Black Panther Q & A With Blk & Bold Founders; Culture Connections and Partnership

Co Founders of Blk & Bold, Pernell Cezar and Rod Johnson, talk about their fandom over the Black Panther franchise, the emotional connections to Chadwick Boseman and the excitement of their new partnership with Marvel Studios’ Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Q: What was your reaction when the first Black Panther came out??

Rod: I was excited. I saw the movie like three times in theaters, I bought merch, I took photos in front of any type of advertisement that was outside, it was a moment. It wasn’t like the first Black superhero ever, but it was the first, at least,? in my lifetime, that was put on that type of platform. To have the Black Panther as a lesser known story and to get that type of treatment was pretty gratifying so I was in full support of them (Marvel) doing that.

Pernell: Prior to when the first Black Panther came out,? I was a little more of a passive consumer of the (Marvel) properties. When BP came out it kind of connected me to all of it, just out of how well produced the movie was from the lens of the Black Community; and how well? black culture was connected to Marvel’s overall superhero theme. It just built a closer affinity to Marvel’s overall work,? just by feeling closer/connected to actual characters that were part of BP.?

Q: What character do you resonate with the most??

Rod: Killmonger. I hate that everyone thinks that he’s the villain, he wasn’t a villain. He’s not a villain, he just challenges the status quo and he wasn’t just going with the flow. He had a series of events and experiences that transpired, that impacted the way that he looked at life and he wanted other people to be aware of different perspectives and different POVs and just because I (he) think(s) this way; that doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m inaccurate or trying to be a contrarian. No, I have life experiences that brought me to this point and I’m going to always see the world through that lens. I’m not going to be able to turn that off; so that’s something that I resonate with, to this day.?

Pernell: Resonate is interesting. Zuri. I admire Zuri. I admire people that have skill that I don’t think, otherwise, come natural for me and those seem to be; math and science. Her affinity to technology seems so natural of an element for her, so I kind of see what I wish I had in Zuri,? more than in everybody else.?

Q: How do you feel about the Black and Brown community reaction to Black Panther??

Rod: I loved it. I love the fact that we were able to have fun, be free and cosplay and let our guard down; so to speak. It felt good to be able to do that. I hadn’t seen people show up to movies dressed like characters and it was very authentic; people walking in with the African garb and the Kente cloth and it was dope. I’m glad that we were able to embrace a side that we hadn’t been able to, prior.?

Pernell: It’s a manifestation of feeling seen and included, and an experience; that we have been consumers of the Marvel properties and not really seen as contributors. To know that there was a Black man that directed the movie all the way to the main cast being a Black cast. When you’re talking about the Motherland all the way to the Diaspora and the story line, nuance of the relationships and dynamics just to cross the Black community you kind of felt represented and included, no matter what part of that spectrum you may resonate with. So I think they just did a great job of having Black people included and speaking to our own diversity in the Black Community.?

Q: What is your favorite/ most memorable scene?

Rod: I like the fight between Killmonger and T'challa. It was just good, it was like the two schools of thought. It was the old Malcolm vs. Martin, it was Magneto vs. Professor X it was like, hey we should get along and we should be peaceful and someone else was like, nah. I think you need someone who is going to push the limits and not go in the conventional route, I love the way that came to fruition by way of T'challa and Killmonger going at it. And then T'challa lost, which goes to show that sometimes that will prevail,? that will supersede how things have gone - the challenging of the status quo, I appreciate that.?

Pernell: I like M’Baku a lot. For me it was when T’challa’s Mother, Ramonda, went to M’Baku and asked for help.? It? just showed the parallelism to how?you?can be competing and deemed competitors amongst each other in the Black Community? but we all still have the same plight of survival and success and what it means to uplift the Black Community. I thought it was a really cool moment for them to come to him, and for him to lend support? to someone that he deemed his biggest rival.? It was just a great way to showcase the characters' personalities.?

Q: How do you think fans will react to the presence/ absence of Chadwick Boseman??

Rod: I am very interested, I wonder how Marvel is going to do justice by T'challa/ Chadwick Boseman. He was so instrumental, people really identified with him as Black Panther. It’s like Robert Downey Jr, he is Iron Man. There are some people who fully embrace and embody that and Chadwick Boseman was that for Black Panther. I’m hoping they do justice by it. I think in actuality that could make or break the film; because they have to do something and acknowledge his character. He was too instrumental in the success of the movie. I think if they do it right,? that property (Marvel) will have life long fans.?

Pernell: I’m still trying to figure out how I will. Tough. I think it’s going to be a tough thing to sit with and internalize because we know Chadwick, for all the beautiful work that he has contributed to society,? but also to how we resonate with it. He has been one of THE figure heads for a lot of cultural connecting moments on the big screen and now we’re absent of him for this, but know how he kind of helped set the tone for representation in general. It’s something to look at you know, it’s? the passing of the torch if you will. There’s big shoes to fill.?

Q: How does it feel to have a licensee partnership with a movie/ product/ culture icon that resonates with your community??

Rod: It’s really indescribable right now but there is a lot of overlap between how people feel about Black Panther and how people have said they feel about Blk & Bold. They identify with it and it means something to them.? They felt that the timing was right, they have a sense of pride and ownership in it and the fact that these two are merging and working together will be exactly what the doctor ordered for our respective communities.? I’m glad to be part of it and I hope that people understand that it’s more than just a licensing agreement. It’s not just?stamping their logo on our products but it represents the synergy between our respective organizations, our respective purposes.?

Pernell: It's been surreal, it’s surreal.? I haven’t allowed time to sit and process that as much because I want to make sure we do as much justice to this as we can. We deserve to, and our community deserves that and so I am very proud of the work that we have done thus far to be in a position to partner with Marvel; but even more excited about how we continue to normalize what expectations; companies, corporations, industries, have partnering with Black owned businesses and inclusion of Black owned businesses that continue to build expectations about how we’re represented and engaged as well.