Meet Anthony Piper | Writer & Illustrator in Comic and Animation

We had the good fortune of connecting with Anthony Piper and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anthony, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I found myself being more comfortable knowing I controlled my own means of making a living than having those decisions determined by someone else. There are too many factors that can’t impede career mobility and financial stability for my liking, especially in the creative industries. Editors and producers take new positions at different studios. Projects get canceled or changed so much, they require a new creative team. Artists don’t get credited correctly for their contributions to a project; acknowledgments which could propel their careers. There’s just a lot of things I’ve seen that can go wrong for me to ever put my full faith in such a volatile industry. There are some artists who are in such high demand because of their talent and skill, that they’ll rarely have to worry about those obstacles. However, for someone like myself who is a bit of a wildcard when it comes to my creative output, wearing the hat of a writer, illustrator, designer, etc, I never see myself staying in one lane long enough to reach that level. I find it much more reliable and fruitful to be in business for myself, as that is what my artistry dictates.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My art has been about successfully merging all of my passions into a viable package and turning it into a personal brand. I’m a lover of superheroes, cartoons, music, storytelling, and comedy. All of those things are areas of art that comprised my childhood interests and my goal has been to find a way to dabble in all of them as a career. That didn’t initially become apparent to me until I created Trill League, which is a superhero satire I created in 2014. My original intent coming out of college was to become a music producer, which then shifted to becoming an illustrator after learning how difficult it was to make it as a beatmaker (laughs).

Trill League was the proverbial “lightning in a bottle” that manifested everything I ever wanted to do creatively. It just spilled out of me through the creation of that project. I already had a sizeable following on social media because of my illustrative work, but once I started to create my own characters and put a comedic spin on them, people began to see some of the inner workings of my mind. As a result, my following grew and people became a fan of my humor. Then once I started to create a story revolving around all of the characters, they became fans of my storytelling style, which was a mix of comedy, commentary, and mystery.

I can say Trill League opened a lot of doors for me. I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to work on so many projects as a result of Trill League putting the versatility of my talents on full display. I’ve written and illustrated on multiple IPs under Marvel Comics, including X-Men, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Spider-Man. I illustrated a hip-hop & sci-fi inspired children’s book called “My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich”, written by Ibi Zoboi and published by Penguin Random House. I crafted and wrote a story for Jason Derulo’s fictional character “Uzo”, a graphic novel that will be published by Z2 Comics in 2022. I did character designs and layouts for R&B singer SiR’s music video “John Redcorn” (which is a great song if you haven’t heard it). I’ve illustrated for multiple brands and media outlets including The New York Times, The Baffler, Brisk Iced Tea, Complex, and Netflix. And then there’s the most anticipated of all my projects…bringing Trill League to life, which Lionsgate and 50 Cent are attempting to help me do.

I can say Trill League as an idea has been the greatest thing to ever manifest from my creative journey of becoming a professional artist. It showed me things I wasn’t aware I was capable of doing. It brought me into the spaces of important people who could help propel my visions. Due to the controversy of the comedy in the series, it created necessary dialogue and conversation in the black art community of what black art entails. It became a seed that sprouted some of my most cherished friendships to date. It also exposed to me the lack of diversity in the comic and animation industries, an archaic business model, and a lack of respect for artists—all hindrances that don’t allow people who create the characters and stories that the world loves and consumes, to thrive as they should—which is something I hope to change in the future.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
As someone who just recently moved to LA, I’m still learning the city. There’s so much to do out here, so I rely heavily on my friends and new acquaintances to tell me where to check out. So if one of my friends from Chicago came out to visit, we’d likely be partnering up with one of the LA homies to play tour guide.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are a lot of people who have contributed to my success in my pursuits. My family of course is #1. They’ve always supported and encouraged me from a young age, telling me I would do great things with my talent. I guess in some ways, I made it my mission to work so hard just to prove them right just out of love. That’s the foundation of everything I do.

Website: anthonypiper.com

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Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/anthony-piper-61b90897

Twitter: ant_piper

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/anthonympiper