM

Spawn returns with animated steelo...

if you're anything like me, you lost interest in Spawn a long time ago. but i saw this new The Adventures of Spawn joint with art by Khary (like Atari) Randolph, and went over to the Spawn website to read #1, now i'm GEEKIN'!!! they got the first issue online, plus secret files and extras that you can read then run out and cop #2!
uno.
ghettoManga.com

Culpepper calls it quits...

After valiant efforts to land a QB job, Daunte Culpepper hung up his cleats for good. rather than wait and see if any other QBs get injured, Culpepper bitterly kissed the game goodbye. he spent the early part of the decade destroying defenses throwing the ball to guys with names like Carter and Moss, and at 6-foot-4, 265-pounds could punch the ball into the secondary on the ground his damn self. however, after a catastrophic injury to his knee in 2005, and disappointing stints in Miami (ugh) and Oakland (argh!), Culpepper feels the league has blacklisted him... (read more)

Dyson publishes Analysis of a HipHop Classic

Author, activist, and apologist Michael Eric Dyson is putting the polish on his next book Born to Use Mics: Reading Nas's Illmatic, which promises to be a serious academic analysis of Nas's debut album, considered by some (including me) to be one of the best representations of pure street-hop ever committed to plastic. no word on when Born drops, but pre-orders are being taken on Amazon even as we speak...
uno.
gM

Jeezy gets Political on your ass

Jeezy interview with AP

TV writer/director Takes a shot at the Lantern

concept art for Green Lantern by Illustrator Brian Murray
Eli Stone creator Greg Berlanti has won the right to make the Green Lantern flick, no doubt partially due to getting this cat Brian Murray to put together concept art for his proposed origin story. go check out more of the concept art at i09.com.
holla!
-ghettoManga
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

"Honey" nominated for FOUR VMA's

ghettoManga wants to give a shout out to Dallas' own Erykah Badu and congratulate her on receiving FOUR Video Music Award Nominations from MTV. Badu's video Honey (the lead cut off Mother Badu's 2008 Album New Amerykah...) is nominated for best Director, Cinematography, Special Effects and Editing. and we happen to think Erykah and 9th Wonder crafted a pretty good SONG as well!
congrats Sister...
uno.
-ghettoManga.com

when DJ Jamad takes risks, he Wins!

North Carolina radio jock DJ Jamad recently hooked up with the design monsters at Jungle45 to craft the aptly titled Afro Forty-Five mixtape. now we all know how much i love mixtapes (well, we should, anyways), so needless to say i was pleased as punch to get this joint in the P.O. Box!

for the record, once you get past the extra-fly Jungle45 cover, Jamad jumps it off the way any smart deejay would: a fresh sample that cleverly weaves an old beer commercial into a Jungle45 promo! Like previous Jungle45 mixtapes, AfroForty-Five bounces around the hip hop nation, blending hipster cuts, southern flossery and pop-gangster remixes in a way that serves to keep a hermit like me up to date with what the cool kids are listening to, while also educating them on what they SHOULD be listening to. that's how he chose, for example to preface Li'l Wayne's A Milli (Cookin' Soul RMX) with Asher Roth's Chillionaire Freestyle (Asher Milli). and did i mention he has two tracks with Rah Digga? yeah...
where was i? so Jamad is at his best when he makes risky moves, like that Born Silly, Hallz and Oatmeal, and that Funky Enough RMX (yeah, he hollas at the D.O.C.). I mean, he slices lotsa CRAZY choices in between tracks with Killer Mike, S1 from Strange Fruit Project, Skillz and other certified dope cats...
anyways cop that joint here.
uno.
-gM

you minor... He Major

yo! not a lotta time to write reviews... just bounce over to IndyPlanet and COP The Major if you like widescreen action movie violence, homey!
uno.
-gM

Back in Effect!

after a 25 year trial separation, the original stoner duo Cheech and Chong is Back to make us laugh with the 2008 "Light It Up" Tour! they are in Canada this week and will have dates all along the east coast this month and October (they will be here in Dallas at the Majestic November 1st!) and spend most of November in Cali.
for tour dates, hit their mySpace!
uno.
-gM

press this button to Self Construct!

Self-Construct by Taalam Acey
-gM

ghostWerks is on mySpace (finally)

the long-awaited return of ghostWerks Comics is here! we got new projects and big (and i mean GODZILLA BIG) things gettin' ready to go down! make sure you don't miss anything by adding Ghostwerks to your friends and subscriptions so you'll be posted for any and all updates and special offers only available to the F.O.G. (Friends Of Ghostwerks). if you don't have mySpace, don't fret, i'll get you on the ghettoManga newsletter (subscribe to your right).
thank God SOMEBODY'S making good stuff...
holla!
-gM

$25 a month surcharge for being Overweight?

-gM

Fear is Wack...

Dare! The Adventures of Darius Davidson -One of my self-published comics- is about a kid who gets in an accident that destroys his brain's ability to generate fear responses. as a result, Darius becomes an unwitting amateur hero, adventurer, and all-around alpha male type who is constantly defeating more powerful, better equipped and more experienced enemies. i originally came up with the concept purely as an excuse to draw a little black dude with dreads hitting monsters and super-villains in the head with blunt objects, but it wasn't long until i stumbled onto a basic reality: Fear is Wack.

Fear is one of the primary building materials used to create an invisible jail designed to keep us from roaming the Earth as giants, making the world over in our image like God, our Father, intended. in the comic, Darius in unable to become afraid, and it causes problems for him (the system, after all, is built for people who behave based on fear), but it makes many more things possible for him. when you overcome fear, your actions become harder to predict, and what's more, harder to control. overcoming fear leads to freedom. because you can choose to do what you want. bad people want to do wrong, but good people use that freedom to do right!
if God (or the universe, or whatever) has put something in your heart, do it! surely, you will be confronted by a spirit of fear. but whether it comes from others or from within, be sure that Fear can't stop you unless you let it! after all, Fear is wack.
holla!
-samax.
ghettoManga
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

this new Graf Doc got me bent!

Piece Of Mind trailer
i copped this off the Jungle45 blog fam! check them out!
-gM

this should be in Obama CD changer...

Black Enough by Supastition
ummm DOPE!

ghetto FABulous!

this is one i've been waiting on! with art and story by hot young talent Charlie "Fab" Goubile, Blackbird:Growing Pains promises to be HOT! but you need not take my word for it... click on the cover to see preview art and purchase issue 1 of that joint from IndyPlanet.com

-ghettoManga.com

Ladies Love Cool John... SIKE!

okay, so the ladies at planned parenthood are NOT feelin' John McCain... according to BUST Magazine "Planned Parenthood handed out more than 700 pounds of condoms at the Democratic National Convention, and not just because Dems are sexy. Each condom was enclosed in a hot pink matchbook bearing the message: ’Protect Yourself From John McCain (In This Election).' The back lists one of Planned Parenthood’s top ten reasons to NOT vote for McCain, such as the frightening #10 — John McCain has voted against women’s reproductive rights and privacy 125 times in his 25 years in Washington, DC. McCain’s pathetic record on women’s health issues has earned him the lowest possible rating from the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. "
ghettoManga.com

this cat's ILL!

one of my discoveries on mySpace, Boston area hip hop illustrator Shaanti Williams is sick wit' it like Hepatitis B! i don't have a lot to say, just click the link and go to his website, WhutGood.com, a'ight?
uno.
-gM

Body Bags One Shot preview

continued in Body Bags: One Shot, coming in the late fall from 12 Gauge Comics. Art and story by Jason Pearson.
-gM

ghostFace+DOOM+Dilla= where do i sign?

Sniper Elite plus Murdergoons= SNIPERLITE by Dilla, MF DOOM, Ghostface
freakin' sweet...
uno.
-gM

will Lawyers stop Watchmen?

movie studio 20th Century Fox has applied for an injunction blocking the release of 2009 Warner Bros blockbuster film Watchmen (based on the fan-favorite graphic novel of the same name), claiming Warner Bros did not properly secure all the rights to make the film. According to The New York Times, Fox asserts that they should'a been consulted with, since they have partial rights to the film. Fox just wants some of that Dark Knight paper... the judge presiding over the case blocked the release of The Dukes of Hazard in 2005, leading to a settlement of around $17.5 milli. given that Dark Knight's raked in $500 million domestic (and counting) expect Fox to turn its nose up to something as paltry as $17.5m, and there's no way the WB execs are gonna let the movie get delayed, so mark down another black eye for Time-Warner... the only question is how bad will the settlement be...
-gMJG8D69D

order gM Quarterly now!

the wait is over people! the debut issue of ghettoManga Quarterly is here for your perusal! after a long wait, i finally got the first issue done...
it's 52 pages long, with original comics from Nat Landry (Devil Kitty and Violent Amphibious Beaver Boy), Garland Watson (Return Of The Backpackers) and me, Samax Amen (Manchild:Birthday Boy).
Hip hoppers will dig the article featuring DJ Kool Herc and reviews of that new Nas joint, and I put you on (once again) to the Mighty Underdogs new plate Droppin' Science Fiction. as an added bonus, i featured my art series Pay*Triotic in these pages, and much, much more!
COP THAT for just $10 plus shipping, homey!

Deviant of the Day

Straw Barry Meets His Maker by finkycake
british photographer Fiona Leary made me bust a gut with these Straw Barry joints. click the pic to check her out!
holla!
-gM

TO interviews Three Six Mafia (and vice versa)

Facetime: Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens and Grammy Award winning rap duo Three 6 Mafia
-gM

freestyle...

bay area crew The Mighty Underdogs' Lateef and Gif promoting their new album Droppin' Science Fiction, in stores 10/14.
holla!
-gM

"Pay-triotic" is up at Zubar

Was It Good For You? by samax

Make Hoops, Not War by samax.

Buffalo Soul by samax

The Soldier by samax.

Gorgeous Destroyer (America) by samax.
these joints (from my illustration series Paytriotic) are the pieces i put up for the show at Zubar last night. Paytriotic will be up for a few weeks (along with khalid's brilliant series, Playlist). these pieces are featured in the summer issue of ghettoManga Quarterly (available soon. subscribe to the email newsletter for details) in the article "Feeling Pay*triotic?"
so you can cop them that way, or buy individual prints for 40 bucks (plus shipping) each. UPDATE! order all five prints with free shipping below. you can choose to order with frames or without!

there's one life, one love so there can only be one king

greetings, fam! Click that pic for a free mix of The Best of the Marleys vol 1 by DJ Nomadics. yeah, that's right! download that joint for free, bredren!
uno.
-ghettoManga
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

hip hop, art, beer (for a good cause!)

saturday. $5 cover goes to breast cancer research.
at thursday's show, i created a fly piece and sold it to one of the show attendees, and i'll be creating art live on the scene again tonight , so bring some scrilla and get original art for cheap!
see ya there!
ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

they brung the pain

-gM

Who's the master?

lots of people dying lately... Bernie Mac. Isaac Hayes. Carlos Meglia. and now character actor Julius Carry (The Last Dragon, Brisco County) has passed at age 56. there are many varied ideologies concerning death that comfort us when we lose a loved one, but it can all be a bit much. i think Yoda said it best when he said "rejoice for those who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. miss them, do not... you must train yourself to let go of that which you you fear to lose..."
RIP, master.
-gM