Kategoria BISAC: Music >> Genres & Styles - Rap & Hip Hop

In this groundbreaking book, Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar celebrates hip-hop and confronts the cult of authenticity that defines its essential character--that dictates how performers walk, talk, and express themselves artistically and also influences the consumer market. Hip-Hop Revolution is a balanced cultural history that looks past negative...

"A strong and timely book for the new day in hip-hop. Don't miss it "--Cornel West

For many African Americans of a certain demographic the sixties and seventies were the golden age of political movements. The Civil Rights movement segued into the Black Power movement which begat the Black Arts movement. Fast forward to 1979 and the release of Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight." With the onset of the Reagan years, we begin to see the unraveling of many of the advances fought for in the previous decades. Much of this occurred in the absence of credible, long-term leadership in the...

The spiciest ingredient in the legendary rap group Salt-N-Pepa, fans know Sandy Denton as Pep, or Pepa, the fun-loving half of Salt-N-Pepa. But behind the laughs and the smiles is a whole lot of pain, and for the first time, in Let's talk About Pep, she candidly talks about her troubled childhood, surviving abuse, her first encounters with Cheryl "Salt" James, instant success, her...

In the early 1990s, Demetrius "Big Meech" Flenory and his brother, Terry "Southwest T," rose up from the slums of Detroit to build one of the largest cocaine empires in American history: the Black Mafia Family. They socialized with music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, did business with New York's king of bling Jacob "The Jeweler" Arabo, and built allegiances with rap superstars Young Jeezy and Fabolous. Yet even as BMF was attracting celebrity attention, its crew members struck fear in a city.

When the brothers began clashing in 2003, the flashy and beloved Big Meech risked it all on a...

Why is the battle between good and evil a recurring theme in rap lyrics? What role does the devil play in hip hop? What exactly does it mean when rappers wear a diamond-encrusted "Jesus" around their necks? Why do rappers acknowledge God during award shows and frequently include prayers in their albums? "Rap and Religion: Understanding the Gangsta's God" tackles a sensitive and controversial topic: the juxtaposition--and seeming hypocrisy--of references to God within hip hop culture and rap music.

This book provides a focused examination of the intersection of God and religion with hip...