Before the character's MCU Deadpool will first team up with another legendary figure in rap icon Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious B.I.G. / Biggie Smalls. To celebrate the rap artist's first appearance on a Marvel Comics cover, Marvel has given fans a sneak peek of the historic comic event.
Christopher Wallace grew up in Brooklyn as an amateur rapper before becoming noticed by producer P. Diddy (Sean Combs), who quickly signed Wallace to his new label Bad Boy Records when he was in his early 20s. In just a span of four years, Wallace would release two monumental hip-hop albums, Ready to Die (1994) and Life After Death (1997), with the latter released posthumously following his death in 1997. Biggie left an enormous impact on the world of hip-hop and music for his unique storytelling, creative rhyme schemes, and down-to-earth sensibilities. Initially gaining prominence in the early to mid-1990s within the underground rap scene, BIG quickly rose to prominence alongside the likes of other rising hip-hop artists during the era such as Tupac Shakur, Nas, and Jay-Z.
In honor of the 50th anniversary of both hip-hop and one of its chief players in Biggie Smalls, the sports and entertainment agency hustl. has collaborated with the recently released Deadpool #1 depicts Biggie perched on top of a golden throne wearing his famous crown, with Deadpool standing by his side. Since copies are minimal, readers are urged to reserve a copy as soon as possible. Unfortunately, fans hoping for a crossover between Biggie and the Merc with a Mouth within the story itself may be in for some disappointment. Biggie's appearance is exclusive to the cover of the issue itself, with the content of Deadpool #1 remaining its own standalone story unrelated to the variant cover. The issue from writer Alyssa Wong and artist Martin Coccolo finds Deadpool attempting to a group of professional assassins known as the Atelier.
Marvel Superheroes And Hip-Hop Are Staples Of New York City
New York City is not only the birthplace of iconic Marvel heroes like Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Avengers, Daredevil, and Doctor Strange, but it is also considered the birthplace of hip-hop. Marvel Comics has shown great reverence to hip-hop culture and artists of the past, often through variant covers. The comics publisher has even released two hardcover volumes collecting variant covers that pay tribute to classic hip-hop album covers. Biggie Smalls and the Marvel Universe, are two fixtures of New York City that remain forever intertwined.
Following the release of the new Biggie cover, hustl. COO Keri Harris shared that next month the agency "will follow this up with another all-time great, which we cannot wait to share with pop culture fans." The variant cover for Deadpool #1 featuring the Notorious B.I.G. is available in limited quantities from TheHaul.com.
Source: Marvel
