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https://www.blackenterprise.com/420-events-that-celebrate-cannabis-culture/
Coincidentally, 4/20 falls on Easter this year. So, Happy Resurrection Day to Christians and those who observe. For those who engage in smoking bud—Happy 420!
This day isn’t just about sparking one up—it has evolved into this amazing celebration of cannabis culture where community, creativity, and all-around good vibes take center stage.
Throughout the country, cannabis connoisseurs are gathering to honor how this humble plant has intersected everything from wellness routines to business opportunities and artistic expression. BLACK ENTERPRISE has done a bit of legwork for you and rounded up six events you can pull-up to the 4/20 spirit and celebrate properly. These aren’t your average smoke sessions!
SweetWater 420 Fest
Going down in Atlanta, the SweetWater 420 Fest is a three-day festival held April 18-20 at Pullman Yards. This year marks its 20th anniversary with Cypress Hill, The Revivalists, Marcus King, Greensky Bluegrass and Drive-By Truckers performing. The festival offers SweetWater craft beers and a cannabis-friendly atmosphere with interactive activities.
Mile High 420 Festival
Denver Mile High 420 Festival goes down April 20 with long time bud advocate Tommy Chong as host. It should be noted that the Mile High 420 festival is a 21-year-old and older event held in Civic Center Park. Mile High will feature performances by Cordae, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, and Conway the Machine. The festival will have food vendors, sponsor activations and VIP experiences with meet-and-greets.
420 Week
Washington, D.C. is home to 420 Week. The event is a week-long series of cannabis-themed events starting April 20 and leading up to the National Cannabis Festival on April 28. The week features movie screenings and educational sessions as well as themed community gatherings.
420 Sunday Funday: A High-Vibe Downtown Shreveport Experience
The 420 Sunday Funday event in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana, is on April 20. Funday offers a cannabis-friendly experience with games and vendors, infused and non-infused food, mocktails, and a secret consumption lounge. The event also features educational talks and a local artisan marketplace. The exact location will be disclosed to ticket holders on the day of the event. The event welcomes attendees 21 and older who want to experience community and wellness through conscious consumption. Ticket prices start at $25.
Washington Square Park Cannabis Meetup
Thousands of people will gather at Washington Square Park in New York City for an informal celebration featuring impromptu music performances, vendor stalls, and a group smoke session at 4:20 PM Eastern.
Cannafest
A three-day celebration of all things cannabis takes place at 3453 W Hamilton Ave in Nashville, the gathering goes way beyond smoking. It’s a full-on immersion into cannabis education, wellness benefits, and bringing like-minded folks together. Expect hands-on workshops, live music, vendors, art displays, hemp products and CBD-centered activities. Attendees need to be 21 and older to engage. Tickets start at $35.
RELATED CONTENT: Whoopi Goldberg To Debut Crisp Blend In ‘Whoop-Tea’ Cannabis Drink
Coincidentally, 4/20 falls on Easter this year. So, Happy Resurrection Day to Christians and those who observe. For those who engage in smoking bud—Happy 420!
This day isn’t just about sparking one up—it has evolved into this amazing celebration of cannabis culture where community, creativity, and all-around good vibes take center stage.
Throughout the country, cannabis connoisseurs are gathering to honor how this humble plant has intersected everything from wellness routines to business opportunities and artistic expression. BLACK ENTERPRISE has done a bit of legwork for you and rounded up six events you can pull-up to the 4/20 spirit and celebrate properly. These aren’t your average smoke sessions!
SweetWater 420 Fest
Going down in Atlanta, the SweetWater 420 Fest is a three-day festival held April 18-20 at Pullman Yards. This year marks its 20th anniversary with Cypress Hill, The Revivalists, Marcus King, Greensky Bluegrass and Drive-By Truckers performing. The festival offers SweetWater craft beers and a cannabis-friendly atmosphere with interactive activities.
Mile High 420 Festival
Denver Mile High 420 Festival goes down April 20 with long time bud advocate Tommy Chong as host. It should be noted that the Mile High 420 festival is a 21-year-old and older event held in Civic Center Park. Mile High will feature performances by Cordae, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, and Conway the Machine. The festival will have food vendors, sponsor activations and VIP experiences with meet-and-greets.
420 Week
Washington, D.C. is home to 420 Week. The event is a week-long series of cannabis-themed events starting April 20 and leading up to the National Cannabis Festival on April 28. The week features movie screenings and educational sessions as well as themed community gatherings.
420 Sunday Funday: A High-Vibe Downtown Shreveport Experience
The 420 Sunday Funday event in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana, is on April 20. Funday offers a cannabis-friendly experience with games and vendors, infused and non-infused food, mocktails, and a secret consumption lounge. The event also features educational talks and a local artisan marketplace. The exact location will be disclosed to ticket holders on the day of the event. The event welcomes attendees 21 and older who want to experience community and wellness through conscious consumption. Ticket prices start at $25.
Washington Square Park Cannabis Meetup
Thousands of people will gather at Washington Square Park in New York City for an informal celebration featuring impromptu music performances, vendor stalls, and a group smoke session at 4:20 PM Eastern.
Cannafest
A three-day celebration of all things cannabis takes place at 3453 W Hamilton Ave in Nashville, the gathering goes way beyond smoking. It’s a full-on immersion into cannabis education, wellness benefits, and bringing like-minded folks together. Expect hands-on workshops, live music, vendors, art displays, hemp products and CBD-centered activities. Attendees need to be 21 and older to engage. Tickets start at $35.
RELATED CONTENT: Whoopi Goldberg To Debut Crisp Blend In ‘Whoop-Tea’ Cannabis Drink
Next week, Abrams ComicArts will publish Hugo Award-Winners Damian Duffy and John Jennings’ graphic novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler’s groundbreaking sci-fi novel Parable of the Talents.
Butler’s poignant 1993 novel Parable of the Sower follows Lauren Olamina, a preacher’s daughter who develops a new religion, Earthseed, while travelling the dangerous and dystopian country. Duffy and Jennings won the Hugo Award for their beautifully drawn graphic novel adaptation.
Now, they are taking on the sequel to Butler’s stunning novel, The Parable of the Talents, which follows Lauren’s daughter, Asha Vere.
The imprint was so kind to send us a preview of the graphic novel due to be in stores come April 22, 2025:
Pioneering author Octavia Butler’s literary science fiction masterpieces helped define American speculative fiction and Afrofuturism. Thanks to her prescient critiques of society, thrilling adventures, and charming characters, Butler’s bestselling novels are as beloved and relevant today as when they were first published. Now artists John Jennings and David Brame and writer Damian Duffy, who won the Eisner Award for Best Adaptation from Another Medium for their graphic novel adaptation of Butler’s beloved novel Kindred and the Hugo Award for their breathtaking take on Parable of the Sower, are reuniting with Abrams ComicArts to introduce a new generation of readers to Butler’s Parable of the Talents.
Being chosen to adapt the Parable duology by Octavia E. Butler into a graphic novel is both an honor and a very serious responsibility,” says artist John Jennings. “Those two books were so prescient and incredibly accurate with their forecasting that we are still amazed by the insightful creative acumen of Butler. It’s our hope that we did the story justice and that the underlying messages resonate through every word and every panel.”
Octavia Butler’s 1993 dystopian novel Parable of the Sower painted an alarmingly poignant picture of the year 2024, introducing readers to a world shaped by environmental disasters, economic instability, and social unrest. Following Lauren Olamina, a preacher’s daughter who develops a new religion while travelling the dangerous and dystopian country, Jennings and Duffy brought the sci-fi classic to life with a beautifully drawn graphic novel adaptation. Now they are taking on the sequel to Butler’s stunning novel, The Parable of the Talents, which follows Lauren’s daughter, Asha Vere.
The Parable of the Talents continues Butler’s masterful story set against a background of a war-torn continent under the control of a Christian fundamentalist fascist state. Asha searches for answers about her own past while struggling to reconcile with her mother’s legacy—caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future among the stars.
Octavia E. Butler (1947–2006) was a renowned African American author who was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Grant and PEN West Lifetime Achievement Award for her body of work. Since her death, sales of her books, including Wildseed, Imago, and Kindred have increased enormously as the issues she addressed in her Afrofuturistic feminist novels and short fiction have only become more relevant.
Damian Duffy, author of Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation and Parable of the Sower: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, is a cartoonist, scholar, writer, and teacher. He holds a MS and PhD in library and information sciences from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he is on faculty.
John Jennings is the curator of the Megascope list and illustrator of the graphic novel adaptations of Octavia E. Butler’s Kindred and Parable of the Sower. He is a professor of media and cultural studies at the University of California, Riverside.
Founded in 1949, ABRAMS was the first company in the United States to specialize in publishing art and illustrated books. The company continues to publish critically acclaimed and bestselling works in the areas of art, photography, cooking, craft, comics, interior and garden design, entertainment, fashion, and popular culture as well as narrative non-fiction and new works of fiction for adults; children’s books ranging from middle grade to young adult fiction to picture books to board books.
ABRAMS creates and distributes brilliantly designed books with the highest production values under the following imprints: Abrams; Abrams ComicArts; Megascope; Surely Books; Abrams Image; Abrams Press; The Overlook Press; Cernunnos; Cameron + Company; Abrams Books for Young Readers; Amulet Books; Abrams Appleseed; and Magic Cat. ABRAMS also distributes books for Booth-Clibborn Editions, Alain Ducasse Édition, Èditions de La Martiniére, Editions BPI, Global Golf Group, Lucky Spool, Milky Way Picture Books, The Museum of Modern Art, SelfMadeHero, Tate Publishing, V&A Publishing, and The Vendome Press.
For those local to California area: On Friday April 18 at 6:30 PM, Octavia’s Bookshelf will host a special evening featuring a signing and conversation with Parable of the Talents: A Graphic Novel Adaptation illustrator John Jennings at the Octavia E. Butler Magnet School. Guests will receive an exclusive bookplate showcasing an original portrait of Octavia Butler, illustrated by Jennings.
Parable of the Talents: A Graphic Novel Adaptation will be available on April 22, 2025 from Abrams ComicArts.
For updates, follow Abrams ComicArts on X, Facebook, Instagram, and Bluesky.
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The post PREVIEW: Graphic Novel Adaptation of ‘Parable of the Talents’ Coming April 2025 appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Whenever there is a new kind of film, fans get excited. But what makes Ryan Coogler’s Sinners so exciting is that he somehow managed to make a vampire story feel new and fresh.
Coogler managed to bring music, Hoodoo, race relations, and a fear of what lurks in the dark all thrown into one film. But the allure of his vampires lie in their ability to twist reality and make you question what you really believe. Vampires have always been captivating, it is why we’ve often turned to the same stories over and over again.
Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers is a new anime looking to deepen the world Arc System created with Strive. While GG is a well-loved fighting game series, the anime feels precisely like the narrative moments that pop up between fights. Dual Rulers is just like playing Guilty Gear: Strive. Just with none of the interactivity of playing the game. Let’s get into it.
Dual Rulers has the look down pat. The mixed, clunky steampunk-cyberpunk hybrid aesthetic is on full blast. Characters who look like created players are a part of what makes GG so alluring to begin with. Why does Sin Kiske wear a patch? No idea, but it’s provocative, gets people going, you know? Some very beautifully designed parts of each episode are mixed medium – a 2-D, hand-drawn, textured overlay over some settings that make the world feel more lived-in.
Cel shading and very crisp animation are what makes the Guilty Gear IP stand out (a signature and staple of Arc Systems). The fight scenes are easy to read, but the narrative threads holding the story together don’t have enough weight for anything to feel earned. Dual Rulers suffers from the polar opposite kind of aura farming (intentionally trying to make things look effortless) that Solo Leveling has mastered. Unless you’ve played a slew of Guilty Gear, you might not be able to keep up with what is already a paper-thin storyline. The reverse aura farming shows up in two ways; first, all the damn posing. Everyone strikes a very typical anime-style pose for about a second too long, and it reads as corny. Second is the Ken Burns-type beat sliding ‘introduction’ each character gets when they appear for the first time. In-game, that little bit of movement and drama is kind of cool and edgy. In an anime where there are a whole bunch of characters, the novelty wears off very quickly. For me, it was the middle of the first episode. It takes away from the frenetic pace of things.
Dual Rulers takes place throughout the happenings of Strive. The story unfolds further in the game as more DLC characters pop up, so it was never the drawing point to the game. The anime follows suit as it tries to get audiences to engage with Sin Kiske, having no idea he exists. His design makes him look older than his father (fan fave Ky Kiske) and more like his adopted father (actual fan fave Sol Badguy). Dual Rulers is confusing for anyone who isn’t a die-hard Guilty Gear fan. But for the Guilty Gear initiated, Dual Rulers is a gem that brings all of the characters players have spent countless hours mastering to life in a new way.
Yes, it’s fan service centered but Bast dammit it’s intentional. You have to appreciate that Arc System would go out of their way to fund a full animated production just to please their day-one fans. Dual Rulers is truly and honestly a love letter to a niche group of gamers who are going to lose their minds seeing their fandom in action. Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers airs on Crunchyroll, and the first episode dropped earlier this month. If you’re into nonstop action and dope character design, get more background information and narrative details at their website.
Cover image via Guilty Gear: Dual Ruler Official Website
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The post Such Wonderful Gowns: ‘Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers’ – Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.