AFROFUTURES Interview: Quinn McGowan’s CHILDREN OF THE ELEMENTS

“Every word in that sentence is fire!” That was the exact reaction when creator Quinn McGowan described the Children of the Elements on a recent episode of the Black Comic Lords.

Featured inside AFROFUTURES Children of the Elements imagines a distant future where hip-hop has evolved from a cultural movement into the foundation of civilization. Blending post-apocalyptic worldbuilding, high fantasy, and deep reverence for hip hop’s four elements: MCs, DJing, breaking, and graffiti!

As we approach the end of production for AFROFUTURES, I wanted to give some shine to the stories that I couldn’t openly discuss when the Kickstarter campaign was running. Largely because we were too early into production to provide anything concrete. One of those stories is Children of Elements by Quinn McGowan.

In the following interview, Quinn lets you step into a world that he has been thinking about for quite some time.

Tell us about yourself. When did you first discover hip hop?

I’m from Memphis, Tennessee — a comic book artist and an overall creative. I think I discovered hip-hop in a way that was different from a lot of other kids. There was a song on Marvin Gaye’s In Our Lifetime called “Ego Tripping.” At the time, the only way I could describe what he was doing over the music was preaching. It felt like he was preaching instead of singing, and I knew he could sing. So it was very deliberate.

I’m an older person, so I remember being in elementary school and hearing kids say things like, “I’m bad,” quoting LL Cool J and all of that. Having the perspective of seeing those phenomena break out in real time is something that sticks with you. But, yeah, the first thing that I now understand to be hip-hop — the first thing I discovered as hip-hop — was actually Marvin Gaye.

What is CHILDREN OF THE ELEMENTS?

The way I describe Children of the Elements usually comes down to one of two long sentences.

The first is that it’s a post-apocalyptic hip-hop high-fantasy graphic album.

The second — and shout out to Chuck Collins, creator and artist of the webcomic Bounce, who introduced me to the concept of hauntology — is that it’s a post-hauntology hip-hop chronicle.

The story takes place several hundred, maybe even a thousand years, into our future. The world has been devastated in many ways, particularly ecologically. It starts out as a kind of post-apocalyptic fare we’re accustomed to seeing, but over time it transforms into something else. At its core, it’s asking the question: “After the apocalypse, where do we go from there?” In this world, hip-hop leads the way.

One of the most important things to understand about the setting is that hip-hop has both risen and fallen as a global religious phenomenon. The easiest comparison is a kung fu movie. In those stories, the main character can perform seemingly supernatural feats because they have chi. In the world of Children of the Elements, people have flow.

Flow is the sound of your own blood rushing between your ears. When you tap into that flow state, you can run faster, jump higher, and push beyond normal limits. MCs can rhyme with extraordinary power. B-boys and B-girls can dance with incredible force. Graffiti can become magical. DJs can make cuts so precise they can literally draw blood. Every element of hip-hop has evolved into something mythic.

The story begins with a young boy who runs away from home to make a name for himself in the local battle scene. Very quickly, he discovers that nothing is what he expected.

How long has this been gestating as an idea?

This idea has probably been taking shape in my mind since the first time I saw Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and saw Tina Turner in that silver suit. It touched something in me in the same way Whoopi Goldberg has talked about seeing Star Trek and running through the house saying, “There are Black people in the future.”

There was something powerful about Tina Turner’s presence — not just that she existed in that world, but that she had successfully dominated it. She wasn’t surviving the future; she was shaping it.

The project really began to take form years later when I was starting out with the hip-hop group I’ve been a part of for more than 20 years, the Iron Mic Coalition. One of the other MCs in that brotherhood, Deric “Danny” Jerry, is also an accomplished writer. I’m not even the only comic book guy in the group. I’m up for an Eisner, and he’s written stories featuring Black Panther and Captain America — specifically Sam Wilson. So we both work in the field.

We spent a lot of time kicking around an earlier version of this story that was centered on a single protagonist. But I was always obsessed with the world itself — the visuals, the mythology, the possibilities. Eventually, I expanded it beyond that original chapter into something much larger, and that’s where the title ultimately comes from.

In truth, some version of this idea has always existed in my head because I’ve always had one foot in hip-hop and one foot in comics. To me, those two things have always been intertwined. My idol, Denys Cowan, is a perfect example. He’s a legendary comic book artist, but he also created the cover art for GZA. That connection between comics and hip-hop has always felt natural to me.

I’ve always wanted to tell a story that uses the four elements of hip-hop as the foundation for an expansive world. It’s almost like taking The Wizard of Oz and placing it inside a future shaped by hip-hop culture, then pushing beyond the traditional hero’s journey to ask what happens afterward.

The idea that this music of the streets — this music of youth — could become the catalyst for an entirely new civilization has been living in my imagination for as long as I can remember.

So, pretty much my entire life, I guess, is the answer.

Is there potential for more of this world after AFROFUTURES?

I mean, there’s obviously a lot of potential beyond this initial story.

What I think people will find interesting about the way Children of the Elements is constructed is that we tried to approach culture the same way many of us experienced it growing up. If you were fortunate enough to have grandparents or great-grandparents around, you’ve probably seen how they could casually quote scripture in the middle of a conversation. It wasn’t forced; it was simply woven into the way they spoke and understood the world.

We wanted to do something similar with hip-hop. Throughout Children of the Elements, there are casual, almost offhand references to iconic lyrics, ideas, and moments from the culture. They emerge naturally from the situations and conversations rather than being highlighted or explained. We don’t put a spotlight on them. They’re simply part of the fabric of the world.

At the same time, we’ve tried to create something that works on multiple levels. If you’re completely new to hip-hop, hopefully it’s still an entertaining and engaging story. If you’re a fan of hip-hop, there are deeper layers you’ll appreciate. And if you’re a true hip-hop nerd, there are countless Easter eggs, references, and connections to discover.

More than anything, we worked hard to embed the culture into the DNA of the story. My hope is that even if someone doesn’t intellectually recognize every reference, they’ll still feel the influence of the culture in the world, the characters, and the storytelling — no pun intended.

I hope people enjoy it. And, yeah, this is definitely just the first chapter.

Discover more of Quinn’s work at Legends Press.

🎧///AFROFUTURES release projection: Summer 2026