Poetry Blerds and Jams

PB&J is a Comic Con that celebrates Black existence across sci‑fi, fantasy, comics, and spoken word poetry. It’s a space where spoken word poets, comic creators, cosplayers, gamers, readers, and dreamers come together to build worlds, share stories, and honor the power of Black imagination in every form.

Held inside Germantown’s historic Braid Mills, PB&J is Philly‑coded from the ground up. From the flyers to the panels, from the food to the fashion, this con speaks in Philly slang, walks with Germantown rhythm, and uplifts the voices mainstream cons overlook. It’s a home for Blerds, storytellers, and anyone who knows that Black creativity has always been cosmic.

Philly is a poetry city. From cyphers to marches, slams, open mics, and library readings, poetry has always been the heartbeat of our neighborhoods. PB&J puts spoken word front and center, treating poets like the superheroes they are, using mics as their weapons and metaphors as their powers.

Expect live performances, an artist alley, and panels that explore how poetry intersects with comics, anime, and speculative fiction. Whether you perform poetry, create comics, or are a fan, this con sees you as world building.

“Blerd” means Black nerd and we wear that badge with pride. PB&J centers Blerds because Philly has always been a city where Black imagination thrives, even when mainstream spaces acted like we weren’t in the room. This Comic Con is built for the folks who love X Men, Sailor Moon, Gundam Wing, The Boondocks, Static Shock, Cannon Busters, Yasuke, and the whole universe of Afrofuturist and Black centered animation and comics. It is also for the readers and creators who ride for Black fiction writers like Octavia Butler, N.K. Jemisin, Nnedi Okorafor, Toni Morrison, Tananarive Due, and Walter Mosley, and for the fans who follow Black comic book writers like Dwayne McDuffie, Christopher Priest, Ta Nehisi Coates, Roxane Gay, Eve L. Ewing, David F. Walker, and Vita Ayala. PB&J flips the script by putting Black characters, Black creators, and Black fans at the center of the story. It is a place where you can cosplay as Storm, debate the best Black anime protagonists, or build your own superhero from scratch while surrounded by people who get it. In a city that has always nurtured storytellers, dreamers, and world builders, PB&J gives Blerds the spotlight they’ve always deserved.

This con flips the script. It centers Black characters, Black creators, and Black fans. It is a place where you can cosplay as Storm, debate the best Black anime protagonists, or build your own superhero from scratch while surrounded by people who get it.

PB&J is packed with programming that blends art, activism, and joy, all rooted in Blerd culture:

• Artist Alley

Meet local illustrators, graphic novelists, and visual storytellers whose work expands the worlds Blerds love. From indie comics to Afrofuturist character designs, Artist Alley celebrates the creators who have always pushed Black imagination forward, even when mainstream comics did not make space for us.

• Panel Discussions

Dive into conversations such as “Poetry as a Superpower,” “Afrofuturists Organizing,” and “Black in Comics: Celebrating Black Voices.” These panels center the questions Blerds and Poets have been asking for years about how we see ourselves in the stories we love, how we build new ones, and how we make fandom more Black, more accessible, and more ours.

• Live Performances

Experience spoken word, music, and theatrical moments that turn the con into a stage. Performance has always been part of Blerd culture, from the rhythm of anime intros to the cadence of poetry slams, and PB&J brings that energy forward to show how Black creativity moves across genres.

Whether you perform poetry, create comics, or are a fan, this con sees you as world building.

Because Germantown is sacred ground. It is where history meets hustle. It is where Black families built legacies, where artists found their voice, and where resistance has always lived. PB&J honors Germantown’s legacy by making it the home base for cosmic Black joy. We are not renting culture, we are building from it. Every panel, every flyer, every jawn is infused with Germantown pride.

We believe everyone deserves to feel safe, seen, and celebrated, especially in spaces built for imagination. If you need support or accommodations, reach out to us so we can serve you in the best ways possible. We want you to not only imagine yourself in this space but to fully exist in it. Contact us at outreach@poetryblerdsandjams.com.