Z2 Comics is offering 'Joan Jett: 40x40 Read Along Book and Record Set' and 'Apocalypse 91: Revolution Never Sleeps' only in stores this week.
The press release follows:
Media Release -- Z2 continues to reward music lovers and comics fans alike with an ever-expanding offering of original and authentic graphic novels and collectibles created alongside some of the biggest names in entertainment. Now, the company announces their first-ever participation in Record Store Day and Local Comic Shop Day with exclusive products for each!
First up, celebrate 40 years of two of the most iconic singles in rock history with this special one-time book and record set release! This exclusive-colored vinyl single includes rare versions featuring Pat Smear and the Sex Pistols alongside two comic book stories! This special RSD Black Friday package is released in conjunction with Z2 Comics' complete graphic novel Joan Jett & the Blackhearts- 40 x 40: Bad Reputation/I Love Rock n' Roll and is inspired by the classic "Read Along Book & Record Sets" also popular in 1981.
The full original graphic anthology pulls together a who's who list of female creators from the comic book and pop culture worlds, including famed artist Tara McPherson to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 20 classic tracks featured on Joan's landmark albums Bad Reputation and I Love Rock n' Roll.
Rap legend Chuck D makes his graphic novel debut for Local Comic Shop Day marking the 30th anniversary of the Grammy-nominated album Apocalypse 91: The Enemy Strikes Black. Upon release, the album hit #4 on the Billboard 200 chart and featured powerful anthems "Shut 'Em Down," "Can't Truss It" and "By the Time I Get To Arizona," a fiery retort to the state governor's refusal to recognize the new Martin Luther King, Jr national holiday.
The Joan Jett and the Blackhearts- 40x40: Read Along Book and Record Set is available only through participating record stores as part of Record Store Day Black Friday in a strictly limited edition of only 1,981 copies on colored vinyl. Chuck D Presents- Apocalypse 91: Revolution Never Sleeps features an exclusive cover by Chuck D himself and is available through participating comic shops beginning TODAY, in a one time limited edition of 2,000 copies!
As an added holiday shopping bonus, Z2 is offering the last remaining copies of the long sold-out Murder Ballads deluxe edition graphic novel and exclusive 10" vinyl soundtrack by Dan Auerbach and Robert Finley as co-released with Mondo, exclusively through the company's website.
Support your favorite local record store or comic book shop this week with exclusive releases from the publisher that has truly perfected the relationship between the two!
About Joan Jett:
Joan Jett grew up during a time when rock 'n' roll was off limits to girls and women, but with her first band The Runaways in 1975, she promptly blew the door to the boys' club right off its hinges. As the leader of her band the Blackhearts, Jett has become a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, has had eight platinum and gold albums and nine Top 40 singles, including the classics "Bad Reputation," "I Love Rock 'N' Roll," "I Hate Myself For Loving You," and "Crimson and Clover." Her independent record label, Blackheart, was founded in 1980 after she was rejected by no less than 23 labels. Blackheart is one of the longest running indie labels and continues to give voice to new bands. As a producer, she has overseen albums by Bikini Kill, Circus Lupus, as well as the Germs' LA punk masterpiece, GI. Jett's music has become a permanent force in mainstream culture. Jett and the Blackhearts continue touring the globe with headline shows alongside fellow rock legends like The Who, Green Day, Heart, and Foo Fighters. After two COVID-19 postponements, the group will return to the road in summer 2022 for The Stadium Tour with Def Leppard, Motley Crue and Poison. Jett has acted in movies ("Light of Day" alongside Michael J. Fox), television ("Mozart in the Jungle", "The Muppets", "Law & Order"), theater ("The Rocky Horror Picture" show on Broadway), and has lent her voice to animated characters ("Steven Universe", "Kipo and the Age of the Wonderbeast"). In 2010, she helped tell the real story of her first band by serving as the executive producer of the film "The Runaways," which starred Kristen Stewart as Jett and Dakota Fanning as Runaways vocalist Cherie Currie. "Bad Reputation," a documentary about Jett's life, premiered to critical acclaim at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Now, as she celebrates the 40th anniversary of "Bad Reputation" and the "I Love Rock 'N' Roll" album, Jett remains as potent of a force in mainstream culture as she ever has.
About Public Enemy:
Public Enemy have proven that rebellion is more than the sound of a musical genre, the culture of a social class or the color of a skin; it is an unmovable, unmistakable state of mind and heart. PE is hellbent on creating change where it is needed most. Determined to give voice to those who have long been ignored, unafraid to question institutional injustices, and intent on challenging any and all obstacles to social justice, Public Enemy have resisted with unprecedented intensity and eloquence.
Last year, the group released the critically acclaimed album "What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down," reuniting them with their original record label, Def Jam and featuring "Fight The Power: Remix 2020" with Nas, Rapsody, Black Thought, Jahi, YG and Questlove. The album also included guest appearances by Mike D and Ad-Rock of Beastie Boys, Cypress Hill, Run-DMC, Ice-T, PMD, George Clinton and more. Their classic albums are the soundtrack to hip-hop's rise as a form of social and political commentary. 1988's It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back was, and still is, one of the most important records ever made, with Rolling Stone recently naming it the #15 Greatest Album of All Time and The New York Times added it to their list of "25 Most Significant Albums of the Last Century." Fear of a Black Planet--also named on the Rolling Stone list--features PE anthems including the original version of "Fight The Power," "911 Is a Joke" and "Welcome To The Terrordome." Most recently, SPIN Magazine named them to the #9 position on their "Most Influential Artists of the Last 35 Years" list. PE was inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 and received The Recording Academy's "Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award" in 2020.
About Z2:
Recently dubbed the "hottest brand in music" by Forbes, Z2 has quickly become the premier destination for authentic graphic novels and collectibles, created in partnership with top-tier artists, musicians and pop-culture icons. Distributed globally via Simon & Schuster, Z2 has produced 50+ unique graphic novel properties, collaborating with Gorillaz, Blondie, Elvis Presley, Freddie Mercury, Balmain, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Jason Derulo, The Grateful Dead, Machine Gun Kelly, Sublime, Beethoven, RZA, Mötley Crüe, Vince Staples, Cheech & Chong, The Doors, Anthrax, Public Enemy, Ronnie James Dio, King Diamond, All Time Low, Ivan Moody,Yungblud, Cypress Hill, Babymetal, Major Lazer, RZA, Alter Bridge, Sturgill Simpson, Poppy, John Lee Hooker and Charlie "Bird" Parker. Learn more at Z2comics.com, and follow us on Instagram (@z2comics) and Twitter (@z2comics)
