A Tiny Sample Of Terrific Black Cosplayers

‘Tis the season of remembering and celebrating black excellence! Here at Nerd Caliber we have one of the most diverse staffs, from the different kinds of nerdy things we like and do, to our ethnic backgrounds. So in honor of Black History Month I’ve found some amazing Nerds of Color who are making moves in the booming area of cosplay and hope to make an impact on our community.

These five unique individuals will give you a glimpse of what it means to be a nerd of color and prove that the love of all things geeky isn’t about the color of your skin but the love for what inspires you.

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Meet Orrion Harris, of Orrion Cosplay! Orrion is a Black and Filipino cosplayer who started this hobby around 2012, who currently resides in the Hampton Roads of Virginia. Orrion’s community knows him as the Power Ranger cosplayer who is an ambassador of Jason David Frank in the state of Virginia. Harris is also affiliated with Michael Copon (aka: the Blue Power Ranger in Power Rangers: Time Force) having been able to work alongside him in Michael Copon Studios. Today he is a part of a group known as “7 Cities Heroes” in the Hampton Roads, filled with a variety of cosplayers with similar interests.

When asked what inspired him most in this nerdy world Orrion had this to say: “I got into the world of cosplay because I am a huge fan of art, creativity and self-expression. It’s an opportunity to be free amongst my peers who have the same love and passion. It’s all about the love for pop culture, anime, video games, art and many media outlets. Cosplay not only got me well acquainted with a community, I was able to land great opportunities while putting smiles on people’s faces.”

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Next up we have Harry Crosland, a cosplayer since 2009 who also runs the website Pop Culture Uncovered. Along with running this site he is a member of CosLove, a community service organization that helps families in need by operating various clothing, food and Toys for Tots drives. The idea behind CosLove is to not only dress as heroes but to BE heroes as well.

In honor of Black History Month, Harry and many others are taking part of #28DaysofBlackCosplay. In the words of Harry, “This effort is being used to inspire cosplayers of color everywhere to simply push the hashtag on social media with their pictures to show the world that we matter. Kids don’t see a lot of positive role models in the media and if they do, they don’t look like them. Many people are afraid to cosplay certain characters or just cosplay at all for fear of being told that they can’t because they aren’t the proper skin color of the character. This is why we are doing this. To show people that they can not only be Supermen and Ms. Marvel, but regardless of their color, they can be accepted without having to change themselves and be proud.”

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Mitsuki Aika aka: Melodic Mitsuki is a car servicewoman by day, cosplay burlesque performer by night and a nerd twenty-four hours of the day, seven days a week! Residing in the New Jersey/New York City area, Mitsuki has been cosplaying and commissioning work for other cosplayers and nerds alike since 2011. I had the wonderful pleasure of interviewing Mitsuki and her cosplay burlesque sisters at Anime USA 2014. Not only is she inspired by all the armor and fashion her favorite characters wear, what inspires her most are her friends who encourage her through the progression of making new cosplays.

Mitsuki hopes to impact the community by encouraging anyone that they can cosplay whoever they want, how they want; after all, “it’s for the love of the character you’re portraying!”

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We’re proud to call Jibrii Ransom aka: Spectra Marvelous one of our own here at Nerd Caliber. Hailing from Westchester, NY, Jibrii has been cosplaying since 2012. An avid geek lover of all kinds he had his debut into the world of cons when his friends introduced him to AnimeNEXT in 2011. Struck with love at first sight, Jibrii quickly learned how to sew, find the correct props and pieces for cosplays and eventually moved on to making his own EVA foam armor. For Jibrii, the art of cosplay isn’t about “cosfame” or having a million “likes” on his photos.

The talented Spectra Marvelous has said, “I want to show that anyone can and should cosplay, bringing positivity into this community if possible. I love making friends, and cosplay has allowed me to make some pretty marvelous friends. I really hope to continue on cosplaying, making bigger and better cosplays, meeting new people, making new friends, and venturing to new cons and areas across the country.”

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Last but not least here we have Brian Gregory of Bwildd Cosplay! An Army veteran from New Jersey who began cosplaying in 2010 who was mentored by the King of Cosplay Eric “the Smoke” Moran. Brian gives back to the community by making appearances at events such as Super Hero Day at Fort Detrick, Bring Your Kid to Work Day in Philadelphia, Camden, NJ’s Taking it to the Streets, and the Children’s Cancer Ward at Walter Reed. Brian is also a member of the East Coast Avengers, a non-profit organization that makes visits to children’s hospitals. Currently residing in Maryland, Brian is also a founding member of CosLove alongside Harry Crosland.

Quoting how Brian feels about his services to the community and cosplaying overall he has said, “To much is given, much is expected.”

A Happy Black History Month from all of us Nerd Caliber. Keep making strides and keep moving forward!