Megan Thee Stallion: One Piece’s Boa Hancock Inspires New Single and Album

On Tuesday, May 7, 2024, Megan Thee Stallion, an American rapper, revealed her upcoming single “BOA”which included references to the popular One Piece series. The cover art featured Megan dressed up as Boa Hancock, a character from Eiichiro Oda’s manga.

Megan is channeling the popular One Piece character in her latest pose, as seen on the cover art which includes a snake statue and text that evokes the tropical setting of Amazon Lily, home to the character Boa. It has also been revealed that Megan’s upcoming album, which features the single “Boa”, will be named after the beloved character from Oda’s manga and anime adaptation.

One Piece set to enter Western cultural zeitgeist yet again with Megan Thee Stallion’s Boa-inspired album

As of writing this article, there is no information on the release date of Megan’s new album, which is inspired by One Piece. However, her single “BOA”is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 10, 2024. This will mark her third single release in recent months, following the success of “Hiss”in January 2024 and “Cobra”in November 2023, both of which reached the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The upcoming album, inspired by Boa Hancock, will mark Megan’s first release since Tory Lanez was sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting her multiple times in the feet during an argument in Hollywood. Megan has previously expressed feeling dehumanized during the trial and its aftermath.

Megan is scheduled to begin her inaugural headlining tour, dubbed the “Hot Girl Summer Tour,”on Tuesday, May 14 in Minnesota. She will be joined by fellow female American rapper GloRilla, with whom she recently teamed up for the latter’s latest single, “Wanna Be.”The release date of Megan’s upcoming album is currently unknown, but her official website states that the tour will continue until the end of July 2024.

Megan, hailing from Houston, Texas, initially gained recognition as a rapper after her freestyle videos gained popularity on social media, particularly Instagram. In 2019, she achieved mainstream success with the release of her singles “Hot Girl Summer”and “Cash Sh*t,”with the former reaching number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the latter receiving quadruple platinum certification from the RIAA.

Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece manga was first published in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in July 1997 and is currently in its Final Saga. It has achieved global success, selling over half-a-billion copies and becoming the top-selling manga of all time. The manga was later adapted into a popular television anime by Toei Animation in October 1999 and continues to be ongoing.

In August 2023, Netflix debuted the live-action adaptation of the series and has since announced a second season. Filming for the second season will begin in June 2024, with an expected release exclusively on Netflix in early 2025.