Exclusive: Oni Press to Honor Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s New York in New Graphic Novel, Reveal Variant Covers

Oni Press—the publishing house behind titles like Scott Pilgrim and Rick and Morty—will be honoring Wu-Tang Clan founder and MC Ol’ Dirty Bastard with a new graphic novel titled ODB: Oddities, Discord, & B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City. The book is a fully illustrated, 112-page reimagining of New York City’s five boroughs through the eyes of ODB and will, according to Oni, explore “the legendary artist’s many identities through a Big Apple distorted through the prisms of hand-to-hand kung-fu combat, dystopian science fiction, darkness-haunted horror, and lovelorn romance as presented by an all-star cast of creative talents.”

OBD: Oddities, Discord, & B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City was created in partnership with Four Screens and authorized by the Ol’ Dirty Bastard estate, and the release will feature a number of exclusive variant covers, an accompanying 7-inch vinyl of “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” and a toy figure. The graphic novel will include contributions from artists like Troy-Jeffrey Allen, Paris Alleyne, David Brame, Dojo Gubser, Jay Hero, Maan House, Mike Del Mundo, Jason Pierre, Ike Reed & David Gorden, Chris Robinson, Regine Sawyer, Damion Scott, Felipe Sobreiro and Ron Wimberly.

“I am thrilled to bring ODB to life in this incredibly powerful graphic novel. ODB: Oddities, Discord and B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City combines the essence of my husband like I’ve never seen before. He was and is an inspiration to my family, children, and fans across the world,” Icelene Jones, ODB’s wife and administrator of the Estate of ODB, says. “It’s been such a pleasure to see this book come to life with our incredibly talented partners at Four Screens and Oni Press.”

Four Sceens CEO Messiah Jacobs says: “Collaborating with our immensely creative partners at Lion Forge and Oni Press to develop a brand new graphic novel has been mind blowing! Thanks to the steadfast support of our partners at the Estate of ODB, we have merged the five personas of ODB with the five boroughs of New York to create the ultimate hip-hop universe. ODB: Oddities, Discord and B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City pays homage to The Culture. It has been an honor to work with each and every writer and artist on this project. We’re bringing the ruckus with this one.”

Check out the ODB: Oddities, Discord, & B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City main cover image, four exclusive variants, 7-inch single cover artwork and an ODB toy done in collaboration with Super 7 below. You can pre-order everything here.

ODB: Oddities, Discord, & B-Sides – Lyrical Ruckus in the City Main Cover: