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jashanac's review
I've had a used physical copy of this on my shelves forever, and I guess I just never looked into what exactly the book was about. I thought it was all about the history & development & changing trends of the hip-hop music genre. I assumed there would be some discussion of cultural shifts leading to different trends and sounds in hip-hop, but this was more or less ONLY about the politics of the early hip-hop generation.
Looking at some reviews it seems the book was pretty well-received overall, but I do see a lot of comments that it isn't so much about the music itself, and that several major hip-hop artists are left out entirely. Also that KRS-One was unhappy with how his Stop the Violence movement was portrayed.
Essentially it doesn't seem like a bad book and I'm sure it has some interesting discussions or information, but it simply isn't what I was looking for or what I thought it was.
Looking at some reviews it seems the book was pretty well-received overall, but I do see a lot of comments that it isn't so much about the music itself, and that several major hip-hop artists are left out entirely. Also that KRS-One was unhappy with how his Stop the Violence movement was portrayed.
Essentially it doesn't seem like a bad book and I'm sure it has some interesting discussions or information, but it simply isn't what I was looking for or what I thought it was.
bexrecca's review
5.0
How hip hop came to be and why it is what it is. A good look at the sociological/racial history of hip hop and the hip hop generation. I loved this book.
canuckwombat's review
4.0
Incredibly in-depth account of what feels like almost the entire pre-2005 history of Hip-Hop. Dense, but well worth the read
nuhafariha's review
3.0
I wanted to like this book a lot more than I think I did. It's a great contextualization for hip hop, because music rarely exists without being impacted and impacting the society it's created in and Chang draws really interesting, thoughtful links between anti-apartheid movements, globalization, anti communism interference by the US government and student activism and relates it all to hip hop. I just wish that he had taken time to talk more about feminism in hip hop (how can Lauryn Hill or Missy Elliot only get a sentence or two???) and about Southern hip hop instead of focusing solely on the East/West divide.
k80uva's review
4.0
Really wonderful, gripping book. It's great for explaining all the different musical roots and evolutions of hip hop and especially for its excellent contextualizing of hip hop in terms of political shifts happening in America.