In 2012, a talented creator named Ed Piskor published an ongoing comic series on the website “Boing Boing.” The series, titled The Hip-Hop Family Tree, explored the history of the music genre that became Hip-Hop. Over the course of 4 1/2 years, Ed delved into the origins of the many artists who helped create Hip-Hop and turn it into the popular culture phenomenon it is today. Fans and artists alike soon embraced his work, with the artists sharing it on their social media platforms.
Fantagraphics partnered with Ed and published his well-received series in multiple volumes. The series started with Hip Hop Family Tree Vol. 1: 1970s-1981 in 2013, followed by three more volumes. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop, Fantagraphics and Piskor are releasing a book that contains all of the works in the Hip Hop Family Tree, the Omnibus, which will be available in stores on October 17th. Ahead of this release, we recently had the opportunity to speak with Ed about the genesis of his original idea, the reactions of fans and artists, and his collaboration with Fantagraphics. So, let’s welcome Ed Piskor to GVN Talking Comics.
Starting with “Boing Boing” in 2012
GVN: Thanks for giving us some more of your time, Ed. So, you originally started Hip Hop Family Tree as an ongoing feature on the website Boing Boing in January of 2012. What made you decide to focus on the history of Hip-Hop at that time and was there a particular artist or song that made you decide to dig deeper into the origins of the genre?
EP: I had the opportunity to do a weekly comic on what was one of the most popular websites on the planet, but I didn’t have a ton of ideas while taking advantage of that remarkable real estate. HHFT was just another one of those weekly strips, but it really caught fire fast, and I just continued it week after week, in 2–3-page chunks, for 4 1/2 years.
Doing it All
GVN: You did pretty much everything in the series from writing, drawing, lettering, and coloring. Was that by necessity or design?
EP: I just like to do my own thing. To this day, I just make the comics I want to and then show publishers because I’m not interested in “pitching” ideas. My strategy is “Here’s my comic, wanna publish it?”
Artist Reactions
GVN: I imagine all creators would love to follow that mantra. As you worked on the series early on, did you get any feedback, either negative or positive, from those artists whose lives you were exploring? Did anyone ever suggest changes or that a comic wasn’t the media best suited to tell their history? (Judging from the positive reaction, that was not the case).
EP: All good feedback from the players involved. I credit them for generating the biggest word of mouth, because they’d share the strips on their own social media platforms. If anyone made those suggestions, I didn’t hear them. I’ve spent my life figuring out how to start making comics, I’m not about to start listening to anyone about what I should make or how I should do it.
GVN: The Hip Hop Family Tree was greeted with great enthusiasm by fans, critics and by performers. Thinking back, was there a demographic that you most wanted to find acceptance? Was it the fans, the critics, the Hip Hop Community or just yourself initially?
EP: When I made the first strip, I felt really good about it, and I wanted to do more. I was hoping that the audience would support it and they certainly did. I’m not chasing a demographic or anything as crass or impure as that. I did realize that at any point, rappers could destroy the strip and all I got was promotion from them, so I feel good about things.
Working with Fantagraphics
GVN: The Hip Hop Family Tree was eventually published by Fantagraphics in 2013 and ended up as four different volumes. How did you decide on Fanatagraphic to publish your first and ongoing collections?
EP: I had endless opportunity to place HHFT with almost any publish which gave me the opportunity to start asking for things. I thought it would be cool to have a big book with very antique feeling paper and Fantagraphics said “yes” to everything.
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Hip-Hop Family Tree, the Omnibus
GVN: In celebration of Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary, Fantagraphics is packaging your entire Hip-Hop Family Tree into a deluxe hardcover edition. What will be some of the extra’s that will be included in this Omnibus?
EP: We’re jamming all the HHFT related art I’ve made that wasn’t in the first 4 volumes, for starters. That’s dozens and dozens of pages. I drew a lot of new stuff to help glue the book together. Then there’s a robust commentary that communicates a lot of the decisions I made while working on the comic. It’s the best book I ever made.
Red Room
GVN: I want to thank you once again for sharing your time, Ed. Before I let you go, with the Halloween Season approaching, I want to mention your “splatterpunk” Red Room series. Red Room: The Antisocial Network (which is what we discussed in our first interview) and Vol. 2 Red Room: Trigger Warnings. After the two volumes, have you finished with this storyline or is there still an itch you might need to scratch there?
EP: There’s a Third volume called Crypto Killaz coming out in January. For now, I’m working on some other ideas, but I might make more Red Room comics in the future. Thanks!
Fantagraphics Hip Hop Family Tree, the Omnibus by Ed Piskor will be available on October 17th. Be sure to check it out where great books are sold.
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 50 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove head first over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 18 year old boy with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.