Stormzy is set to publish his first children’s book entitled ‘Superheroes’, to be released on 16th September 2021. The rapper’s publication follows the release of ‘Superheroes’, the single which was released last year. Stormzy dedicated the music video to his own superhero, Chadwick Boseman, the celebrated actor who sadly passed away last year. The music video ended with a touching dedication message to the actor.
The British rapper has worked on the publication with #Merky Books, the book publisher which he created with Penguin Books. The book’s premise and aims are to celebrate real-life superheroes, the figures chosen will be made up of 50 British icons, selected by Stormzy and #Merky Books. Those chosen will represent bravery, empowerment and individuality, and in turn, these icons and their stories will inspire and empower children. Proceeds from the book will also be donated to Stormzy’s charity #Merky Foundation. The charity promotes ways to battle racial injustice, last year the foundation donated £500,000 to fight racial inequalities.
#Merky Books took to their Instagram account to announce the news.
The real-life superheroes included in the book include comedian Mo Gilligan, supermodel Jordan Dunn, mathematician and MBE holder Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon, sprinter Dina Asher-Smith, celebrated author Candice Carty-Williams, Baker and presenter Liam Charles, former footballer and MBE Ian Wright, actor and presenter Reggie Yates and footballer Rinsola Babajide. Many more familiar faces and acclaimed icons will also be included, chosen from different fields of arts and entertainment , sport, film, music, fashion, food and culinary arts and literature.
Babajide had this to say regarding his involvement with the upcoming book. “It’s such an honour to be part of this project and I’m so proud to help inspire the younger generation … I’m hoping to reach mainly those who look like me and have doubt in their mind about being able to make it professional in whatever they love, whether that be sports or in the performing arts industry.”
Along with an introduction by Stormzy, the individual stories will be told by Sophia Thakur, an acclaimed author and award-winning poet. Thakur penned the celebrated 2019 release ‘Somebody Give This Heart A Pen’, it was her debut book and was featured in the BBC and Stylist Magazine. Every superhero will come with a powerful story and equipped with an actual superpower; each icon’s story will be powerfully described by Thakur’s words. Joining the team is unknown illustrator, Denzell Dankwah, a 21-year-old student from the University of Gloucestershire. Dankwah contacted #Merky Books directly, the student messaged the team through their Instagram account and showed the publishing group his comic book illustrations.
Thakur has provided the following statement concerning the new publication and emphasises the importance of the book. “The earliest seeds that are planted often influence the rest of the garden. If from a young age, we only really meet blackness from a position of weakness, of slavery and shootings … stereotypes and racist media … as children, we don’t get an opportunity to develop a healthy and confident outlook on what it means to be black. It was important to work on this book to plant a new seed of celebration. Of black excellence into our young minds who will hopefully bloom into their very own superheroes. Confident and powerful.”
The upcoming publication’s illustrator Denzell Dankwah has also described his excitement over the project whilst giving thanks to the team behind the book. “Working on this project has been an exciting experience as I grew up with a love for superheroes and cartoons. Since my illustrations are heavily influenced by comic books, this was a great opportunity to portray such huge figures and role models as heroes for young readers to look up to. This is a dream come true as I’ve always wanted to illustrate a book and I’m grateful to have collaborated with Sophia and the amazing team at #Merky Books.”
‘Superheroes’ was conceived to not just inspire but to also represent icons of colour, currently, the statistic of children’s books published between 2017 and 2019 that represent or personify characters of colour is only 7%. With the publication of Stormyz new project, we can hope that not only will be a percentage increase but also will bring a new chapter in the publishing industry.
Click here to pre-order the book.
